Church's Chicken and other Chicken Fried Ramblin

RE: Church's Chicken and other Chicken Fried Ramblin (emsmom)

Thu, 16 Dec 2004 10:38:29 GMT

I do remember getting those in Wilkesboro once. I think that if it isn't snowing, I might ride up that way Saturday. It's only about an hour from here

quote:
Originally posted by BBQjoe

You can get those Holly Farms Taters at a convenience store in N Wilkesboro on the way to Boone. It is a Texaco on Hwy 421 at the entrance to Walmart. Taste very much like the original.

RE: Church's Chicken and other Chicken Fried Ramblin (Lone Star)

Wed, 15 Dec 2004 17:01:14 GMT

There is a Churches just a block away from my office. How it managed to get there in this "historically correct" area is a mystery to me. Perhaps it was before the Houston Heights Association became so powerful.

I succumb to the Chicken call about once a year when my mind decides that it NEEDS greasy, crunchy chicken, processed mashed potatoes and gravy and jalapenos. I love the whole pickled jalapenos they serve to squeeze over the chicken. I enjoy it immensely, then spend the rest of the afternoon saying I will never do it again!

RE: Church's Chicken and other Chicken Fried Ramblin (Maynerd)

Wed, 15 Dec 2004 16:20:17 GMT

I have a Churches near me ( I believe Churches and Popeyes are owned by the same person) but usually I drive a little more to Bubba's or Brother's in Dallas.

Bubbas has great mashed potatoes and their foil wrapped butter pats are the Plugra brand!

Brothers serves their's with white bread and a pepper. Drive thru only but you don't want to be there anyway after dark.

RE: Church's Chicken and other Chicken Fried Ramblin (danimal15)

Wed, 15 Dec 2004 16:02:53 GMT

quote:
Originally posted by okc_rn

As for Church's chicken, I have to agree it is very good as fast food chicken goes. Their customer service leaves a LOT to be desired.

We visited the far North Oklahoma city recently. Got to the door at 8:45 (sign said the lobby was open until 9:00) The door was locked. Went to the drive thru which was suppose to be open until 10:00. Remember, it is not even 9 pm yet. Made an order and the guy says, "We only have 7 pieces of chicken left." I asked if it was their policy to serve every item on their menu while they were open and the guy says they are cleaning up and not going to cook any more chicken.

We left. The next day I called their main office and left my name and number with the understanding that we had a really BAD visit to one of their restaurants. They never even bothered to return the call.

Thats OK, becasue we have never bothered to return to the restaurant. I guess it's more important to get the crew out 2 hours early than to make customers happy.

Wesley Horton
Edmond, OK

Sounds like a bad experience. Still, I wouldn't blame the employees. Maybe it's one of those outfits that makes them punch the clock exactly at 9 but stay around until 10 or 11 cleaning up. I hear that's the case at Wal-Mart, and now it's become a big workers' rights controversy. It wouldn't surprise me at all if a company like the one that owns Church's (and doesn't return complaint calls from customers) might operate the same way. So who could blame the workers for trying to get out quickly?

RE: Church's Chicken and other Chicken Fried Ramblin (festivalfood)

Sun, 31 Oct 2004 22:37:24 GMT

I think it was "Don't cook tonight call Chicken Delight!",I am drooling just thinking about their chicken,great stuff.I never ate KFC,until I was a teenager driving around with friends going to fast food places,but up until then if it was chicken and ribs it was Chicken Galore or Chicken Delight.By the way I was very disapointed the first time I ate KFC,about 23 years ago,it was not very good,and they had small breasts at the time,they got a little better,but can't hold a candle to Popeyes or Chicken Galore(Chicken Delight).The standard in the industry is a 2 1/2 pound chicken,when we owned a chicken and Rib place we went to a 3 pound bird and it makes a huge difference in the size of the pieces especially the breast and thighs.It was funny the thighs were always the least favorite part and at the end of the night we always ended up with alot of thighs left over,but our bulldog bubba didn't mind he loved those thigh's,even to this day(we sold the chicken and rib place 5 years ago)we bake thighs in the oven and pull off the meat and mix it with his dog food,or he won't eat it LOL! He's worth it though.

RE: Church's Chicken and other Chicken Fried Ramblin (mayor al)

Sun, 31 Oct 2004 20:31:33 GMT

I remember the jingle...Something about
"...What's Good Tonight???
Why it's Chicken Delight!!"

Hey KFC used to deliver here in Indiana and Louisville area of KY. Some of the new Combo Places (KFC & Pizza Hut) do delivery now.

