Big Chicken, backed by Shaq, announces opening date for Bridgewater restaurant

BRIDGEWATER – Foodies just scored big with the announcement of Big Chicken's July 18 opening date at Bridgewater Commons.

The chicken sandwich chain restaurant backed by Shaquille O'Neal will be at the Village at Bridgewater Commons at 640 Commons Way, Suite 4240. The restaurant will be open from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m.

It's the first New Jersey location for the NBA Hall of Famer’s eatery, which has over 40 locations across the US.

The first 34 people in line will have the chance to win $10 worth of free food per week for a year, as a nod to Shaq’s retired jersey number.

Adi Patel and Chad Patel, franchisees of the Bridgewater location, plan to expand once the first restaurant opens and are happy to be the ones to bring Shaq’s chain to the state where he grew up.

“Both Adi and I have a passion for big flavors and from the first time we tried Big Chicken’s menu items, specifically Uncle Jerome’s Nashville Hot sandwich, we knew we had to be the group to introduce Shaquille’s childhood favorites to his home state,” said Chad.

Big Chicken menu items include The Original Big Chicken sandwich, Uncle Jerome’s Nashville Hot (Nashville hot chicken, lettuce, mayo and pickles), and The Ultimate (mac and cheese, crispy fried onions and roasted garlic BBQ aioli), along with the crispy crinkle cut fries and delicious ice cream milkshakes.

An additional 350 restaurants are being planned across the country.

Go: 640 Commons Way, Suite 4240, Bridgewater; bigchicken.com/bridgewater-nj.

This article originally appeared on MyCentralJersey.com: Big Chicken, backed by Shaq, opening at Bridgewater Commons July 18