Customers, Protesters Flock To Carl's Jr. NYC Debut

MIDTOWN MANHATTAN, NY — Yet another national chain restaurant has touched down in New York City, and early signs indicate a success.

Throngs of hungry customers lined up in front of the new Carl's Jr. on Seventh Avenue and West 33rd Street to get their hands on the chain's signature "thickburgers" as restaurant staff deployed barriers to effectively control the crowd.

The new burger spot, located across the street from Penn Station, is sandwiched in between a McDonald's and a Hooters.

Not everyone who attended the Carl's Jr. debut in Midtown was happy about the new restaurant. Animal rights activists with The Humane League attempted to crash the Carl's Jr. party by picketing the new store and handing out pamphlets about the chain's treatment of its chickens. The protest group called on CKE Restaurants Holdings — the parent company of Carl's Jr. — to adopt basic welfare guides for the chickens in its supply chain.

"Considering the recent rebranding of Hardee's and Carl's Jr., we hope that its leadership will take their previous statements seriously and commit to eliminating the worst practices in chicken factory farming from its supply chain," Taylor Ford, director of campaigns at The Humane League, said in a statement.

New Yorkers may recognize Carl's Jr. for its ads featuring bikini models brandishing comically large sandwiches or its former chief executive Andrew Puzder. Puzder was nominated by Donald Trump to serve as the United States Secretary of Labor, but eventually withdrew from consideration after losing the support of many Republican Senators.

Photo by David Allen/Patch