Zankou Chicken is a small, family-owned chain of

Armenia Armenia (), , group=pron officially the Republic of Armenia,, is a landlocked country in the Armenian Highlands of Western Asia.The UNbr>classification of world regions places Armenia in Western Asia; the CIA World Factbook , , and ' ...

n and Mediterranean

fast casual restaurant A fast casual restaurant, found primarily in the United States and Canada, does not offer full table service, but advertises higher quality food than fast food restaurants, with fewer frozen or processed ingredients. It is an intermediate conce ...

s located in the

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, largest city in the U.S. state, state of California and the List of United States cities by population, sec ...

area. The restaurants are especially known for their spit-roasted chicken,

shawarma Shawarma (; ar, شاورما) is a popular Middle Eastern dish that originated in the Ottoman Empire, consisting of meat cut into thin slices, stacked in a cone-like shape, and roasted on a slowly-turning vertical rotisserie or spit. Tradition ...

falafel Falafel (; ar, فلافل, ) is a deep-fried ball or patty-shaped fritter in Middle Eastern cuisine (especially in Levantine and Egyptian cuisines) made from ground chickpeas, broad beans, or both. Nowadays, falafel is often served ...

, tahini, and a "secret"

garlic sauce Garlic sauce is a sauce prepared using garlic as a primary ingredient. It is typically a pungent sauce, with the depth of garlic flavor determined by the amount of garlic used. The garlic is typically crushed or finely diced. Simple garlic sauce ...

History

The first Zankou Chicken opened in 1962 in the

Bourj Hammoud Bourj Hammoud (also spelled Burj Hammud; ar, بُرْجُ حَمُّودٍ; hy, Պուրճ Համուտ) is a town and municipality in Lebanon located north-east of the capital Beirut, in the Matn District, and is part of Greater Beirut. The t ...

neighborhood of

Beirut Beirut, french: Beyrouth is the capital and largest city of Lebanon. , Greater Beirut has a population of 2.5 million, which makes it the third-largest city in the Levant region. The city is situated on a peninsula at the midpoint o ...

, Lebanon, by

Armenian Armenian may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Armenia, a country in the South Caucasus region of Eurasia * Armenians, the national people of Armenia, or people of Armenian descent ** Armenian Diaspora, Armenian communities across the ...

Vartkes Iskenderian and his family. The chain was established within the United States in 1983 by his son, Mardiros Iskenderian, after the family immigrated to

Los Angeles, California Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

. After considering opening a dry cleaning business or selling men's suits, Iskenderian recognized a lack of restaurants catering to the growing Middle Eastern immigrant population in Los Angeles. This included Armenian and Lebanese compatriots who fled Lebanon during the

civil war A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies ...

. The first restaurant in Los Angeles opened in an

East Hollywood East or Orient is one of the four cardinal directions or points of the compass. It is the opposite direction from west and is the direction from which the Sun rises on the Earth. Etymology As in other languages, the word is formed from the f ...

neighborhood called Little Armenia and is located at the corner of

Sunset Boulevard Sunset Boulevard is a boulevard in the central and western part of Los Angeles, California, that stretches from the Pacific Coast Highway in Pacific Palisades east to Figueroa Street in Downtown Los Angeles. It is a major thoroughfare in ...

and Normandie Avenue. The restaurant is especially known for its thick, paste-like

, created by Vartkes' wife, Markrid and widely imitated. In 1991, the family agreed to divide the business when Mardiros wanted to open additional restaurants. The new restaurants would be owned by Mardiros, while the original Sunset and Normandie store would be owned by his parents and two sisters. Vartkes Iskenderian died in 1992. Since opening, Zankou Chicken has expanded and includes the following locations in the

greater Los Angeles Greater Los Angeles is the second-largest metropolitan region in the United States with a population of 18.5 million in 2021, encompassing five counties in Southern California extending from Ventura County in the west to San Bernardino Coun ...

area:

, Hollywood,

West Los Angeles West Los Angeles is an area within the city of Los Angeles, California. The residential and commercial neighborhood is divided by the Interstate 405 freeway, and each side is sometimes treated as a distinct neighborhood, mapped differently by di ...

, Burbank, Glendale,

Pasadena Pasadena ( ) is a city in Los Angeles County, California, northeast of downtown Los Angeles. It is the most populous city and the primary cultural center of the San Gabriel Valley. Old Pasadena is the city's original commercial district. ...

Toluca Lake Toluca Lake is an affluent neighborhood in the city of Los Angeles, California, located in the San Fernando Valley northwest of downtown. The name is also given to a private natural lake fed by wells and maintained by neighboring property owner ...

, Van Nuys, Montebello, Anaheim,

Huntington Beach Huntington Beach is a seaside city in Orange County, California, Orange County in Southern California, located southeast of Downtown Los Angeles. The city is named after American businessman Henry E. Huntington. The population was 198,711 duri ...

, and

Santa Clarita Santa Clarita (; Spanish for "Little St. Clare") is a city in northwestern Los Angeles County in the U.S. state of California. With a 2020 census population of 228,673, it is the third-largest city by population in Los Angeles County, the 17t ...

