Posts Tagged ‘Chicago’
Uncle Remus Chicken & Barbeque of Chicago
Twitter is a phenomenal tool for listening.
For example, are people talking about Joel Chandler Harris? Not that much. Song of the South? Sure, especially with the release of the Princess and the Frog on DVD. What about Uncle Remus?
Like you wouldn’t believe.
Uncle Remus Chicken & BBQ is, according to many on Chicago’s West Side, “the business.”
See what I mean?
Whenever I look at my saved search for “Uncle Remus” on Tweetdeck, I have to wade through unending praise of Uncle Remus Chicken & BBQ. Either that or comparisons to its nearest competitor, Harold’s Chicken Shack, on the South Side.
So on a recent trip to Chicago, Amelia and I just had to try it out. Accompanied by intrepid blog commenter Joe, Brer Lion shirt-owner Heather, and another guy named Joe, we set out for the W. Madison location.
There’s no seating inside Uncle Remus. You read the menu that’s written on the wall in a shade of orange so neon that I think I contracted epilepsy on the spot. The extremely reasonable prices, however, made up for it. Once you decide on your order, you give it to someone behind a large pane of glass. I gave our order to a lady wearing a shirt that said “Auntie Uncle Remus.”
While you wait (a surprisingly long time) you can either watch ‘em fry everything up through the glass or stand awkwardly in the corner next to an inexplicably placed map. We chose the latter.
Auntie Uncle Remus finally called our number, and we received our chicken through a 12″ x 12″ hole that sits about 6 feet off the ground. It has something of a speakeasy quality to it.
We took the chicken to nearby Garfield Park to enjoy a little picnic before hitting up the Conservatory.
The verdict? A resounding “meh.”
The mild sauce, occasionally referred to as “crack sauce,” is what keeps folks coming back. It’s pretty good, and the chicken is better than this picture would have you believe. We did not bother with the fries (and recommend that you do the same). If you factor in the price, it’s a pretty good value. That said, I’ll take the Busy Bee Cafe any day of the week.
Still, given the name, the product, and the experience, I think we all agree:
