Chicken George was so beloved that it belongs on our list of mall food court restaurants that completely disappeared. Founded in 1979 at Baltimore’s Mondawmin Mall by entrepreneur Theodore Holmes, the chain quickly went from local curiosity to cult favorite. Holmes named it after the charismatic character from “Roots,” a nod to the miniseries that had swept the nation just two years earlier. Baltimore diners embraced it instantly. The Afro-American newspaper even stated that it “became a household name overnight.”
By 1982, Chicken George was pulling in $14 million in sales and had spread beyond Maryland to Washington, D.C., Philadelphia, and even Atlanta. Holmes’s company, Joloj Industries, prided itself on flavorful but pork-free cooking. Crispy chicken, biscuits, gumbo, greens, and rice dishes were seasoned with beef instead of bacon, and fans still clamor for them. The formula worked. Locals lined up for plates that felt homemade yet fast, giving Baltimore its own answer to KFC.
At its height, Chicken George wasn’t just a restaurant, it was the largest Black-owned fast-food company in the U.S., showing that a humble mall counter could become a symbol of both good food and hometown ambition.
From Baltimore’s pride to a distant memory: the fall of Chicken George
Success, however, didn’t guarantee survival. Over the years, Chicken George changed hands several times. First, from founder Theodore Holmes’s company, Joloj Industries, to George, Hill & Sons Management in 1987, then to Meldon S. Hollis Jr. two years later. By 1991, after years of uneven management and franchise struggles, the company filed for bankruptcy, ending what had once been one of Baltimore’s proudest food stories…