{"id":185484,"date":"2026-03-10T11:12:26","date_gmt":"2026-03-10T11:12:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/185484\/"},"modified":"2026-03-10T11:12:26","modified_gmt":"2026-03-10T11:12:26","slug":"kfc-spin-off-opening-2-jacksonville-area-chicken-tenders-restaurants","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/185484\/","title":{"rendered":"KFC spin-off opening 2 Jacksonville-area chicken tenders restaurants"},"content":{"rendered":"

A KFC spin-off focusing on hand-breaded chicken tenders and unique flavors of sauce is preparing to debut two Jacksonville-area restaurants<\/a> back-to-back.<\/p>\n

Saucy! By KFC<\/a> plans to open March 23 at 4816 Gate Parkway in The Crossing at St. Johns Town Center. A second Saucy! expects to open April 13 at 194 N. State Road 13, in the Julington Creek area of Saint Johns.<\/p>\n

The Orlando-based chain \u2014 rooted in KFC’s original recipe chicken \u2014 converted former PDQ locations into the new concept.<\/p>\n

Saucy! describes itself as “the bold, flavor-forward concept redefining fast food with hand-breaded chicken tendies and globally inspired sauces.”<\/p>\n

\u201cAt Saucy! By KFC, our focus is simple: irresistible, freshly prepared chicken tendies, unforgettable signature sauces to mix and match to find the perfect flavor, and a high-energy atmosphere that makes guests want to come back again and again,\u201d Andrew Grosshans, general manager at Saucy!, said in a news release announcing the openings. “Jacksonville is an exciting next step for us, and opening two locations lets us bring our full experience to the community.”<\/p>\n

On the Saucy! menu\"Saucy's<\/p>\n

Saucy’s menu offers multiple combo options with choices of chicken, fries, more sides and drinks.<\/p>\n

In addition to its tendies, Saucy! also offers chicken nuggets, sandwiches, rice bowls, loaded fries and fresh salads, its online menu shows.<\/p>\n

Guests are encouraged to customize their choices with Saucy’s signature sauces, including Saucy’s Sauce, Chimichurri Ranch, Korean Sweet Heat, Jalapeno Pesto Ranch, Thai Sweet \u2018N Spicy, Creole Honey Mustard, and Sweet Teriyaki, the online menu shows.<\/p>\n

Dessert options include Puffies, described as mini golden sugar-dusted pastries that are served with sweet dipping sauces.<\/p>\n

Saucy! is owned by Yum Brands<\/a>, headquartered in Louisville, Ky., which is also the parent company of Habit Burger & Grill<\/a>, KFC, Pizza Hut <\/a>and Taco Bell<\/a>.<\/p>\n

‘Vibe dining’ experienceFirst look: Saucy! By KFC opening 2 Jacksonville-area restaurants<\/p>\n

1 of 7<\/p>\n

A rendering of the exterior of Saucy! By KFC, which is opening restaurants at 4816 Gate Parkway in Jacksonville, and 194 N. State Road 13 in Julington Creek\/Saint Johns in former PDQ locations. The Jacksonville location opens March 23, while the Julington Creek restaurant will debut April 13.<\/p>\n

Beginning at 11 a.m. daily, “the modern, tech-forward spaces feature vibrant pink interiors, self-serve kiosks, and convenient drive-thrus,” according to the news release. But at 9 p.m., “the lights dim, the music turns up, and the restaurant transforms into a\u00a0late-night hangout built for vibe dining,” according to the news release.<\/p>\n

The restaurants’ dining rooms close at midnight. But the Gate Parkway drive-thru will be open until 3 a.m. The Julington Creek restaurant drive-thru will be open until 1 a.m.<\/p>\n

Opening celebrations are planned at each new restaurant.<\/p>\n

There are two events set for the Gate Parkway restaurant. At 11 a.m. March 23, there will be special giveaways and complimentary bites, while supplies last.<\/p>\n

On April 11, there will be a Saucy Soir\u00e9e Party from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. featuring free swag bags, a Sauce Bar guided by a Sauce Sommelier, a live DJ, interactive games, and more, according to the news release.<\/p>\n

At the Julington Creek restaurant beginning at 11 a.m. April 13, there will be special giveaways and complimentary bites, while supplies last.<\/p>\n

Mumbo sauce anyone? New San Marco chicken wing restaurant continues family legacy<\/a><\/p>\n

Dating to December 2024, Saucy! has six Florida locations open \u2014 four in Orlando and two in Tampa. Ten more are planned this year, according to the news release.<\/p>\n

The buildout of the 3,300-square-foot Gate Parkway restaurant was estimated at $410,000, a Dec. 17, 2025, city of Jacksonville building permit showed. The 4,550-square-foot Julington Creek restaurant buildout was estimated at $375,000, according to a Dec. 29, 2025, St. Johns County building permit.<\/p>\n

Teresa Stepzinski is the dining reporter for the Times-Union. Follow her on X, formerly known as Twitter, @TeresaStepz or reach her via email at tstepzinski@jacksonville.com.<\/p>\n

If you’re a subscriber, thank you. If not, become a subscriber<\/a> to get the latest dining coverage.<\/p>\n

This article originally appeared on Florida Times-Union: Saucy! By KFC opening in Jacksonville and St. Johns County restaurants<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"A KFC spin-off focusing on hand-breaded chicken tenders and unique flavors of sauce is preparing to debut two…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":185485,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8],"tags":[87248,28918,87246,116,118,117,87247,55357],"class_list":["post-185484","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-jacksonville","tag-chicken-nuggets","tag-chicken-tenders","tag-chicken-tendies","tag-jacksonville","tag-jacksonville-headlines","tag-jacksonville-news","tag-julington-creek","tag-kfc"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/185484","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=185484"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/185484\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/185485"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=185484"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=185484"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=185484"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}