The Red Chickz slated to bring new Nashville hot chicken option to Cypress

Cypress will soon welcome a new Nashville-style hot chicken eatery, The Red Chickz.

The backstory

Co-founder Nima Christensen said he and his business partner, Shawn Lalehzarian, owned another restaurant concept in downtown Los Angeles but wanted to try a new concept. Hot chicken wasn't yet popular in Los Angeles when they launched The Red Chickz in 2018, but today there are more than 100 hot chicken eateries in the region, he said.

“We ran into the concept of Nashville hot chicken and we did a lot of research on it. We actually flew out to Nashville, spent a week there and we asked anybody from the Uber driver to the hotel bellman, ‘Do you know anybody that makes it?’” he said. “We actually got invited to a few homes, ... [and] the seasoning that we still use today on the chicken is from somebody's kitchen in Nashville.”

Christensen said The Red Chickz focuses on flavor and crunchiness, describing the chicken as having a light batter without greasiness.

The restaurant has three California locations. By mid-April, The Red Chickz will open in its first out-of-state location at Fairfield Town Center.

On the menu

The Red Chickz has several signature sandwiches on the menu—including the original sandwich, honey butter sandwich, French toast sandwich and cauliflower sandwich. Chicken tenders, cauliflower bites, wings, jumbo shrimp, loaded wedges, tacos, cheese curds and slaw are also on the menu.

There are six heat levels to choose from along with several side and sauce options.

What’s next

For the grand opening, The Red Chickz will host local celebrities and have a promotion for the first 100 guests, Christensen said.

• Opening April 13
• 28902 Hwy. 290, Ste. J-03, Cypress
• www.theredchickz.com