Zankou Chicken

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Zankou Chicken is a small, family-owned chain of Middle-Eastern fast casual restaurants within the Los Angeles area. Their specialty is rotisserie chicken served with a unique and very popular garlic paste and pita bread. Additionally, Zankou serves other Middle-Eastern favorites such as hummus, falafel, and shawarma.

1 Origins
2 January 2003 Murder
3 Trivia
4 Notes
5 External links

[edit] Origins

The first Zankou Chicken opened in 1962 in the heart of Beirut, Lebanon, by an Armenian named Vartkes Iskenderian and his family. The chain was established within the United States in 1984 by his son, Mardiros Iskenderian, who had immigrated to Los Angeles, California. The first restaurant in Los Angeles was located in Hollywood, California at the corner of Sunset Boulevard and Normandie Avenue. There are now 6 other Zankou restaurants in the greater Los Angeles area. These locations are in Anaheim, Burbank, Glendale, Pasadena, West Los Angeles and Van Nuys.

[edit] January 2003 Murder

In January 2003, after a heated argument, Zankou Chicken operator Mardiros Iskenderian shot and killed his sister, Dzovig Marjik, and his mother Margarit Iskenderian; he then took his own life in a double-murder suicide. It is believed that Mardiros was in the late stages of colon and brain cancer, which might have affected his mental faculties.^[1]

[edit] Trivia

The restaurant was mentioned by Beck in his song Debra, from the album Midnite Vultures.

In the episode of Charmed, Charmageddon, Phoebe makes a reference to the restaurant by saying to the demon Zankou, "What's the matter Zankou, chicken?"