Jan. 2, 2016 By Michael Florio
Kennedy Chicken opened in Jackson Heights Thursday offering much more than just fried chicken.
The restaurant, which opened on the corner of Northern Blvd and 90th Street, offers a broad menu from pizza to kebabs.
“Everyone can find something they like here,” said Tamim Roudy, the owner of the restaurant, who owns six other Kennedy Chicken locations. “Whatever my customers want they can find here.”
The menu includes chicken, burgers, pizza, shrimp, sandwiches, gyros, salads as well as desserts, such as pie, cake and ice cream.
Kennedy Chicken is unaffiliated with Kennedy Fried Chicken.
Roudy, who lives in Flushing, is a big fan of Jackson Heights. He said that he had been trying to open a restaurant in the area for six years prior to establishing this location.
“I always wanted to be on a big corner in Jackson Heights,” he said, noting that he particularly likes his Northern Blvd location. “The foot traffic that Northern Blvd brings is huge for our business.”
This is Roudy’s first restaurant in Queens. His other six Kennedy Chicken restaurants are all located in the Bronx.
He is considering opening two other restaurants in Jackson Heights, with one on 37th Ave and the other on Roosevelt Avenue.
“I love this area and would love to open more restaurants here,” Roudy said.
The Northern Boulevard restaurant is open from 10 am to 3 am, seven days a week.
The restaurant is located just two blocks away from a KFC (87-15 Northern Blvd). However, Roudy believes his fried chicken is better.
“I’ve had their chicken and ours is much better,” he said. “Their chicken is soft and soggy and ours is crispy and crunchy. Plus we offer a variety of menu items that they cannot match.”
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10 Comments
As a resident of the area I am not sure what all the complaints are about. I have purchased food there many times, and although it is not haute cuisine, it’s a nice alternative to the area. I had to laugh at Sandy’s post as every time I have been in the store it’s full of Hispanics ordering just what she says they don’t eat! Ha. I was also worried it would draw the kids from the local high schools and would be a bad influence, but nothing so far. As far as the grease smell goes, I live near Northern Blvd and can smell White Castle when the wind blows right. The smell from KFC is stronger than any odor coming from Kennedy. Seems like like the folks who have complained haven’t even eaten there, and have just made up their minds it will ruin the neighborhood. Actually my friends, it’s people like YOU who ruin the neighborhood. May God Bless you.
LOL, got to love gentrification. You choose to come live in a ghetto neighborhood and then expect fancy eats??!! Give it about 20 more years and im sure by then you’ll have your shake shack gluten free restaurant options.
@Sandy I wonder if this new store will have the same tasteful and elegant bullet proof glass that the other restaurants in this chain are known for?
Horrible choice for this neighborhood. It will bring a younger crowd and bring trouble kids to the area, plus real estate prices will drop. The smell of cooking grease is horrible and will get into people’s apartments. Is not healthy food. In Jackson Heights we want to be healthy and this food encourages to eat greasy food. The community which is mainly Hispanics don’t eat pizza, hamburgers, sandwiches, or greasy fried chicken. Too much salt and and fat in those foods. Besides this is a middle class community which will not be happy with this venue… Is not for this neighborhood. We are sad to see the hardware shop sell out. I love in this street for 38 years and never have I visited any of the fast food restaurants in Northern Blvd. Well see how it goes.
A coffee shop would have been a better venue.
You have to be joking… You live in troubled kids central. what the heck are you talking about???
Ramble on.
chipotle is also right across it. The place has gotten nicer with a lot of restaurant options on the block. and the area is really nice. what are you talking about. and bring trouble kids? and we have a precinct a block away right? and if people don’t like to greasy food no body is forcing you into the restaurant to eat it. who ever wants it will have it 🙂
I think sandy is filled with so much ignorance that she can’t see middle class people opening their own stores.
I don’t agree with the venue in this neighborhood. This is a middle class community that looks for a calm place to live. This venue will only being lower class people and those who don’t care about their health. As well as kids from schools, making it unsafe for people to walk with the groups of kids and gangs in the area. Also the smell of grease coming out from the exhaust will go into the coops across the street… This venue is going to lower the real estate of the coops on that street. Worth need another hardware store…
A hallmark the neighborhood is shot,.,