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You would think that following that infamous Pete Wells review in the New York Times back in 2012, Guy Fieri would steer away from opening a restaurant in Times Square and, yet, here we are: the Food Network star is gearing up to launch his new fast-casual Chicken Guy! concept at 138 West 42nd Street between Broadway and Sixth Avenue this Friday.
Now operating or about to debut over 20 locations across the country, Chicken Guy! originally launched at Walt Disney World Resort in Orlando back in 2018.
According to Eater, the new restaurant will serve a menu of six sandwiches—think bourbon brown sugar barbecue—for $14 each, plus 10 different sauces, hot tenders, salads and milkshakes. Think of it as a fried chicken empire, in a way.
Although, rightfully so, Guy's American Kitchen & Bar is the one restaurant that New Yorkers immediately associate with Fieri, the cook has actually debuted similar businesses in the area a few times after his maligned eatery closed. In 2021, he launched a delivery-only restaurant in Times Square that was called Flavortown Kitchen, for example.
Overall, though, New Yorkers seem to just be fascinated by the instantly-recognizable Fieri, participating in themed bar crawls focusing on the figure for years now. Let's be honest: we can't think of a more Flavortown-like area in the world than Times Square, after all.