Korean fried chicken chain to open in former Bap and Chicken spot on Grand Ave

Jared Kaufman, Pioneer Press
Updated ·2 min read

Bb.q Chicken, a global chain of Korean fried chicken restaurants, is opening its second Minnesota location on Grand Avenue in mid-June.

(The name is an abbreviation for “best of the best quality” — no relation to barbecue!)

The restaurant, which first came to the Twin Cities with a location in Uptown Minneapolis last winter, is taking over the former Bap and Chicken space on Grand and Hamline avenues.

“We do a lot more scratch prep than people know,” said Emily Krouse, who owns the local bb.q franchises. Yes, she has the support of a global brand behind her, she said, but she aims to run her stores with a small-businessowner’s focus on quality. Nothing is frozen; chicken is marinated for 12 hours before being fried super-crispy.

Krouse was herself a longtime Bap and Chicken customer and, when owner John Gleason decided he was ready to close earlier this year, the two worked together on an agreement for Krouse to take over the space, she said.

Like Gleason, Krouse was also adopted from Korea and grew up in the Twin Cities. In fact, she reunited with her birth mother at a bb.q location about eight years ago, which is part of why the business has a special meaning to her.

“If those are reasons why people patronized John’s business, those things still stay true to me,” Krouse said. “We are a different company in the same space, but I hope people know that behind the business name is still a person who is a Korean adoptee who runs a franchise business, but I run it like a small business.”

Krouse also plans to open a third bb.q location in the suburbs soon, though those plans aren’t finalized yet. In total, there are more than 3,500 bb.q locations in 57 countries, the company says.

Previously, Krouse worked in management and HR for restaurant groups such as Parasole Restaurant Holdings, which runs spots including Satut Bar Americain, also on Grand Avenue. She’s also an investor in Sencha Tea Bar.

“I think [Gleason and I] both felt really great that it was still going to be a Korean company, and that the legacy of Bap and Chicken, which was missioned around supporting the adoption community, was still going to resonate,” Krouse said.

In St. Paul, bb.q Chicken will offer samples at Grand Old Day on June 4 and aims to be fully operational by mid-June.

Bb.q Chicken: Opening mid-June at 1328 Grand Ave; bbqchicken.com

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