In 2018, when Shaquille O’Neal opened the first outlet of his Big Chicken at Las Vegas’ Mandalay Bay, he never had a short-term goal for his concept. He launched “Big Chicken Shaq” reality on Facebook Watch to promote his fast-food restaurant, and over half a decade later, it has grown into one of the fastest-growing fast-food franchises in America. The NBA legend never intended to limit Big Chicken within American borders.

Just a month later, Shaq launched his eatery in collaboration with Carnival Cruise Line to initiate the first expansion to international waters. Carnival Radiance became the first Carnival ship to have Big Chicken on board, and it soon expanded to others. After six years of its launch, Big Chicken took its first step beyond borders. In late 2024, Co-op Live Arena in Manchester, England, became the second location outside the US.

On Friday, the brand announced its third international project.

O’Neal’s Big Chicken stepped into Canada and opened the first outlet at the newly renovated TD Coliseum, outside Toronto. According to Your City WithIN, more outlets in Ontario and other Canadian cities are already in the pipeline.

Three years after opening his fast food brand, Shaq started to franchise it in 2021, and four years later, he got his first investor in Craveworthy Brands.

Currently, Shaq’s Big Chicken has close to 50 fully operational locations, with over 300 locations reportedly in the pipeline.

While Big Chicken has now become a global brand, very few know that it all started with Shaq’s big taunt to a longtime friend.

The story behind Shaquille O’Neal’s Big Chicken

The seeds of Shaq’s Big Chicken were first sown in 2017. The Lakers legend posed a big question to Perry Rogers, his longtime business partner.

“You’ve built this big restaurant company,” Shaq asked. “What have you built for me?”

A year later, Shaq, Rogers and Matt Silverman, Shaq’s another longtime friend, were at the Mandalay Bay, inaugurating the first location of Shaq’s Big Chicken. It is Shaq’s appeal and authenticity that lie at the heart of the company. It eventually saw overwhelming love from its customers.

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Big Chicken’s menu hit very close to home because it was inspired by Shaq’s mom, Lucille O’Neal, whose handmade food the NBA legend grew up eating.

“This is my creation – excuse me, this is my mama’s creation,” he shared during the opening of Big Chicken in Houston. “Coming where we come from, me and this little guy had to eat chicken a lot.”

O’Neal blended his playful personality to make eating fun for his customers.

The menu on the board includes “Uncle Jerome,” a sandwich named after his bodyguard. Another sandwich on the menu reads, “Sir Charles,” one of the restaurant’s signature dishes, named after Shaq’s frenemy, Charles Barkley. Every item has a character and brings people close to someone they never knew.

When Big Chicken started to grow, Shaq wanted sustainability while maintaining the authenticity that lay at the base of his restaurant. He hired Josh Halpern as the CEO of Big Chicken to handle the expansion, both on and outside the US. After the US, UK, and Canada, Shaq’s Big Chicken is also planning to expand into Central America, with the first stop expected to be in Honduras.