Every time I get back home to Boss Angeles (KHJ lives!) from the least coast (where I currently reside), I try to always hit the Pioneer Chicken at Echo Park & Sunset. Parking can be a bit tight at lunchtime for my Grand Cherokee… And, there are some "Sysco-ized" menu items added sincy my younger days in Pasadena… but that chicken is still the best!

quote:

Originally posted by Antihound

When I was growing up, Pioneer Chicken was all over the LA area. By 1990 most Pioneer Chicken restaurants had been taken over by Church’s Fried Chicken (YUCK) or turned Mexican or Chinese restaurants.

But there are still five Pioneer Chicken restaurants left!!! The two locations I’ve been to, the chicken still has that great crunch on the outside and juicy meat on the inside.

904 S. Soto St.(Soto and Whitter)
Los Angeles 90023
(323)262-4562

1321 Echo Park Ave. (at Sunset)
Los Angeles
(213)481-1580

Popeye’s chicken is okay. I like the spicy. It can’t fill in though, because it is so different.

One complaint I have about Popeye’s is that it is often to greasy (especially the fish and shrimp) like they don’t have the oil hot enough.

Popeye’s Chicken is pretty good. And their sides are good. I prefer it to the old Kentucky Fried Chicken stuff. Could it fill in for the Pioneer Chicken???

Mmmm, bucket ‘o gizzards at Pioneer.

quote:

Originally posted by Antihound

When I was growing up, Pioneer Chicken was all over the LA area. By 1990 most Pioneer Chicken restaurants had been taken over by Church’s Fried Chicken (YUCK) or turned Mexican or Chinese restaurants.

But there are still five Pioneer Chicken restaurants left!!! The two locations I’ve been to, the chicken still has that great crunch on the outside and juicy meat on the inside.

Thanks for this information! I used to get to LA on business occasionally, and LOVED to find a Pioneer Chicken store!

Southern Californian here too. I really didn’t care much for the chicken because the batter would be crispy, but often the skin was floppy.

What I did LOVE was the battered chicken strips with that BBQ sauce that was almost sweet & sour.

I didn’t know there were any left. However, someone who live in Silverlake told me there was a Pioneer Market, but no Pioneer Chicken.

Pioneer Chicken was mentioned in the late Warren Zevon Song Carmelita. The Line Goes "and I’m all strung out on Heroin by the Pioneer Chicken stand."

Here is a link to another Pioneer Chicken topic that’s in this forum as well. I thought i’d save the trouble of posting the same message twice:

http://www.roadfood.com/Forums/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=6167