Foosackly's

Foosackly's, stylized as foosackly's, is a regional American quick-service restaurant chain specializing in chicken meals. The brand was co-founded by Will Fusaiotti and Eric Brechtel, who had attended Louisiana State University together. Fusaiotti had moved to Mobile, Alabama, with his family in 1995 to help his father establish a Smoothie King operation. Although neither founder had previously fried chicken commercially, they developed the concept shortly before opening their first restaurant. The inaugural Foosackly's location opened on April 28, 2000, on University Boulevard in Mobile. The company subsequently developed a compact regional network rather than pursuing rapid national expansion. Its restaurants have been concentrated in the Mobile-area and Baldwin County communities of Alabama, along with locations in and around Pensacola, Florida. The chain has also operated in communities including Daphne, Foley, Saraland, Semmes, Auburn, Mobile, Pensacola, and Tuscaloosa. Reference material describes the Tuscaloosa restaurant, opened in 2020, as the brand's fourteenth location at that time. The menu is built around fried chicken and related quick-service staples. Its core offering is chicken fingers served in combo meals, generally accompanied by fries, toast, coleslaw, and a drink. The brand's name, visual identity, and advertising have supported a casual, locally rooted personality rather than a formal or broadly standardized national-chain image. Foosackly's is often discussed alongside other chicken-finger specialists such as Guthrie's, Raising Cane's, and Zaxby's, but it has retained a distinct identity tied to the Gulf Coast region. Foosackly's became especially visible outside its normal restaurant market through humorous local advertising. In 2008, during the dispute over the U.S. Air Force KC-135 aerial-refueling tanker contract, the company displayed billboards offering Boeing “a finger,” a reference to its chicken-finger menu and to Boeing's protest of the award to a Northrop Grumman/EADS partnership that proposed building tankers in Mobile. The slogan generated attention beyond Alabama, with bumper stickers reportedly reaching markets as distant as California and France. After Airbus, an EADS subsidiary, announced plans in 2012 to build its first North American aircraft assembly plant in Mobile, Foosackly's adapted the concept with a message offering Airbus “a hand.” Like many restaurant operators, the chain had to change its service model during the COVID-19 pandemic. In-room dining was suspended in mid-March 2020, while drive-through, takeaway, and pickup remained available. Dine-in service later resumed. The company also disclosed a significant payment-card security incident in 2018, reporting that all of its locations had been affected and that data associated with more than 165,000 customers had been compromised during an intrusion that ran from March through August of that year. Foosackly's growth philosophy has emphasized maintaining viable restaurants over maximizing the number of openings. Will Fusaiotti has discussed potential expansion in Baldwin County, Pensacola, downtown Mobile, Spanish Fort, and farther north toward Montgomery and Birmingham, while stressing the importance of keeping locations open. The available reference material does not establish a current restaurant count, ownership structure, corporate headquarters, or official website URL; those fields are therefore left unspecified.

Foosackly's was created by Will Fusaiotti and Eric Brechtel, who had known each other from Louisiana State University. Fusaiotti's connection to the Mobile restaurant business began when he moved there with his family in 1995 to assist his father with the opening of a Smoothie King. The future Foosackly's founders did not come from an established fried-chicken operating background; according to the available account, they had never fried a piece of chicken before the weekend immediately preceding the opening of their first restaurant. The first Foosackly's opened on April 28, 2000, on University Boulevard in Mobile, Alabama. From that starting point, the business grew into a regional mini-chain centered on coastal Alabama and extending into Northwest Florida. Its Alabama presence has included Mobile and nearby communities such as Daphne, Foley, Saraland, Semmes, Auburn, and Tuscaloosa, while its Florida presence has included two restaurants in Pensacola. The chain's expansion has remained geographically concentrated rather than becoming a nationwide system. The available reference identifies the Tuscaloosa opening in 2020 as the fourteenth location, but it does not establish the current number of operating restaurants. The company's stated expansion outlook has been deliberately measured. Will Fusaiotti has considered additional restaurants in Baldwin County and Pensacola, as well as possible sites in downtown Mobile, Spanish Fort, Montgomery, and Birmingham. His reported philosophy—“It's not how many you open, it's how many you keep open”—summarizes a preference for durable unit economics and local operating continuity over aggressive store-count growth. Foosackly's menu and brand identity are based on a focused chicken-finger format. Its standard meal structure pairs fried chicken fingers with familiar sides such as fries, toast, and coleslaw. This specialization places the company in the same broad competitive category as other chicken-finger and quick-service chicken chains, while its limited geographic footprint and informal tone give it a strongly regional character. Advertising has been an important part of the brand's public profile. In 2008, a dispute surrounding the U.S. Air Force's KC-135 aerial-refueling tanker procurement created a local opportunity for Foosackly's to connect its menu with a major economic and political issue. Boeing protested the award of the contract to a Northrop Grumman/EADS partnership, which had proposed building the tankers in Mobile. Foosackly's responded with billboards stating that it wanted to offer Boeing “a finger.” The pun referred both to the chain's signature food and to the colloquial gesture implied by the wording. The campaign attracted attention outside the region, and bumper stickers carrying the slogan were reportedly sold as far away as California and France. The local aerospace connection continued after Airbus, an EADS subsidiary, announced in July 2012 that it intended to construct its first North American aircraft assembly plant in Mobile. Foosackly's shifted its message to offer Airbus “a hand,” turning the earlier campaign into a more welcoming local-business response to the expected investment and employment associated with the plant. In 2018, Foosackly's experienced a major payment-card security breach. The company reported that every location had been hacked and that information connected with more than 165,000 customers had been compromised. The reported attack period extended from March through August 2018. This incident is the principal documented controversy associated with the brand in the available reference material. The COVID-19 pandemic produced another operational turning point. In mid-March 2020, Foosackly's closed its dining rooms in response to public-health concerns. Restaurants continued operating through drive-through, takeaway, and pickup services, allowing the chain to maintain off-premises sales while in-room dining was unavailable. Dine-in operations later returned. The available sources do not provide a detailed account of the company's post-pandemic operating model, financial performance, ownership, or current leadership beyond the identification of the two co-founders.

