Big Chicken, the Shaquille O’Neal-owned brand, is set to open at Broad and 4th Streets (410 Broad St.). The new location pairs with the liveliness of the neighborhood, and is arriving with an opening celebration on Monday. The first 34 fans (a nod to O'Neal's jersey number) in line will have the chance to score free Big Chicken food and drinks for a year, limited to $10 a week.
The downtown opening is the second in the Greater Chattanooga area this year. Chattanooga’s own, Jim Richards, a restaurateur and executive within the QSR industry, along with his partners, Brion Voges, Andrew Gardner and Bruce Bowman, signed a 10-unit franchise agreement with Big Chicken for the Chattanooga, Knoxville and Nashville markets. They recently signed their first lease in the Nashville area.
“Our roots run deep in Chattanooga," said Mr. Richards. "My business partners, Brian and Andrew, grew up here, and my family and I have served the community through our restaurants for nearly two decades. That’s why it was so important to us to launch Big Chicken here, where I know people will love our southern-inspired flavors and hospitality.” Mr. Richards currently oversees the operations of 13 Five Guys restaurants in Tennessee and Georgia, as well as Fiamma Pizza Co. “We opened Big Chicken in Hixson and every day since excitement has been building in the area for this new location.”
In less than three years of franchising the brand, Big Chicken has a list of 350 locations in development nationwide and more than 30 locations open in traditional and non-traditional restaurant settings. Big Chicken fuses O’Neal’s home-cooked childhood favorites with today’s trending flavors. Offerings at the Chattanooga location will include The Original Big Chicken sandwich (Shaq Sauce and pickles), Uncle Jerome’s Nashville Hot (Nashville Hot Chicken, lettuce, mayo and pickles), and The Ultimate (mac & cheese, crispy fried onions and roasted garlic BBQ aioli), along with the crispy crinkle cut fries and ice cream milkshakes.
“Jim and I have been imagining this opening for months,” said Josh Halpern, CEO of Big Chicken. “We toured the location together, right in the heart of the city. I love that this is the group to make Shaquille’s vision of Big Flavor and Big Fun a pillar in Downtown Chattanooga and beyond.”
The Ultimate