Chicken Out will open a second location in Kirkwood this summer

Last June, the team behind Hi-Pointe Drive-In opened a long-gestating concept with Chicken Out, a chicken sandwich joint in the Delmar Loop (6197 Delmar Blvd). According to co-owner Mike Johnson, about a year out from the restaurant’s first location’s grand opening, a second spot will appear at 10463 Manchester Road. “I think we’re looking at later this summer,” Johnson said. “It’s under construction already. It’s in Kirkwood, east of Lindbergh (Boulevard).” 

While, unlike Delmar, the Kirkwood location will sport a drive-thru, the menu and drink options will be largely the same as the original location, according to Johnson – chicken sandwiches, tenders, salads, sides – because everything’s already dialed in. “We’ve been open almost a year, so we’ve changed the menu a few times based on what works and what sells,” he explained. “I think we’ve got it pretty tight now. People are coming out even though The Pageant is (not operating at full capacity). We’ve been pleasantly surprised.”  

As far as moving even farther west, Johnson said Kirkwood was an easy choice; he went on to point out that they’re already looking at two more spots for future Chicken Out locations, along with a St. Charles location of Hi-Pointe. “When I opened Sugarfire, I thought, ‘Maybe I’ll get lucky and just open one.’ But this and Hi-Pointe, they’re all franchisable things. It was always planned.”