From sushi to burritos, the Erb Memorial Union is home to a variety of meal shops.
This past summer, the EMU introduced a new restaurant, Chicken Bonz, nearly a year after Little Big Burger left due to financial difficulties, which resulted in the “temporary pop-up” Crumbl Cookie operating in its space.
According to Tom Driscoll, associate director of University Housing and director of Dining Services, Chicken Bonz has a lease that started on Aug. 5 and will run to the end of the 2027 school year with options to renew for three more years after that time period.
Located on the first floor of the EMU, Chicken Bonz is a “unique new chicken joint,” which originated in Eugene’s neighboring city, Springfield, back in 2002.
Chicken Bonz offers a variety of food options, including chicken tenders, wings and several choices of sides and combos to mix and match. Prices for its chicken tenders start at $7.50, with combos starting at $11 and sides starting at $3.
The prices at Chicken Bonz are higher than Chipotle, with Chipotle’s highest main menu courses starting at $8.60 for protein, including sofritas, veggies and chicken. Ace Sushi’s prices start at $10 with its cheapest sushi rolls.
When researching a new vendor to set up shop in the vacant spot, Driscoll turned to student perspectives to determine the most wanted product. He found that students were looking for chicken options.
“We wanted to find something that students have expressed they’re interested in seeing, and chicken and chicken-type products were super high, if not first, on that list,” Driscoll said.
University of Oregon senior Jordan Poppe said that he “like[s]” how Chicken Bonz offers more food options than Crumbl Cookie did.
“The last place that was here was Crumbl and I didn’t really get anything from there ever because it was a cookie,” Poppe said. “It doesn’t really give you any nutrients but I like this place [Chicken Bonz] a lot better because it offers more food.”
Eva Brazfield, a UO junior, said that she is looking forward to trying the fries from Chicken Bonz to see if they compare to the ones from Little Big Burger.
“Up until this point, my favorite place to eat was probably Little Big Burger. I really liked their fries,” Brazfield said. “I am trying their [Chicken Bonz] fries to see if they are as good.”
