If your entire brand is ‘Big,’ you go big or go home. Shaquille O’Neal does that with Big Chicken, his uber-popular, trendy, home-style, chicken restaurant chain. The menu screams of Shaq and his Big Diesel personality. But it also has nods to people significant in his life. However, nothing makes Big Chicken what it is like O’Neal’s generosity.

Known for using his massive fame and fortune to frequently help out others, Shaquille O’Neal has put kindness at the forefront of Big Chicken. His menu is designed to make people happy the way he found comfort in the family recipes driving the brand.

Shaquille O’Neal touches the community with Big Chicken

The origin of Big Chicken’s menu comes from Lucille O’Neal. Her NBA star son has time and again publicized how he found comfort in her cooking. Lucille and Shaquille want to make people happy with their food and Big Chicken is going beyond that. The restaurant group’s leadership team, including O’Neal have collaborated with Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin nonprofit, Club for the Future. The 15-time All-Star doesn’t just serve as the club ambassador, he’s engaging students in STEM.

Shaq’s counting on these kids becoming the space explorers of the future so he can open his franchises in space. Until then, he’s developing his 300 locations in multiple cities within the US. The earthbound menu has offerings like the Big Aristotle and the sloppy Charles Barkley, devised specifically to tease his Inside the NBA co-host.

One fan at the Houston opening of Big Chicken Shaq summarized the Lakers legend’s generosity. “You have to have a heart, a conscience to want to help others and to help people. And he is definitely exemplifying the most amazing gift of giving back.”

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O’Neal has made headlines many times for walking into restaurants and paying for everyone’s meals or treating strangers to Thanksgiving feasts. Similarly, Big Chicken Shaq has given out free meals at store openings.

They also donated proceeds from sales to Guy Fieri’s Restaurant Employee Relief Fund supporting industry workers during the pandemic.

Big Chicken makes a big difference

The restaurant franchise also complements O’Neal’s philanthropy, including through the Boys & Girls Club he’s been a longtime supporter of.

To celebrate their founder’s birthday on March 6, Big Chicken was giving out a free ice cream cone.  Proceeds from the main menu sales during birthday promotion period was donated to the Shaquille O’Neal Foundation.

These dishes – Lucille’s mac and cheese based on his mom’s recipe, the Diesel Shake that celebrates his ‘DJ Diesel’ career, and popcorn chicken that pays homage to his glorious entertainment success – were selected for the significance in Shaq’s legacy.

Big Chicken is also committed to creating employment opportunities in the culinary industry. Houston students are getting first-hand restaurant management lessons working full-time or intern at Big Chicken locations.

Why is O’Neal so passionate about helping youth through his restaurants? He would admit that he gave his mother a hard time in his youth because of his past delinquency. His mother also battled and overcame addiction that ate into her son’s NBA earnings. But both are seizing the opportunity to put a smile on people’s faces by feeding them.

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