SOUTHERN FRIED CHICKEN

[ALLY5554]

WHERE IN MASS CAN I FIND THE BEST SOUTHERN FRIED CHICKEN LIKE THE OLD (FONTAINES,TOPSEYS) RESTAURANT IN DEDHAM???

[ALLY5554]

so, i went to cruisers, rolls and rings were good, chicken nothing like fontaine's, oh well, i'll keep trying

[teezeetoo]

it isn't southern but honestly the best fried chicken i can find is at Bon Chon, in Brighton. Korean fried chicken but it rocks.

[Bellachefa]

I had trouble getting past the cafeteria style instant mashed potato and out of the vat soggy cole slaw.

[evex3]

Coast Cafe in Central Sq is fantastic fried chicken, and Red Eyed Pig in West Roxbury has a smoked fried chicken that might be more what you're thinking of.

[yumyum]

Smoked fried chicken? Gourmaniac. Calling gourmaniac. Field trip. STAT!

[gourmaniac]

Thanks for thinking of me as it combines my three favorite words. i did actually try the smoked fried chicken on my only visit to REP and it was good but not transcendent. I'd certainly try it again (after Opinionated Chef's recent review). The pork belly doughnuts (my next three favorite words) are indeed terrific.

[opinionatedchef]

evex. thx for that heads up. we're headed there now, because of you!red eyed pig- will report back.

[Fontainelover]

Wait, Fried Chicken like Fontaines is at Cruisers in Walpole on Main St., I went to the red eyed pig, nice place but no rolls or chicken like fontaines...

[ALLY5554]

im hoping to go to cruisers sunday

[opinionatedchef]

evex3, are your ears ringing? here's my report on REP. thx again!

http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/845448

[katzzz]

Whole Foods is having a sale on fried chicken -- what they call "picnic chicken" (Don't know for how long). Half price. $4.99 a pound. Had it for dinner last night. Tasty, lots of crunchy crust. And I say this as someone who mostly avoids the prepared foods there, which I usually find disappointing.

[Prav]

I wonder if you had a batch that was just made; it always looks mushy and old when I see it in the steam table (@ the Wholefoods in Charles River Plaza).

[katzzz]

I think it was freshly made, relatively speaking, no doubt in expectation of selling a lot at half-price. It was darn crispy for cooled-off fried chicken.

[catsmeow]

I got the WF fried chicken 2 days ago and we went back and got more yesterday. It was at the prepared food counter not in the hot foods section. Very crispy and good....even when reheated on a rack in the oven with foil on the next rak under it to catch excess oil.

[C. Hamster]

They also need to incorporate some type of seasoning into their food ....

[katzzz]

I agree that WF prepared foods lack seasoning, which is why I tend to avoid it. But this fried chicken didn't. Properly salty and, as I said before, very tasty.

[David Kahn]

Agree completely. I like shopping at WF, but I avoid their prepared foods which are virtually always under-seasoned and not worth eating.

[Fontainelover]

I went to Cruisers on my brothers recomendation. OMG, they have the chicken, the rolls, squash and also onion rings. The rolls are dripping in butter, the chicken is very jucy. I asked, they do not use a pressure cooker. I ordered the Chicken Alabama (single) and took one home to my mom. Another thing they offer is home made potato chips with onion dip as an appetizer. Its hard to find, right in Walpole center. Didnt know there is a huge public parking lot in back and a back door. I cant wait to go back.

[ALLY5554]

OMG GLAD TO HEAR THAT, IM GOING HOPEFULLY NEXT WEEK,CAN'T WAIT. ALABAM WAS ON THE BONE AT TOPSEY'S BUT THEIRS IS BONELESS I BELIEVE. WERE THE ONION RINGS THE SAME? THICK ONE'S?

[MC Slim JB]

WHY ARE YOU SHOUTING?

It's 2012. Please hit your Caps-Lock key.

http://mcslimjb.blogspot.com/

[ALLY5554]

not shouting????, my password in caps, just forgot, not a big deal. and i am very excited to try cruisers this weekend, hope it is the same,i am very picky with any place who say's theirs is the same, i will see,

[Guilty Glutton]

I'd have to say that the best I've tried so far is Strip T's. The meat is moist and the skin exceptionally crunchy and flavorful.

