San Antonio’s fried chicken scene might be getting a crunchy new competitor, as Korean chain Bonchon actively courts a local franchise partner to bring its double fried bird to the Alamo City. If a deal comes together, San Antonio could see its first wave of Bonchon stores serving the chain’s hand battered wings and tenders, brushed with soy garlic or spicy sauces, alongside the city’s growing fast casual and delivery options. For now, there are no firm sites or an opening date on the books.
Bonchon Is Searching For A Local Franchise Partner
Bonchon has officially put San Antonio on its wish list. The chain is looking for a local franchisee to lead openings in the market, a move confirmed by the San Antonio Business Journal. According to the outlet, the company’s current outreach is aimed at finding the right partner to bring its concept to town, a necessary first step before any lease signs or “coming soon” banners go up.
Bonchon’s Texas Playbook
Bonchon launched in Busan, South Korea, in 2002 and later shifted more attention to its American operations. In 2020, the company announced it was moving its global headquarters from New York City to Dallas, part of a bigger strategy to speed up U.S. growth and roll out formats that work better for franchising, according to a company press release on PR Newswire.
The chain already knows its way around Texas. Its official directory lists locations in Addison, Flower Mound, Fort Worth and several Houston suburbs, giving Bonchon on the ground experience in the state’s competitive restaurant markets. Bonchon’s locations page lays out that existing Texas footprint as the brand eyes a move into San Antonio.
What This Means For San Antonio Eaters
San Antonio did not land on Bonchon’s radar by accident. The company named the city among its priority markets in a late 2025 expansion announcement, saying it was part of a four city push for 2026, according to the Houston Chronicle. The Chronicle also points to Bonchon’s signature move, hand battered, double fried wings finished with soy garlic or spicy sauces, as the traffic driver when the chain breaks into new cities.
To make that expansion happen, Bonchon is leaning heavily on franchising. Its franchise portal pitches the brand as a turnkey setup, offering training, territory options and operator support aimed at experienced partners. Per Bonchon’s franchising site, the company lays out a multi step path to ownership and highlights the unit economics it uses to recruit would be franchisees.
The timing of any San Antonio debut is still a moving target. A local operator has to sign a franchise agreement, secure real estate, clear permitting and finish build out before the first bucket of wings goes out the door. The search described by the San Antonio Business Journal is one of the early steps in that process. Bonchon and any future partner are expected to lock in a formal timeline once leases are signed and site plans are in place.
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