Chicken Rebel owner replaces LoHi restaurant with coastal brunch spot

Two customers walked into the old Chicken Rebel space in Denver’s Lower Highland last week, craving a fried chicken sandwich, but they were surprised to find an entirely new restaurant.

The name and space might have changed, but luckily, owner and chef Lydie Lovett’s “Nashville hot chicken sammie” is still on the menu. She has since replaced Chicken Rebel at 3618 Tejon St. with Wilde, a new coastal brunch spot, which she opened at the start of October.

“Where I grew up in San Diego, it’s all community-centric,” Lovett said. “You walk down the street, and you know a bunch of people. There’s a local watering hole, every restaurant makes you feel like family, and I’ve always wanted to re-create that.”

Lovett moved to Denver from San Diego with $300 in her pocket and rode the hot chicken sandwich wave, which was very popular in California at the time. Chicken Rebel started as a food truck in 2017 before moving onto a stall in Avanti and eventually a brick-and-mortar space in LoHi in 2019. Lovett also owns a location in Westminster, which will continue to operate as usual.

Chicken Rebel was set up perfectly for takeout and delivery when the pandemic completely wiped out dine-in traffic. But Lovett longed for that sense of community she set out to create with her LoHi restaurant. So she decided to close Chicken Rebel in June and start from scratch with Wilde.

“It was hard to get that dine-in crowd back, but luckily, I have a great relationship with the landlords, who really believe in me,” Lovett said. “I wanted to pivot. The whole point of a restaurant is that sense of community, or you may as well just be a window in a wall.”

Wilde, open 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Thursday through Monday, is inspired by Lovett’s childhood in southern California. She’s serving Baja fish tacos with a crisp Tecate beer batter, a massive Baja breakfast burrito with carne asada and “Caliquiles,” her take on chilaquiles. There are also some fish n’ chips on the menu named after her father Harry as a nod to England, where she was born.

“I’m a little homesick, and it’s so hard to find the style of carne asada or Baja fish tacos from southern California, so I wanted to do it right,” Lovett said.

The drink menu has classic mimosa and bloody mary offerings and some beachy cocktails, like “Endless Summer,” a gin-based drink with marmalade, or the rose sangria, which comes in a carafe. And if that’s not enough to make you feel like you’re on vacation, the restaurant’s design is tranquil and serene with bright colors and boho touches.

Subscribe to our new food newsletter, Stuffed, to get Denver food and drink news sent straight to your inbox.