A social media hit, the hot chicken spot draws late-night bar-goers and college foodies alike
By PIPER AWEEKA — city@theaggie.org
On Jan. 31, Crazy D’s Hot Chicken opened the doors to its newest franchise location in Downtown Davis. The latest business to take up residency on G Street, Crazy D’s menu boasts a variety of offerings; From fried chicken of varying spice levels to smashburgers and french fries, Crazy D’s is bringing Nashville heat to the Davis restaurant scene.
A nationwide franchise, the new Davis location is currently only the second in California. The first of the two Nashville hot chicken spots operates out of a Chevron station on Main Street in Woodland. After opening two years ago, the Woodland location experienced overwhelming support from the community.
Ankush Walia, owner of both Crazy D’s Hot Chicken locations, described the process of opening a restaurant in Davis.
“We saw that this street had been dead for a couple of years now,” Walia said. “We wanted to bring life back with our flavorful chicken.”
The opening was advertised around Downtown Davis and on social media, with food review reels filling the location’s Instagram feed. Hoping to connect with the UC Davis student community, Walia reached out to local college influencers to help promote the new location online.
Katie Do, a fourth-year psychology major, who goes by the username @Kayteaaz on social media, made a reel on Crazy D’s grand opening that was reposted by the restaurant’s Instagram account and has since garnered over 2,000 views.
Discussing her experience filming content at the restaurant, Do highlighted the establishment’s future plans.
“I got to speak to the owner, and he was telling me about all the things they had planned for the community,” Do said. “They are still working on a student area where they actually preserved parts of the old Woodstock’s that were there before.”
Known by many as the former home to Davis’ Woodstock’s Pizza, Walia highlighted his own fond memories and goal of preserving the past.
“This location is very historic,” Walia said. “When I was young, I used to come in and eat Woodstock’s pizza here. We kept a lot of the original things from the building […] We have a wall upstairs that still has the old names of UC Davis kids.”
In addition to preserving the city’s sentimental history, Crazy D’s plans to positively contribute to the Davis community through fundraisers and events.
“We’re doing a fundraiser for the engineering team at UC Davis this coming Feb. 23,” Walia said. “We want to do a lot of events going forward this year, and our goal is to keep the consistency, the better food and always give out the best service possible.”
The owner’s efforts to advertise through social media have been largely successful; with the recent closure of Davis’ Nash and Proper, another fried chicken spot, Crazy D’s is a hot topic online, according to Justin Li, a fifth-year food science major.
“I found this place out on TikTok,” Li said. “When [Nash and Proper] closed, the only other alternative was Bruxie, right next door. I don’t really like Bruxie, so I was like, might as well try here […] I’m always down for a new restaurant in Downtown Davis.”
Amanda Ralston, a fourth-year economics major and Crazy D’s first-timer like Li, highlighted her positive experience at the new Nashville hot chicken joint.
“It was super fast,” Ralston said. “The fries and their sauce were really good […] [My boyfriend] got a sandwich that had coleslaw on it, and that was pretty good, too.”
Given its location on G Street, Ralston emphasized the convenience of the new Crazy D’s.
“It’s gonna be really good for the community because it’s open until midnight and it’s an alternative to [Raising] Canes,” Ralston said. “It’s literally on G street and right next to Shipwrecked.”
Neighbor to a variety of college bars, the restaurant’s after-hours schedule provides easy access to late-night cravings. Whether patrons are looking for a convenient midnight snack or a casual mid-day meal, Crazy D’s is a new “hot” option for Downtown Davis food-goers.
Written by: Piper Aweeka — city@theaggie.org
