‘Rise N Brine’– Dave’s Hot Chicken opens in Davenport

Madeleine Edwards and her six-month-old daughter, Kit, were part of the busy scene Wednesday night, Nov. 6, at the new Dave’s Hot Chicken restaurant at 3022 E. 53rd St., Davenport. They were part of the big crowd for Friends and Family Night at the new restaurant, which officially opened today, Thursday, Nov. 6, for a […]

Madeleine Edwards and her six-month-old daughter, Kit, were part of the busy scene Wednesday night, Nov. 6, at the new Dave’s Hot Chicken restaurant at 3022 E. 53rd St., Davenport. They were part of the big crowd for Friends and Family Night at the new restaurant, which officially opened today, Thursday, Nov. 6, for a soft opening. It will have a grand opening on Friday, Nov. 8. The chicken fast-food restaurant will be open 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. seven days a week.)

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The restaurant is scheduled to host a Quad Cities Chamber of Commerce ribbon-cutting ceremony at 10 a.m. on Friday. “All of this is really exciting. … I’m looking forward to having one of the sliders (sandwiches) with extra Dave sauce,” said Ms. Edwards, who was at the special event on Wednesday because her husband is part of the Dave’s Hot Chicken management team. The family moved from Utah to Iowa City to set up the new restaurant in the Quad Cities, which is the first Dave’s Hot Chicken in the Quad Cities. But it probably won’t be the only Dave’s Hot Chicken in Iowa. Bart Coon, the Utah-based investor who owns the restaurant, has plans to open other Dave’s locations in the near future. In addition to Davenport, he is also looking at sites in Iowa City, Cedar Rapids and two in the Des Moines area, he said during the Friends and Family Night event. The new fast casual restaurant is located off the ultra-busy 53rd Street and Elmore Avenue intersection in the former Pepper Jax Grill restaurant. Mr. Coon said he is especially proud of the new location because of its unique interior design. The interior features many large, colorful graffiti-style works of art that cover the walls. “Every one of these stores is unique. Not one of them is the same,” he added. But Mr. Coon is especially proud of the tasty food that had dozens of people lining up for chicken dishes on Wednesday night. Some of the menu items include:

• Dave’s Bites: White meat chicken tender bites served with a side of fries, a slice of bread, pickles and a side of Dave’s sauce.
• Sliders: Sliders are served on a potato bun with kale slaw, pickles and drizzled with Dave’s sauce.
• Tenders: All tenders are served with sliced bread, pickles and aside of Dave’s sauce.
• Sauces: There are seven levels of sauces, ranging from the mild “No Spice” to the very hot “Reaper.” (“I tried the Reaper and I was curled up in a corner sucking my thumb for half an hour,” Mr. Coon joked in a recent news release.)
• Shakes: Some of the flavors include: M&M, Oreo and Cinnamon Toast Crunch.

During the premiere event, dozens of Dave’s employees were busy preparing and delivering meals. (The Davenport restaurant currently has about 90 employees and is looking for more workers, said Mr. Coon).  Those Dave’s employees were wearing black T-shirts with the Dave’s Hot Chicken logo on the front and  colorful phrases on the back of the shirts such as “Get Rich or Die Fryin,’” “Live to Fry Another Day" and “Rise N Brine.” While the shirts and colorful interior art were hits with the friends and family crowd, it was the food that had people crowding into Dave’s Hot Chicken. One of those foodies was Ryan Barnard, who was hired to do the plumbing work to get the restaurant ready to open. The Davenport man ordered a slider, tenders and fries and said “I’m just looking forward to a good meal.”  As of last spring, there were about 200 Dave’s Hot Chicken locations around the world. However, the owners of Dave’s added that more than 700 locations are in the “development pipeline” with plans to open in the coming years. The restaurant chain got its start when three childhood friends in their 20s scraped together $900. “Our not-so-grand opening was in 2017, in a parking lot in East Hollywood, with a couple of folding tables and a portable fryer under the night sky.  But thanks to Instagram, people came. And tasted. And came back with their friends,” according to information on Dave's website. One of those childhood friends to open the restaurant chain is Dave Kopushyan, a chef, co-founder and namesake of Dave’s Hot Chicken. Today, the restaurant chain has drastically grown from its humble beginnings. Mr.  Coon said the newest Dave’s restaurant in Davenport will help build on that success, and attract a lot more foodies. “We love Iowa. … This is a great place to be,” he added.