Long Lines, Canceled Orders Plague Dave’s Hot Chicken Opening

A new Poughkeepsie chicken restaurant was overrun with customers this weekend, causing two-hour waits and canceled orders.

On Friday, Dave's Hot Chicken opened up its first Hudson Valley location on Route 9 in Poughkeepsie. The fast food chain is the latest business to move into the former Table Talk Diner location across from Barnes and Noble.

The restaurant was founded in 2017 after a group of friends served their spicy chicken at a pop-up location in an abandoned parking lot. Now, with over 200 locations nationwide, Dave's Hot Chicken is one of the fastest-growing chains in the country.

Poughkeepsie Restaurant Draws Huge Crowds on Opening Weekend

After a soft opening on Thursday, Dave's Hot Chicken officially opened its doors. While many people expected the opening weekend to be busy, I doubt many thought that they would have to wait hours for a chicken sandwich.

Tents were erected outside the restaurant to keep customers in the shade as a long line began to form around the north side of the building. According to reviews on Google, those in attendance on opening weekend waited up to two hours for food. Others who had attempted to order pickup through the restaurant's website and app say their transactions were canceled.

One customer forwarded us a message they received from the restaurant explaining that the store was too busy to accept any more orders.

Head's Up! We apologize for the inconvenience, but this location is experiencing a very high number of online orders and cannot take additional orders at this time.

We spoke to an employee who was greeting customers outside the restaurant on Sunday. He told us the outdoor line was about a half-hour wait to get into the store. He was unsure how much longer it would take to join the other line at the counter and get food.

Is Dave's Hot Chicken in Poughkeepsie Worth the Wait?

While we chose not to stand in line for a chicken sandwich, many customers who braved the wait say the food was worth it. Dave's Hot Chicken in Poughkeepsie currently has 4.8 out of 5 stars from 142 customers who rated the restaurant this weekend on Google.

Many of the reviews mention the long waits, but applaud the staff for keeping the lines moving and being well organized. There are also rave reviews for the food, which features shakes, fries, chicken and assorted sides like coleslaw and mac and cheese.

The restaurant is expected to be much less crowded after the grand opening hype dies down over the next few weeks.