AQ Chicken to open restaurant in downtown Springdale

AQ Chicken House^[1] announced Thursday (Oct. 2) that it will open in spring 2026 in downtown Springdale. It was previously planned to open in west Springdale along Interstate 49. The new restaurant will be next to Onyx Coffee Lab at 100 E. Emma Ave.

This past summer, the family behind the new restaurant halted plans^[2] to build the restaurant along I-49 at the Elm Springs Road exit. The delay was attributed to rising construction and materials costs, but the family intended to keep the restaurant in Springdale.

Catalyst Capital, a single-family office organized by the Lundstrum family of Springdale, acquired the rights to the restaurant’s name, recipes, and branding in September 2023. Catalyst Capital’s four principals include Tom and Robin Lundstrum, their daughter Gracie Lively, and her husband, Jacob Lively.

The original plan was to open a 13,041-square-foot restaurant along I-49 in west Springdale, but the rising construction costs “made a project of that size no longer feasible,” according to a news release. “At the same time, downtown Springdale was experiencing vibrant growth and revitalization. With deep roots in downtown Springdale and AQ’s own long history in the community, the location on Emma Avenue felt like the perfect place to write the next chapter of the AQ story.”

“If good things come to those who wait, the wait to learn AQ Chicken’s new home will be in downtown Springdale has been worth it,” said Bill Rogers, president and CEO of Springdale Chamber of Commerce. “It’s exciting to know that this Springdale icon will soon add its own unique spices to the distinctive flavors our downtown Springdale restaurants are serving up right now. The secret’s out: downtown Springdale is the place for authentic, memorable meals. And when it comes to chicken, no one does it quite like AQ.”

The well-known restaurant closed on March 18, 2023. One month later, Missouri-based Club Car Wash paid $1.75 million for the 3.1-acre site and 14,600-square-foot building. Club Car Wash demolished the building and is developing the site.

Roy Ritter opened AQ Chicken House — AQ stands for Arkansas Quality — on July 20, 1947, when chickens were raised and slaughtered behind the restaurant along a dusty dirt road known today as U.S. Highway 71.

Related