Cluckies Hot Chicken becomes a hot commodity following its opening

Three friends have combined their experience and passion in the restaurant world to open up Cluckies Hot Chicken – and their popularity is already growing. Jonathan Harrigan, Alex Weaver and Mark Katras are the co-owners of the chicken restaurant. The trio recently opened Cluckies at 3111 W. Market St. on Jan. 13 after planning the restaurant since last August. In the two weeks since its opening, they said nothing but support has been shown by their customers, with multiple instances where the restaurant has hit a "sold out" limit. "Every item has been a hit, honestly," Weaver said. "As far as feedback that we've been looking and hearing, and asking every customer, there's really not been anything people haven't liked." The group of owners said the restaurant serves bone-in and boneless wings, fried or grilled chicken tenders with fries – which happens to be a popular choice on their menu – fried pickles, mozzarella sticks, chicken sandwiches and cookies for dessert. Along with being buddies, Harrigan, Weaver and Katras all have previous experience in the restaurant business. Weaver used to work for Katras and Harrigan at their first business, Alley Kat, when he was younger, which closed Jan. 13, 2016. Weaver later opened Project BBQ alongside his family. Shortly after, Weaver said he reconnected with Harrigan and Katras, and the trio decided to open Cluckies – exactly 10 years after the closing of Alley Kat. . "A video popped up on [Jonathan's] phone, and it was the last day at Alley Kat and our first day here," Weaver said. "We literally had no clue. It just came kinda full-circle." "He connects with his old-timers and we thought it would be a fun thing to kinda all get back and give it another go," Katras added. The co-owners also said having chicken as the focus for their menu was decided because of the versatility it has, allowing a lot of creative flavors to work for the meat's seasonings and/or sauces. "We decided on chicken because we wanted to have fun with it," Weaver said. "We said, 'Let's just do something that's kinda easy, but let's do it the best we can.'" "We want to be the best at that one product," Katras said. "Right now, our focus is chicken and giving the best chicken product this area has." In order to get prepared to open, the group said many renovations had to be completed in the space. Walls were painted, new kitchen equipment was brought in and the building's wear and tear was fixed or replaced. Katras said the patio outside of the restaurant will be the next part to touch up so it is customer-ready in the summer and better fits the Cluckies aesthetic. A big credit the men gave to Cluckies' success is the preparation that goes into the food. Weaver said all the chicken is hand-breaded and brined for 24 hours, and Katras added the peppers and species used on the chicken were from other local spots. Beef tallow is also used as the agent to fry the food in, something Katras said is a large part of what sets Cluckies apart from other restaurants. Harrigan said another part of Cluckies' success and the positive customer response comes from the "at home" feel of the restaurant and lack of chain-style products Cluckies has. "I think East Tennessee is warming up to more 'mom and pop' instead of franchises," he said. "We want to keep this mom and pop, even if it does franchise. We gotta keep it good – we're never going to go to some manufacturer or get our chicken from all these other big companies." As Cluckies continues cooking chicken and serving every customer it can, the trio said the most exciting thing about having their restaurant is not just creating the food, but running the business alongside each other. "For me, it's seeing these guys and getting back into that competitive rush," Katras said. "I definitely agree – it's a good time," Weaver said. "Even when we're in it in here and slammed…we're all easy-going and stuff, so it is cool just to pop back in." "Being able to come down here, even when you're in the weeds, if you're together it's just fun," Harrigan added.