Perhaps time for another roast/grilled chicken throw-down?

[silverlakebodhisattva]

I'm seeing birds from at least the following:

Pollos ala Brasa (original, Western)
Pollo ala Brasa (imitators...)
Zankou
Any number of Zankou imitators. . .
No-q-No
Versailles

Whatever the place is in Brentwood that folks rave about. . .

Unfortunately, as a number of Hounds have observed, these birds lose a lot of charm if they spend a long haul in a "to go" bag, (the chicken equivalent of "wok chi") so, how this taste-off might be accomplished, sans helecopter or motorcycle messenger, isn't clear to me. . . .

r gould-saltman

[carter]

They sure cook a good bird at the Oinkster in Eagle Rock - very moist and very flavorful.

[Skunk2Racer]

I QUIK Going to Pollo Ala Brasa Last 3 Times my Chicken was DRY DRY DRY OVERCOOKED JERKY! NOMAS!

[africanizedkiller]

Definitely C'ms they're having problems these days. 'NRETSEW,' an indigenous Peruvian rain cry now affixed to their revolving marquee, lends heavy truth to this.

[Gohantabeyoka]

Costco.

[cupcake]

California Chicken Cafe for SURE!!

[WHills]

California Chicken Cafe

[Chowpatty]

In the Zankou imitators category, I would include Glendale's Chicken Al-Wazir -- very citrusy marinade, but pleasant.

[silverlakebodhisattva]

Geez, I'm a gettin' brain-weevils sin my dotage: I'd

(a) forgotten that Patty had actually run such a "taste-off" as recently as '04 (hi Pats!)
(b) absolutely intended to include Dino's in my list of contenders,
(c) intended to list what i considered to be "Zankou imitators" or "Zankou style places", including my recent discovery of the deli at Super King (hi SlowFoodie!) but drew a blank on names,
(d) forgotten TiGeorge's, (which i loved but chow-spouse was less crazy about) which i pass on my way home from work weekly (though he's often closed by then; out of chickens!)

So, any other contenders?

In addition to the one-time taste-off event, I'd be interested in impressions of the day-to-day chicken-to-chicken consistency of these places, which seems to be a HUGE issue for Zankou these days.

BTW, this post was prompted in part by Pollo Loco's apparently complete deletion of their "half-chicken w/ tortillas only" menu entry; their incessant menu expansion and side-order-pushing makes me nostalgic for their early days on Alvarado when their menu was:

(1) whole chicken OR
(2) half chicken
WITH (a) corn OR
(b) flour tortillas

r gould-saltman

[Cicely]

With TiGeorge's, I too pass it on my commute. He's often closed before the official closing time, but if you think you're going to be there before 7, just phone in your order and he'll stay open. Last time I did this he thanked me because he got a few more walk-ins as well!

[Ernie]

I'm not sure there are "Zankou imitators." Granted, Zankou is the most popularized, but that style of roast chicken with garlic sauce has been common at several other Armenian/Lebanese places around LA for years.

That being said, The Sultan in the Downtown LA Jewelry district has been doing the same style for a while. My last chicken lunch seemed more moist there than a recent visit to Zankou Sunset.

The Sultan
311 W. 6th St.
[phone]

St. Vincent's Alley nearby has a couple of interesting places that I haven't tried but very curious to hear about.

[David Kahn]

I'd add Dino's and Marrouch to the list. Maybe we could rent a limo and do a roast /grilled chicken crawl?

[Chowpatty]

For reference, here's the results of the last one.
http://www.chowhound.com/topics/60551...

[ipsedixit]

I'll play.

My vote goes to the following:

TIGEORGES CHICKEN (www.tigeorgeschicken.com

)

SAM WOO BBQ (soy sauce chicken). Corner of Sixth and Valley in Alhambra.