These BBQ chains serve smoky, juicy half-chicken dinners diners rave about.
The half-chicken is a menu staple at BBQ restaurants. After all, the best way to smoke or grill a bird is by splitting it in half or into quarters. If you are hungry and want to feast on a perfectly seasoned, smoked, barbequed, or both bird, there are so many places to enjoy one, but some versions are better than others. Here are 5 BBQ chains with the best half-chicken dinners, according to diners.
Famous Dave’s
Famous Dave’s/Facebook
At Famous Dave’s, the hickory-smoked half chicken is a fan favorite. It is seasoned with special spices, flame-kissed, and finished on the char-grill. It comes with your choice of two side dishes and a signature cornbread muffin.
Mission BBQ
Mission BBQ/Facebook
Mission BBQ specializes in authentic smoked meats, including BBQ chicken. You can order “tender and juicy” pulled chicken, or order it on the bone as a “half a yard bird.” Either way, it’s delicious and can be smothered in the BBQ sauce of your choice.
City Barbeque
City BBQ/Facebook6254a4d1642c605c54bf1cab17d50f1e
Over at City Barbeque, the “Half Bird,” a bone-in chicken, “smoked over local hickory and served with Texas toast,” is a wildly popular option that can be ordered dry or smothered in the BBQ sauce of your choice. “One of my friends had their smoked yard bird (chicken). His portion was generous. The bird was done well. Soft, tender meat with skin on,” a Yelper says. “I don’t usually sit down and eat half a chicken, but this bird is so good and so moist you won’t have any problem. They tell you when you order and also when you pick up your order that the meat will be pink inside, this isn’t because it isn’t cooked thoroughly, just the effect of smoking versus baking or frying. It is outstanding from beginning to end,” a TripAdvisor diner writes.
Sonny’s BBQ
Sonny’s BBQ/Facebook
The Half Chicken at Sonny’s BBQ is another fan favorite: a “tender and juicy smoked chicken half” served with BBQ beans, coleslaw, and garlic bread. “How do we get this Half Chicken so tender? Start with 50 years of slow-smokin’ experience. Then add chicken. Come get our Smoked & Sauced Chicken, two sides and bread,” the chain wrote in a Facebook post. “Sonnys is better than all of them!” a follower commented.
Lucille’s Smokehouse Bar-B-Que
Lucille’s Smokehouse Bar-B-Que/Facebook
Lucille’s Smokehouse Bar-B-Que has a smoked half chicken platter on the menu that diners order on repeat. The bird is dry-rubbed with the chain’s special seasoning blend and then slow-smoked to perfection, finished on the grill, and served with its original BBQ sauce
Leah Groth
Leah Groth is an experienced shopping editor and journalist for Best Life and Eat This, Not That! bringing readers the best new finds, trends, and deals each week. Read more about Leah
Dining and Cooking