Bojangles to open third central Ohio location this summer
DELAWARE, Ohio (WCMH) -- Central Ohio will soon be home to a third Bojangles, the fast-food chain known for its Southern-style chicken and biscuits.
The quick-service restaurant is opening a new location this summer at 39 Coughlin Lane in Delaware. The location will mark the chain's third central Ohio restaurant after the first launched in Hilliard in 2023 and the second opened in Heath later that year.
Bojangles' expansion into Columbus is part of a recent deal with franchise owner Jeff Rigsby, who is opening around 45 locations throughout the next several years. The chain said restaurants will be developed in Rigsby's core markets, including Georgia, Kentucky, North Carolina, South Carolina and Tennessee, along with Columbus, which is slated for 15 locations.
"Jeff has been a valued partner of the Bojangles brand for over 20 years, and we could not be more thrilled to extend this business relationship to 45 new locations, including expansion into a new market for our brand," said Jose Costa, Bojangles chief development officer, at the time of the announcement in 2021.
An exact opening date for the Coughlin Lane location has yet to be announced.
The North Carolina chain is following in the footsteps of several other chicken brands that have recently expanded in central Ohio, like Huey Magoo's, a fellow southern chain that opened a third central Ohio restaurant last fall. Dave's Hot Chicken, a national brand boasted as a "hot chicken sensation," also opened a third Columbus-area eatery last year.
Chick-fil-A is also expanding by bulldozing several central Ohio restaurants to make room for new locations. The chain is planning on demolishing a Buca di Beppo in Worthington after the restaurant closed earlier this year.
Big Chicken, the brand founded by Hall of Fame basketball star Shaquille O'Neal, has yet to deliver on plans announced in 2023 to open several dozen Ohio locations. Similarly, Slim Chickens shared plans in early 2024 to open 25 restaurants in Ohio but has since only launched a few eateries.