A new franchise deal signed by Layne’s Chicken Fingers will bring the College Station-originated concept to the Alamo City. Credit: Instagram / layneschickenfingers
Layne’s Chicken Fingers, a College Station-based chain known for feeding hungry Texas A&M students, will enter the San Antonio market as part of 44-unit franchise deal, company officials said in a statement this week.
Real-estate developer Eli Cohen and his company C5 Restaurants, which also operates franchises for Smalls Sliders and Fazzoli’s, will open new Layne’s locations in San Antonio, West Texas and the Coastal Bend under the contract.
Officials with Layne’s were unavailable for comment Friday on how many of those new stores will be in Alamo City and how soon the C5 will hatch its first locations here.
However, a Nov. 10 filing with the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation suggests the San Antonio growth may already be underway. A $1.6 million Layne’s Chicken Fingers is under development at 1510 TX-46 North in Sequin with an estimated completion date of May 8, 2026, documents shows.
Layne’s Chicken Fingers got its start in College Station in 1994 with a single restaurant and a logo featuring its space-helmeted mascot Astro Chicken.
The venture now has more than 30 locations, including several outside of Texas, and another dozen in the works, according to its website. The restaurants’ menus largely consist of chicken tenders, fries and Texas toast served with a variety of sauces.
The franchise deal with C5 restaurants fulfills 90% of Layne’s Texas market, only leaving franchising rights remaining for El Paso and a few smaller pockets across the state, officials said in their statement.
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