Founder and chief executive officer of Chicken Licken, George Sombonos, has been laid to rest.
The 67-year-old father lost his battle to cancer recently and leaves behind an incomparable legacy.
It all began when Sombonos assisted his father in managing a roadhouse restaurant he owned in the early 70s, the Dairy Den. He was sent on a trip to the United States in 1972 where he explored and tasted different foods looking for a unique distinct taste to bring home.
In his adventure, he was led to the best tasting chicken in Waco Texas but unfortunately could not afford the recipe and settled on a different, untested recipe.
When Sombonos returned to the country, without his father’s knowledge he swapped the original chicken coating recipe at the restaurant with the one he had purchased overseas and amazingly their turnover increased.
In the 80s, their business was renamed to Golden Fried Chicken until an employee came up with the name Chicken Licken. When his father died, Sombonos had to take over the reigns. He opened his first Chicken Licken restaurant on the site of the Daily Den and soon after the first two franchises based in Soweto and Alexandra were also opened.
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Today, there are more than 300 outlets in South Africa and a few in neighbouring countries such as Botswana and Zimbabwe.
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