{"id":1820813,"date":"2026-09-23T10:43:16","date_gmt":"2026-09-23T08:43:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lexpress-franchise.com\/en-us\/news\/daves-hot-chicken-franchisee-files-chapter-11-and-countersues-its-bank-over-a-30-million-deal\/"},"modified":"2026-09-23T10:04:13","modified_gmt":"2026-09-23T08:04:13","slug":"daves-hot-chicken-franchisee-files-chapter-11-and-countersues-its-bank-over-a-30-million-deal","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lexpress-franchise.com\/en-us\/news\/daves-hot-chicken-franchisee-files-chapter-11-and-countersues-its-bank-over-a-30-million-deal\/","title":{"rendered":"Dave&#8217;s Hot Chicken Franchisee Files Chapter 11 and Countersues Its Bank Over a $30 Million Deal"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>One of the Dave&#8217;s Hot Chicken franchise system&#8217;s multi-brand operators filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in Pennsylvania on September 21, 2026, weeks after its bank sued for an alleged $20 million loan default. In the same court filing, the operator launched a countersuit accusing the lender of manufacturing a default to block a $30 million sale of its restaurants.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity is-style-dots\"\/>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>The Integritty Group (TIG)<\/strong>, led by principals <strong>Raj Mahadevia<\/strong>, <strong>Jiger Patel<\/strong>, and <strong>Pranav Desai<\/strong>, operates several <a href=\"https:\/\/lexpress-franchise.com\/en-us\/our-franchises\/\">franchise brands<\/a> including <strong>Qdoba<\/strong>, <strong>Checkers<\/strong>, and <strong>The Greene Turtle Sports Bar and Grille<\/strong>, in addition to seven <strong>Dave&#8217;s Hot Chicken<\/strong> locations across New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and Delaware. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The Chapter 11 petition covers only TIG&#8217;s Dave&#8217;s Hot Chicken entities, organized under <strong>TIG Reaper LLC<\/strong> and three affiliated groups. Three additional Dave&#8217;s stores are listed as being in late-stage development. The group&#8217;s Qdoba, Checkers, and Greene Turtle operations are not included in the filing.<\/p>\n\n\n        <div class=\"lf-gut-franchise-slider-wrapper\" data-slider-id=\"lf-gut-franchise-slider-6ab3ad1423805\">\n            <div class=\"lf-gut-franchise-slider swiper\">\n                <div class=\"swiper-wrapper\">\n                                            <div class=\"swiper-slide lf-gut-franchise-card\">\n                            <div class=\"lf-gut-franchise-image-wrapper\">\n                                <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/lexpress-franchise.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/hands-binoculars.png\" class=\"lf-gut-franchise-image\" alt=\"Dave\u2019s Hot Chicken\">\n                                                                    <div class=\"lf-gut-franchise-logo-center\">\n                                        <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/lexpress-franchise.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/chicken-logo-i-am-not-chicken.png\" alt=\"Logo\">\n                                    <\/div>\n                                                            <\/div>\n                            <div class=\"lf-gut-franchise-content\">\n                                <div class=\"lf-gut-franchise-title-content\">\n                                    <div>\n                                        <a class=\"lf-gut-franchise-header-link\" href=\"https:\/\/lexpress-franchise.com\/en-us\/franchise\/daves-hot-chicken\/\">\n                                            <p class=\"lf-gut-franchise-title\">Dave\u2019s Hot Chicken<\/p>\n                                        <\/a>\n                                        <p class=\"lf-gut-franchise-tag-line\">Damn, That\u2019s Good<\/p>\n                                    <\/div>\n                                    <ul class=\"lf-gut-franchise-info-list\">\n                                        <li data-field=\"category\">\n                                            <span class=\"lf-gut-icon\"><?xml version=\"1.0\" encoding=\"UTF-8\"?