Lexington restaurant that overcame COVID setback, fire closes permanently
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- Lexington Joella’s Hamburg location is closed permanently.
- After a pandemic delay, it opened Nov 2020; an April 2023 exterior fire occurred.
- Location delisted and no replacement named.
A Lexington restaurant sidelined by the COVID pandemic, then rallied to open and overcame a fire has now closed permanently.
Joella’s Hot Chicken, at 2305 Sir Barton Way in the Hamburg shopping area, has closed after a little more than five years. The company did not immediately respond to a request for comment, but the location is no longer listed on the website and is listed as permanently closed in online searches.
The chain is known for its fried chicken, with choose-your-spice-level ratings that go from Southern to Fire-In Da-Hole hot. It also serves fried fish and home-style sides.
This was the second location of the Louisville-based restaurant chain in Lexington. Joella’s opened its first restaurant in the city in 2016 on the corner of Cochran and Tates Creek. The building was the former Billy’s Bar-B-Q spot. That location apparently is staying open.
The Hamburg Joella’s apparently closed Sunday.
The location got a rocky start. The company had announced plans to open in a former Blaze Pizza in February 2020, then when the COVID pandemic closed restaurants, they said it wouldn’t be coming after all.
But in July 2020, things had picked up enough to move forward with the Hamburg location, and Joella’s opened there in November of that year, with garage doors that allowed open air dining.
Then, in April 2023, the Lexington Fire Department put out a fire that damaged the exterior of the building involving a walkout cooler.
There’s no word yet on what might be going into the space.
This story was originally published February 17, 2026 at 9:34 AM.
