KFC Opens Experimental McKinney Eatery Serving Breakfast, Boba and Novel Merch

KFC opened a boldly reimagined restaurant Friday in McKinney, Texas, rolling out multiple firsts for the chain: a full morning menu, sit-down service, boba drinks, pastry mashups and location-only items. The roughly 3,400-square-foot site on Eldorado Road is being used as an experiment by company leaders to test what customers actually want before deciding which changes to expand across the system, executives said.

Patrons will find a simplified approach to combos at the new location — each meal comes with fries, a biscuit, a sauce and a drink — aimed at reducing confusion at the register and easing back-of-house work. But simplification hasn’t meant fewer options. The store’s roster includes a Twister wrap and a premium chicken sandwich, a revamped mashed-potato side, corn prepared with southwest flavors, fried green beans, a multi-hued coleslaw and spicier pickles. Drinks include lemonades and mango and cherry boba refreshers, while desserts feature cronuts and the chain’s Krunch shakes. A retail counter sells branded items made only for the McKinney site, including socks printed with a chicken motif.

Service and access were overhauled too. The location combines two separate car lanes for ordering and pickup with a walk-up window and a lane reserved for mobile orders. Inside, staff will offer table service and customers can try a “Celebration Booth” — a digitally enhanced photo area that projects images around diners. Company leaders cautioned these features are part of a trial; some elements may be dropped or adapted depending on what the market rewards.

Behind the scenes, KFC installed equipment meant to cut complexity and cost for franchisees. A new oven also functions as a reheating unit, which the company says can halve the number of devices a franchise might otherwise need. A California startup supplied an automated dispenser that fills and seals containers with up to three sauces without manual assembly. Ordering and restaurant operations run on Byte, the point-of-sale system Yum! Brands has been phasing into its restaurants, executives said.

Local and industry observers said the experiment is as much about feelings as it is about efficiency. “They’re trying to make the brand feel current again so people will choose to stop in, not just remember it,” said Amanda Li, a restaurant industry consultant in Dallas. She added that if even one in four lapsed visitors return to the brand because of menu or design changes, the experiment could pay off. Company officials described the McKinney spot as a place to learn rather than a final plan for every neighborhood KFC. For residents curious about what a future KFC might look like, the new location is an unusually public prototype.