Best of Toronto
The Best Fried Chicken in Toronto
The best fried chicken in Toronto illustrates not just how crazy we are for the stuff, but how wildly different a single category of food can be. From the more well known southern-style fried chicken with its herbed, crispy, and thick flour breading to the secret ingredients of an Indian father's favourite spicy chicken, Toronto is blessed with a range of options that allow us to avoid the bland KFC many associate with this category.
Serve fried chicken up with waffles, cheddar mashed potatoes, collard greens or even a lassi and you have a comfort food re-imagined, re-invented, and re-juvenated.
Here is the best fried chicken in Toronto.
See also:
The best BBQ Chicken in Toronto
The Stockyards Smokehouse & Larder
It seems like Stockyards (St. Clair and Bathurst) is on all the best of lists, but maybe that’s ‘cause it’s awesome?! They start off brining and marinating the chicken over 2 days, then dust it with seasoned flour, fry it and serve it up with fries, coleslaw and hot sauce or chili honey pepper glaze (if you’re dining in). It’s a big seller with 30 a day (weekdays) and 70 (weekends) being dished up –not including their Chicken and Waffle brunch item. Insane. More »
Harlem/Harlem Underground
Envisioned by Carl Cassel and Ana Silva as a place where art, food and music co-exist with equal importance, Harlem and its younger sibling Harlem Underground are the closest Toronto gets to soul food. Marinated for 2 days then coated with herb-laden flour and deep fried until golden, their chicken is crisp and fall off the bone moist. Served with fluffy Belgian style waffles and seasonal veg the only thing that makes it better is a side of Okra Fricasse. Yum! More »
The Drake Cafe
Available at brunch on Saturdays and Sundays – and sometimes for the Chef’s daily special, The Drake’s Fried Chicken and Waffle is seriously something special. Perfectly fried buttermilk and bbq spice marinated boneless chicken is served atop a parsley, tarragon and chive infused buttermilk waffle that’s topped with Creme Fraiche and a “loose Niagara cherry compote”. Served with Ontario Maple Syrup it’s decadently delish, perfectly portioned and Chef’s Mom approved! More »
Chick-N-Joy
Serving Leslieville since 1977, it’s clear that Chick-N-Joy is doing enough right to enjoy a lasting and loyal following. The chicken is always fresh, never frozen, butchered by owner Johnny (yes, he’s been here for 30 plus years) and given a light dusting of seasoned flour. Along with pressure cooking, this gives the chicken a crispy, thin exterior and super moist interior. With their fresh cut fries for $4.95, it’s almost criminal. More »
The Counter
Only open a few months and already one of the busiest hotel restaurants in Toronto, it’s clear that 24hr dining and Chef Robert Mills’ simple, straight-up diner food have hit the right note. A big serving, the half-chicken is marinated in buttermilk, lightly dipped in flour, fried and served with Yukon Gold mashed potatoes with cheddar on top. With everything made from scratch and in house it’s no wonder they serve a couple hundred a month. More »
C5
The ROM’s beautiful top floor restaurant isn’t where one would typically expect to find the lowly fried chicken, but as in everything they do at C5, attention to detail raises the bar. Starting with a natural and locally raised whole chicken that’s butchered in house, each piece is brined for between 5-7 hours, then dredged several times in buttermilk and flour, fried and served with an incredible white gravy, red veined living sorel, coleslaw and a Beemster cheese biscuit! More »
Maroli
A completely different take on fried chicken, the recipe for Maroli’s Malabar Chicken is super secret, but I can tell you that it has 16 spices, is made with boneless chicken breast, is slow fried at low temperature and has an out of this world flavour with just the right amount of heat. Enjoy it with might be the best lassi in Toronto and you’ll realize why this place is starting to win awards. More »
Fire on the East Side
A standard on the menu but being tweaked by new Chef Quincey Tysdale, this chicken and waffles isn’t for the faint of heart. Two giant boneless chicken breasts marinated for at least 48 hours in a special Cajun seasoning are then breaded with ground dry corn, panko crumbs and fried until ready to be smothered with white gravy and served with waffles and locally sourced maple syrup. I’m hungry just writing about it! More »
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2) This "Best $ITEM in Toronto" thing is DONE TO DEATH. Seriously, BlogTO, get another idea already before we all have to endure "Best Haggis in Toronto" or "Best Gloryhole in Toronto", as certainly appears inevitable. I love Toronto, live downtown, and this stuff is making even me sick of hearing about the place.
That's odd. I was there two days ago and they really stood up to my expectations. My chicken pieces were really meaty and the batter was delicious...were we in the same place? Or maybe they change the chef...
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