Has anyone tried the fried chicken from Down Home Delivery? I live too far away from Dorchester to have them deliver, but I'd be interested to hear what people think of it.

[phatchris]

I may be in the minority,but I really like the fried chicken at the Tavern At The End Of The World.

[ALLY5554]

where is that?

[C. Hamster]

At the end of the world, silly! ;-)

And that would be Charlestown. It's appearance deceives.

[ALLY5554]

oh too funny, what do i know im from the south shore

[MC Slim JB]

108 Cambridge St, on the Somerville side of Sullivan Square. A fine little neighborhood place, but I missed the fried chicken when I reviewed it for The Phoenix a while back.

http://mcslimjb.blogspot.com/

[BJK]

Great place with surprisingly good food and a great beer list.

[phatchris]

I wouldn't make it a destination, but if your there enjoying a few pints its reliable buttermilk fried chicken, and the fries are pretty good.

[gourmaniac]

Am I the only one who doesn't remember Fontaine's as all that? It was good and fun especially the neon chicken sign, but I don't have gustatorial flashbacks about it. In contrast, Stroud's fried chicken in Kansas City, is something I still dream of. RE broasted fried chicken, Riverside pizza (River street at Putnam, Cambridge) is broasted, inexpensive and tasty but again, not a destination.

[9lives]

My recollection of Fontaine's mirrors yours.

Strouds, where I have't been is supposed to be awesome.

[Dave MP]

Does Mrs. Jones in Dorchester have good friend chicken? I always was meaning to try it, but never got a chance.

2255 Dorchester Ave (just north of the Milton line)

[lc02139]

Haven't been in a while but back then they only did wing's, but get them with ribs, and collards, yum

[joebloe]

It's good but nothing exceptional. The very nice lady gave me a wing and a rib to try.

[C. Hamster]

Yes, it's good. Big wings only.

[HubFlyer]

Cruisers On Main in Walpole supposedly got the Fontaine's recipe.
Checking the menu they do have a item called: CHICKEN ALA’BAMA - BONELESS FRIED CHICKEN WITH GRAVY

944 Main St, Walpole
508-668-0900
cruisersrestaurant.com

[ALLY5554]

txs. ill try and see

[catsmeow]

This is exciting. Has anyone tried the chicken at Cruisers on Main? Is it like Fontaines? A few years ago, there was suppose to be a place in East Dedham that was going to serve Fontaines chicken and it never panned out. Prior to that, a now defunct restaurant at Marina Bay was suppose to have the recipe but it wasn't anything like Fontaine's was.

[ALLY5554]

i went to the one in marina bay, not the same,i hear cruisers is good, im going to try it, hope it is the same, thanks all for your info. there was a place in hull that had broasted but i still loved the southern fried better

[catsmeow]

Please report back when you go to Crusers. I hope it's the same.

[ALLY5554]

will do

[Locutus]

If you feel like a road trip

Carmens on Rt 107N in NH. 1/2 way between seabrook and Kingston on the right side. Take 95N till you hit 107 and go left

Best Fried chix I have had in NE

[hondodog]

If this is Carmen's in East Kingston, it seems to be closed. Oops.

[MC Slim JB]

WHAT'S WITH THE SHOUTING?! Caps Lock off, please.

A few places about whose fried chicken Hounds have good things to say, though I cannot vouch for all of these myself: Riverside Pizza & Seafood in Cambridgeport, Highland Kitchen (a recurring Monday special), Strip-T's, Coast Cafe, Franklin Cafe (only on the menu occasionally), Hungry Mother (another occasional special), Tupelo, M&M Ribs, Mrs. Jones, Summer Shack, Grumpy White's, and La Frontera (pollo estilo campero).

You might also enjoy dry-fried chicken preparations at various Chinese restaurants around town, like Sichuan Gourmet. I'm also a big fan of Bon Chon Chicken, though it's a very specific Korean take on fried chicken.

http://mcslimjb.blogspot.com/

[ALLY5554]

didn't care for summer shack's chicken, been looking for a long time and still have not found anything as good as fontaines

[CookieLee]

I know that Fontaine's chicken was "broasted". I've never really been sure what that means. Off of Washington St. in Wellesley, near Paparazzi, there was a sandwich / fried chicken place that said their chicken was "broasted". Is that the style of chicken you are actually looking for? I also remember Fontaine's quite fondly.

