Tastemakers Awards

These 10 restaurants make the list for best fried chicken in Dallas

Max's Wine Dive fried chicken with champagne in background

Which fried chicken will rule the roost?

We're only a week away from the 2017 CultureMap Tastemaker Awards, our annual event honoring the best in local food and drink. As part of our run-up, we've elected nominees in all categories of food and beverage, from best chefs to the best restaurant in Dallas-Fort Worth.

We'll toast them at a party on April 20 from 7-10 pm at Sixty Five Hundred, with tastings and awards, emceed by Texas celebrity chef Tim Love. Tickets are on sale now.

We've profiled the candidates for Rising Star Chef, Best Neighborhood Restaurant, Best Bars, Best Bartenders, best wine program, and the top pastry chefs.

Now we take a look at the contenders in one of the hottest cuisines in Dallas right now: fried chicken. Here are the nominees:

Babe's Chicken Dinner House
Local chain featuring fried chicken was founded in 1981 and now has nine branches. The menu has expanded from its original focus to include some of the area's best fried chicken, along with chicken-fried steak, smoked chicken, fried catfish, and family-style sides such as mashed potatoes, corn, and green beans.

bbbop Seoul Kitchen
In addition to the popular bibimbap rice dish, this Korean fusion mini-chain has been serving its rendition of Korean fried chicken on the side. The chicken is brined and battered with an extra-crunchy crust, then drenched in a sweet, spicy chili sauce. Its chicken is such a thing that the owners just opened Chicken Moto, a chicken-centric place in Richardson.

Brick & Bones
Casual Deep Ellum bar has a small menu that specializes in fried chicken. The chicken gets immersed first in a brine infused with chiles, giving it a spicy undertone. The crust has a shaggy, corn-flake crispness while still staying clung to the meat. There's also a Nashville-style "hot" chicken drizzled with hot sauce that adds smoky heat.

Farmbyrd Rotisserie & Fry
Plano spot is from Ryan Carbery (Bailey's, Patrizio) and Tim McLaughlin, pitmaster from Lockhart Barbecue. They submerge their chicken in a buttermilk brine and coat it in a crunchy crust. It comes with sauces such as sweet molasses, jerk, and green goddess. A condiments bar includes pickles and other add-ons.

Fearing's Restaurant
Ritz-Carlton restaurant is hardly a fried chicken joint but chef Dean Fearing's paper-bag shook fried chicken, served only at Sunday brunch, has amassed fans including Bon Appétit, who ranked it one of the world’s top 10 fried chicken experiences; who are we to argue with Bon Appétit? The chicken is fried in a cast-iron skillet, producing a tender chicken with a gentle crust.

Max's Wine Dive
This Houston-based chain shows its priorities with its mantra, "Fried Chicken and Champagne?...Why the Hell Not?!" That pairing manages not only to convey a devil-may-care attitude, it also subtly elevates fried chicken. Max's fried chicken is marinated in jalapeño buttermilk, then fried, with the result being greaseless and lightly crunchy.

Quincy's Chicken Shack
The latest concept from the Twisted Root burger chain folk serves chicken rotisserie-style and fried. They've devised a clever technique to cook fried chicken successfully: The chicken gets rotisserie'd first, then a quick-fry when someone places an order, to get it to the right temperature and right crust.

Sissy's Southern Kitchen & Bar
Owner Lisa Garza-Selcer was ahead of the 2017 chicken curve when she opened Sissy's in 2012. Her technique is novel: The chicken gets brined for 24 hours, then cooked in a pressure fryer, resulting in an extra moist chicken with a crunchy crust. The retro-Southern menu also includes deviled eggs, gumbo, and fried green tomatoes.

Street's Fine Chicken
Latest concept from Black Eyed Pea founder Gene Street and his family obsesses over chicken, with fried, roasted, and grilled. As for the fried, it gets brined for 24 hours, as has become common, and has a peppery crust. But its French-inspired seasoning mix, consisting of herbes de Provence, mixed into the brine, is unique and flavorful.