RE: Church's Chicken and other Chicken Fried Ramblin (festivalfood)

Sun, 31 Oct 2004 20:22:51 GMT

I like Popeyes,but grew up on Chicken Galore in Woodbridge NJ,awesome chicken,a crisp brown coating,like no other chicken place,except for maybe Chicken Delight which was one of the original fast food franchises back in the fiftys I think,which Chicken Galore was a franchisee of,but split off and went on their own,but with the same look and taste,great ribs and jumdo fried shrimp,the only thing lacking was the fries,they were always limp and mushy by the time you got it delivered,and yes they deliver,which I am surprised that KFC never delivered,when we ad our chicken and rib place in NJ,80% of our business was delivery

RE: Church's Chicken and other Chicken Fried Ramblin (hermitt4d)

Fri, 29 Oct 2004 03:22:17 GMT

The number one choice for me is Frenchy's Creole Fried Chicken which was once a local chain but now just has one location - ran into financial difficulty at the same time Popeye's hit town. It's much better than Popeye's. There are several clones around town such as Little Frenchie's, Frenchey's, etc., which are okay but not as good as the original.

After that I'll take Popeye's or the new Central American chain Pollo Campero. Their chicken is very tasty tho the pieces are kind of small and it's pricy; the Campero beans side is good and spicy (usually). They're only in LA, Houston, DC and NYC so far I think.

KFC, Church's, Chik-fil-a just don't do it for me.

RE: Church's Chicken and other Chicken Fried Ramblin (mayor al)

Wed, 27 Oct 2004 21:42:52 GMT

I liked the grilled chicken from El Pollo Loco in SoCal. The problem with it was often...and I do mean the majority of the time, the chicken was not cooked thru on the grill. At their Victorville Stand I would ask for WELL-DONE bird and USUALLY get it at least safely cooked. But way to many times it was pink and watery near the leg-joints and breastbone.
Their Black Beans, and Rice were pretty good too.

RE: Church's Chicken and other Chicken Fried Ramblin (okc_rn)

Wed, 27 Oct 2004 21:01:15 GMT

As for Church's chicken, I have to agree it is very good as fast food chicken goes. Their customer service leaves a LOT to be desired.

We visited the far North Oklahoma city recently. Got to the door at 8:45 (sign said the lobby was open until 9:00) The door was locked. Went to the drive thru which was suppose to be open until 10:00. Remember, it is not even 9 pm yet. Made an order and the guy says, "We only have 7 pieces of chicken left." I asked if it was their policy to serve every item on their menu while they were open and the guy says they are cleaning up and not going to cook any more chicken.

We left. The next day I called their main office and left my name and number with the understanding that we had a really BAD visit to one of their restaurants. They never even bothered to return the call.

Thats OK, becasue we have never bothered to return to the restaurant. I guess it's more important to get the crew out 2 hours early than to make customers happy.

Wesley Horton
Edmond, OK

RE: Church's Chicken and other Chicken Fried Ramblin (dbear)

Wed, 27 Oct 2004 14:39:12 GMT

When I do fast food chicked, which isn't often, I prefer Popeye's. There actually are a few in New England. I've never liked KFC chicken, but when I was a kid living in Florida, that chain also served fried shrimp which were pretty good. Locally we have 2 interesting chicken places, neither of which is a chain. In Bellingham, MA. there is Ma Glockner's, which serves 'berched' chicken, cooked on wood somehow, which is very tasty and not at all greasy. Also, in Cumberland, R.I. there is a 2 store chicken place called Power Chicken which uses a variety of Central/South American spices for a very interesting taste, similar to chicken I've had in Peru; their potato wedges are similarly flavored and very good.
db

RE: Church's Chicken and other Chicken Fried Ramblin (BBQjoe)

Wed, 27 Oct 2004 13:40:35 GMT

You can get those Holly Farms Taters at a convenience store in N Wilkesboro on the way to Boone. It is a Texaco on Hwy 421 at the entrance to Walmart. Taste very much like the original.

RE: Church's Chicken and other Chicken Fried Ramblin (Lucky Bishop)

Thu, 08 Jul 2004 15:35:19 GMT

quote:
Originally posted by wanderingjew
I'll take a mom n pop joint any day

Well, sure, we all love to be elitists on this point, but Green Chile is in Albuquerque, and I can tell you from personal experience: ain't no mom n pop fried chicken joints in Albuquerque!

Green Chile: actually, Golden Pride is pretty unspectacular, and I wouldn't waste my money. Although they are owned by the same people who own my beloved Frontier, the menu is totally different and not nearly as good.

Someone once parroted to me the urban legend about how Church's only builds its restaurants in "black neighborhoods" for various nefarious reasons. I calmly pointed out that there are about a dozen Church's Fried Chicken in Albuquerque, a city that HAS no "black neighborhoods," one of the town's few drawbacks.

