Louisville, Kentucky, U.S.A.-based restaurant chain Long John Silver’s (LJS) is shifting its marketing efforts to focus on both seafood and chicken, rather than placing a heavy focus on seafood alone.
The operator of over 500 restaurants across the U.S. has revealed a redesigned logo that turns its signature fish illustration into a stylized chicken.
“Guests have been telling us for years that our chicken is a best-kept secret,” LJS Senior Vice President of Marketing and Innovation Christopher Caudill said. “Our hand-battered chicken strips – known as Chicken Planks – are every bit as crave-worthy as our legendary fish. It’s time we let that secret out.”
To accompany the launch of the new logo, on 27 October, LJS introduced Crispy Chicken Wraps, which are made with its hand-battered Chicken Planks, fresh coleslaw, Crumblies, and a choice of Baja or Sweet Chili sauce in a warm tortilla.
Though the firm is placing a heavier focus on chicken moving forward, LJS emphasized that seafood remains a cornerstone of the brand.
“This brand was built on making the coastal experience accessible to everyone, so seafood will always be part of our DNA,” Caudill said. “But, chicken is also part of our heritage – and a big part of our future – so it deserves its rightful place on our logo, our menu, and our guests’ tables.”
Nevertheless, the move aligns with broader trends playing out in the U.S. restaurant landscape.
In response to recent seafood restaurant closures, Darren Tristano, CEO of Chicago, Illinois-based consulting firm FoodserviceResults, said that with so many independent and chain restaurants offering fish and shellfish, there are limited reasons to go to a restaurant that solely specializes in seafood.
“Red Lobster seems to epitomize the seafood category – highly competitive, expensive protein, high prices, and some consumers just don’t like seafood and create a veto vote on attending in groups,” he told SeafoodSource.
Still, several U.S. restaurant chains and operators recently added new seafood offerings to their menus.
For instance, Dallas, Texas, U.S.A.-based Texas de Brazil, which operates nearly 70 restaurants around the world, added Moqueca de Camarão and Grilled Shrimp to its menu.
Moqueca de Camarão is a seafood stew that is a traditional dish along the northern shores of Brazil, which combines shrimp simmered in a coconut milk broth infused with garlic, peppers, and a fragrant blend of herbs and spices, the restaurant chain said.
Texas de Brazil’s flame-grilled shrimp is marinated with garlic, oregano, and a hint of cayenne that is grilled over an open flame.
Elsewhere, Sanford, Florida, U.S.A.-based St. John’s Rivership Company, which operates lunch and dinner cruises along the St. John’s River in Florida, recently overhauled its menu to include a greater variety of seafood meals.
The result was a blending of “classic flavors with exciting new dishes,” the company said in a release.
“We didn’t have a lot of seafood on the menu before – only salmon,” St. John’s Rivership Owner Michelle Wyatt told SeafoodSource. "We believed that people on a rivership would expect more seafood options.”
So, the company added mahi, jambalaya, and crab cakes, all served buffet-style. The response to the new menu overall has been “overwhelmingly positive,” Wyatt said.
St. John’s Rivership sources seafood from Gordon Foodservice, headquartered in Grand Rapids, Michigan, U.S.A., as well as Cheney Brothers in Riviera Beach, Florida, U.S.A.
