Prince’s runs four heat levels and the labeling should be understood in context. Prince’s does not calibrate to mainstream American spice tolerance. They calibrate to the tradition the restaurant has practiced for nearly a century, which was developed for customers who ate seriously spicy food regularly. The labels mean something different here than they do at a chain restaurant.
Mild at Prince’s is the starting point and it is not mild by most people’s standards. Tripadvisor’s most-cited local advice on Nashville forums says the Mild at Prince’s will “light you up” if you are not prepared. Multiple food writers describe it as equivalent to a medium-hot level at mainstream spicy chicken spots. If you have eaten Hattie B’s Hot level comfortably, you are ready for Prince’s Mild. If Hattie B’s Hot challenged you, order Prince’s Mild and take it seriously.
Medium is where Prince’s actually tests its customers. People who eat moderately spicy food regularly and navigate Mild without difficulty will find Medium pushes past comfortable. The heat is sustained, present from the first bite, and does not diminish significantly as you eat. Your face will sweat. Your mouth will remain hot for a while after the meal. This is the level most local regulars who are not serious heat-seekers tend to eat at.
Hot is the level that separates people who eat hot chicken from people who eat seriously hot food. It is not a performative dare level. It is the level at which the dish becomes demanding in a way that affects how you eat it, how fast you eat it, and what condition you are in when you finish. Experienced Nashville hot chicken veterans order this. First-timers are typically advised to start two levels lower.
XXX Hot has a documented local reputation. Stories about XXX Hot at Prince’s circulate in Nashville the way stories circulate about hazing rituals. Anthony Bourdain visited Bolton’s (which runs hotter than Prince’s) in 2016 and said the hottest level caused him to hallucinate. Prince’s XXX Hot sits in that territory. It is ordered by people who have already eaten Hot multiple times and are ready to make a decision they cannot undo.
What This Means in Practice
The Tripadvisor advice that locals have given for years is consistent: whatever heat level you think you want at Prince’s, order one level lower. If you think you want Hot, order Medium. If you think you want Medium, order Mild. The advice specifically about Prince’s Mild says it is “still quite hot” and Medium “will light you up.”
This is not a warning against Prince’s. It is a recognition that the restaurant has its own heat scale that does not map onto commercial spicy food. The chicken at every Prince’s level is exceptional, and the experience of eating the Mild version is already more intense and more flavorful than most things marketed as “Nashville Hot” anywhere outside Nashville.
Comparing to Hattie B’s
The rough mapping between the two restaurants’ levels: Prince’s Mild sits around Hattie B’s Hot. Prince’s Medium is somewhere between Hattie B’s Hot and Damn Hot. Prince’s Hot approaches Hattie B’s Damn Hot. Prince’s XXX Hot is its own category that the Hattie B’s scale arguably does not fully represent until Shut the Cluck Up, and the two restaurants still taste different at equivalent heat levels because the spice profiles and techniques are not identical.
The practical implication: if you have worked up to Hattie B’s Damn Hot and found it manageable, Prince’s Hot is your starting point, not Prince’s XXX Hot.
Sources
- Tripadvisor Nashville Forum, heat level comparison and advice, https://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowTopic-g55229-i154-k11513401-HattieBsORPrincesHot_Chicken
- Nashville Hot Chicken Guide, Hattie B’s vs Prince’s comparison, https://nashvillehotchicken.net/blog/hattie-bs-vs-princes-ultimate-showdown
- H.D. Miller, “The Nashville Hot Chicken Rankings,” https://eccentricculinary.substack.com/p/the-nashville-hot-chicken-rankings
- Prince’s Hot Chicken, “Our History,” https://www.princeshotchicken.com/about
- Wingaddicts, “The History of Nashville Hot Chicken,” https://www.wingaddicts.com/blog/nashvillehot