Tastes like mascot

Chick-fil-A has its ubiquitous cow. Not to be outdone, rival chicken slinger PDQ now also has a mascot: a chicken dressed as a chef. PDQ debuted the character Dec. 10 at its newly opened restaurant in Westchase, Hillsborough County.

To create its new standard-bearer, the Tampa-based fast-casual restaurant chain — the initials stand for People Dedicated to Quality — enlisted the services of Burton Morris, an award-winning artist. Morris' resume includes logos for events such as the FIFA World Cup, Major League Baseball's All-Star Game and the Academy Awards, as well as major global brands like Coca-Cola, Rolex, Sony and Ford.

PDQ left its red-and-yellow block logo untouched, instead topping it with the chicken mascot. “We felt our logo needed to include a mascot, made from scratch with an artist's touch,” says PDQ CEO and co-founder Nick Reader in a press release. “The second we saw Burton's creativity and ability to make pop-culture items come to life, we knew he would be the perfect person for the job.”

In addition to the chef's jacket, Morris drew the mascot with a light-hearted glint in its eye and a wing in the shape of a thumbs-up — which PDQ says is intended to represent the fun atmosphere in its restaurants. “I wanted to translate the positive spirit of the PDQ brand into the logo,” Morris says in the release. “When someone sees the chicken for the first time, I hope it makes them excited and happy to come in and try the food.”