RE: Church's Chicken and other Chicken Fried Ramblin (danimal15)

Thu, 08 Jul 2004 12:09:17 GMT

Some of you mentioned the biscuits at these chicken joints. It's been years since I had one, because every place I've tried, the biscuits reek of fake butter, like the kind they use in microwave popcorn. Sometimes the stench of this overwhelms what should be the aromatic smell of chicken frying. That's one reason I generally avoid fast-food fried chicken.

RE: Church's Chicken and other Chicken Fried Ramblin (Alexander)

Fri, 30 Apr 2004 07:24:05 GMT

quote:
Originally posted by DLnWPBrown

quote:
Originally posted by wanderingjew

Church's!!! Yuck!!

It beats KFC as far as we are concerned.... but it still isn't Popeye's. Now if we could just get Popeye's to move back to the area things would be ok.

I tried my first Popeye's last night. The Red Beans and Rice were OK (not as good as mine) but the cole slaw was very bland. The chicken was good (I've had worse and I've had better) but nothing to write home about. I will say this - the chicken was FRESH, not frozen, and not held in cold storage for days. This is unusual in so many fried chicken places around here. Most places seem to use frozen chicken, although we have 4 good, big chicken farming and slaughtering operations within a 30 mile radius of the city.

RE: Church's Chicken and other Chicken Fried Ramblin (2005Equinox)

Mon, 12 Apr 2004 01:38:02 GMT

The Best fried chicken here in Northeast Wisconsin is a supper club called The Skyview club. Around here the supper clubs and wedding places have the best fried chicken. Marys has the broasted chicken which is damn good.KFC is ok in a pinch but I dont care for it much. Culvers is also very good but a tad pricey.

RE: Church's Chicken and other Chicken Fried Ramblin (Pwingsx)

Sat, 10 Apr 2004 19:39:44 GMT

Biscuit,

I quit getting the Rocky a few months ago ($100+ a year is too much when all I really wanted was the Spotlight anyway). I'll check it out online. Was it a review from John Lehndorff? I love him.

RE: Church's Chicken and other Chicken Fried Ramblin (angelfood)

Fri, 09 Apr 2004 11:11:28 GMT

quote:
Originally posted by emsmom

Does anyone know where you can get potato wedges that taste like the Holly Taters. KFC's wedges doesn't even compare.
quote:
Originally posted by Hillbilly

quote:
Originally posted by angelfood

I also liked Holly Farms (?), Honey Dipped and now am able to enjoy Maryland Fried down where I am now. NEXT!!

I, too, liked the Holly Farms products (but then I grew up in Wilkes County, NC where Holly Farms was located), and their "Holly Taters" were outstanding (better than the very good potato wedges that KFC started serving after HF quit). I think all of their retail outlets went away when Tyson bought them.

There's a place in Bluffton, SC called Nickelpumper's, which is really a gas station/convenience store, that makes great fried chicken and tater wedges. At least they used to, I haven't been there in a while. It's in the original town of Bluffton, not the new part which is the booming metropolis leading into Hilton Head.

RE: Church's Chicken and other Chicken Fried Ramblin (Biscuit)

Fri, 09 Apr 2004 10:34:00 GMT

Hey Pwingsx,

No, I've never tried White Fence Farms. I'm not even sure where it is, but I've heard of it.

I agree on Soopers fried chicken, it's pretty good, too. I've found, like Safeway, the quality can vary from store to store, though. I like their rotisserie chicken, too

There is a review in today's Rocky Mountain News of Pierre's Supper Club, where the reviewer says they have "The best fried chicken in Denver." The place is like 3 blocks from my place, but I've never eaten there as the prices seem kind of steep. I guess I'll have to try it

B

RE: Church's Chicken and other Chicken Fried Ramblin (BigGlenn)

Fri, 09 Apr 2004 00:43:33 GMT

quote:
"local Safeway supermarket deli"

Stater Brothers Supermarket Deli here in the Los Angeles Area has great fried chicken as well. For the price it can't be beat. However, it has to be fresh from the kettle. If it sits for more than a minute it ain't worth buying.

RE: Church's Chicken and other Chicken Fried Ramblin (mayor al)

Thu, 08 Apr 2004 21:02:24 GMT

Of the 'quickie' chicken stands i like Popeye's the best overall. A box of the spicy chicken...and the Mashed Potato(not so good alone) with the sausage pepper gravy (much better) The slaw is usually too sweet, but not all the time.

RE: Church's Chicken and other Chicken Fried Ramblin (Bill B.)

