Houston, TXFried Chicken

Percy Frenchy Creuzot and his wife Sallie opened this Third Ward spot in 1969, and its spicy, never greasy Cajun seasoned chicken has been a fixture ever since. A new two story flagship replaced the original building in the same neighborhood, keeping the recipe intact.

A Sixth Ward outpost of the Southern chain known for a thick, chestnut brown crust with a spice level that builds under the skin without overwhelming the juicy meat inside. Consistent, well executed Southern style frying, and the spicy crust has made it a reliable Sixth Ward stop.

This Heights kitchen marinates its chicken in shrimp paste before frying it extra crispy and finishing it with herbs and a sticky sweet chili sauce. A Southeast Asian inflected version that has earned some of the strongest praise of any fried chicken in the city.

Brothers Chris and Ben Williams built this Museum District restaurant around the recipes of their great grandmother Lucille B. Smith, serving deep fried chicken with crackling skin alongside gumbo and biscuits. A nationally recognized Southern kitchen with real family history.

A refined room in Memorial that turns out fried chicken with crisp, airy, puffed up breading over juicy meat. Proof that Houston's fried chicken runs from Third Ward counters to white tablecloth dining, and a sign of how far the city's range reaches.