Drake Fires First Shot In Boise Celebrity Chicken War

The celebrity chicken wars have begun in the Treasure Valley. Fast-food chicken restaurants are the hottest trend in the country, and Boise is about to have more than its fair share.

The grand opening of Boise's first Chick-Fil-A in 2014 resembled the Beatles coming to America for the first time, with a parking lot full of people camping out overnight for a taste. It will be interesting to see if the same happens for major chicken chains like Raising Cane's, expected in 2024, or California favorite Burnin' Mouth. They will bring their spicy chicken to the Village at Meridian this summer. Both of those openings, Chick-Fil-A, Popeye's, and KFC, will flood the market with poultry. But the most interesting new entries into the Boise chicken war will be the two backed by celebrities.

Last weekend, hip Hop megastar Drake opened his "Dave's Hot Chicken" in Meridian. Drake owns nearly 50% of the chain, occupying the former Kneader's Bakery on Eagle Road.

Drake isn't the only superstar bringing chicken to the Boise area. Retired NBA basketball star and current TNT analyst Shaquille O'Neal is bringing his "Big Chicken" to town sometime next year, although he doesn't have a location picked out yet.

Boise will be ground zero for the Shaq versus Drake chicken war. This is only the third city in America that will have both options. The others are Glendale, California, and the tourist-heavy part of the Las Vegas strip.

Only time will tell if the Treasure Valley is big enough for all of this chicken and to see who will win a very spicy celebrity chicken war.