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utee94

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Nashville hot chicken purveyor Tumble 22 (or T22) appears to be expanding northward — CultureMap Austin has unearthed an alcohol permit application for the restaurant in Cedar Park.

Details are slim at this stage, but the application notes 4501 183A Toll Road as the address for the proposed restaurant — an Eater reader notes that it is set to take over the former PDQ restaurant at 183A and East Whitestone Boulevard.

T22 has been hinting at expansion plans for a while now, with plans for four or five locations around Austin. It started out in 2017 as a food truck operation, and a brick and mortar restaurant followed in 2018. While the truck was shut down in mid-2019, there are plans for it to reopen soon in Cherrywood on a lunch-only basis.

There’s no word yet as to where else T22 is planning to open, or even when the Cedar Park restaurant is set to open — but either way, it seems there will be more crispy, fiery chicken in the works there, and other places around town.

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19 hours ago, 4th&Five said:

Nashville hot chicken purveyor Tumble 22 (or T22) appears to be expanding northward — CultureMap Austin has unearthed an alcohol permit application for the restaurant in Cedar Park.

Details are slim at this stage, but the application notes 4501 183A Toll Road as the address for the proposed restaurant — an Eater reader notes that it is set to take over the former PDQ restaurant at 183A and East Whitestone Boulevard.

T22 has been hinting at expansion plans for a while now, with plans for four or five locations around Austin. It started out in 2017 as a food truck operation, and a brick and mortar restaurant followed in 2018. While the truck was shut down in mid-2019, there are plans for it to reopen soon in Cherrywood on a lunch-only basis.

There’s no word yet as to where else T22 is planning to open, or even when the Cedar Park restaurant is set to open — but either way, it seems there will be more crispy, fiery chicken in the works there, and other places around town.

Good news, I like T22 and having one closer will be great. Now if only we could get a Gus's up somewhere north...

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Happy Chicks opened a Burnet Road location.  I haven't been.  Any thoughts? 

Happy Chicks Chicken Kitchen

Chicken was decent. Fries were fine. The other sides were horrifically bad. I don’t know how you make bacon Mac and cheese disgusting but they accomplished it.

 

It’ll be gone in 6 months.

 

Go try the Korean chicken place next to School of Rock. It’s solid.

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8 hours ago, utee94 said:

Good news, I like T22 and having one closer will be great. Now if only we could get a Gus's up somewhere north...

i'll be interested in hearing what that one is like.  the bird at the trailer at Star Bar was always straight awesome; the several times I have been to the shop on Burnet have all been pretty lackluster in comparison.  i guess some of that is to be expected when moving from 6 total items on the menu the end, to combination full service restaurant and wannabe hip beer joint and bar.  although the pies have always been pretty good.  hope the one out by you is better.

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15 hours ago, CooterBrown said:

Chicken was decent. Fries were fine. The other sides were horrifically bad. I don’t know how you make bacon Mac and cheese disgusting but they accomplished it.

 

It’ll be gone in 6 months.

 

Go try the Korean chicken place next to School of Rock. It’s solid.

Looks like I can skip Happy Chicks. 

Are you talking about Hi Wings? The menu looks really interesting. Definitely will check it out.

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  • 1 month later...

Anyone ever hit up a Krispy Krunchy Chicken before?  See there's on in Austin off 290, doesn't appear they have stand alone, mostly in gas stations or convenient stores.  Hit up one in VT this afternoon and was surprised how good it was, hot & juicy with a crispy crust.  We thought we ordered the regular but got Cajun instead and I loved it.   We didn't do any sides as they had no sitting and we had to eat in the car, both the honey butter/blueberry biscuits were also good. 

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On 3/13/2020 at 7:27 PM, Underdog said:

Anyone ever hit up a Krispy Krunchy Chicken before?  See there's on in Austin off 290, doesn't appear they have stand alone, mostly in gas stations or convenient stores.  Hit up one in VT this afternoon and was surprised how good it was, hot & juicy with a crispy crust.  We thought we ordered the regular but got Cajun instead and I loved it.   We didn't do any sides as they had no sitting and we had to eat in the car, both the honey butter/blueberry biscuits were also good. 

