citations for verification . please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources . unsourced material may be challenged and removed . february 2009 learn how and when to remove this template message church s chicken type private industry food founded april 17 1952 headquarters sandy springs georgia united states number of locations 1 700 key people george w. church founder jim hyatt ceo products fast food including fried chicken french fries and biscuits owner friedman fleischer & lowe website churchs.com church s chicken is a u.s. based chain of fast food restaurants specializing in fried chicken also trading outside north america and asia as texas chicken . 1 the chain was founded as church s fried chicken to go by george w. church sr. on april 17 1952 in san antonio texas across the street from the alamo . the company with its headquarters in sandy springs georgia 2 3 is the fourth largest chicken restaurant chain behind kfc chick fil a and former sister chain popeyes louisiana kitchen . 4 contents 1 history 2 see also 3 references 4 external links history edit this section needs expansion with more info before 1980s . you can help by adding to it . january 2014 church s chicken detroit initially the restaurant only sold chicken but added fries and jalape os in 1955 . 4 the company had four restaurants by the time of church s death in 1956 . in the 1980s the chain briefly operated a hamburger franchise called g. w. jrs in texas . 5 from 1979 through 1986 church s chicken sponsored the grand prix series of chess tournaments under the auspices of the united states chess federation . 6 rapid growth followed and church s became the second largest chicken restaurant chain in 1989 when it merged with popeyes chicken & biscuits . 4 the brands had their supply lines consolidated but were still marketed as separate chains . hala moddelmog was appointed as president of church s chicken in 1996 making her the first female president of a fast food restaurant chain . church s was owned by afc enterprises along with popeyes chicken & biscuits and cinnabon through the end of 2004 when it was sold to arcapita formerly crescent capital investments . because arcapita is an islamic venture capital firm pork products were removed from the menu after the sale as pork is not halal in 2005 . 7 8 also american church s chicken restaurants switched beverage products to coca cola some locations serving coke products and dr pepper while still retaining the pepsi contract in canada . texas chicken in tbilisi on august 10 2009 san francisco private equity firm friedman fleischer & lowe bought church s chicken from arcapita . 9 in some areas church s is co franchised with the white castle hamburger chain . 10 in canada church s chicken items were once available in harvey s restaurants but the co venture was discontinued . 11 to date church s chicken has over 1 660 locations in 30 countries . 12 there are locations in bulgaria canada cura ao egypt georgia tbilisi guyana honduras indonesia iraq jordan kazakhstan kuwait malaysia mexico new zealand russia st. kitts saint lucia saudi arabia singapore syria thailand trinidad and tobago turkey ukraine the united arab emirates venezuela vietnam and puerto rico . the menu for church s has expanded to include fried okra cole slaw mashed potatoes corn on the cob and honey butter biscuits . also newer entree choices have emerged including sandwiches nuggets tacos and a spicy flavor option for the chicken . 13 in early june 2015 texas chicken came under flak in malaysia when one of the customers complained about the food coming from church referring to the brand name texas church chicken . as muslims are known to consume halal food any food which is non halal is deemed inappropriate for muslim consumption . 14 upon clarification from texas chicken that the name church is not related to religion but rather is the name of the founder the issue was put to rest . 15 see also edit list of fast food chicken restaurants food portal references edit texas chicken enters india with its first outlet in hyderabad . prlog.org . retrieved 4 november 2015 . grand opening church s chicken . retrieved on february 23 2010 . city council districts . city of sandy springs . retrieved on july 4 2009 . a b c history of church s chicken . at official website church s chicken history . fundinguniverse.com . retrieved july 17 2014 . us chess federation . retrieved december 31 2014 . afc enterprises inc. franchisor of popeyes church s chicken ; and cinnabon reports improved results for the fourth quarter . amonline.com . 2003 12 16 . retrieved 2009 02 03 . janet levy 2008 05 02 . outlawing the pig . frontpagemagazine.com . retrieved 2009 02 03 . church s chicken sold to private equity firm . san antonio business journal . american city business journals . 