KFC doubles down on hot chicken

kfc nashville hot basket

After feeling some heat from customers, KFC has brought back its Nashville Hot Chicken to U.S. units.

Nashville Hot Chicken, which KFC served from January to April, was then deemed one of the chain’s biggest product innovations in recent memory. It first drummed up interest for the spicy LTO by offering customers tastes from a mobile food truck that made stops around the country.

As part of this month’s reintroduction, the chain is offering the product in a sandwich in addition to tenders and off the bone, and some units will serve Nashville Hot Wings as well as a grilled iteration, KFC said. It noted that customers had clamored for the item's return, particularly on social media. 

To draw interest, the chain also named Mad Men actor Vincent Kartheiser the Nashville Hot Colonel, the latest Colonel Sanders iteration to be featured in the brand’s advertising. This newly crowned Colonel follows in the footsteps of the product-specific Extra Crispy Colonel introduced by KFC earlier this year. 

Despite the somewhat mixed performance reported by its parent company, KFC performed rather well during its most recent quarter, particularly in the U.S., where its comps rose 6%.

Members help make our journalism possible. Become a Restaurant Business member today and unlock exclusive benefits, including unlimited access to all of our content. Sign up here.

Multimedia

Exclusive Content

Leadership

Restaurants bring the industry's concerns to Congress

Neary 600 operators made their case to lawmakers as part of the National Restaurant Association’s Public Affairs Conference.

Financing

Podcast transcript: Virtual Dining Brands co-founder Robbie Earl

A Deeper Dive: What is the future of digital-only concepts? Earl discusses their work to ensure quality and why focusing on restaurant delivery works.

Financing

In the fast-casual sector, Chipotle laps Panera Bread

The Bottom Line: The two fast-casual restaurant pioneers have diverged over the past five years, as the burrito chain has thrived while Panera hit a wall. Here's why.

Trending

More from our partners