I’ve always thought it to be absolutely top tier in the pantheon of gas station fried chicken. 

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  • 2 months later...
  • 2 months later...

Hattie B’s Hot Chicken, the popular Nashville-based hot chicken restaurant chain, is looking to open in Texas, as pointed out by an Eater tipster. Specifically, the company is eyeing potential locations in Austin, Dallas, and Houston.

A rep for the chain confirmed these expansion plans, noting that Hattie B’s formed a specific Texas LLC (Hattie B’s of Texas, LLC) in August in Dallas. There is no set timeline for these openings as of yet.

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  • 9 months later...
On 6/20/2021 at 10:18 AM, TonyTexas said:

Bojangles is coming to Texas. Initial Houston area locations will be in Humble, Woodlands and Conroe. Opening some in North Texas. Locations TBD

I never eaten there. Is it any good?

Grew up with Bojangles in North Carolina but haven’t had it in over 25 years. Had several hangover meals there. 

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  • 6 months later...
On 6/20/2021 at 11:18 AM, TonyTexas said:

Bojangles is coming to Texas. Initial Houston area locations will be in Humble, Woodlands and Conroe. Opening some in North Texas. Locations TBD

I never eaten there. Is it any good?

So good it’ll make you dance. 

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22 hours ago, Fastbreak said:

This week I’ve had T22 and Gus’s. Both were solid and in the top 5 of FC I have ever had, but I preferred T22 for overall flavor.

Notes:
1. I haven’t been back in Austin for the last 3 years
2. T22 was eat in, Gus’s was delivery.

What heat level did you get at T22?

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13 hours ago, Fastbreak said:

i just told her above medium, but not making me cry crazy.

To me, their flavor is off if the heat level is below "Mo' Hot", and I'm not a big spicy food freak.  It just seems like that's where the flavors start to balance.  "Wimpy" is terrible, I'd like to think they'd hit KFC or something like that, but no.  "Hot" is OK, but something is wrong.  Too much vinegar?  Don't know.

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I have never had Bojangles.  I would like to try it, as I am a connoisseur of all things fried yardbird.  We actually vacationed in Va. Beach in 2020, and there was one in town that I kept planning to hit up and bring back some to the beach house for lunch, but never did.

It's one of my great regrets in life.

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Give it a shot. It’s one of those things where  it’s been way too long to really know if it’s legitimately good fried chicken that 2022 South Austin would enjoy, or if it just tasted good to early-90s-poor-college-student South Austin who didn’t have many options on a Saturday morning after downing a case of Miller Lite the night before.

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14 hours ago, CooterBrown said:

All of these places say they’re coming to Austin but they always end up in Round Rock or Cedar Park where the real estate costs better fit their business model.

That's a good point actually.  They tell their investors they're entering this "hot, new market."  And then Austinites find out it's a Leander PAD site at $19/foot.  Which I understand.  I'm not a big fried chicken guy, but the times I've had Bojangles while traveling, it was fantastic.  As South Austin says, one time it was with a wretched hangover from a business conference gone sideways...and it set me pitch perfect.  The kinda biscuits you wanna take out behind the middle school and get pregnant.  

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  • 1 month later...
35 minutes ago, LCHorn said:

Lucy’s on Burnett closing per the Statesman.  I generally find their chicken too salty but like their oysters.

The Diablo oysters were great.  Haven't been in probably 5 years though.

Interesting that the reason is he can't find enough staff to be open 7 days a week and the lease cost wasn't worth it.  I imagine this is going to be the downfall of a lot of restaurants. That 7th day is probably the day of weekly profit for most places after the first 6 just cover breaking even.

https://www.austin360.com/story/entertainment/dining/restaurant-reviews/2022/03/04/lucys-fried-chicken-burnet-road-closing-permanently/9374617002/

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17 hours ago, CooterBrown said:

The Diablo oysters were great.  Haven't been in probably 5 years though.

