The Big Chicken has been a local landmark for more than 60 years.
By Cory Sekine-Pettite
The most iconic building in Cobb County isn’t an office tower, a government facility, or an entertainment venue. It’s a restaurant. In fact, it’s a KFC restaurant on Cobb Parkway with a unique design known throughout the country. The so-called “Big Chicken” has been a landmark for locals and travelers alike since the 1960s. If you’ve lived here long enough, then you have received — and likely given — directions with the Big Chicken as a key marker or signpost. Virtually everyone in metro Atlanta knows about this distinctive structure, but perhaps few know of its origins. Here’s the story.
The 56-foot-tall, steel structure of the Big Chicken sits at the intersection of Cobb Parkway and Roswell Road in the heart of Marietta. Designed by Hubert Puckett, who was an architectural student at Georgia Tech at the time, the Big Chicken was erected in 1963 by Stanley R. “Tubby” Davis. It was originally built for Johnny Reb’s Chick, Chuck and Shake restaurant, but KFC took ownership of the building in 1974. For more than 60 years, the restaurant has been part of this community — other local businesses play off the Big Chicken brand (including Big Chicken Pawn), the Marietta Museum of History sells Big Chicken collectables, and there’s even a Big Chicken New Year’s Eve ball drop. After a storm in 1993 damaged the tower, KFC briefly considered tearing it down, but a huge public outcry forced the company to reconsider.
KFC franchisee KBP Foods took ownership of the Big Chicken KFC restaurant (as well as 52 other KFC locations in the Atlanta area) in 2011. Before visiting the store, KBP’s President and CEO, Mike Kulp, said he had heard it was a unique asset, but he didn’t appreciate it fully until he saw it with his own eyes.
“The Big Chicken is a big deal in Marietta. It’s hard to fully grasp the magnitude of the restaurant if you don’t live there, but it’s a local landmark,” he told the AKFCF Quarterly magazine in 2017. (Note: New South Publishing is the publisher for this magazine as well.) “KBP has a lot of pride in this building. We know what it means to the community and our employees. We also know that it takes a certain level of investment to keep our stores operating at their best.”
Following its purchase of the Big Chicken, KBP set out to remodel the building while maintaining the landmark’s charms. What followed was a multi-million project that paid homage to the history of the Big Chicken (and by extension, the KFC brand), while preserving it for future generations. “We wanted to uphold and maintain the integrity of the iconic restaurant, while giving it a fresh new look,” Kulp said. “To help us get it right, we partnered with FRCH Design Worldwide, an award-winning architectural firm; and Wieden+Kennedy, media agency of record for KFC.”
Together they re-imagined everything from the staff uniforms to the flooring and signage — it’s all custom. It’s a completely different experience than any other KFC in the country, or even the world. If you have yet to see this for yourself, make sure to visit. It’s an impressive design.
Among the unique exterior enhancements are a front porch, side porch, and back porch. The front porch and side porch are open and add a combined 610 square feet and 46 seats to the dining area. The back porch is a 575-square-foot screened-in area that can seat 48 guests. Kulp said the patios are a nice addition to the restaurant and have allowed the franchisee to double the size of the previous dining room, adding a total of 1,185 square feet and an additional 94 seats.
Inside, the focus is on Southern hospitality. The front of the house is approximately 2,440 square feet with seating for 98 guests. The new windows across the front of the building allow for plenty of natural light. Additionally, the dining room features lighting mimicking the chain’s iconic buckets, as well as hand-painted murals and a statue of Colonel Sanders where guests can take selfies.
The restaurant’s kitchen is on full display, which creates transparency and emphasizes the team’s focus on fresh, quality ingredients, the franchisee says. Speaking of the menu, it features an exclusive beverage line-up that is known as the most comprehensive of any KFC in the United States.
So, the next time you’re in the area and need something to drink (or eat), stop at the most iconic building in Cobb County, enjoy the spectacle of the chicken’s beak opening and its eyes rolling, take a selfie with the Colonel, and just appreciate this singular structure.
