Shaquille O'Neal to open Big Chicken restaurants in Florida
BAY COUNTY, Fla. - Just when you thought Shaq couldn't get any bigger, he brings a ‘Big’ franchise to Florida!
The Panhandle Restaurant Group has signed an agreement to bring Shaquille O'Neal's Big Chicken restaurant chain to the Florida Panhandle!
Big Chicken fuses O’Neal’s home-cooked childhood favorites with today’s trending flavors.
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"From crispy chicken sandwiches and tenders to Cheez-It crusted mac n’ cheese and hand-crafted ice cream shakes, each menu item tells a story all while offering guests an inside look into the life and personality of Shaquille O’Neal," the restaurant group wrote in a press release.
If the menu at the Panhandle restaurants are anything like the one in Las Vegas, diners could enjoy several varieties of chicken sandwiches including the Shaq Attack (pepper jack cheese, jalapeño slaw, spicy chipotle bbq sauce) and the Charles Barkley (mac & cheese, crispy fried onions, roasted garlic bbq aioli). To kick your 'wich up a notch, you can choose from several tasty sauces.
The menu also offers sliders and several side dishes like Dirty Fries (cheese sauce, bacon, banana peppers, chipotle bbq), Jalapeño slaw, and Lucille's mac n' cheese.
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The plan is to open 40 restaurants along Florida's Panhandle. As far as coming to Orlando – where the NBA legend lived and played for the Magic – only time will tell.
Big Chicken currently has a couple of locations open in the U.S. (Glendale, California and Las Vegas) and on two Carnival Cruise ships. The chain is preparing to begin U.S. and international franchise expansion.
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