Killeen, things are about to get a whole lot hotter.
Dave’s Hot Chicken is coming to Killeen, with a new restaurant planned at 2801 E. Central Texas Expy.
And if that address looks familiar, there’s a reason.
The new Dave’s will take over the former Pollo Campero location, which closed earlier this year. Now, another chicken concept is preparing to move into the standalone restaurant building.
According to a Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation filing, crews will renovate the 2,598-square-foot space for Dave’s Hot Chicken.
The project carries an estimated construction cost of $500,000. Work is currently scheduled to begin November 1, 2026, with completion targeted for June 7, 2027.
But this isn’t your typical chicken restaurant.
Dave’s Started in a Parking Lot
Before the national expansion, packed restaurants and social media hype, Dave’s Hot Chicken had much humbler beginnings.
The brand got its start in Los Angeles in 2017, when four friends launched a small hot chicken pop-up in a parking lot.
The setup was simple. A portable fryer, folding tables and a recipe for Nashville-style hot chicken were enough to get things moving.
Word spread quickly.
What started as a parking-lot operation eventually became one of the fastest-growing restaurant concepts in the country, with Dave’s expanding into markets across the United States and beyond.
How Hot Do You Want It?
Dave’s doesn’t bury customers under a gigantic menu.
Instead, the restaurant puts the spotlight on hot chicken tenders, sliders and bites.
Customers can pair them with sides including fries, mac and cheese and kale slaw. Shakes are also available for anyone who discovers they may have been a little too ambitious with the spice level.
And speaking of heat, that’s where things get interesting.
Dave’s offers seven spice levels, starting with No Spice and climbing through increasingly hotter options before reaching the infamous Reaper.
In other words, you can play it safe.
Or you can make lunch a life decision.
Dave’s Hot Chicken Expands Into Killeen
Dave’s has been steadily growing its Texas footprint, including an expanding presence across Central Texas.
Now, Killeen is joining the list.
We aren’t finding an existing Dave’s Hot Chicken in the city, making this planned restaurant the first Killeen location.
The location along Central Texas Expressway also puts Dave’s directly inside one of Killeen’s busiest commercial corridors.
And the building already has a restaurant history.
Before Pollo Campero, the property was home to TGI Friday’s. Pollo Campero later opened at the site before closing in April 2026.
Now the address is preparing for its next chapter.
Bottom Line
One chicken restaurant has left, and another is turning up the heat.
Dave’s Hot Chicken is preparing to transform the former Pollo Campero into its first Killeen restaurant, bringing its famous tenders, sliders and seven levels of heat to the city.
Construction is currently scheduled to begin this fall and continue into 2027.
Bottom line — Killeen, get ready. Dave’s Hot Chicken is officially on the way.