IT STARTED IN A PARKING LOT

Chain was founded by actor-writer B.J. Novak and a few friends in a West Hollywood parking lot.

We had a folding table, a red takeout box, and a sincere belief that chain restaurant food is worth the obsession and care usually reserved for fine dining.

IT BECAME SOMETHING MUCH BIGGER

Turns out a lot of people really love chains!

From that one parking lot pop-up sprang culinary events and food festivals across the country and collectible products, all created in collaboration with the most beloved food and entertainment brands on Earth.

We collaborate with many of our favorites, including McDonald’s, Pizza Hut, Pepsi, The Walt Disney Company, The Beatles, Kung Fu Panda, World of Warcraft, Panda Express, Dunkin’, Pop-Tarts, Cheez-It, TABASCO, Heinz, KFC, Jack in the Box, and many more. 

MORE FRIENDS JOINED THE PARTY

Fast Food Aficionado Chrissy Teigen and Chef's Table creator David Gelb joined our team while Fox Entertainment and Studio Ramsay Global backed the company, all with a shared vision of creating culinary-led experiences that celebrate American Pop-Cuisine: the dishes that everyone has a connection to, that everyone secretly still loves, that are multigenerational and timeless.

OUR FIRST LONG-TERM POP-UP

We took over a mall food court at Westfield Topanga, featuring a menu of dishes created by some of the most celebrated chefs in the country and a dessert concept launched in collaboration with General Mills cereal.

Pizza Hut x Chain

Pizza Haute

A multi-night celebration of the Personal Pan Pizza, featuring a smoked tri-tip with potato confit, a classic pepperoni, and a vegetarian supreme. Chain’s reimagined Pan Pizza dough was buttery, flaky, and perfectly plump. The collaboration garnered a rave review from the New York Times restaurant critic.

Jameson Black Barrel x Portillo’s x Chain

A Hot Dog High Tea

A multi-city tour where Chain reimagined 8 iconic dishes from Portillo’s as tea service. Dishes featured Jameson Black Barrel whiskey infusions – such as the Jameson marinated ribeye Italian Beef sandwich and a Strawberry Compote and Jameson Black Barrel Whiskey Chantilly shortbread sandwich.

Arby’s x Chain

House of Italian Beef

An art pop-up in the heart of Chelsea, New York examining the cultural influence and history of the Italian Beef sandwich. Featuring an Au Jus tasting and original art celebrating the sandwich – including an Italian Beef encased in resin – this multi-day pop-up drew huge crowds in freezing temperatures, which is very on-brand for an Italian Beef sandwich.

Buffalo Wild Wings x Chain

Bottomless Honky Tonk

We took over a Buffalo Wild Wings in Palm Desert during Stagecoach weekend and invited guests to ditch their pants at the door for our Bottomless Honky Tonk. Yes, we literally had a ‘pants check’ at the door. For the release of our ‘Bottomless’ merch collection and to celebrate Bottomless Apps coming to BWW, the fully bottomless party featured custom cocktails, apps, and bottomless line dancing with Anastasia Karanikolaou.

McDonald’s x Chain

McDonnell’s

We were the first people to ever serve the Chicken Big Mac to guests in America – they just didn’t know it. We turned Chain House into ‘McDonnell’s’ – an experiential restaurant that appeared to be a play on McDonald’s – and told guests we were serving our own spin on the dish that was rumored to be coming to America. Unbeknownst to the sold out crowd, the food we were serving was the actual Chicken Big Mac. A truly blind taste test.

Jack in the Box x Chain

Jack’s Midnight Birthday Bash

We hosted Jack Box’s birthday at Chain, served curly fries & caviar, our braised beef deep fried tacos, and invited all his friends: Yo Gabba Gabba, Charlie Tuna, The Snapchat Ghost, and some other colorful hooligans. Chrissy Teigen popped out of a cake while John Legend sang “Happy Birthday.” It was an epic night for an epic Pop-Cuisine icon.

TABASCO® x Chain

Tex-Mex Omakase

To help the storied American Pop-Cuisine brand launch their new Salsa Picante sauce, we created a multi-course meal built around nostalgia for classic Tex-Mex dishes, each infused with TABASCO® Salsa Picante, including a Grilled Spot Prawn puffy taco, a wagyu walking taco, a seven layer cornet, and a spicy ice cream taco with Madagascar vanilla and a Normandy butter waffle taco. At one point Benny Blanco showed up and made table-side guac for guests, because why not.

Friendly’s x Chain

Friendly’s Goes West

We opened the first ever West Coast Friendly’s. With a Western kickoff at Saddle Ranch followed by a multi-month residency at Chain House West Hollywood, our Friendly’s ice cream parlor featured authentic Friendly’s ice cream and fribbles – and yes, Monster Mash Sundaes.

Pop-Up Bagels x Chain

Rip, Dip, and Sip

The bagel sensation first landed in Los Angeles at Chain House for a sold-out weekend of hot, fresh bagels and original Chain schmears, including a smoked lox schmear and pizza-inspired schmear with fresh marinara. The boozy bagel weekend also featured a bear serving GH Mumm champagne and caviar bumps.

Jack in the Box x Chain

The Crunchie Meal

Four sold out nights of a chef-driven reimagining of three classic Jack in the Box Dishes: braised beef deep fried tacos, a bacon XO crunchy chicken sandwich, and secret-seasoned curly fries. Jack himself was on-hand to help in the kitchen and slang our limited edition “I Got Sauced At Chain” merch.

Pop-Tarts x Chain

Pop-Tart Ice Cream Sandwiches

An ice cream truck driven by a Pop-Tart and a 1,000 person waitlist – this was our Pop-Tarts Ice Cream Sandwich drop, which featured two original flavors: a strawberry matcha ice cream with Frosted Strawberry Pop-Tarts and a Chocolate Pistachio ice cream with Frosted Chocolate Fudge Pop-Tarts.

Trader Vic’s x Chain

Vic’s Returns to Los Angeles

We brought the legendary tiki bar back to Los Angeles through a multi-night cocktail tasting series that snaked through Chain House, which was transformed with authentic tiki pieces from the former Beverly Hilton location.

Instacart x Chain

Cart Classics

In collaboration with Chef Frankie Gaw, we created 5 dishes inspired by grocery store nostalgia which were available through the Instacart app. To launch the collab, we invited guests to dine in a pop-up grocery store aisle in the middle of Chain House.