Dave's Hot Chicken Menu Prices and Calories

Seven. The brand's restaurant pages (2026) say the chicken comes in seven levels of spice, from Not Hot to Reaper, spiced to order. The names used in the brand's 2026 allergen and nutrition guides are Not Hot, Lite Mild, Mild, Medium, Hot, Extra Hot and Reaper. The guides group or alphabetize those names rather than show one heat ladder, so the order given here follows the names and the Not Hot to Reaper range. A 2023 company press release described the range as No Spice to Reaper, so the mildest level has been called both names.

Yes. A 2023 company press release says the Reaper requires a signed waiver. On the brand's online ordering pages the Reaper waiver is titled Waiver and Release of Liability and says ordering a Reaper means accepting it. It states that eating a Reaper can cause harm, applies to everyone who plans to eat one (including people taking part in Hot Box Roulette), and has the customer confirm they are 18 or older when they place the order. The pages we read do not say how the waiver is handled at the counter, so ask at your restaurant.

It is called Dave's Frequent Fryer Program, and members join in the Dave's app or online. New members get a free drink with their first order, and members earn 10 points per $1 spent (not on third-party delivery orders). Rewards start at 300 points (a drink or a side), 600 points buys a shake, cheese fries, a slider or a tender, and 1,200 points buys any combo meal. One reward per order and one redemption per day. Under the 2023 program terms, points expire at the start of the month after the 12th month from when they were earned. The site lists no birthday reward.

Roark Capital, the Atlanta private equity firm that also owns Subway, bought a majority stake that was announced on June 2, 2025, according to CNBC. The founders (Arman Oganesyan, Dave Kopushyan and brothers Tommy and Gary Rubenyan) stay in their roles and keep minority stakes, and Bill Phelps was CEO at the time of the deal. The price was not disclosed; the CEO told CNBC that a reported $1 billion valuation was pretty close, and Fox Business reported a $1 billion deal on June 3, 2025. The brand's own press page does not mention the deal.

The brand's US restaurant directory lists 438 restaurants in 43 states and Washington, DC (our sum of its per-city totals on October 31, 2026). Its international page lists 51 more: 18 in Canada, 16 in the Middle East (UAE, Saudi Arabia and Qatar) and 17 in the UK and Ireland. For comparison, CNBC reported more than 300 locations in June 2025, and Fox Business said the chain planned to pass 400 by the end of 2025. No official total was found on the brand's pages.

Delivery, takeout and catering are listed as amenities on all 25 restaurant pages checked, and 24 of them also list mobile ordering. The App Store listing says delivery is available at participating locations, and the rewards page names DoorDash and Uber Eats as third-party delivery services. Drive-thru is not listed on the restaurant pages checked, but the rewards FAQ explains how to earn points in a drive-thru, so some restaurants have one. The brand's site has no catering menu or prices, so ask your restaurant for details.

At the Dave's Hot Chicken at 131 South Central Avenue, Los Angeles, CA (checked October 31, 2026), food on the Dave's Hot Chicken menu runs from $3.59 (Dave's Hot Mozz 1 Piece) to $107.19 (Cauli Slider Hot Box). The typical item costs about $13.09. Prices are set by each restaurant, so your local menu may differ.

The cheapest food item we found was the Dave's Hot Mozz 1 Piece at $3.59. Other low-cost picks: Frozen Powerade Mountain Berry Blast ($4.79), Frozen Minute Maid Strawberry Lemonade ($4.79), Frozen Hi-C Flashin' Fruit Punch ($4.79).

The Single Cauli Slider, at 490 calories. Other options under 500 calories include .

The Dave's #2: 2 Sliders w/ Fries has 1,500 calories (Official guide: Dave's #2 — Not Hot & Lite Mild spice: 1500, Mild-Reaper spice: 1620) and costs $17.89 at the restaurant we checked.

The Dave's #3: 1 Tender & 1 Slider w/ Fries has 1,370 calories (Official guide: Dave's #3 — Not Hot & Lite Mild spice: 1370, Mild-Reaper spice: 1490) and costs $16.69 at the restaurant we checked.

No. On October 31, 2026 we priced the same 84 items on the DoorDash menus of 3 Dave's Hot Chicken restaurants: they came to $1,320.86 in Los Angeles, CA, $1,417.66 in Houston, TX and $1,274.66 in Chicago, IL. Houston, TX was the most expensive and Chicago, IL the cheapest. Restaurants can set their own prices, and delivery apps usually charge more than ordering in the restaurant.