The Slow Bone
You wouldn't expect fried chicken at a barbecue place, but Slow Bone is full of surprises, including having a chef — Jeffery Hobbs — behind the line. The chicken gets brined, but he gives it a barbecue twist by smoking the water first, to imbue it with an appropriately smoky taste.

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This week in gluttony

Caviar crowns the 8 best food and drink events in Dallas this week

Punk Noir/Instagram

Punk Noir will host a caviar tasting this week.

Indulge this week with not one, but two, caviar events along with other luxe experiences like a Burgundy wine tasting and Amalfi Coast brunch. There's also opportunity to keeps things more laid back with a summer burger party, and even a humorous dinner with a former TV writer from The Simpsons.

Wednesday, July 15

Caviar & Wine Tasting Experience at Punk Noir
This guided wine and caviar tasting will feature wines from Hyde Vineyards Estates paired with Altima caviars in a bump-and-sip setting at the new Punk Noir tasting-menu restaurant on Turtle Creek Boulevard. Tickets are $50, and the tasting will run from 6-8 pm.

Thursday, July 16

30th DFW Restaurant Week Reservation Day Happy Hour at The Stoneleigh Hotel
The historic Stoneleigh Hotel will host a kickoff party in conjunction with reservations officially opening for the 30th annual DFW Restaurant Week. Visit the hotel from 4-6 pm for complimentary passed appetizers, samples of Stella Artois beer and Penfolds wines (the official beer and wine of DFW Restaurant Week), chalice engravings, a shuffleboard competition with prizes, and a champagne toast at 5 pm. (DFW Restaurant Week runs August 10-September 7.)

Friday, July 17

Red Burgundy Wine Tasting at Pappas Bros. Steakhouse
Join the Pappas Bros. Steakhouse sommelier team for a tasting of rare wines from Burgundy, France, including selections from the storied Cote d’Or. A dozen wines are included at various stations as well as paired hors d’oeuvres. The tasting is $150 and will run from 6-8 pm.

Saturday, July 18

Sun's Out, Buns Out Patio Party at Loro Asian Smokehouse & Bar
Embrace peak summer heat with a playful party built around burgers - and buns - at both Loro Asian Smokehouse locations (East Dallas and Addison). Guests can expect $10 sandwiches, like smoked pulled pork, pork katsu, smoked brisket, and smoked chicken, along with $8 “Porch Pouches” and a popsicle pop-up with free popsicles from 1-4 pm, or while they last.

National Caviar Day at Dee Lincoln Prime
The Frisco steakhouse will offer an indulgent special pairing to mark National Caviar Day. The menu includes two caviar “sammies” – butter-toasted mine Hawaiian rolls with chive crème fraiche and premium caviar – paired with the new Dee Luxe Sour, made with Hendrick’s gin, Lillet Blanc, white crème de cacao, and Supasawa premium sour cocktail mixer. The pairing is $65. Call 214-387-3333 for reservations.

Sunday, July 19

A Taste of the Amalfi Coast at Monarch
Experience a taste of coastal Italy paired with sweeping views of the Dallas skyline. The prix-fixe menu includes warm focaccia, heirloom tomato caprese, lobster benedict, rigatoni carbonara, lemon ricotta pancakes, steak and eggs, and more. The brunch is $95 ($35 for kids under 12), plus tax and gratuity, with the option of adding bottomless mimosas for $33 more. Seating times run from 10 am-1:30 pm.

Championship Match Watch Party at Columbian Country Club
Celebrate the end of the 2026 FIFA World Cup with a final watch party at Columbian Country Club featuring DJ music, an ice luge, soccer-themed décor, and drinks sponsored by Don Julio, Casamigos, and La Marca. Admission is free and the party will run all day from 1 pm-2 am. Match time is 2 pm.

Bill Oakley's An American Culinary Curiosity Dinner at Vector Brewing
Bill Oakley is the Emmy Award winning former show writer of The Simpsons TV series, and he’s teaming up with Vector Brewing for two nights of dining and imbibing. This seven-course dinner event will offer a “secret” menu of rare regional American foods and a humorous talk by Oakley. Tickets are $135, with an optional beer pairing for $25 more. The dinner begins at 7 pm both Sunday and Monday nights.

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