Interesting that the reason is he can't find enough staff to be open 7 days a week and the lease cost wasn't worth it.  I imagine this is going to be the downfall of a lot of restaurants. That 7th day is probably the day of weekly profit for most places after the first 6 just cover breaking even.

https://www.austin360.com/story/entertainment/dining/restaurant-reviews/2022/03/04/lucys-fried-chicken-burnet-road-closing-permanently/9374617002/

That reason is bullshit. He was typically paying his kitchen staff $12/hr and less to start so yeah, it's going to be pretty hard to find staff when you don't pay a fair wage. 

He also benefited handsomely from over $1.5 million in PPP loans across all four of his locations and two of them have now closed. He had $163,000 in PPP money earmarked to payroll at the Burnet location that was forgiven entirely as of October 2021. Yet you're closing because you can't find staff????

Riiiiiiiight.

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On 1/14/2022 at 1:15 PM, Brisketexan said:

I have never had Bojangles.  I would like to try it, as I am a connoisseur of all things fried yardbird.  We actually vacationed in Va. Beach in 2020, and there was one in town that I kept planning to hit up and bring back some to the beach house for lunch, but never did.

It's one of my great regrets in life.

Not Austin related, but next time you get to Longview, try Southern Classic Chicken. Similar taste to Popeye's, but a little better and larger pieces.

There's also a location in Tyler and several in Louisiana, but I can only vouch for the one on High Street in Longview as that's the only one I've been to.

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On 3/5/2022 at 5:51 PM, jimmyjazz said:

Yeah, Lucy's has ceased to be worth they hype, and that hype wore off maybe 5 years ago.  It's just not that good.  Sorry to see your overpriced chicken go, I'll stick with Top Notch, etc.

Everyone always says that about their prices but their prices are basically the same as T22 and even Top Notch, the problem is they didn't structure the menu around the perception of value that you get at Tumble or Top Notch. By only offering a 4-pc basket or 12-pc bucket on the menu (while still having a la carte pieces available always but not advertising it) and not including one or two sides in the price, it makes it seem like they are far pricier than their competition when it's basically a draw. I tried to tell them repeatedly, they didn't listen. 

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  • 3 months later...

Family birthday picnic on the lake tomorrow -- if we exclude Nashville (or other hot) chicken from the menu, where is the go-to traditional spot these days?  Top Notch is in the running for sure.  Wondering if there's a mom 'n pop out there?

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Bill Millers or tried and true KFC [original, not extra crispy). I keep hearing that Randall’s fried chicken is good but the two times I’ve tried it I’ve not been impressed.

Austin really needs a Strouds or Eischens. 

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46 minutes ago, blacklab said:

not mom and pop but I love Gus's downtown

Agree 100% but Gus's is also a spicy fried chicken style, and it sounds like JJ is trying to avoid that.

You can get non-spicy chicken at Tumble 22.  I've never had it, I always get the hot stuff, but maybe it's good?

Don't really know of any mom and pop chicken joints.

 

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38 minutes ago, utee94 said:

Agree 100% but Gus's is also a spicy fried chicken style, and it sounds like JJ is trying to avoid that.

You can get non-spicy chicken at Tumble 22.  I've never had it, I always get the hot stuff, but maybe it's good?

Don't really know of any mom and pop chicken joints.

 

I think T22 uses some kind of brine for all of their chicken, because there is a hint of vinegar even in their "mild" version.

Randall's definitely has an odd aftertaste, I suspect it's the oil.  It's fine if you're trying to jam 8 pieces of food down 3 kids' throats for $6, but it's not picnic worthy.

I was hoping there's some kind of soul food or diner joint out there, like Dot's (closed) etc.  Might just end up with Top Notch, which is pretty good.  Hadn't considered Bill Miller's, might look into that.

Thanks.

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