Thu, 08 Apr 2004 17:37:34 GMT
Last Saturday evening, I drove four hours to Junction City, Kansas, for a night of walleye fishing. Got a motel in town when I arrived about dark, then headed for Milford Lake. I passed a Church's Chicken en route, so of course I had to stop.

They had just dumped a fresh batch of chicken out of the fryer. I bought a box with two thighs, a leg and a biscuit for $2.50 and drove with it to Milford Dam. There, I rolled down the car windows, sat in the dark and scarfed hot fried chicken. It was pretty darn good.

We have a Church's in Columbia, but this one was better. Or maybe it was just the long drive and the refreshing touch of cool night air off the lake.

RE: Church's Chicken and other Chicken Fried Ramblin (Pwingsx)

Thu, 08 Apr 2004 16:39:05 GMT
Hey Biscuit,

I feel the same way about King Sooper's chicken. And you're sure right about finding fried chicken in the Denver area. Have you tried White Fence Farms? I've heard they're good but never been there. Far as I know, you've got to travel up to Berthoud to the Wayside Inn for good fried chicken.

RE: Church's Chicken and other Chicken Fried Ramblin (Rick F.)

Thu, 08 Apr 2004 13:24:01 GMT
Used to be (maybe still is) a chain called "New Orleans FC" in Tennessee. I thought it was very good until I discovered Popeye's. Haven't had Church's, as the only one I've seen is in a service station and the help didn't: too busy having a conversation! KFC is okay most of the time.

Popeye's is very good here, though I thought their shrimp sub was awful: no shrimp flavor at all. And they have the absolute best store-bought biscuits I've eaten.

RE: Church's Chicken and other Chicken Fried Ramblin (emsmom)

Thu, 08 Apr 2004 13:10:02 GMT

Does anyone know where you can get potato wedges that taste like the Holly Taters. KFC's wedges doesn't even compare

quote:
Originally posted by Hillbilly

quote:
Originally posted by angelfood

I also liked Holly Farms (?), Honey Dipped and now am able to enjoy Maryland Fried down where I am now. NEXT!!

I, too, liked the Holly Farms products (but then I grew up in Wilkes County, NC where Holly Farms was located), and their "Holly Taters" were outstanding (better than the very good potato wedges that KFC started serving after HF quit). I think all of their retail outlets went away when Tyson bought them.

RE: Church's Chicken and other Chicken Fried Ramblin (Biscuit)

Tue, 23 Mar 2004 19:04:06 GMT

The best fried chicken I've found in Denver (a town not known for its fried chicken) is at, oddly enough, my local Safeway supermarket deli.
Tender and moist with an excellent crust. It could, however, use a little more spice.
They had a sale over the weekend- 8 pieces for four bucks. It was very good chicken. Not cast iron skillet caliber, but a great deal for the money.
It's the fourth time I've had their chicken, and it's alway been good.

RE: Church's Chicken and other Chicken Fried Ramblin (DLnWPBrown)

Tue, 23 Mar 2004 18:41:59 GMT

Mom & Pop operations, I just found me a dream spot. Dallas Chicken & Biscuits. It is the old time way, seasoned and fried in a deep fat fryer.... fried the old way yet tastes like KFC original wishes it tasted like. It has a flavor that makes you think of it while being sooooo much better. They are located on hwy. 55 when you are going into downtown Apex, NC from US.1

DB

RE: Church's Chicken and other Chicken Fried Ramblin (angelfood)

Thu, 18 Mar 2004 10:42:34 GMT

We have a few Mom-n-Pop's here that serve great fried chicken. The best by far, though, is L.T.'s on Lady's Island. Magnificent!!! It comes with a few sides that are all homemade, including the mashed potatoes. He makes the BEST mashed potatoes. Soul/Country cooking at it's finest. I would've eaten there yesterday if I hadn't been craving Sgt. White's cornbread and sweet tea.

RE: Church's Chicken and other Chicken Fried Ramblin (wtgriffin)

Wed, 17 Mar 2004 16:27:52 GMT

My favorite carry-out fried chicken in the world can be found at a local place in Memphis, Tenn., called Jack Pirtle's. It sustained me during my college days.

Back then a two-piece white snack, with fries, two homemade biscuits and gravy cost about $2. That was only about 20 years ago.

I think they are still found there.

And one other thing ... Has anybody ever noticed how much better Popeyes Chicken is in the New Orleans area than anyplace else. I think they cook it with an extra spicy zing in the Crescent City.

RE: Church's Chicken and other Chicken Fried Ramblin (chezkatie)

Wed, 17 Mar 2004 16:22:54 GMT

quote:
Originally posted by wanderingjew

I'll take a mom n pop joint any day

Me too...........after all, that is what Roadfood is really all about!