Haven Hot Chicken founders find room for Nashville hot chicken brand

In this episode of the Restaurant Operator Podcast, host Mandy Detwiler, editor of Pizza Marketplace and QSRweb, talks to Jason Sobocinski and Etkin Tekin, co-founders of Haven Hot Chicken out of Connecticut. While the chicken market may be saturated, Sobocinski and Tekin found a niche for hot chicken, and the rest is history.

Tekin and Sobocincki have history when Tekin worked for Sobocincki at a restaurant he owned years ago. During his interview, Tekin told his boss he'd like to open a business with him someday. They stayed in touch as Tekin opened his own businesses and in 2018, Tekin contacted his former boss about a business opportunity he had.

That business? A Nashville hot chicken concept.

"There was nothing like it in Connecticut," Sobocinski said. He wanted to do a brand, however, and initially said no. He was invited to meet the other two founders, and Sobocinski was "blown away" by them and the food. He was in.

Tekin said there was a story created behind the brand they wanted to create, and at the same time they were doing rigorous recipe testing.

"After three or four months of work, I just felt like something was missing in the organization," Tekin said. That would have been Sobocinski, who Tekin said always created a brand with his restaurants.

The brand has recently grown from four stores to nine in just 10 months.

To learn more about Haven Hot Chicken's operations, listen to the podcast in its entirety at the top of the page.