Fried Chicken News
East Dallas retro landmark will become Nashville hot chicken restaurant
A treasured East Dallas building that was once home to Brink's Coffee Shop & Restaurant has a new savior: Lucky's Hot Chicken, a Nashville-style hot chicken place will open in the mid-century style building at 4505 Gaston Ave.
According to a release, the restaurant will open in early spring 2020.
The building was purchased by Hunter Pond and Kyle Brooks, who own East Hampton Sandwich Co., Drake’s, and Hudson House. Running the restaurant will be Lou Olerio, founder of Shayna's Place, the sandwich and coffee shop at Sylvan Thirty.
The chef is Josh Bonee, a Nashville transplant who has worked with celebrity chef Sean Brock at Husk, and at Martini House, the Napa Valley restaurant from chef Todd Humphries. He most recently worked as sous chef at Flora Street Cafe.
Beloved for its "googie" style of architecture, the building was most recently a laundromat, but has been empty since 2014. Brooks and Pond will restore the building, including its distinctive, rotating sign.
Being good stewards of the property and its history is one of their primary goals.
The landmark real estate was the location where Brinker International founder Norman Brinker opened Brink's, his first restaurant, in 1964.
Brooks has a personal connection: His father is Doug Brooks, who helmed Brinker International from 2004 to 2013 as chairman & CEO after Norman Brinker.
Those personal ties and the building's deep roots to the Dallas restaurant culture are what persuaded Brooks and Pond to get involved.
Lucky's will serve hot chicken in plates or sandwiches, with five heat levels of spice. Options will include tenders, wings, breasts, and thighs. Sides include mac ‘n cheese, coleslaw, baked beans, and collard greens. They'll also do milkshakes in a variety of flavors.
They'll follow a counter-service model, and will also offer curbside pickup.