> <svg xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" width=\"24\" height=\"24\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" fill=\"none\"><path d=\"M12.5852 21.9314H4.92807C3.01378 21.9314 2.05664 20.9355 2.05664 18.9438V10.9771C2.05664 8.98542 3.01378 7.98957 4.92807 7.98957M12.5852 21.9314C10.6709 21.9314 9.71378 20.9355 9.71378 18.9438M12.5852 21.9314H18.3281C20.2424 21.9314 21.1995 20.9355 21.1995 18.9438V5.00205C21.1995 3.01037 20.2424 2.01453 18.3281 2.01453H12.5852C10.6709 2.01453 9.71378 3.01037 9.71378 5.00205M4.92807 7.98957H9.71378M4.92807 7.98957V5.99789C4.92807 4.90247 5.7895 4.00621 6.84235 4.00621H9.81905C9.74248 4.30496 9.71378 4.63359 9.71378 5.00205M9.71378 7.98957V18.9438M9.71378 7.98957V5.00205M9.71378 18.9438V5.00205M13.5424 7.98957V12.9688M17.3709 7.98957V12.9688M5.88521 12.9688V16.9521M16.4138 16.9521H14.4995C13.9731 16.9521 13.5424 17.4003 13.5424 17.948V21.9314H17.3709V17.948C17.3709 17.4003 16.9402 16.9521 16.4138 16.9521Z\" stroke=\"#E53B12\" stroke-width=\"1.5\" stroke-miterlimit=\"10\" stroke-linecap=\"round\" stroke-linejoin=\"round\"><\/path><\/svg> <\/span>Restaurant                                        <\/li>\n                                        <li data-field=\"locations\">\n                                            <span class=\"lf-gut-icon\"><?xml version=\"1.0\" encoding=\"UTF-8\"?> <svg xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" width=\"19\" height=\"22\" viewBox=\"0 0 19 22\" fill=\"none\"><path d=\"M9.62821 12.2473C11.2775 12.2473 12.6145 10.8563 12.6145 9.14032C12.6145 7.42435 11.2775 6.03329 9.62821 6.03329C7.97893 6.03329 6.64192 7.42435 6.64192 9.14032C6.64192 10.8563 7.97893 12.2473 9.62821 12.2473Z\" stroke=\"#E53B12\" stroke-width=\"1.5\"><\/path><path d=\"M1.60735 7.32788C3.49292 -1.29611 15.7731 -1.28615 17.6491 7.33784C18.7498 12.3967 15.7252 16.6788 13.0739 19.3278C11.1501 21.2597 8.10635 21.2597 6.17292 19.3278C3.53121 16.6788 0.506638 12.3868 1.60735 7.32788Z\" stroke=\"#E53B12\" stroke-width=\"1.5\"><\/path><\/svg> <\/span>Not disclosed                                        <\/li>\n                                        <li data-field=\"contribution\">\n                                            <span class=\"lf-gut-icon\"><?xml version=\"1.0\" encoding=\"UTF-8\"?> <svg xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" width=\"24\" height=\"25\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 25\" fill=\"none\"><path d=\"M2.05664 9.19308H21.1995M5.88521 17.1598H7.7995M10.1924 17.1598H14.0209M6.30635 4.21387H16.9402C20.3476 4.21387 21.1995 5.09021 21.1995 8.58561V16.7615C21.1995 20.2569 20.3476 21.1332 16.9498 21.1332H6.30635C2.9085 21.1432 2.05664 20.2668 2.05664 16.7714V8.58561C2.05664 5.09021 2.9085 4.21387 6.30635 4.21387Z\" stroke=\"#E53B12\" stroke-width=\"1.5\" stroke-linecap=\"round\" stroke-linejoin=\"round\"><\/path><\/svg> <\/span>Liquid capital: $Not disclosed                                        <\/li>\n                                                                            <\/ul>\n                                <\/div>\n                                <a class=\"lf-gut-franchise-button\" rel=\"follow\" href=\"https:\/\/lexpress-franchise.com\/en-us\/franchise\/daves-hot-chicken\/?demandedocumentation=1&#038;utm_source=media&#038;utm_campaign=cta-slider&#038;utm_medium=https:\/\/lexpress-franchise.com\/en-us\/?p=1820813\">I want more info<\/a>\n                            <\/div>\n                        <\/div>\n                                                        <\/div>\n            <\/div>\n            <div class=\"lf-gut-franchise-slider-nav\">\n                <div class=\"swiper-button-prev\"><\/div>\n                <div class=\"swiper-button-next\"><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n        <\/div>\n        \n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading has-primary-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-1\">A $20 Million Loan, a Disputed Default, and a Court-Appointed Receiver<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Bank Midwest<\/strong>, a division of NBH Bank, extended two loans to TIG Reaper in August 2024: one for <strong>$1.65 million<\/strong> and a second for <strong>$8.35 million<\/strong>. The bank sued TIG&#8217;s Qdoba affiliates in August 2026, alleging the group had failed to meet its debt repayment requirements on a <strong>$20 million<\/strong> loan. Both parties subsequently agreed to the appointment of a neutral receiver to manage TIG&#8217;s Qdoba assets during the dispute. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">TIG&#8217;s largest single listed debt in the bankruptcy filing stands at approximately <strong>$8.75 million<\/strong>, owed to Bank Midwest. The filing, submitted to the United States Bankruptcy Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, lists between 100 and 199 creditors, with total assets and total liabilities each in the <strong>$10 million to $50 million<\/strong> range.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading has-primary-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-2\">TIG Countersues the Bank, Alleging Interference With a $30 Million Sale<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Filed simultaneously with the Chapter 11 petition, TIG&#8217;s lawsuit against Bank Midwest alleges that the bank interfered with an active sale process in which a prospective buyer had offered approximately <strong>$30 million<\/strong> for its Dave&#8217;s Hot Chicken operations. According to the complaint, the bank declared a default before the transaction could close, which TIG says &#8220;undermined the market&#8221; for its restaurants and caused the potential buyer to cut its offer roughly in half. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">IG further alleges that Bank Midwest required the group to funnel any sale proceeds through a <strong>forbearance agreement<\/strong>, effectively blocking an orderly transaction. The complaint describes the bank&#8217;s conduct as acting &#8220;in bad faith&#8221; by exploiting ambiguities in its own loan documents to apply pressure beyond its legitimate contractual rights.<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"lc-gut-blog-post-author-quote\" style=\"--color: #e74c3c; \"><div class=\"lc-gut-blog-post-author-quote__content\"><div class=\"lc-gut-blog-post-author-quote__quote-wrapper\"><div class=\"lc-gut-blog-post-author-quote__svg-wrapper\"><svg class=\"lc-gut-blog-post-author-quote__svg\" width=\"56\" height=\"40\" viewBox=\"0 0 56 40\" fill=\"none\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\"><path d=\"M40.6 16.52H46.06C51.38 17.64 55.3 21.14 55.3 27.58C55.3 34.72 49.84 39.2 42.98 39.2C34.72 39.2 29.54 32.62 29.54 23.24C29.54 9.52 38.64 0.699999 55.58 0V5.04C46.62 6.3 41.3 9.52 40.6 16.52ZM10.92 16.52H16.52C21.84 17.64 25.76 21.14 25.76 27.58C25.76 34.72 20.3 39.2 13.44 39.2C5.18 39.2 0 32.62 0 23.24C0 9.52 9.1 0.699999 26.04 0V5.04C17.08 6.3 11.76 9.52 10.92 16.52Z\" fill=\"#e74c3c\"\/><\/svg><\/div><blockquote class=\"lc-gut-blog-post-author-quote__text\">We have built our businesses over many years through hard work and by honoring our commitments, and we intend to keep doing exactly that. The bank&#8217;s lawsuit tells one side of the story. Today, we filed our complaint against the bank, which tells our side of the story, and we look forward to getting to the truth and vindicating ourselves in court. We have every confidence in the process and the outcome, and we are grateful to our employees, franchise partners, friends, and customers for their continued support.<\/blockquote><\/div><div class=\"lc-gut-blog-post-author-quote__author\"><div class=\"lc-gut-blog-post-author-quote__author-details\"><p class=\"lc-gut-blog-post-author-quote__author-pre-text\">A QUOTE FROM<\/p><p class=\"lc-gut-blog-post-author-quote__author-name\">Jiger Patel<\/p><p class=\"lc-gut-blog-post-author-quote__author-title\">Principal, The Integritty Group<\/p><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading has-primary-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-3\">Merchant Cash Advances Add Another Layer to TIG&#8217;s Debt Picture<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Beyond its bank obligations, TIG also carried <strong>$305,000<\/strong> in merchant cash advances from three separate lenders at the time of filing. Merchant cash advances are a form of revenue-based financing in which a business receives an upfront payment in exchange for a portion of future sales, rather than a fixed interest rate. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The bankruptcy filing notes that multiple MCAs can create what practitioners describe as a <strong>&#8220;liquidity crunch&#8221;<\/strong>, particularly for restaurant operators facing declining traffic or compressed margins. TIG&#8217;s Qdoba affiliates, which remain outside the bankruptcy proceedings, were already under receivership at the time the Dave&#8217;s Hot Chicken entities filed for Chapter 11.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading has-primary-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-4\">Dave&#8217;s Hot Chicken Restaurants Remain Open; the Franchisor Is Not Involved<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Dave&#8217;s Hot Chicken<\/strong>, the <a href=\"https:\/\/lexpress-franchise.com\/en-us\/articles\/franchise-franchisee-franchisor-roles-responsibilities\/\">franchisor<\/a> itself, is not a party to the TIG Reaper bankruptcy. The brand, which originated as a pop-up in a Los Angeles parking lot in 2017, has grown into one of the more active fast-casual chains in the country. TIG&#8217;s seven operating Dave&#8217;s stores remain open during the proceedings. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The parallel lawsuit against Bank Midwest and the Chapter 11 process will run concurrently in federal court. A resolution, whether through a sale, a restructuring plan, or litigation outcome, will shape what happens to TIG&#8217;s nine Dave&#8217;s Hot Chicken locations, including the three still in development.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><em>This content is provided for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal, tax, financial, or professional advice. Laws and regulations vary by state and individual circumstances and may change over time. Readers should consult a qualified attorney, tax professional, or other licensed professional regarding their specific situation. Nothing herein creates an attorney-client relationship.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>One of the Dave&#8217;s Hot Chicken franchise system&#8217;s multi-brand operators filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in Pennsylvania on September 21, 2026, weeks after its bank sued for an alleged $20 million loan default. In the same court filing, the operator launched a countersuit accusing the lender of manufacturing a default to block a $30 [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":788,"featured_media":1820860,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_seopress_titles_title":"Dave's Hot Chicken Franchisee TIG Files Chapter 11","_seopress_titles_desc":"A Dave\u2019s Hot Chicken operator filed for Chapter 11 and countersued its bank, alleging it derailed a $30 million restaurant sale in bad faith.","_seopress_robots_index":"","_seopress_robots_follow":"","_seopress_robots_imageindex":"","_seopress_robots_snippet":"","_seopress_robots_primary_cat":"","_seopress_robots_breadcrumbs":"","_seopress_robots_freeze_modified_date":"","_seopress_robots_custom_modified_date":"","_seopress_robots_canonical":"","_seopress_social_fb_title":"","_seopress_social_fb_desc":"","_seopress_social_fb_img":"","_seopress_social_fb_img_attachment_id":0,"_seopress_social_fb_img_width":0,"_seopress_social_fb_img_height":0,"_seopress_social_twitter_title":"","_seopress_social_twitter_desc":"","_seopress_social_twitter_img":"","_seopress_social_twitter_img_attachment_id":0,"_seopress_social_twitter_img_width":0,"_seopress_social_twitter_img_height":0,"_seopress_redirections_value":"","_seopress_redirections_enabled":"","_seopress_redirections_enabled_regex":"","_seopress_redirections_logged_status":"","_seopress_redirections_param":"","_seopress_redirections_type":0,"_seopress_analysis_target_kw":"","_seopress_news_disabled":"","_seopress_video_disabled":"","_seopress_video":[],"_seopress_pro_schemas_manual":[],"_seopress_pro_rich_snippets_disable_all":"","_seopress_pro_rich_snippets_disable":[],"_seopress_pro_schemas":[],"content-type":"","_relevanssi_hide_post":"","_relevanssi_hide_content":"","_relevanssi_pin_for_all":"","_relevanssi_pin_keywords":"","_relevanssi_unpin_keywords":"","_relevanssi_related_keywords":"","_relevanssi_related_include_ids":"","_relevanssi_related_exclude_ids":"","_relevanssi_related_no_append":"","_relevanssi_related_not_related":"","_relevanssi_related_posts":"1800817,1629288,1804778,1783346,1819956,1819593","_relevanssi_noindex_reason":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[3594],"tags":[],"type-de-post":[2066],"class_list":["post-1820813","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-franchise-networks","type-de-post-articles-actualite"],"acf":[],"permalink_manager":null,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lexpress-franchise.com\/en-us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1820813","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lexpress-franchise.com\/en-us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lexpress-franchise.com\/en-us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lexpress-franchise.com\/en-us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/788"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lexpress-franchise.com\/en-us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1820813"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/lexpress-franchise.com\/en-us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1820813\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1820851,"href":"https:\/\/lexpress-franchise.com\/en-us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1820813\/revisions\/1820851"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lexpress-franchise.com\/en-us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1820860"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lexpress-franchise.com\/en-us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1820813"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lexpress-franchise.com\/en-us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1820813"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lexpress-franchise.com\/en-us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1820813"},{"taxonomy":"type-de-post","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lexpress-franchise.com\/en-us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/type-de-post?post=1820813"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}