Palm Springs KFC closes permanently; future of building unclear
Palm Springs people with a thing for fried chicken and the sweet-talking colonel who hawks it will now have to head to Cathedral City for their next fix of the Original Recipe.
A KFC spokesperson confirmed the not-so-finger-lickin’-good news that Palm Springs’ sole location of the iconic fried chicken restaurant at Indian Canyon Drive and Sunny Dunes Road has closed permanently.
“One of our franchisees closed this restaurant as a normal course of business,” Lauren Leger said. “While this is always a difficult decision, we appreciate the patronage of our loyal guests.”
In recent days, wood boards had been placed over the windows of the 18-year-old restaurant, which was known for its unique modernist design that was inspired by the iconic Tramway Gas Station building that now houses Palm Springs’ visitors center.A sign placed over the drive-thru speaker, meanwhile, states “we are closing this KFC for repairs.” It directs customers to the closest remaining KFC near Date Palm Drive and Ramon Road in Cathedral City. When asked about the sign, Leger confirmed that the Palm Springs location is closed permanently and would not be reopening as a KFC.
The Palm Springs location is the second desert KFC to close in recent days: the Yucca Valley location also closed at the end of December. The locations in Desert Hot Springs, Cathedral City and Indio remain open according to the chain's website.
The owner of the building that housed the Palm Springs KFC is listed in county tax documents as Great American Chicken Corp Inc. Future plans for the building are unclear.
Market forces that are at work in valley, state
While KFC did not give a reason for the closure, it comes at a time when multiple major fast food chicken chains are making inroads in the Coachella Valley.
Raising Cane's, which specializes in fried chicken fingers, opened its first valley location to much fanfare in Palm Springs about two years ago.
The valley's first outpost of chicken mega chain Chick-fil-A, which is best known for its chicken sandwiches although it also serves chicken nuggets and strips, made a similar splash about six months later in Palm Desert. Additional Chick-fil-A locations are in the works in La Quinta and Indio. Brown's BBQ and Soul Food and Chicken Ranch also serve fried chicken in Palm Springs, although not at KFC's fast food price point.
Chick-fil-A first surpassed KFC in market share of the nationwide fast food chicken chain market in 2012, according to Time Magazine. CNBC reported last month that chicken consumption has been consistently increasing in the US since 2012, However, last year KFC dropped behind Popeye's to third in market share with 11.3% of the market, while Raising Cane's is fourth at 7.5%. The closest Popeye's to Palm Springs is in Bermuda Dunes.
In April, a new state law will also go into effect raising the minimum wage for fast food workers in the state from $16.31 an hour to $20 an hour.
Last month, Business Insider reported that two Southern California Pizza Hut operators were eliminating their in-house delivery services ahead of the new law taking effect and would instead offer pizza for delivery only through third-party apps like DoorDash. Around 2,000 drivers were being laid off as a result, including some in Palm Springs.
Other fast food chains, including McDonalds and Chipotle, have said they will raise menu prices to offset the minimum wage increase.
A Starbucks located kitty corner from the KFC also closed in November 2022.
Paul Albani-Burgio covers growth, development and business in the Coachella Valley. Follow him on Twitter at @albaniburgiop and email him at paul.albani-burgio@desertsun.com.
This article originally appeared on Palm Springs Desert Sun: Palm Springs KFC closes permanently; future of building unclear
