COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) — Hot Chicken Takeover, the central Ohio chain with a cult-like following, is merging with another fast-casual chicken brand after being sold to the restaurant group owned by the former CEO of Jimmy John’s.

Craveworthy Brands, the Columbus chicken chain’s new parent company, said it plans to fold Chicago-based chicken concept Budlong into Hot Chicken Takeover. The two will then come together to create a refreshed brand called “HCT: Southern Chicken,” Gregg Majewski, founder of Craveworthy and the former CEO of Jimmy Johns, told NBC4.

Since its founding in 2015, Hot Chicken Takeover has ballooned to seven restaurants throughout central Ohio. (Courtesy Photo/Hot Chicken Takeover)

However, the chain will remain as Hot Chicken Takeover in Columbus, though customers may see the “Southern Chicken” branding used in certain parts of the restaurants and in advertising. Majewski explained Budlong’s Chicago locations will soon bear the HCT: Southern Chicken name, as will new eateries outside of central Ohio.

“In future locations outside our home bases, the new name will be HCT: Southern Chicken, but in Columbus it will stay Hot Chicken Takeover,” said Majewski. “[Customers] will start seeing branding and stuff like that for HCT: Southern Chicken, but nothing else changes.”

The announcement comes after Untamed Brands, Hot Chicken Takeover’s former parent company, was purchased earlier in May by Craveworthy. The fast-casual restaurant company operates BD’s Mongolian Grill, Dirty Dough, Flat Top Grill and Genghis Grill, and also now owns Untamed’s other chain, Taim Mediterranean Kitchen, a New York City-based concept founded by Food Network Chef Einat Admoney.

Majewski said he is a longtime fan of Hot Chicken Takeover and plans to bring back some of the brand’s elements that Untamed had taken away, like sweet tea and free ranch. In addition, popular items from Budlong will join the menu, as the brand focuses on combo meals and introduces new sandwiches, like a chicken fried steak sandwich.

“We’re going to bring back to some of the original recipes that have been tweaked over the years, to get back to truly what the brand was,” said Majewski. “What the old owners screwed up are things that we know instantly we have to fix to get us back to, basically, the cult following that we had prior to all this.”

Untamed had taken ownership of Hot Chicken Take in late 2021. Since its founding in 2015, the chicken chain has ballooned to seven restaurants throughout central Ohio, including a recent Grandview Heights addition and a new location in Gahanna that opened early last year.