Grand openings of new restaurants are often well attended but Saturday’s opening of the first Big Chicken in Houston combined with Shaquille O’Neal’s presence and free menu offerings brought out so many people the fire marshal eventually shut everything down and had the crowd ushered outside the building.
The parking lots on both sides of Westheimer between South Gessner and Tanglewilde were packed with vehicles as Houstonians gathered in front of the newly opened restaurant nestled in Woodlake Square near a Walgreens. As more cars arrived attempting to find any space available, the line in front of Big Chicken began to break down into a mass of people trying to get in the front door.
As people pushed toward the entrance, police cleared an area out for patrons to exit. People exiting holding chicken sandwiches and fries filed through the quickly closing mass of fans pressing against the windows trying to get a peek inside.
Standing near the doorway, just within the view of people near the front of the crowd, was Shaquille O’Neal. The seven-foot one inch basketball phenomenon towered over the other people in the restaurant as he made his way around the room, shaking hands, signing autographs, and posing for pictures. At one point a shorter woman stopped him to get a selfie and as she held the camera out quickly realized how difficult it would be to get O’Neal and her in the same picture.
“Let me do that for you,” Shaq laughed as he grabbed her phone and captured the picture with his outstretched arm.
The interaction only lasted a second before the former Lakers center moved to the next fan looking for their moment with the superstar. Shaquille O’Neal has turned a successful NBA career into a business empire. He has become a mogul investing and owning everything from restaurants to movie theaters to car washes. If Saturday’s turnout is any indication, O’Neal is well on his way to adding another success to his portfolio. For O’Neal, the response is just another blessing from the city he now calls home.
“I’ve been living here for 30 years,” he said as he paused to sign a card being held up by a young boy. “I just want to thank the people of Houston for coming out. I love the turnout but if it was ten people or one hundred people, I’m going to be thankful.”
Big Chicken, a franchise started in 2018, is molded around the personality of Shaquille O’Neal, advertising itself as the only concept that offers guests an inside look into the life and personality of the NBA superstar. Each item on the menu is said to have Shaquille’s individualized touch with offerings like chicken sandwiches, popcorn chicken, tenders, sliders, salads, fries, shakes, ice cream sandwiches, and cookies. For Shaq the menu is a reminder of the food he ate as a child.
“This is my creation—Excuse me, this is my mama’s creation. Coming where we come from me and this little guy had to eat chicken a lot,” laughed Shaq as he motioned toward his almost seven-foot-tall brother. “Chicken sandwiches, chicken tacos, chicken everything. When the opportunity came to create this franchise, we had a meeting and sold over 250. This is the first to open in Houston. I just wanted people to come out so I’m paying for everything today. Try it. If you like it, cool. If you don’t let me know why because we want to make this one of the best restaurants out here.”
After the fire marshal moved everyone outside, Shaq followed behind them. When the doors were finally closed and locked O’Neal remained, continuing to sign autographs, shake hands, and take pictures.
Time will tell whether Big Chicken will be a success in Houston, but with a franchisor like Shaquille O’Neal the odds are favorable it will be around for a while.
Big Chicken
9630 Westheimer, No. 1,000
346-223-6942
bigchicken.com/houston-tx
This article appears in Jan 1 – Dec 31, 2023.
