Get ready to spice up your life. Nashville hot chicken is taking over Chinatown.
Howlin' Ray's draws crowds every day for their juicy chicken, flavorful sandwiches, and massive sides.
- Restaurant brings Nashville style hot chicken to Chinatown
- Originally began business as a food truck
- Since moving into a storefront, Howlin' Ray's has drawn long lines
Owner Johnny Zone fell in love with the flavors of Nashville and decided to introduce it to his hometown.
"I fell in love with the dish. No one was really doing it," says Zone.
Howlin' Ray's originally started as a food truck, but in the face of growing popularity, it eventually took up shop at the halfway point between its most popular stops.
"Arts District and Silver Lake were the halfway point, so it felt like a good fit," says Zone.
At this halfway point in Chinatown, customers line up before the doors even open. The first customer of the day was there two hours early. Even Zone didn't expect it to be quite like this.
"Going from serving 100 to 200 people a day to now 1,000 is crazy," says Zone.
One mother waiting in the line says she came for the experience and was happy to wait
Sometimes, the wait can get as long as three hours. Employees at Howlin' Ray's say it is not only the delicious food, but the friendly hospitality and the experience that keeps hungry patrons in the long lines.
As for opening more locations to cut down on the wait, Zone says he doesn’t want to sacrifice the quality of his food by expanding right now.
"I don’t care who tells me to open other places. I don’t want to sacrifice my sanity, my workers' sanity. I want quality over quantity," he says.
So for now, the line will continue to grow at the small Chinatown shop.
Howlin' Ray's
727 N Broadway #128
Los Angeles, CA 90012