Hi @Chowseeker1999 - I must have been rushing and missed this comment earlier. Very true too. Nothing like fresh, crispy and crunchy.
Sorry to get slightly off the Howlin’ Ray’s topic. Just wanted to tell those who helped me what we ended up doing. Since fried chicken is having a renaissance - so to speak - maybe we should give it its own thread.
I called Howlin’ Ray’s and Poppy & Rose. One doesn’t do phone-in takeaway orders yet, and the other had a weird busy signal all day. We decided to try and hoof it over to H.Ray’s before 4pm. Got half way there and knew we couldn’t make it. We went to Plato’s on 8th in K-town.
Plato’s is a sports bar that specializes in KFC. They might not reach the goodness of OB Bear Wings. But were very good. We didn’t eat them right away, so the oil settled a bit into the meat. But they were still crunchy and tasty. We had the wing sampler and a la carte thighs. The wings were abnormally large. I don’t even want to think about why. They have a lot of flavors. We went with OG Double Fried, Sweet & Spicy, Garlic Soy and Coconut Butter. They also had some good beers on tap. While we waited we had a tasty pilsner called Deadpan. My cousin made Mac & Cheese, Creamed Corn, Greens AND cake. She’s a beast in the kitchen. So it was a good time. Cleveland won. Sadly, still no Howlin’ Ray’s for me!
My pictures aren’t great, so I included one from Yelp.
Daikon. There’s a flight of them; one of which should be yuzu, the other jalapeno. if you like Plato, you really must also try 77 Kentucky, which puts a Chinese spin on KFC.
For me, both places are superior over OB Bear. Howlin Rays is fun, but Plato + 77 Kentucky are on my regulars roster.
Oh yes. I remembered after I posted, that it was a white radish and jalapeños. It was early and they were just making it, and it funked up the whole bar, but was really tasty. The yuzu one seems interesting.
You could be right about Plato’s being better than OB. We weren’t eating it freshly cooked, so can’t compare fairly. Will definitely check out 77 Kentucky. Cool thanks!
You don’t lose credibility with me. My cousins order Von’s fried chicken for their picnics all the time. If you call ahead they make it fresh for you. I don’t think it will put Howlin’ Ray’s out of business. But it’s pretty darn good.
Oh sorry. In trying not to impose on other people’s posts about a specific fried chicken place: Gus’s, Howlin’ Ray’s, etc. I asked Ipse to start this Fried Chicken Rundown thread for me.
@tailbacku wrote on @Chowseeker1999’s Gus’s Fried Chicken thread that Von’s fried chicken is pretty good, but that he/she didn’t want to lose credibility by saying so. I responded here.
another fried chicken rec—I was @ Escala in Ktown the other night and they have really great fried chicken wings. These are full wings (large for wings) coated/fried and served with either a Columbian style sauce or an Asian chili sauce on the side. These were great wings. Fried well and with a great crunchy crust. I tried the sauce (I believe I got the Columbian version), but they didn’t need any sauce and were great on their own. I happened to be there during happy hour (the serving size was 2 wings for HH), but I’m pretty sure they have them on the regular menu also. The carne asada slider was very tasty as well!
Fried chicken burrito from Tacos Tu Madre: Buttermilk fried chicken, runny egg, Sriracha honey, mozzarella…
The fried chicken was surprisingly well done, and the inclusion of the gooey delicious egg elevates this burrito directly into orbit in terms of taste.
Whoah. I like the breakfast burritos at Tacos Tu Madre, but this sounds like a whole other level of deliciousness.
Pretty sure the breakfast burritos are available all day at Tacos Tu Madre. There’s usually a line at lunch and dinner, at least when UCLA is in sesssion, but we’re talking minutes, not hours.
The fried chicken at Sack is cold, so it actually holds up pretty well to travel. Probably my second favorite sandwich there after the Spanish Godfather.
Actually, I work on the Wilshire Corridor. Just east of Beverly Glen (no restaurants). Westwood Village traffic is just a pain. I always pick up lunch on my way in on Beverly Dr or Clementine’s curbside pick-up in Century City (super easy). After work I just wanna’ head east. But you guys/gals keep posting such great stuff! Plus all the good sushi is west… Hmmm.
