The Grilled Mega Sando combo meal from Hangry Joe’s. Submitted Photos
Move over hot girl summer, it is hot chicken fall in Franklin.
Hangry Joe’s Hot Chicken is opening in Franklin on Friday at 200 Paris Drive, in the former site of Burger King. With heat levels ranging from no spice to “angry hot,” customers can choose between different food items including chicken sandwiches and fingers, sandwiches, chicken and waffles, wraps, and boneless and bone-in wings.
Chintu Patel, owner and area developer for Indiana and Kentucky, said he chose to open the latest Hangry Joe’s location in Franklin because of his connection to the community. He owns and operates other businesses in the area, including multiple Subway and Wingstop restaurants.
“I love the community. I feel like it has a lot of potential to grow and bring a new brand to town … I purchased this Burger King building and it was sitting empty for a while and then I kept thinking what to do, what to do and then it just came to my mind that this is a perfect fit for the area and for the community,” Patel said. “I’m very excited to bring this amazing concept to the town.”
He said the Hangry Joe’s brand has been “doing amazing” and has gotten a great response from customers.
Patel said Hangry Joe’s first opened in 2020 in Virginia and currently has over 70 open and operating restaurants in the United States with plans to expand and increase that number to approximately 100 before the end of this year. For the Midwest, Patel said he is looking to open seven to eight stores in Indiana and five to six stores in Kentucky by the end of next year.
Patel is looking at several sites in Central Indiana including a possible second Johnson County location near State Road 135 and Whiteland Road and a southside location at Emerson Avenue and Thompson Road. Another site he mentioned is near Shadeland Avenue and I-465 in Castleton, as well as a site near 56th St. and Georgetown Road. Patel said he is also looking to possibly open stores in Bloomington, Crawfordsville and Brownsburg.
The restaurant is known for its spices which range from no heat to “angry hot” which is so spicy that customers are asked to sign a waiver when they order it, according to the website. The restaurant offers dry rubs and sauces including spicy soy garlic, spicy smoked BBQ, buffalo and more.
Although there is a drive-through, Patel said it will only be for carry-out and pick-up orders since it takes time to make the food and the restaurant cooks everything from scratch.
“We don’t freeze anything in our store, so everything is made from scratch, made to order. And our chicken is very fresh, that’s our unique thing,” he said. “Plus, we have proprietary spices that we get from the franchisor. They’re very unique for our concept.”
There will also be mobile ordering through UberEats, DoorDash, GrubHub and the Hangry Joe’s website and app.
With this being his first restaurant opening for the Hangry Joe’s brand, Patel said he is excited to bring the food items and job opportunities to the Franklin community.
“I’m very excited about bringing this amazing food to the city, to the town and then the success coming along with our opening of this restaurant,” Patel said, “I’m excited about offering opportunity for the people in the community to work for the brand, creating job opportunity.”
Hangry Joe’s will be open seven days a week from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m.
