Winners For

Best Fried Chicken

Not -so-obviously located in the Mark Twain Hotel near Union Square is Fish and Farm, a farm-to-table-type restaurant serving sustainably sourced New American cuisine. It might be surprisingly dark inside for a 5 p.m. dinner reservation, your server might take four long minutes to describe all the specials to you, and the soundtrack might jump f...

Yes, Bayview is further afield, but the fried chicken at Frisco Fried is not only good enough to make the list, but it is also the most affordable of our favorites. The chicken is cooked well and the crunchy skin has a hard-to-put-your-finger-on-it savory component that rumor has it is simply garlic powder. And although, nothing here is necessar...

In the back of the North Beach haunt Amante, there is a cash-only pop-up serving wontons, ramen, fried rice, pork belly buns and, curiously enough, fried chicken. At Chubby Noodle, buttermilk-brined Mary's Organic chicken wings and breasts are marinated in a spicy, buttermilk batter, then dredged in a dry blend of flour and spices that are fried...

Tucked away down an alley off Townsend is a small walk-up window that serves up solid soul food staples to a young and hip SOMA lunch crowd. The 3-piece fried chicken here is basic yet infallible: all dark meat that comes with a side and a cube of slightly spicy jalepeno cornbread. The crunchy skin doesn't have much kick to it but that's what th...

Maverick Restaurant is located in what appears to be a small, well-lit and orange-walled wooden box in the Mission. Despite its small size, Maverick has made a name for itself over the years, most recently for wine director and owner Mike Pierce's ability to pair wine with anything, but also for its Southern fried chicken. Served with cornbread ...

Right on the KT MUNI line lies the Hard Knox Cafe, a small, bustling restaurant in the Dogpatch. Lemonade comes in Mason jars, the tin shed walls are adorned with antique road signs and fishing paraphernalia, and everyone working is visibly hustling. There are two ways to eat fried chicken here: as chicken and waffles or with the three-piece fri...

On Tuesday nights at the quaint-yet-elegant Firefly in Noe Valley, the standard dinner menu is graced with the presence of their ever popular fried chicken dinner special. Four pieces of tender chicken with an exceptionally crunchy crust (that sticks to the meat!) comes with a summer pepper and squash medley, a mound of mashed potatoes and gravy...

The Wayfare Tavern in the Financial District is not just known for its broad-shouldered patrons in suits on power-lunches or scantily-clad hostesses carting fruity cocktails with names like "poolside" (basil, watermelon, lime, and pisco and tastes like a Capri-Sun), but also for its spectacular organic fried chicken. As the shiny booths, roaring...

Not too far into the Sunset there is a place where the servers wear black bow ties and a dry-erase board plays host. Also, a cook may or may not be nonchalantly trimming a case of fresh green beans at a table in the corner of the dining room. At San Tung, the popular dry fried chicken consists of crispy chicken skin covered in a sweet and spicy ...

At Brenda's in the Tenderloin, there is a menu item boldly titled Best Fried Chicken (B.F.C.), a seemingly presumptuous title should it not deliver. However, as we learned firsthand, it is no misnomer. Three pieces of tender chicken are encased in a rich and succulent, although still satisfyingly crisp skin, with just the right amount of spice. ...

An ominous sign hangs outside the Shell Station in Georgetown at the corner of Michigan and Corson that reads "fried chicken and jo jos 24 hours a day." You can imagine what Shell fried chicken served 24/7 would taste like. Actually, no, you can't. The fried chicken here isn't just passable, it can hold its own against the Colonel and Ezell's. P...

This dingy but lovable hole in the wall is known for thick-cut bacon and mouthwatering barbecue. But once a week, around 11 a.m., construction workers, cops, students, and retirees line up outside the doors. Why? Fried chicken Fridays. Crisp, double-fried skin sheaths juicy chicken inside. Ask for a side of white vinegar to douse on the chicken ...

Fried chicken is one of those classic American comfort foods. The lingering scent of hot oil on a crunchy, well-seasoned exterior with bubbles of crisp skin and flour can be a culinary challenge. Some chefs brine the meat, others soak it, and still others forego any type of conditioning. Cooking temperatures differ across state lines. In fact, t...

