Six items, besides drinks, constitute the whole thing: house-made kale slaw, mac and cheese, crinkle fries, cheese fries and the main event, chicken tenders and sliders with heat levels ranging from “No Spice” to “Reaper.” The menu at Dave’s is an exercise in minimalism.

Already, two more locations are scheduled to open in Toronto this year, one at Yonge and Eglinton and another in Leslieville. While those spots laid the groundwork, the arrival of Dave’s signals that Nashville hot chicken hotness is here to stay.ĭave’s Hot Chicken, at 1582 Queen Street West, is the first in Canada and the first outside of California where there are seven, but it won’t be the last. There’s even a uniquely Toronto variation: Tokyo Hot Fried Chicken, inside Folly Brewing on College Street, that combines Japanese Karaage fried chicken with Nashville spicing. Five Points, the takeout spot inside Wasted Youth Bar on Bloor Street was another early adopter as was Chen Chen’s on Queens Quay West and Chica’s in the Junction. Clucks opened on College Street back in 2016 and now has a second location on Queen Street West. Nashville-style hot chicken is no stranger to Toronto’s spice heads. If the hours long, physically distanced, lineups are anything to go by, he may be on his way to achieving that goal. The work is a tribute to the hip-hop artist Drake’s 2016 album, “Views.” It’s a bold statement for the restaurant, a California import, and maybe a suggestion that, like the rapper before him, Dave has ambitions to dominate the city. On a mural inside Dave’s Hot Chicken, the restaurant’s mascot, a bug-eyed rubber chicken, surveys the scene from his roost atop the CN Tower.

Dave's hot chicken coming soon