How The Red Chickz brought true Nashville soul to the West Coast

About this episode

This episode features a conversation with Shawn Lalehzarian about bringing Nashville hot chicken to the West Coast.

In this episode of the Restaurant Operator Podcast, host Mandy Detwiler, editor of Pizza Marketplace and QSRweb, chats with Shawn Lalehzarian, co-founder of The Red Chickz, a West Coast Nashville hot chicken brand that opened its first unit in Los Angeles in 2018. Lalehzarian began his restaurant career as a dishwasher in a local restaurant in San Diego in 1998. He eventually moved on to be an assistant manager and moved upward into a senior ops position with HMS Host, opening more than 50 re...

People in this episode

Host: Mandy Detwiler

Guest: Shawn Lalehzarian

Topics covered

• Nashville hot chicken
• restaurant management
• entrepreneurship
• West Coast cuisine
• restaurant operations

Keywords

• Nashville hot chicken
• restaurant industry
• Los Angeles
• Shawn Lalehzarian
• The Red Chickz

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: The Red Chickz, HMS Host

Places: Los Angeles, San Diego

More episodes of Restaurant Operator

• Inside the tech stack: How Mattenga’s Pizzeria mastered SEO, 8-second reordering · June 9, 2026 · 23 min
• Navigating the tightest restaurant real estate market in 20 years · June 2, 2026 · 8 min
• How CORE provides financial lifeline for food, beverage workers in crisis · May 26, 2026 · 17 min
• How Juice It Up leads the modern beverage boom · March 24, 2026 · 20 min
• Strategic sizzle: Why Houston TX Hot Chicken prioritizes smart growth over rapid expansion · February 24, 2026 · 21 min
• Zenzap helps restaurateurs control IP, communication in house · January 27, 2026 · 26 min