10 august 2009 . archived from the original on 25 october 2012 . retrieved 9 september 2016 . gramig mickey h. november 2006 . white castle church s chicken to share restaurant sites . knight ridder tribune business news . retrieved 2009 02 03 . dead link lorinc john 1995 . opportunity knocks the truth about canada s franchise industry . prentice hall . isbn 0 13 455693 3 . retrieved july 17 2014 . church s chicken . linkedin.com . retrieved 2014 07 17 . church s chicken . retrieved 2014 12 31 . http www.themalaymailonline.com malaysia article muslim dont eat food from church brand a tale of chickens from texas http www.themalaymailonline.com malaysia article muslim man apologises after foul up over texas chickens churchs brand external links edit wikimedia commons has media related to church s chicken . official website company history church s chickens locator v t e chicken based restaurant chains global chester s chicken cottage church s texas chicken dixy chicken kenny rogers roasters kfc nando s pollo campero popeyes southern fried chicken wienerwald regional africa chicken licken za chicken republic ng tastee fried chicken ng asia al baik sa al tazaj sa bacolod chicken inasal ph bonchon chicken kr california fried chicken id the chicken rice shop my dicos cn home original chicken cn jollibee ph klg tw kyochon kr marrybrown my max s of manila ph mang inasal ph pelicana chicken kr scr my tkk fried chicken tw europe chicken cottage uk dixy chicken uk morley s uk sam s chicken uk southern fried chicken uk north america boston market bojangles us brown s chicken & pasta us buffalo wild wings buffalo wings & rings bush s chicken us chefette bb chick fil a us chicken express us chicken out rotisserie chicken salad chick us cluck u us dixie lee ca el pollo loco us foosackly s us golden chick us golden skillet us guthrie s harold s chicken shack juan pollo us kyochon lee s famous louisiana fried chicken mary brown s ca mrs. winner s pioneer chicken pollo palenque pollo tropical us quaker steak & lube raising cane s us ranch1 roscoe s royal castle tt roy rogers us scores st hubert ca smithfield s us swiss chalet ca tip top wild wing wingstop wingstreet pdq us wing zone us zankou chicken us zaxby s us oceania chicken treat au chooks fresh & tasty au henny penny au kingsley s chicken au oporto au red rooster au south and central america pollos frisby co rostipollos cr list of chicken restaurants v t e fast food and fast casual restaurant chains in the united states chicken chains coffeehouse chains pizza chains hamburgers a & w back yard big boy burger king carl s jr. checkers rally s cook out fatburger five guys freddy s fuddruckers the habit hardee s in n out jack in the box johnny rockets krystal mcdonald s roy rogers shake shack smashburger sonic steak n shake wayback wendy s whataburger white castle asian l & l hawaiian barbecue manchu wok panda express pei wei asian diner pick up stix sarku baked goods au bon pain auntie anne s bruegger s cinnabon corner bakery cafe dunkin donuts einstein bros. great american cookies honey dew donuts krispy kreme mrs. fields nestl toll house panera bread pretzelmaker pretzel time shipley do nuts tim hortons t.j. cinnamons wetzel s winchell s beverages argo tea biggby coffee caribou coffee bean & tea leaf coffee beanery dunn bros gloria jean s jamba juice juice it up orange julius peet s planet smoothie robeks seattle s best coffee smoothie king starbucks teavana tropical smoothie cafe tully s frozen desserts baskin robbins ben & jerry s braum s bruster s carvel cold stone culver s dairy queen dippin dots fosters freeze friendly s golden spoon graeter s h agen dazs handel s kiwi yogurt maggiemoo s marble slab menchie s pinkberry red mango rita s sweet frog tastee freez tcby tropical sno tutti frutti yogen fr z yogurtland hot dogs hot dog on a stick nathan s famous portillo s wienerschnitzel mexican style tex mex baja fresh cafe rio chipotle del taco el pollo loco freebirds green red burrito moe s pancheros qdoba rubio s taco bell taco bueno taco cabana taco del mar taco john s taco mayo taco time wahoo s fish taco noodles fazoli s noodles & company sandwiches arby s atlanta bread blimpie capriotti s charley s cos cousins d angelo daphne s erbert & gerbert s firehouse subs great wraps jason s jerry s subs jersey mike s jimmy john s lenny s sub mcalister s deli miami subs mr. hero newk s eatery penn station port of subs pdq potbelly quiznos rax runza sandella s schlotzsky s steak escape subway togo s tubby s tudor s biscuit world which wich seafood arthur treacher s captain d s h. salt esquire ivar s long john silver s skippers seafood & chowder house defunct bresler s ice cream brigham s burger chef carrols d lites druther s henry s hamburgers hot n now hot sam pretzels naugles red barn sandy s zantigo retrieved from https en.wikipedia.org w index.php title church % 27s chicken & oldid 743661505 categories restaurants in texasrestaurants in san antoniofast food chains of the united statesfast food poultry restaurantschicken chains of the united statescompanies based in sandy springs georgiarestaurants established 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