A great plate of fried chicken can be high art these days — Farmshop, Bouchon and Cube Marketplace all serve spectacular, if pricey, versions. Deep down, though, you know that a few crunchy wings and thighs shouldn't come with valet parking. That's why there is Jim Dandy in South Central, one of two remaining outposts of a fried chicken chain th...

Donahoo's Golden Chicken is in Pomona which, if you live in L.A. proper, can seem awfully far to go just for a drumstick. But, if you happen to be driving east on the 10 anyway -- because you're headed to the L.A. County Fair and need to supplement that deep-fried Kool-Aid, or, worse, because you're on your way to Ontario to take the California ...

The debate over how to best get to and from LAX often sounds like something out of The Californians, but regardless of how you get there and why, your airport run likely will include a food-related detour. And if fried chicken is what you crave, head to Pann's, where the chicken wings are thinly battered, salty, crispy and flavorful; you can eve...

You can't miss Jim Dandy, sitting on the corner of Vermont Avenue and the Imperial Highway in South Central Los Angeles; if anything, it may have missed you. Indeed, its pale yellow and faded orange signage feels like something out of the 1970s, throwing you back to an era when the Jim Dandy chain thrived across the Midwest. The chain has since ...

Fried chicken is an all-American food for an all-American candidate. Grab a take-out bucket and stage it with a blanket on a grassy knoll for your next photo op. The best part is, this bucket is not a prop. Grab a drumstick and squeeze a little house-made sriracha on it. Take a bite and feel the crisp skin and taste the vibrant heat. Sure, the f...

The secret to amazing fried chicken is big, juicy, meaty chicken pieces, a coating that fries up nice and crispy, a secret recipe from your grandmother who's been making awesome fried chicken for more than half a century, and a whole lot of soul. It doesn't hurt to pair your chicken with a couple crazy-good waffles either. Larry "Lo-Lo" White (g...

If you're looking for authentic southern style fried chicken, look no further than the Valley's own fried chicken haven, Lo-Lo's. Both locations churn out plate after plate of their ginormous pieces of their family recipe extra-crispy fried chicken. On our most hungover weekend mornings, we usually end up nursing ourselves back to bed health wit...

Dixie Pan-Fried Chicken: Classic comfort food gets a modern twist at this gorgeous Arcadia restaurant. Served "Picnic-style" with fluffy mashed potatoes and a sweet mini cinnamon roll on the side, the warm pan-fried chicken is super flavorful and juicy with just the right amount of spice on the crispy coating. It's not your typical southern-styl...

The Three Piece Box: Back in 2005, long before chicken fingers started to become a "thing" in the Valley, husband and wife team Amy and Adrian Moghina opened their little chicken finger shack on Broadway and Rural in Tempe. The duo lightly fries their all white, skinless, 100% chicken breast meat pieces in canola oil and serves the golden brown ...

Kentucky Fried Quail: You're right. It's not exactly chicken, but we couldn't help but slip this fried fowl onto the list. Executive Chef Stephen Jones has created what might possibly be one of our very favorite new fried dishes for this upscale industrial-modern hotel restaurant. The well-portioned plate features two savory seasoned (rumor has ...

Campero Traditional Chicken: If you happen to have visited South America at some point in time, you'll know that this chicken is more popular than a 30-pack of bud light and a bottle of whipped cream vodka at an ASU frat party. The Latin-America chicken chain has been around since 1971 and has established more than 300 locations across the world...

Chicken & Waffle @ Citizen Public House -- Featured on the "starter" menu but almost big enough for a small meal, CPH's buttermilk soaked chicken is fried to a golden brown crisp and then set on top of a dense and tasty oat waffle with almond butter and a side of sticky clover honey. And, if you're one of the many gluten haters out there, this d...

Famous Fried Chicken: The one and only location of this California franchise sits in the far corner of a South Phoenix strip mall. The super small location (there's only two tables, so plan on getting it to-go) boxes up extra crunchy pieces of fresh fried chicken bursting with awesome Cajun flavors. This is the place for take out chicken. and if...

Chicken & Waffles: Nestled in the heart of Downtown Phoenix's historic Coronado neighborhood this tiny eatery serves up huge plates of citrus-brined crispy chicken with their airy white cheddar waffles smothered in sweet butter and a generous helping of charred and salted green beans sandwiched in the middle. This is comfort food at it's finest!...

