Chicken joint The Red Chickz has six locations in total – One in Texas and five in California, including the one right here in Culver City. It is, according to its online profile, “a Nashville hot chicken restaurant that serves up the crunchiest, most flavorful chicken in LA. The chicken is fresh, hand-breaded, and halal, and the restaurant has a casual and fun atmosphere. With a variety of menu options to choose from, The Red Chickz is the perfect place to enjoy a delicious and satisfying meal with family and friends.”
There’s no lie to be found there. We’ll get to the flavors soon, but the atmosphere genuinely is fun, while the options available on the menu are impressively varied. Meanwhile, the fact that the chicken is halal will appeal to many. There’s a lot of misinformation about halal meat out there, with rumors of cruelty intrinsically linked to ignorance.
In fact, halal simply means that the animal was slaughtered following Islamic law, a huge part of which being that it was killed humanely, with the blood then drained. We can only wish that a demand for humane killing is followed elsewhere.
Beyond that, it’s the seasoning at The Red Chickz that makes the fried chicken stand out. You can order your chicken Country Style (plain), Cool (no heat), Glow (mild), Spark (medium), Bonfire (hot), Blaze (x-hot), and Inferno (xx-hot). But regardless of your own tolerance for heat, the flavor is exceptional.
Their sandwiches, such as the Honey Butter Sandwich or the French Toast Sandwich, look superb, but we opted for the Chicken Tender meal. That’s three large pieces of chicken served on a slice of toast, with pickles and a choice of potato wedges, coleslaw or mac & cheese. We went with the wedges.
Ultimately, the wedges and toast are delicious, but it’s all about the chicken, which is magnificent. The meat is tender and full of flavor, while the coating is crispy with a perfect crunch. We went with the “medium” heat rating, which worked for us – not enough to get your eyes watering, but enough to leave a nice buzz on your tongue.
The vegan in our family had the Cauliflower Bites meal, which is the same thing with the same coating, with cauliflower obviously replacing the chicken. That ends up being worthy dish–you might not get the juiciness of good chicken, but you still get the glorious crispiness of the coating.
The Red Chickz thinks of everything.
The Red Chickz is located at 10100 Venice Blvd., Culver City 90232. Call 213-800-1835 or visit theredchickz.com.