Company’s First Oxnard and Ventura-Area Location Pays Homage to the Company’s “Out of this World” Hot Chicken
Dave’s Hot Chicken, the scrappy late-night pop-up turned hot chicken sensation, today announced the grand opening of its newest restaurant this Friday, December 10, and first in Port Hueneme at 587 W Channel Islands Blvd. The new restaurant will be open Sunday through Thursday from 10:30am until 11:00pm, and Friday and Saturday from 10:30am until Midnight. The Port Hueneme restaurant is the first of 20 Dave’s Hot Chicken locations that Central California-based DAMM Fine Chicken will open.
The DAMM Fine Chicken team brings with them over 30 years of experience in the restaurant industry to Dave’s Hot Chicken. The operators were formerly owners of several Taco Bell locations, and currently own over 20 Blaze Pizza restaurants. The team will focus on adding Dave’s Hot Chicken locations throughout the Central Valley, Central Coast and Sacramento areas of California. The DAMM Fine Chicken team believes strongly in becoming part of the fabric of the community and plan on supporting local nonprofits in their communities.
Dave Hot Chicken’s newest location features plentiful indoor and outdoor seating, and custom artwork throughout the restaurant, paying homage to Port Hueneme naval base, with a Dave’s Hot Chicken twist.
The fast-casual concept specializes in Hot Chicken Tenders and Sliders, along with sides of house-made Kale Slaw, creamy Mac n’ Cheese and crispy French Fries. Offered at seven various spice levels ranging from No Spice to Reaper (which requires a signed waiver for those who dare), each piece of juicy, hand-breaded chicken utilizes a proprietary spice blend crafted specifically for its heat level. The brand began a few years ago as a parking lot pop-up and drew lines around the block, with rave reviews by its fanatic Instagram followers.
“Dave’s Hot Chicken will blow your mind! Every Tender is hot, juicy and spicy,” said Bill Phelps, Dave’s Hot Chicken’s CEO. “Our founders started Dave’s as a parking lot pop-up restaurant in Hollywood with a portable fryer and picnic tables from their backyards just four short years ago. We are ecstatic to be opening our first restaurant in Port Hueneme!”
In a modern-day American dream story, Arman Oganesyan and best friend Chef Dave Kopushyan, along with brothers Tommy and Gary Rubenyan, launched Dave’s Hot Chicken in a parking lot pop-up in 2017. Dave’s Hot Chicken quickly took off, opening its first brick-and-mortar restaurant in East Hollywood. In 2019, the team struck a deal with Wetzel’s Pretzels co-founder and former CEO, Bill Phelps, and movie producer John Davis to begin franchising the Dave’s Hot Chicken concept throughout the U.S. and beyond. The company has sold the rights to almost 500 franchise locations in the U.S. and Canada and will open an additional 25 locations this year. Harkening back to an Eater LA blog that helped propel early interest in the brand, the company’s mission is to “blow their minds.” Additional brand investors include former California First Lady Maria Shriver, Red Sox owner Tom Werner, actor Samuel L. Jackson, and Good Morning America anchor and retired NFL player Michael Strahan. For more information, visit www.daveshotchicken.com.
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