Bojangles (restaurant) facts for kids
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Bojangles in Tifton, Georgia
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Trade name
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Bojangles |
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| Private | |
| Industry | Food |
| Founded | 1977 |
| Founders | Jack Fulk Richard Thomas |
| Headquarters | Charlotte, North Carolina, United States |
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Number of locations
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790 (2022) |
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Area served
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14 states |
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Key people
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| Products | Fast food, including fried chicken, biscuits, french fries |
| Revenue |  US$547 million (2021) |
| Owner | Jordan Company Durational Capital Management |
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Number of employees
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9,900 (2021) |
Bojangles is a popular fast-food restaurant chain. It is famous for its delicious fried chicken and buttermilk biscuits. The food has a special Cajun seasoning. Most Bojangles restaurants are in the southeastern part of the U.S.. Jack Fulk and Richard Thomas started the company in Charlotte, North Carolina, in 1977.
Bojangles has had restaurants in other countries too. These include Jamaica, Honduras, and Mexico. As of 2022[update], you can find Bojangles in 14 U.S. states. These states include Alabama, Florida, Georgia, and North Carolina. North Carolina, where it began, has the most locations. New restaurants are also planned for Texas and Ohio.
The Story of Bojangles
The very first Bojangles restaurant opened its doors in 1977. It was located in Charlotte, North Carolina. Just one year later, the first restaurant owned by a franchisee started operating. This means someone else bought the right to open a Bojangles using the company's name and recipes.
In 1981, Jack Fulk sold his idea for Bojangles to a company called Horn & Hardart. Bojangles became well-known in 1989. This was when Hurricane Hugo hit the Carolinas. Most other fast-food places closed, but Bojangles stayed open.
Under Horn and Hardart's ownership, the chain grew quickly. It expanded to 335 restaurants. This included 100 locations in Florida.
In 1990, Horn and Hardart sold most of their share in Bojangles. The company was then led by Dick Campbell, who used to work for KFC. Later, Jim Peterson became the CEO. In 1998, a new group of investors bought the company.
Bojangles continued to grow in the 1990s and 2000s. The 300th location opened in 2003. In 2005, the first Bojangles on a college campus opened. It was at Central Piedmont Community College. The company also bought the naming rights for the Charlotte Coliseum.
In 2007, a company called Falfurrias Capital Partners bought Bojangles. The first airport location opened in 2008. It was at the Charlotte Douglas International Airport. In 2011, another company, Advent International, bought Bojangles.
In 2012, Bojangles started sponsoring a NASCAR race. It was called the Bojangles' Southern 500. Another college campus restaurant opened at UNC Greensboro.
The 600th Bojangles restaurant opened on July 8, 2014. The mayor of Charlotte, Dan Clodfelter, helped celebrate the opening.
In 2019, Jose Armario became the new CEO of Bojangles. He had worked at McDonald's before. Brian Unger also joined as the chief operating officer.
On January 28, 2019, two companies, the Jordan Company and Durational Capital Management, bought Bojangles. This made Bojangles a privately owned company again.
In December 2019, Bojangles made a deal with Love's Travel Stops & Country Stores. They planned to add 40 Bojangles locations inside Love's Travel Stops. These would be in new states for Bojangles.
On August 3, 2020, Bojangles announced a big change. They decided to drop the apostrophe from their name. So, "Bojangles'" became "Bojangles." On the same day, they announced a partnership with Dale Earnhardt Jr.. He was the first famous person to say, "It's Bo Time."
In March 2021, Bojangles shared plans to open in Columbus, Ohio. This would be their first location in Ohio. In March 2022, Bojangles also announced plans to open 10 new locations in New Jersey.
What's on the Menu?
Bojangles restaurants serve their full menu all day long. For breakfast, they are famous for their biscuit sandwiches. You can get a special chicken filet biscuit. They also offer country ham, egg, cheese, bacon, and sausage biscuits.
For lunch and dinner, the main item is their bone-in fried chicken. They also have many side dishes, called "Fixin's." These include French fries, cajun-seasoned pinto beans, and dirty rice. Other popular sides are Bo-tato Rounds, coleslaw, and macaroni and cheese.
Bojangles also offers boneless chicken tenders. These are called "Chicken Supremes." You can get them with different dipping sauces. They also have fried and grilled chicken sandwiches. The "Bojangler" is a fish sandwich. You can also find salads with grilled or fried chicken.
For dessert, they have the Bo-Berry biscuit. It's a biscuit with blueberries and a sweet glaze. They also offer a sweet-potato fried pie and cinnamon biscuits. Sometimes, they have special items for a limited time, like pork chop biscuits.
Images for kids
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Logo used from 1977 until 2020
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Advertisement for Bojangles' at Durham Athletic Park in Durham, North Carolina (1989)
