Free chicken sandwiches kick off opening of Fresno hot chicken restaurant
Fresno’s newest hot chicken restaurant will give away 200 free honey butter fried chicken sandwiches at its grand opening Saturday.
The Red Chickz opens at 11 a.m. at Manchester Center, in the small building that also houses Chipotle and The Habit Burger.
Customers can also enter a raffle to win a pair of custom Nike sneakers at the event. The black and red shoes have The Red Chickz logo on the heel. The event will also feature a car show, music and other giveaways.
The Red Chickz is the latest in a string of restaurants coming to the city serving its twist on the spicy Nashville-style fried chicken. They include one of the first to open, Angry Chickz, locally owned Fluckers Hot Chicken, chain restaurant Houston Hot Chicken and Dave’s Hot Chicken, which just started work on the rundown building near Fashion Fair.
Red Chickz co-founder Nima Christensen knows there’s a lot of hot chicken places in town — there’s over 100 in Los Angeles where his company is based, he said. But he says his stands out from the crowd.
“Our menu is extremely innovative,” he said. “Shrimp, tacos, fish, we’ve expanded beyond what everybody else does and really been innovative with the menu and having a lot of fun with it.”
The food
The menu includes chicken and French toast — a spin on the more traditional chicken and waffles, which is also on the menu. A French toast sandwich is served with chicken, cole slaw and syrup inside.
There’s also cauliflower for vegetarians, prepared like a patty rolled in the seasoning and served in a sandwich, or sold as fried cauliflower bites. Cheese curds are on the menu, too.
And of course, there’s the standard sandwich, tacos and chicken tenders.
“It is the crunchiest fried chicken that they have ever had,” Christensen said.
The chicken is brined for 48 hours to soak up the flavors. The buttermilk batter is also light, which affects the final product, he said.
“It also doesn’t absorb all the grease like regular fried chicken so it won’t be as greasy,” he said.
And the chicken is red from the paprika — hence the business name.
Not everything is spicy though. The chicken has seven spice levels, ranging from country-style classic fried chicken to “inferno” made with Carolina reaper peppers.
Orders for pickup can be made through its app and delivery is coming soon.
This is The Red Chickz’ fifth location and its third to be owned by a franchisee. It’s also planning several restaurants in New Jersey and North Carolina.
The Red Chickz is all over social media, with 1.1 million TikTok followers and 218,000 followers on Instagram.
The restaurant has invited a slew of influencers to try the food and post about it, from helloeggrolls to kimberlymaeh.
With its bright colors and bold decor, the restaurant is a playground for social media types.
“We just like to have fun. We like to be loud. We like to play with the menu items,” Christensen said.
Details: The Red Chickz is at 3250 N. Blackstone Ave., suite 106. Hours: 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. daily. 559-402-0092.
This story was originally published August 8, 2024 at 12:16 PM.
