Best fried chicken-St. Louis

[marymac]

Need recs for the best fried chicken. Any suggestions? Thanks!

[jberendzen]

Best I've had lately: Jadens, 4251 E Martin L King. In my humble opinion, Hodaks has an odd batter - they give you a lot but I'm not really that impressed. Porters is better. None of it is as good as the stuff my mom used to make.

[Phaedrus]

Hodak's: Very good but wasn't good enough for me to keep going back.
Porter's: Sometimes heavenly, most of the time so-so. I guess it depends on who was working that day.
Pat's Bar and Grill: People love it but I didn't like the fact that the skin separated from the meat so easily.
Delmonico's on Delmar: Excellent fried chicken and probably the best sides to go with that fried chicken too.
Sweet Pies on Manchester: Inconsistent too, but very good, better than Porter's on average.

[bobzemuda]

I'll have to check out Sweet Pies. It all pails to the KC delight Stroud's. It's like heaven on earth that place.

[frugalgourmet]

What's being served at KC delight Stround's?

[frugalgourmet]

Between Delmonico's and Sweet Pies, on any given day, which would you go and are they reachable by Metro?

[Phaedrus]

Delmonico's is more reachable than Sweetie Pies. It is just north of the main Central West End Area, still a nice walk though. Neither locations of Sweetie Pies is conducive to walking from a Metrolink stop, unfortunately. Delmonico's and Sweetiue Pies on New Florissant are more traditional southern: meat and two veggies while the Sweetie Pies on Manchester is newer and more posh.

[frugalgourmet]

Thanks, I'll try that tomorrow when I get into town.

[jlawrence01]

Sweetie Pies is on WEST Florissant, NOT NEW Florissant and is reachable by BUS (but I would not recommend the bus ride) ...

[frugalgourmet]

That much tough of a neighborhood but is it worthwhile than going to Delmonico?

[Phaedrus]

Oops, How soon I forget.

[frugalgourmet]

You're right, Phaedrus. Sweetie Pie @ Mangrove on Manchester ave has very good fried chicken except they have it in wings only. They didn't have the drum sticks and thighs which are my fav. The Mc and cheese, and cabbage as sides are very worthwhile to try, better than most, period.
The batter is light, crispy and seasoned appropriately without detracting from the flavor of the meat. 2 thumbs up. You can't find this quality fried chicken at LA, even better than homemade.

[Phaedrus]

Great, glad you enjoyed it. I was kind of stressing about how you were going to like the place.

[bobzemuda]

Porter's Fried Chicken. I think it's a lot better then Hodak's.

[Extreme Glow]

I think Hodak's is overrated. Very bland. Porter's would be better.

Of course, I was raised on Southern fried chicken, which is fried in a cast iron skillet, not a deep fryer.

[jlawrence01]

A agree with you. I used to live about four blocks away from Hodak's and found their chicken to be overly greasy ... and served over toast points.

[Pat Hammond]

Taost points? Hmm. Don't remember that. One thing about their chicken, though, it loses its appeal as leftovers. Porter's, huh? Will try that myself the next time I visit.

[Pat Hammond]

I've been gone from St. Louis for 7 years, and I still remember the wonderful fried chicken at Hodak's in South St. Louis. It was, and still is, the best I've ever had.

http://hodaks.com/

[Suzie]

Another vote for Hodaks. Its some of the best I have had not only in St. Louis but anywhere else for that matter!

[marymac]

Thanks Pat and Suzie! I'll give it a try.