• 2020

  Tuscaloosa location opens

  [1]Foosackly'sen.wikipedia.org

  The chain opened a Tuscaloosa restaurant, described in the reference material as its fourteenth location.

• 2020

  Dining rooms close during COVID-19 response

  [1]Foosackly'sen.wikipedia.org

  In-room dining was suspended in mid-March, with drive-through, takeaway, and pickup services continuing until dine-in service later resumed.

• 2018

  Payment-card security breach

  [1]Foosackly'sen.wikipedia.org

  The company reported a breach affecting all locations and data associated with more than 165,000 customers during an intrusion that lasted from March through August.

• 2012

  “Offer Airbus a hand” campaign

  [1]Foosackly'sen.wikipedia.org

  Following Airbus's announcement of a planned Mobile assembly plant, the brand adapted its earlier aerospace-themed slogan to welcome Airbus.

• 2008

  “Offer Boeing a finger” campaign

  [1]Foosackly'sen.wikipedia.org

  Foosackly's used billboards and related promotional materials to comment humorously on Boeing's protest of the KC-135 tanker contract award.

• 2000

  First Foosackly's restaurant opens

  [1]Foosackly'sen.wikipedia.org

  The first location opened on April 28, 2000, on University Boulevard in Mobile, Alabama.

• 1995

  Fusaiotti moves to Mobile to assist with a Smoothie King opening

  [1]Foosackly'sen.wikipedia.org

  Will Fusaiotti moved to Mobile with his family to help his father establish a Smoothie King operation, preceding the creation of Foosackly's.

A locally rooted Gulf Coast quick-service chicken brand focused on fried chicken fingers, approachable combo meals, and humorous regional marketing.

• Core menu item · 2000

  Chicken fingers

  Fried chicken fingers are the central product around which Foosackly's restaurant format is organized. They are commonly sold as individual portions or as part of combination meals with side dishes and a beverage.

• Quick-service meal · 2000

  Chicken finger combo meals

  The brand's principal meal format combines chicken fingers with traditional fast-food sides such as French fries, toast, and coleslaw, often accompanied by a soft drink. The format supports dine-in, drive-through, takeaway, and pickup service.

• Side dishes · 2000

  French fries, toast, and coleslaw

  These sides are associated with Foosackly's chicken meals and form part of the recognizable combo-meal presentation. The available reference identifies them as typical accompaniments but does not provide detailed preparation or ingredient specifications.

• 2018

  Payment-card data breach

  Foosackly's reported that all of its locations had been hacked and that information associated with more than 165,000 customers had been compromised. The reported intrusion occurred from March through August 2018.

  Source

Read more

• 2012We'd like to offer Airbus a hand

  Mobile · Coastal Alabama · United States

  After Airbus announced plans to build its first North American aircraft assembly plant in Mobile, Foosackly's recast its earlier aerospace-related slogan as a welcoming message to Airbus.

  Outcome. The campaign linked the restaurant brand to the region's growing aerospace identity and to Airbus's planned local investment.

  Source
• 2008We would like to offer Boeing a finger

  Mobile · Coastal Alabama · United States

  Foosackly's placed billboards during the KC-135 tanker-contract dispute, using a chicken-finger pun to comment on Boeing's protest of the award to a Northrop Grumman/EADS partnership planning tanker production in Mobile.

  Outcome. The campaign received attention beyond the local market, and bumper stickers carrying the slogan were reportedly distributed or sold as far away as California and France.

  Source

• 2020

  Suspend in-room dining during the COVID-19 pandemicStrategy

  Background

  Public-health measures and the spread of COVID-19 required restaurants to reduce or suspend dine-in service.

  Action taken

  Foosackly's closed its dining rooms in mid-March while continuing to accept drive-through, takeaway, and pickup orders.

  Aftermath

  Dine-in service subsequently resumed. The available source does not provide financial results or a precise reopening date.

  Source

• 2020

  Open a Tuscaloosa locationOther

  Background

  The regional chain continued its measured expansion within Alabama and reached a location count described in the reference material as fourteen.

  Action taken

  Foosackly's opened a restaurant in Tuscaloosa.

  Aftermath

  The Tuscaloosa opening extended the brand's Alabama footprint. The current status of that location is not independently established in the supplied material.

  Source

1. 1Foosackly'sen.wikipedia.org