6 Facts About Dave's Hot Chicken Worth Knowing

There are seemingly endless chicken chains these days. From smaller-scale, more regional spots to joints that are famous for their spicy chicken sandwiches, you're never far from some decent fast-food-style chicken. But move over, Chick-fil-A and KFC, because there's another chicken joint on the block. It's Dave's Hot Chicken, a company that's exploded over the past few years. Chances are, if you're on foodie social media, you've seen a lot about the company. But whether you've tasted the chain's chicken yet or not, there's probably some things you still don't know about the brand.

We've done some digging to deliver the 411 on what this company is all about so you have a better idea of what to expect when you visit. Once you learn more about Dave's Hot Chicken, you might be even more inclined to try the chain's chicken for yourself.

Dave's Hot Chicken's rollout was not a fancy, high-end affair — or even one that you might expect from other popular fast casual brands at this point in food history. Rather, its undeniably humble beginnings are part of what has made its meteoric rise even more unexpected. When the chain got its start back in 2017, the three founders, all of whom were in their 20s at the time, didn't even have a brick-and-mortar location to start. They took $900 and set up some folding tables and a fryer in a parking lot in East Hollywood, LA, and started making chicken. Thanks to Instagram, their operation had blown up.

Many hungry and curious chicken lovers learned about the new chicken joint on social media, and not long after, traditional media started covering the spot too. It's a success story that many food brands hope to imitate, and it reflects not only on the deliciousness of the chain's chicken but also on the power of social media in the fast casual food space.

If you want to go out to a restaurant that offers a wide range of different options to choose from, Dave's Hot Chicken is not your ideal fast casual joint. This place only offers a few menu items. That being said, because it does its menu items so well, you wouldn't want to select from a long list of other choices. There are two main options when you go to Dave's Hot Chicken: tenders and sliders.

Want to experience the chicken the chain is known for, unadulterated by bread? Then you should opt for the tenders. They're juicy, breaded tenders that come in a range of flavors and heat levels (which we'll get to later). If you're more of a fast food chicken sandwich person, you can opt for Dave's Hot Chicken's sliders instead. These sandwiches come on a bun that provides the perfect neutral backdrop for the chicken itself. You can substitute fries with a few other side options, but for the most part, it's all about the chicken at Dave's.

The company may have started as a small West Coast brand, but Dave's Hot Chicken is far from a small chain these days. This fast casual joint exploded across the United States and the world in recent years. In 2023, it only took the chain three years to jump from two locations to a whopping 118 – and in November 2025, it had more than 300 locations. 

But Dave's Hot Chicken isn't only found in the U.S. It has expanded so much that it now has a global reach, with locations in Canada, Qatar, the U.A.E., the U.K., and Saudi Arabia. The chain now has plans to work its way into Europe as well, with several new locations already in the pipeline. When you consider that Dave's got its start back in 2017, it's easy to see how the company's growth has truly reached staggering speeds. If there's not a Dave's Hot Chicken relatively close to you yet, you can probably expect one to pop up near you soon.

Back in the day, for a restaurant to really blow up in a big way, it needed to be well-known by established tastemakers. In our current social media-driven landscape, though, a restaurant doesn't need to be written about by a big newspaper or magazine to reach peak popularity — it just has to do well on social media. That's arguably a huge part of how Dave's Hot Chicken found such immediate success. The company credits Instagram for calling attention to its business. Once the joint started blowing up on social media, it attracted food journalists who gave the restaurant even greater reach.

Years after the chain first got its start, it's still known for its online virality. In fact, in the U.K., the chain went so viral that it's known for its long lines as guests clamor for a taste of the chicken that's gotten so much hype online. It goes to show how much social media has come to shape our food culture.

Yes, Dave's Hot Chicken may have humble beginnings, but that doesn't mean that the founders randomly started deciding to make chicken after never having touched a stove before. In fact, Dave Kopushyan, one of the founders of the company, already had some serious culinary cache under his belt by the time he started this particularly successful venture. Kopushyan went to culinary school in Los Angeles, where he had already started honing his craft. After that, he worked under Michelin-starred Thomas Keller, one of the world's most renowned chefs, at Keller's Los Angeles restaurant Bouchon. He also worked under the Michelin-starred Ludo Lefebvre, where he further developed his techniques. These restaurants demand near perfection, so it's no surprise that it's where Kopushyan really learned to hone his craft.

Sure, Dave's Hot Chicken may not be earning a Michelin star anytime soon, nor are you going to find your table draped in a white cloth when you visit. But Kopushyan's experience in some of the world's most rigorous and highest-end restaurants is a bit more evident once you get a taste of what Dave's Hot Chicken has to offer.

A lot of people will see the name Dave's Hot Chicken and immediately be put off — after all, if you're not a fan of heat, then hot chicken probably doesn't sound very appealing at all. But you should know that this chain offers seven different levels of spice, so just about anyone can enjoy something. So, whether you're someone who seeks out the hottest hot sauce imaginable or you tend to prefer your meat on the milder side, the chain has you covered.

Choose No Spice if you can't handle any heat. This crispy chicken has all the richness and juiciness you want in a good patty, but you're not getting that intense heat that makes your tongue burn. If you want a hint of spice but don't want to be distracted by a ton of heat, go for the Lite Mild or Mild — these are solid options for those who want to get a taste of that signature spice without fear. Extra Hot and Reaper, on the other hand, offer a much more intense experience, best for those who have already established that they like their food hot. Luckily, there are also spice options in the middle for those who like heat but don't want it to overpower their chicken entirely.