The Bucket List: Eight of Toronto’s best joints for fried chicken
The Bucket List: Eight of Toronto’s best joints for fried chicken
By Eric Vellend |
By Eric Vellend |
The city is in a fried-chicken swoon lately, as nostalgia-stoking chefs strive to perfect the juicy, salty, crackling classic. By Eric Vellend
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- <strong>The Counter</strong> achieves the perfect ratio of crunchy crust to explosively juicy meat. Orders come with cheddar-mashed spuds, but they’re not worth the extra artery cloggage. $14.25. <em>550 Wellington St. W., 416-601-3533</em>.
- (Image: Christopher Stevenson)
- The Counter
- The Counter
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- 70377
- A two-day brine followed by a gentle poach yields maximum succulence, a dash of herbes de Provence gives it a Gallic twist, and a drizzle of maple syrup brings it home. $14. <strong>Caplansky’s</strong>, <em>356 College St., 416-500-3852</em>.
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- Caplansky’s
- Caplansky’s
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- 70378
- Crackling pieces of boneless breast spiced with cumin, dry mustard and smoked paprika are served on top of parmesan-pumped caesar salad. $13. <strong>The Drake Café</strong>, <em>1150 Queen St. W., 416-531-5042</em>.
- (Image: Christopher Stevenson)
- The Drake Café
- The Drake Café
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- 70379
- A plump bird gets its edge from a two-day cure in salt and secret spices that flavour the meat right down to the bone. Collard greens and coconut rice and peas accompany. $17. <strong>Harlem Underground</strong>, <em>745 Queen St. W., 416-366-4743</em>.
- (Image: Christopher Stevenson)
- Harlem Underground
- Harlem Underground
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- Moist, garlic-perfumed tenderloins are encased in a feathery batter as crispy as corn flakes. They come with house-made honey-mustard and chipotle barbecue sauces. $15. <strong>Real Sports</strong>,<em> 15 York St., 416-815-7325</em>.
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- Real Sports
- Real Sports
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- 70381
- A soy, mirin and ginger marinade creates Japanese-style McNuggets that are addictively sweet and salty. $6.30. <strong>Guu</strong>, <em>398 Church St., 416-977-0999</em>.
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- Guu
- Guu
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- 70382
- <strong>The Stockyards</strong> makes the best fried chicken in town. The bird gets 24 hours in brine, 24 hours in buttermilk and a shake in thyme- and jerk-seasoned flour. For brunch, chef Tom Davis adds a hot-sauce-molasses-citrus glaze and serves it with waffles. $12. <em>699 St. Clair Ave. W., 416-658-9666</em>.
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- The Stockyards
- The Stockyards
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- 70383
- A double-dip in buttermilk and seasoned flour creates a magnificent crust. Sides of kohlrabi slaw and a Thunder Oak gouda biscuit elevate it to Toronto’s tastiest fine dining fried chicken. $20. <strong>C5</strong>, <em>100 Queen’s Park, 416-586-7928</em>.
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- C5
- C5
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- The Bucket List
- The Bucket List
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How about real fried chicken that’s not from C5?
Disappointing list. Guu’s fried chicken is ho-hum.
City Fried at Donland’s and Danforth. Get the homemade hot sauce. They use a secret recipe for the marinade. It’s light, juicy and distinct but not overpowering. Don’t get anything else but the chicken. Even the ones sitting on the rack all day are succulent.
Sunny, don’t you know that Toronto Life thinks that nothing of significance happens outside the downtown core?
K, I’m a peasant, but I love Popeye’s mild…it’s the best!
Let the dissing begin….
I love Popeye’s too. No dissing here.
The fried chicken at The Harlem Underground IS sublime though. So is all their comfort food.
For off-the-shelf fried chicken, nothing beats Mary Brown’s! Too bad there aren’t any locations in the downtown core.
My two experiences with fried chicken are KFC (pretty gross), and Gus’s World Famous Fried Chicken in Memphis (blew my mind). Are any of these close to the Gus style? The best way I can describe it is “can’t stop eating it”.
Popeyes is horrible
the coating is delicious however
on the couple of occasions I tried it I swear the chicken was not thoroughly cooked on the inside
and those biscuits they serve up are so laden with fake butter taste
The best place in town for the best homemade southern fried chicken is right in your own home. With momma at the ovenrange preparing all the family meals for generations, eh. You don’t even have to get dressed up for the ocasion, ha, ha, ha.. At least you know of what to expect when momma is in charge of all the preparation of all the cooking in the hosehold. I sure miss my momma….
aaw, David! I hear ya, mama’s is always the best.
Toronto Life got it right this time – there is no question that stockyards makes the best fried chicken in town.
I heard in Harlem,NY. There’s a soulfood restaurant with the best chicken……defenitly need a place like that here in the T.O
Church’s chicken!!!! try the juicy wing piece that comes with the meal/bucket (not wing special). Best fried chicken when fresh. Glad they are back in To with nearly a decade absence. At the corner of St. Clair and Dufferin.
@sickofcupcakes 4 of these are not downtown. Nevermind “the core”. Try leaving the suburbs for once and come see the city.
Church’s chicken is the best fried chicken I have ever had. Shame you omitted it.
tried Popeyes found it didn’t tast too good
like it was soaked in a salt water brine.
All their chicken is Hala so that may have
something to do with it.