The First Chick-Fil-A In London Seen Opening In Kingston-Upon Thames

Posted in: Comics, Nerd Food, Pop Culture | Tagged: Chick-fil-A, kingston-upon-thames, london, piranha comics

We have seen the evidence that theb first Chick-Fil-A in London will be opening in Kingston-Upon Thames on Eden Street

In recent years, it was announced that the controversial American fast-food chicken restaurant Chick-fil-A would be coming to the United Kingdom, with five outlets added to its 3,000 across the USA, Canada and Puerto Rico. These five UK restaurants will be its only ones outside North America. Two years ago, they opened two Chick-fil-A restaurants in Belfast, and last year saw their Leeds location open. There are two more yet to be announced, in London and Liverpool. And Bleeding Cool has seen the sign that their much-demanded first London location will be on Eden Street in Kingston-Upon-Thames, in the far south west of London. Quite literally, behind some hoardings, and very close to my local comic shop, Piranha Comics in Kingston. I get the feeling that Piranha folk will be quite keen on this opening…

Lichfields of Mincing Lane, London (seriously?) applied to the Kingston Borough Council ro make alterations to the building which previously housed the HSBC bank, for Chick-fil-A to “facilitate the occupation of the building for use as a restaurant” for the corner formed by 90 Eden Street and 56-58 Clarence Street, one of the highest footfall areas in Kingston, close to the major bus stops. Retail property company Four & Co are renting the property to Chick-fil-A and asked for $300,000 a year. Here are the planning application details, acquired by Bleeding Cool.

Previously, Chick-fil-A opened its first UK pop-up in Reading back in 2019, though that restaurant was shut down after campaigns by LGBTQ+ groups, as activists objected to the chain’s charitable support for groups opposing same-sex marriage. A second opened in Aviemore in Scotland, though that also only ran for three months until January 2020. But these new five stores are part of a $100 million investment into Chick-fil-A’s UK market over the next decade. This is all in the context of Popeyes, Carl’s Jr, Dave’s Hot Chicken and Captain D’s also expanding across the country, albeit less controversially.

Chick-fil-A is one of the most popular fast-food chains in the United States, the largest chain specializing in chicken sandwiches and traces its roots back to 1946 when S. Truett Cathy, a devout Southern Baptist, and his brother opened a small diner called the Dwarf Grill in Hapeville, Georgia, near Atlanta and experimented with a boneless chicken breast sandwich, pressure-cooking it and serving it on a bun with pickles. The chain remains privately held and family-controlled. They are also famed for closing on Sunday, to honour the Christian Sabbath. The chain stopped most controversial donations around several years ago and focused more on general community giving. The Leeds store on Commercial Street was led by local Owner-Operator and Londoner Mike Hoy, who partnered with St George’s Crypt to distribute surplus food to the needy.

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