Which Hot Chicken Spot Uses the Most Traditional Preparation Method?
- 3 sections
- 1 table
- 4 sources cited
The restaurant with the strongest claim to traditional preparation is Prince’s Hot Chicken, because of lineage: it is the business credited with popularizing the dish. Prince’s was started in 1945 by James Thornton Prince, and in 1980 ownership passed to his great-niece, André Prince Jeffries (Wikipedia). Hot chicken recipes are often closely guarded (Wikipedia, hot chicken), so a restaurant’s exact spice blend is not something a diner can check. What you can check is whether a plate follows the standard set by the Music City Hot Chicken Festival. By that standard, authentic Nashville hot chicken has three components: chicken coated after frying in a “dry” sauce, typically made with a base of lard or oil; one or two slices of plain white bread underneath; and dill pickle slices on top (Music City Hot Chicken Festival).
The Festival’s Standard
| Component | Authentic, per the festival | Not authentic, per the festival |
|---|---|---|
| Chicken | fried, then coated in a "dry" sauce, typically with a lard or oil base | a "wet" sauce such as Buffalo-style |
| Bread | 1 to 2 slices of simple white bread under the chicken, to absorb the juices | |
| Pickle | a few dill pickle slices on top | bread and butter pickles |
The festival adds that what really makes the dish authentic is the combination of these elements and the finished flavor of the chicken. How the dish is made in general is in what Nashville hot chicken is.
Prince’s Lineage
- 1945: James Thornton Prince starts the business; the cafe was first at 28th Ave. and Jefferson St., then moved downtown near the Ryman Auditorium.
- After his death: his brother Will, then Will’s wife Maude, ran it.
- 1980: Maude handed the restaurant to Thornton’s great-niece André Prince Jeffries, who renamed it, dropping BBQ from the name.
- 2019: after a December 2018 crash and fire at the Ewing Drive strip mall, Jeffries announced that location would not reopen.
Source: Wikipedia. Current locations are listed on Prince’s site.
Using This When You Order
- Look at the plate: chicken on white bread with dill pickles meets the festival’s standard at any restaurant.
- Know the heat scale first; Prince’s levels are in the heat levels at Prince’s.
- Compare two styles side by side using the difference between Prince’s and Hattie B’s.