Nash & Smashed Signs 10-Year Lease for First North Carolina Location in North Raleigh

Nash & Smashed, a Nashville-style hot chicken and hand-smashed burger chain with more than 20 locations across the D.C., Maryland, and Virginia market, has signed a 10-year lease for its first North Carolina restaurant at 5821 Poyner Village Parkway, Suite 101, in North Raleigh.

The brand is taking over a 1,575-square-foot former Fat Tuesday space inside Poyner Village, an open-air shopping center anchored by Target, Old Navy, World Market, and Michaels, directly across from Triangle Town Center. Real estate firm TradeMark Properties handled the transaction. The space will be renovated into a fully operational restaurant, including a new kitchen hood; no opening date has been announced.

Franchisee Hasham Malik described the Poyner Village unit as one of "many" Nash & Smashed restaurants planned for North Carolina, signaling an ambition beyond a single test-market location.

The menu is built around Nashville-style fried chicken sandwiches with selectable heat levels, hand-smashed beef patties topped with house sauces, and a chicken-and-beef hybrid smash stacked with crispy onion strings and cheddar. At its Virginia locations, the brand runs until midnight on weekdays and 2 a.m. on weekends, a schedule that positions it to compete as much in the late-night window as at lunch.

A decade-long commitment on 1,575 square feet reflects the lean, high-throughput model Nash & Smashed has used to build its Mid-Atlantic footprint: modest square footage inside established retail centers with regional anchor draws. Poyner Village's tenant mix and its position directly across from Triangle Town Center give the brand the corridor traffic that model requires.

The lease lands during a stretch of notable restaurant activity across Wake County. Wake County's first Whataburger opened March 26 near Wegmans in Wake Forest, with a Raleigh location set for April 9 on Six Forks Road near Costco. Twelve Whataburger locations are now operating across North Carolina following the chain's state debut in Charlotte last year. Foxtail Coffee opened a second Apex location at 1451 Richardson Road, Suite 126, in Sweetwater Town Center, and Jubala Coffee owner Andrew Cash is bringing the brand to the Main District at 4114 Center at North Hills, between Alo Yoga and Gorjana.

For Poyner Village, a 10-year lease from a chain with active multi-state expansion adds long-term leasing stability and positions the center to recruit complementary tenants. If Malik's North Carolina ambitions match the brand's DMV build-out pace, the Suite 101 address could be the first of several Nash & Smashed locations Wake County residents see in the years ahead.