Southern Fried Chicken: Phoenix's original soul food kitchen doesn't have a huge selection which is totally fine with us because we're only there for one thing -- golden fried chicken. A comfort food staple since 1964, Mrs. White herself fries up mean plates of true southern style chicken and serves it with equally awesome homestyle sides like b...

Food & Wine called it some of the best fried chicken in America this year, and former Houston Press food critic Robb Walsh placed the stuff at No. 5 on his own 100 Favorite Dishes list before retiring in 2010. We've even given Barbecue Inn plenty of awards of our own over the years: Best Comfort Food in 2009, Best Fried Chicken in 2007 and an aw...

"Don't complain about the long lines -- the fact that there are always people standing in line at Frenchy's guarantees that every piece of chicken you get has just come out of the fryer," wrote Robb Walsh when he listed Frenchy's chicken as his No. 12 favorite dish in Houston. "Since 1969, Frenchy Creuzot has been consistently supplying the best...

There's more than just the famed "Palestinian chicken" to be found at Al Aseel. Asked former Houston Press food critic Robb Walsh on his blog after a recent meal there: "Did you know that the best fried chicken in Houston is served at a mom and pop Middle Eastern restaurant on Richmond called Al Aseel Grill & Cafe, 'The Taste of Bethlehem?'" We ...

Chef Randy Evans's buttermilk-fried chicken is quickly becoming the stuff of Houston legend, and with good reason. It's crispy and savory without being too greasy -- this ain't a ten-piece bucket from KFC. (The herb-roasted version is no sad second: It's just as moist and flavorful, albeit with a little less guilt.) And because this is Haven we'...

The Golden Doomba is named for owner John Peterson, whose Twitter handle is -- you guessed it -- @goldendoomba. It was his idea to add fried chicken to an otherwise American-Chinese menu onboard the popular food truck. "When I first opened," Peterson says, "there were quite a few people that were always asking for no pork in anything. So I decid...

It's almost blasphemy to eat the fried chicken at the breakfast klub on its own, so twinned is it in the Houston collective subconscious with either waffles or grits. But the wings are what makes the breakfast klub one of the city's favorite breakfast spots, and deserve highlighting on their own individual merits. The batter is supremely crunchy...

We are far from the first to rave about the surprisingly terrific fried chicken from Randall's. Our own Jason Kerr -- professional chef and former EOW columnist -- is a fan of the stuff, and we even gave it the Best of Houston® award for Best Fried Chicken in 2010 despite a city full of serious contenders. Of the deep-fried drumsticks and wings ...

How can anyone not love a chicken joint whose motto is "Chicken & Joy"? Toreore -- located inside the Super H-Mart food court -- offers both in spades. The famously fiery fried chicken isn't for the faint of tongue, however. The sweet-and-spicy chicken delivers a delicately crispy exterior that gives way to a dark rumble of spiciness, which does...

When the very first Max's Wine Dive first opened in Houston in 2007, it led a wave of upscale-downmarket dining -- or the more commonly seen moniker: "upscale comfort food" -- with its famous offer of fried chicken paired with champagne. (Which is a great idea, if you ask me; a nice, dry bottle of bubbly is almost ideal with a greasy bucket of c...

Zelko Bistro is the only place in town where I'll order a fried chicken breast, and that's because the chicken breast at Zelko is plump and juicy beyond compare. Pair that impossibly moist flesh with a crispy, barely sweet crust made with -- what else? -- Captain Crunch cereal, and you have a winning textural combination. The darkly sweet and ta...

A phrase you rarely hear: "I wish every day were Monday!" But it just might be you exclaiming this after lunch at Farmhaus. At Kevin Willmann's acclaimed restaurant, Monday is fried-chicken day, the first of its weekday "Blue Plate" lunch specials. For $10 (plus tax and tip) you get two pieces of fried chicken with mashed potatoes and mac & chee...

The twice-fried Korean fried chicken has six different topping choices. We keep going back because we know it’s the best, and because we’re not done figuring out exactly which topping is tops.

While the dish's origins are solidly steeped in the South, cooks far and wide have embraced the indisputable truth: There are few things as delicious as a juicy plate of fried chicken. And Tom's Home Cookin', an iconic soul-food shack in Five Points, is the incontestable bastion of the bird. Plunged in oil until the batter and skin meld into a c...