Slim Chickens is opening its first MS Coast restaurant. Here’s where and when
More than 100 Slim Chickens fast casual restaurants are open nationwide, and now one is coming to Biloxi.
Southern Partners, based in Greenwood, is bringing the franchise restaurant to the Coast. The company selected the site at the corner of Cedar Lake and Popp’s Ferry Road in Biloxi, where a tent pops up seasonally to sell fireworks and Christmas trees.
The restaurant will have seating indoors and outdoor patio seating, a drive-thru and curbside pick-up, said David Bagwell, one of the partners in Southern Partners.
Plans for the restaurant are going through the city approval process, and the restaurant is expected to open late this year or early 2022.
Slim Chickens is known for its chicken tenders, sandwiches, wraps, wings and salads. The natural chicken is given a Southern-style buttermilk marinade, then lightly breaded by hand and cooked to order.
Customers have a choice of 17 house sauces for dipping. Among the selections to try are the more traditional ranch or honey mustard. For something with more kick are Korean BBQ, bold and spicy, Sriracha garlic, hot and tangy or inferno to tame with a sweet tea or milkshake.
Also on the menu are chicken and waffles, chicken sandwiches and a smokey cheddar wrap, along with strawberry cheesecake or chocolate brownie desserts in a jar.
For those who prefer healthier options, grilled chicken strawberry salad and a fresh garden salad are on the menu.
Bagwell said they are very selective about the fresh chicken and salad ingredients they use, and whenever possible source from local providers.
“For us it’s more of a culture than just the food,” he said. Blues music plays in the background, he said, and the staff is casually dressed in jeans and shirts.
“We’re just laid-back people,” he said.
The first Slim Chickens opened in 2003 in Fayetteville, Arkansas. There are three franchises in Mississippi from Jackson north.
“We were very interested to get down to the Mississippi Gulf Coast and develop down there,” said Bagwell. He along with business partners Ricky Bagwell, Chaz Wester, Bubba Irwin and Brooks Irwin, also own Sonic Drive-In franchises.
The Biloxi, Gulfport and D’Iberville is a thriving area, he said, and this restaurant in Biloxi may be joined by other Slim Chickens restaurants.
“We are exploring other opportunities in the area as well,” Bagwell said.
This story was originally published July 1, 2021 at 5:50 AM.