. (The original location and Montebello locations are not listed on the website; Rita Iskenderian owns the website and doesn't include them.) On January 14, 2003, after a heated argument, Zankou Chicken owner Mardiros Iskenderian shot and killed his sister, Dzovig Marjik, and his mother Margarit Iskenderian; he then killed himself in a double-murder suicide. Iskenderian was in the late stages of colon and brain cancer, which is believed to have had an effect on his mental faculties. The repercussions of this event, and the lasting division of the brand into two family factions, impeded the continuing growth of the business despite the restaurants' popularity. In the California Court of Appeal case ''Iskenderian v. Iskenderian'',''Iskenderian v. Iskenderian''
144 Cal. App. 4th 1162
(2006) Mardiros Iskenderian's widow Rita unsuccessfully sought to attain sole control of the Zankou Chicken trademark. In 2013, Zankou Chicken was one of the contributors for Green Armenia, which brings attention to environmental problems faced by the people of Armenia.

In popular culture

* The restaurant was mentioned by Beck (rhyming "Zankou chicken" with "ripe for the pickin'") in his song "

Debra Debra is a feminine given name. Debra may refer to: People * Debra Adelaide (born 1958), Australian writer * Debra Allbery (born 1957), American poet * Debra R. Anderson (1949-2022), American politician * Debra Austin (born 1955), American ba ...

", from the album ''

Midnite Vultures ''Midnite Vultures'' is the seventh studio album by American musician Beck, released on November 23, 1999 by DGC Records. While similar to most of Beck's previous albums in its exploration of widely varying styles, it did not achieve the same blo ...

''. * The music video for Childish Gambino's song "Sober" from his EP '' Kauai'' was filmed in the original Hollywood location. * A Zankou Chicken location is mentioned as a wayfinding point as part of driving directions given in the Saturday Night Live sketch "The Californians" (in "Stuart Has Cancer") * Zankou Chicken inspired a fictional Palestinian chicken restaurant in '' Curb Your Enthusiasm'', so good that "it could end the rift in the Middle East". *

Marti Noxon Martha Mills Noxon (born August 25, 1964) is an American television and film writer, director, and producer. She is best known for her work as a screenwriter and executive producer on the supernatural drama series '' Buffy the Vampire Slayer'' ...

, who co-produced '' Buffy the Vampire Slayer'', called Zankou Chicken one of her "go-to" take out spots. * Zankou Chicken is a subject in

Rob Delaney Rob Delaney (born January 19, 1977) is an American comedian, actor, writer, and activist. He was the co-star and co-writer of the TV show ''Catastrophe'', and has appeared in comedy films such as ''Deadpool 2'' (2018) and ''Tom & Jerry'' (2021). ...

's book ''Mother. Wife. Sister''. *

Adam Richman Adam Montgomery Richman is an American actor and television host. He has hosted various dining and eating-challenge programs on the Travel Channel and History Channel. Early life and education Richman, an only child, was born into a Jewish fa ...

of ''

Man v. Food ''Man v. Food'' is an American food reality television series. It premiered on December 3, 2008 on the Travel Channel. The program was originally hosted by actor and food enthusiast Adam Richman. In each episode, Richman explores the "big food" o ...

'' called Zankou Chicken a "can't miss". * The Zankou Chicken Murders were featured in the 32nd episode of "

My Favorite Murder ''My Favorite Murder'' is a weekly true crime comedy podcast hosted by American comedians Karen Kilgariff and Georgia Hardstark. The first episode was released in January 2016. The podcast debuted at #25 on the iTunes podcast charts and peaked ...

" * In the TV series Bosch (2016, Season 3, Episode 5, at 31 minutes), Detective Jerry Edgar offers a bag of food from Zankou Chicken to Harry Bosch, as a peace offering * In the 2009 Film ''

Funny People ''Funny People'' is a 2009 American comedy-drama film written and directed by Judd Apatow, co-produced by Apatow Productions and Madison 23 Productions, and starring Adam Sandler, Seth Rogen and Leslie Mann with Eric Bana, Jonah Hill and Jas ...

'' Seth Rogen can be seen wearing a Zankou Chicken shirt * The Comedy Podcast

Dungeons and Daddies ''Dungeons & Daddies'' is an actual play ''Dungeons & Dragons'' comedy podcast. Description ''Dungeons & Daddies'' is an unscripted comedy podcast done as an ongoing series of role-playing sessions loosely based on the fifth edition of ''Dunge ...

made a referencial joke about a Kenku calling it a “Kankou Chicken”

References

External links

Zankou Chicken Official Site
– 9 Locations: Anaheim, Burbank, Glendale, Pasadena, Toluca Lake, Valencia, Van Nuys, West Hollywood, W. Los Angeles
Zankou Chicken Official Site
– 3 Locations: Hollywood, Tarzana, Granada Hills {{coord, 34.09839, -118.300266, region:US_type:landmark, display=title 1962 establishments in Lebanon Armenian cuisine Armenian-American culture in California Companies based in Los Angeles County, California Fast-food poultry restaurants Family-owned companies of the United States Lebanese restaurants Lebanese-American culture in California Middle Eastern cuisine Middle Eastern-American culture in Los Angeles Restaurants established in 1962 Restaurants in Los Angeles Culture of Los Angeles

History

In popular culture

See also

References

External links