Location: 2853 Dundas Street West, Toronto
Website: https://www.chicaschicken.net/

My policy on this blog — in the last few years, at least — is to avoid negativity.  If I think a place is just okay, I’ll generally write a quick review and not dwell on it, and if I think it’s bad, I won’t write about it at all.  It’s tough enough to succeed in the restaurant business as it is, and whatever extremely mild (almost non-existent) level of influence that I have, I’d rather not use it against a local business that’s just trying to survive.

I do make an exception for big fast food chains, however — I think they can take it.  And Chica’s, with its four locations, Michelin designation, and plans for growth (there’s a section on their website where they say that they’re “seeking passionate franchise partners”), is entering big chain territory.

That being the case, I can note that the chicken tenders at Chica’s really bummed me out.  This is a place that I once said served some of the best fried chicken I’ve ever had, and this was… not that.  I’ve noticed that Chica’s has been going downhill since they started their expansion a few years ago, but this was the first thing I’ve had here that was outright bad.

The chicken was just so, so dry, despite being served hot and fresh.  White meat is always going to be a bit on the dry side, but this was something else.  It comes with some tasty dipping sauce on the side (which kinda tastes like coleslaw dressing, but in a pleasant way), and you’d better believe I used all of that sauce.

As for the exterior, it was more leathery than crunchy — I legitimately had a hard time biting through it.

I ordered this hot AF, and while it had a solid level of heat, it tasted like something was missing (salt, mostly, but overall the flavour just wasn’t there).

I recently had a fried chicken sandwich from KFC, and the chicken in that sandwich was better than this on every level — it was tastier, crunchier, and juicier.  From KFC!  Over a place that used to serve the best fried chicken in the city.  What a world.