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Dave's Hot Chicken

3.8 (50 reviews)
Closed 11:00 am - 11:00 pm

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DAVE'S HOT CHICKEN ATMOSPHERE

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Moderate noise

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Vijayanarayanan S.

One of the best fried places in Lexington. I was surprised to find this place. I never knew this place existed. But I am glad ass found it. We got the extra hot flavor. That is one level below the highest spice level, reaper. Since I am Indian, and I am used to spicy food, this one was such a delightful find. However, I wouldn't recommend the spice level to the faint of heart. Exclamation, the price is so affordable. Also, if you check in now, you get a free milkshake.

#3   $12.99 Giant pieces of chicken. Wow! That's the best white meat in town!
Drew G.

Wow! My expectations were low because it's a chain and I read some negative reviews. First of all, the menu only has 3 meals which are just different combinations of chicken tenders, fries and bread. They are all huge portions and priced that way. They also have slaw and Mac n cheese but there are no dark meat options. It's a very limited menu. When I started eating, I couldn't believe how good these tenders are! From the crispy crust on the outside to the incredible seasoning! The seasoning is sweet and hot and some of the best that I have had. I got the Medium which seamed just right for me. I have no idea how they cook white meat so tender and juicy?! It's amazing that both of my pieces were absolutely perfect. Not dry, not chewy, not tough. Perfection. Also the fries are solid. They are seasoned crinkle cuts. They pair perfectly with the chicken. Looking forward to coming back.

Hurriyat G.

First n foremost, I am soooo happy to get the first halal chicken joint in Lexington, KY. So kudos to that! I tried Dave's yesterday.... My feedback is given below with the order: - Strawberry milkshake: 4/5 very good! - Chocolate milkshake: 2/5, tasteless - 2chicken tenders meal, medium: 4/5, was as spicy as the hot - 2 chicken tenders meal, hot: 4/5, overly hot and the dry rub is abrasive on the tongue - Kale slaw: 2/5 - Fries: 3/5, I'd have preferred them making their own fries Overall, I found the chicken to have better taste n texture than Joella's. But the basic white bread needs to be upped Menu is very limited n basic right now; sides are nothing much to write home about. Service was fast but I feel they need more than 2 registers this early in the game as the whole city will be (and is!) coming to check them out.

Hot
Jared B.

A Hot is PERFECTLY hot! Great find! Just come try these bad boys!Fresh chicken with great sauce!

Inside
Trendy D.

Great as always!! I highly recommend this is my favorite chicken spot! Food is fire and the service is always good. The prices are not terrible and portions are HUGE!

Sydney H.

You can't get a better hot chicken. It's not greasy, so tender, spicy (unlike another hot chicken place in town...) and oh my DRY RUB that's what I'm talking about!! The crisp is nice, thin, and crunchy. I got a ton of pickles, 2 slices of white bread, and 2 sauces. The sauce has a nice flavour, but I enjoyed the chicken just as is and also really enjoyed it dipped in honey. Mac and cheese was my side and it was good! I'm not the biggest mac and cheese fan so don't feel I'm a fair judge, but I would rank this higher in the mac and cheese world. It was very creamy and paired nicely with the spice of the hot tenders. Service was nice and the order was ready when they said it would be! Clean place with lots of parking. Knocking it down a star because it's costly.

Dave's #3 1 Tender & 1 Slider w/ Fries Side of Mac & Cheese
Leah C.

I finally visited this place after months of waiting for it to open and I was kind of disappointed with the flavor of the seasoning it's covered in. The chicken itself was tender and juicy so that was a win but if I ever go again I'll get no spice level as the breading to chicken ratio is to my liking. I also decided to try the Mac and cheese because I was curious whether it'd be better than chick fil a and it's safe to say it got a 1/5 basically gave me PTSD from eating at the college cafeteria but with Dave's seasoning. Service was fast and didn't need to wait around for anyone another plus from me. Restaurant environment was very clean but I do have to mention that the music was nonstop blaring the whole time I was in there getting a bite I couldn't really hold a conversation it was so noisy and wouldn't recommend it to people with sensitive hearing.. However for the price I rather steer you away from spending an outrageous amount and head to Grimes's instead that still is my fav fried chicken place it's local so give them your support rather than this chain that promises you something that didn't deliver. Also for the same price as one entree and an additional side you could get a twice as much from Grimes's and it already includes 2 a side, bun or wedges which are SPECTACULAR!

a sign in the window
Brandon T. T.

Dave's Hot Chicken has a nice dinner type atmosphere. The staff was SUPER FRIENDLY! If you like fried chicken this maybe the place for you. The chicken has a ton of seasoning. If you can't take HOT go for mild. When they say hot it is HOT HOT! All the food came out hot (temperature). The slice bread is nothing special, and was the only let down. I will have to go back and try other flavors.

Free Slider. Courtesy of Drake, the rapper!
Looking Out For The City ..

HAPPY BIRTHDAY DRAKE! Thanks for putting my meal on your tab! Background: This franchise is interesting. The background history was that this place started in Los Angeles, CA and one of the original founders was trained by a chef who cooked at The French Laundry, a very upscale restaurant in CA (one that CA's governor, Gavin Newsom, went to during the pandemic without a mask and with a group of peope...m...hm...). Anyway, it started out as a stand and then it blew up and rapidly began expanding across the U.S. Lexington is lucky to have one, sort of like Winchester, KY is lucky to have a Fatburger (another chain out of Los Angeles)...we can state that it may even be better than IN N OUT... O_O! Drake, the rapper, has a stake in this chain just like Kanye West has a stake in Fatburger. Experience: I ordered a Carolina reaper slider (no, they do not make you sign a waiver) from this place and it was GOOD. It was basically a tender with dry rub AND sauce! You get both unlike other chicken places where they give you either/or. It is like 4d instead of 3d! It's like a liquid metal/endoskeleton terminator instead of an endoskeleton terminator. The future in spicing up chicken. Double whammy...OMG!! I had to coat my stomach first with Culver's free custard scoop! HOLY CHIT! Now for the pricing and, like locations from New York or Los Angeles; Lexingtonians will find that the price points will be high. This is because these chains come from high cost of living places, but do not bother to adjust their pricing to cities they expand to. There have been a number of reviews under this location that mention this and I thought to better clarify as to why. Suggestions: All in all, I actually do not prefer chicken tenders (I mean I like them, but do not go out of my way as much because they tend to use fillers to gel the chicken together). Why not sell actual chicken pieces like KFC or Lee's, bone in? Also, why Carolina Reaper? Why not jalapenos and habaneros? This is out of CA right? Why not an avocado spread? I would be more willing to come back if they considered sending coupons through the mail though. Or maybe they could have like an app or online rewards account like Burger King or Wendy's to give offers that way?

Tamika J.

Dave's is a new to Lexington and I thought I would give it a try. We don't have a lot of Nashville hot chicken locations, so I thought I would try it. I went during lunch and it was relatively crowded. I ordered the chicken sliders and felt they are completely overpriced. I know Dave's is a franchised location and I don't think the price point is appropriate for Lexington. I honestly don't feel there is a reason to back to this restaurant.

12-15-23.  Chicken Strips & Fries

We drove 20 minutes out of the way on our long road trip because my son insisted we needed Dave's Hot Chicken. We walked in and Greg greeted us with friendly banter and served us up some super fresh delicious chicken. The place was clean including the restrooms. We enjoyed our brief lunch break and wish all restaurant stops were like this with top notch service and fresh delicious food! Highly recommend. My son walked out saying it was the best chicken he has ever had!!

Vicky C.

Went here for the grand open and the line was out there door. Didn't wait to long though about 30 minutes. We ordered the #1 and #2. I really liked how simple the menu was. Got the sides of Mac and cheese and also cheese fries. I got the spicy level (Hot) which was the perfect amount of spice for me personally. The chicken tenders were a good size but one of them was really small that I got. They were juicy, flavorful, and not dry at all even when I air fried it later. The Mac and cheese on the other hand I expected it to be more cheesy and not watery. That was probably the worst thing I got but other than that it was really good and would go back again.

Rubber chicken behind the counter in case of emergency.
Nhat Ha T.

Dave's Hot Chicken recently opened in Lexington and they recently had free chicken as a celebration for Drake's birthday. Their restaurants are really fun and colorful. They have outdoor seating and indoor seating. When I arrived, I was cheerfully greeted by a staff member and informed about not only getting a free meal for following them on Instagram for Drake's birthday but they were giving out milkshakes for a Google review. The menu was easy to order from and their main entrees are their fried chicken sliders and tenders. They have a range of spice levels for their entrees from no spice to reaper. I ordered the mild for the tender and hot for the slider. The chicken seemed overcooked on the outside because the dry spice blend was so dark. However, the chicken on the inside was nice and tender. The fries were good and well-seasoned. I really enjoyed the slider which had their kale slaw (I could've eaten the slaw on its own!), Dave's sauce (spicy mayo, like Chick-fil-a's), and pickles. I forgot to take a picture of the chocolate milkshake I ordered but it was thick and creamy. I would order one again.

First time here I ordered 3 sliders with fries... could only eat one tonight.

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Brett G.

We aim to impress! Thank you! Come back again soon!

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11 months ago

Walk in, saw the prices for 3 small chicken stripes and walked out. Unbelievable. But the staff is very nice

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4 years ago

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We can't wait to have you!

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2 years ago

Chicken was good and there was a good dry rub on it. There was like a crust though. Dave's sauce was good.

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3 years ago

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4 years ago

Food was really good. Service very good. Staff very personable. But a bit pricey. Two combos were $36.

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4 years ago

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2 years ago

Everything no seaming or spice to any chicken and it it not even spicy it is more sweet then anything.

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4 years ago

Fries were excellent. Crispy seasoned. Chicken was Hot and delicious as well. Large portions we ended up taking half home.

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3 years ago

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