[MC Slim JB]

Broasting means using a hybrid device that combines pressure cooking with deep frying, which essentially is the same method that KFC uses. Its main advantage is that it fries chicken more quickly than conventional deep frying. In order to call your fried chicken "broasted", you have to use Broaster Company's trademarked pressure fryer, and I think also their secret-recipe marinade and batter seasoning.

I've considered trying pressure frying at home (I have a good Magafesa pressure cooker that I love for quick-cooking dried legumes), but it requires a special kind of pressure cooker with an extra clamping bar; it kind of scares me as dangerous.

http://mcslimjb.blogspot.com/

[devilham]

Not to hijack Slim, but do you know if you can jury rig a pressure cooker to do something like this? I make my fried chicken in an electric skillet, and that works great mind you, but am constantly trying to perfect my craft (on the fried chicken front....mine is pretty damn solid) and was curious about this method

[MC Slim JB]

You definitely do *not* want to try pressure frying in a traditional pressure cooker: very dangerous. Among other issues, the seals aren't rated to handle oil at pressure temperatures. It looks to me like Fagor, one of the brands that first did a consumer-grade pressure fryer, has discontinued them.

Magafesa still makes the triple-reinforced pressure cookers that I've seen recommended for home pressure frying, but their literature doesn't seem to encourage that particular use. Boiling oil under pressure scares me.

http://mcslimjb.blogspot.com/

[devilham]

ahhh, makes sense, don't fret, I won't try it. I do boil under pressure plenty, as modern cookers have excelent safety features....features that wouldn't work if the seals melted from using it out of spec, thanks for the answer!

[grant.cook]

This seems like an exceptionally bad idea to try at home, even if the equipment was there to do it.... one failure, and you'd need industrial-level fire suppression or the Mass Gen burn unit.. I mean, I love good fried chicken, but there's definitely a line..

[devilham]

I hear you grant.cook, and like I said, Slim already talked me out of it. And your right, I don't have an Ansel fire suppresion system at home (hell, I don't even have a hood over my stove!) so I would say it's a no go. I'll stick with my electric frypan, which does a pretty outstanding job in the end

[CookieLee]

This place in Wellesley definitely had the Broaster fryer.

[BJK]

Roche Brothers supermarkets sells surprisingly good broasted chicken.

[yumyum]

Thing about this bionic roasting/fry at the places that have the equipment like Riverside is that the meat emerges moist while the fry does its do on the skin. I've not found better in our metro west than the Riverside. Tho I give huge props to highland kitchen on Mondays!

[ALLY5554]

it was fontains, topseys, in dedham at the intersection ,across from the va hospital, it was the best all southern fried

[ALLY5554]

this one had the chicken waving its wing on the sign, it really was the best sf chicken anywhere, had great rolls,onion rings too, i never tasted batter like that before. maybe the cooks went local, too bad i miss it

[CookieLee]

Ally, I know where it was, I used to go there all the time as well. My mom and I loved the rolls, and the onions rings! :) I'm just saying, there was another place that made the chicken, in Wellesley. I don't know if it's still there, I haven't been there for years

[ALLY5554]

oh would be nice if it was,love to try it txs

[hyde]

that would be Mark's pizza and subs which used to be the best sandwich place in the area. about five years, or so, ago changed hands, i think, and was never the same. they have broasted chicken, which i had on several occasions and found ok but not as good as the old chef lees or even poppa b's.

mrs jones is a bit hit or miss but my choice currently is the Blackstrap BBQ'S wednesday special Fried or BBQ Chicken Family 4 Pack! 4lbs. of chicken cut into 8 pieces, 2lbs. of mashed potatoes, garden salad, 4 biscuits + gravy on the side. for 20usd before 6pm.

get some ribs too, long as your there!

[opinionatedchef]

excellent reply, per usual. At Strip T's, ally, they brine their birds 3 days. Quite delic.

[twentyoystahs]

strip T's is awesome.
really freakin' good.
and highland kitchen monday night fried chicken is excellent too.
i think those are the two best in the boston area, tho' i haven't tried coast cafe, which i have heard is good.

[Highland Park]

I can vouch for the Southern Fried Chicken at Hungry Mother. It is excellent.

[Bellachefa]

I've only had it once, but the fried chicken which you can order by the piece at Summer Shack in Dedham was rather well executed.