Prince Hot Chicken Shack

This message is for ""White Stallion"" I was sitting here reading what you posted regarding this place (Prince's Chicken) and I could not help but to notice all of the RACIALLY stated things that you posted. NOt only did you stereotype the restaurant based on the ""black"" people working there and waiting for food. But, You stereotyped the entire area without knowing WHAT YOU ARE TALKING ABOUT.....if you are THAT WEAK of a man and your wife had to put 9-1-1 on speed dial or whatever....then you did Andre and ALL OF a favor by NOT stopping....she doesn't need your small change that you would have spent had you only taking an opportunity and gave the people a chance. All you did was ASSumed that because it is located in an African American neighborhood and is OWNED by African Americans, that they ALL are simply GANGSTERS.....Grow up and get into the 21st century, because NOONE else that visits there (regardless of their race) thinks the way that you do!!! SMH!!! STOOPID mindset of SOME people!!! more

Are you kidding the neighborhood that the restaurant is located near is one of the oldest community of some of the most successful African American and Whites (still)living together in Nashville. On one street is a retired surgeon, teacher, policeman, lawyer. Racism stay out of the area. that's the one thing that don't have. Now, for the chicken, on any given day you could see the former mayor, sheriff, you name it. Why not help the lady repair and build a new place. As for the chicken, you will find no better. I have gotten sick at one of Nashville's most upscaled restaurants before. However, I have been eating at Princess for twenty years and have never gotten sick. Most young white hippies come in today. If you don't like it STAY OUT! Go to five points one of the poorest areas in East Historic wreck of Nashville, with some of the most Want-to-be young people who can't afford to live in Brentwood. more

Having heard how fantastic the chicken was here, I was so excited to check it out! When we got there, (though it was pretty dirty) the place was packed...good sign, right? Not so much. After we placed our order for THREE pieces of chicken, we found out (after waiting for about 45 minutes) that the reason there were people standing around holding up the walls is that they were backed up, and ""trying to get the smaller orders out"". But they were still taking more orders at the counter!! After waiting around for over two hours (we weren't the only ones!), we asked them what was going on. Turns out they lost some tickets....WHAT?! And you didn't say anything? Then when we finally got our THREE pieces of chicken, two plus hours later, there was no ""hey, we apologize, please come back and see us"" or ""hey, here's a coupon for $2 off next time"" or even a simple honest apology. Just a grudging ""here"" as it was shoved at us.\r \r My problem with this situation isn't that they got backed up...hey, it happens to the best restaurants. Or even that the place was dirty...you fry that much chicken per night and you're bound to have grease on the walls. My problem is the complete lack of customer service. All it would have taken for me to come back and try again some time would have been the owner (who was taking the orders) looking me in the eyes and telling me she apologized. Maybe threw in an extra peice of chicken.\r \r They need to get it together here. If they can't handle the volume of customers they're taking in, then they should move to a bigger facility, hire more folks, get an extra fryer, something. Or just STOP TAKING ORDERS when you're in the weeds! Know your limits.\r \r In short, I do not recommend this place at all. The in-store experience was awful, and the chicken, though hot, was nothing special. If you want great chicken take a day trip to Memphis and check out Gus's World Famous Fried Chicken. Now those folks know how to do it right. more

I thought me and my wife would take our friend out to a new place and impress her with some hot chicken. Great Hot Chicken but wasn't worth two and half hours wait time. When i asked how much longer, the lady that took my order told me, ""what number?"" I told her and she started asking where blah blah's number. Guess what! They lost my ticket, We've been waiting for over two hours now. In less than 10 minutes i received my order but was not correct. They left out my fries. When i asked for them, the lady told me they were all of a sudden out of fries. I complained and she quickly gave me what i'm sure were fries that belong to someone else. They just didn't have it together that night. Will I go back, No! And my friend will probably not go back. This place takes nothing but cash. I don't know what they're doing with all that cash but they need to clean that place up. Roach poop all over the walls, just nasty. Don't even see how they stay open. Do your job Health Department of Metro Davidson County, fine these people and close it down and don't let them open back up until they clean up. Enough said! Done! Pow!1 more

Prince's chicken is off the charts......It does not matter the area it's located in. BY THE WAY WHOEVER WROTE IT WAS IN A POOR BLACK COMMUNITY DIDN'T GET ROBBED OR ANYTHING SO WHAT DOES THAT HAVE TO DO WITH THE FOOD? more

My wife and I had read about Prince Hot Chicken, and indeed had tried to emulate the fried chicken at home. Not too bad. Recipe in Cooks Country July 2010 and Cuisine at Home June 2010. So when I had the opportunity to be in Nashville on business, we stopped in for lunch. They only open at 12:00 noon, and calling is not very helpful as they do not answer. One reviewer mentioned they had a health department rating of 60. I doubt that, but when we visited it was 85, which for a small restaurant in 60's strip mall is not too bad. The floors are mopped, as when we got there at 11:00 a guy was mopping. The chicken is fabulous. I like Thai and Southern India and Bangladeshi food. I ordered medium hot and mild. I think I could manage hot, but I imagine for most mortals in the US mild is about right. Next time I shall get hot and see how it is. The chicken is extremely moist and the hot penetrates the interior of the meat and is at its hottest in the surface coating. Plan on spending about 20 minutes waiting for your chicken. It is just cooked when you get it, none of this cooked ahead stuff. The cost is 4.99 for a leg quarter and 5.99 for a breast quarter. I would recommend this size as it fries better than half or whole chicken. I would recommend, particularly if you are middle class white or middle class black, that you eat in your car or at home or wherever. The restaurant does primarily a take out business and the decor and ambiance inside is not spectacular. If you enjoy spicy fried chicken this may well be the best place in the world. When Popeye's was still primarily in Louisiana, in the early 70's, its spicy chicken was almost as good as Prince's mild. The medium from Prince's is better than Popeye's spicy ever was. Go and try it. Get mild or medium unless you are into Scoffield >100,000 Pros: Fabulous Fried Chicken and French Fries Cons: In a relatively poor black neighborhood more

Guys when you plan to eat here just keep in mind that the name of the place is Prince's Hot Chicken...SHACK!!! It's not a nice sit down restaurant; you're not going to get the best piece of chicken in the world; but what you will get is a genuine piece of culture. I have been going to Princes for over 20 years.The chicken is still fried in cast iron skillets (like your granny used to have) so that accounts for the long wait. The cakes are made by a lady at the church. And the people you encounter there at 2am are unforgettable...I say if you get a chance to try it, you should...not for the cleanliness or the amount of grease that soaks through the bag but for the experience. Pros: old favorite Cons: long wait more

When they say hot, they mean HOT!!!!! Prince's has found a way to make hot chicken VERY hot, while maintaining good flavor. Previous reviews have mentioned how bad the neiborhood was, which is ridiculous!!!! If being a minority for a second when you're used to not being the minority bothers you, then stay away. But you'd be making a mistake...the chicken is GREAT!!!!! I'm a lover of spicy foods, but I am more of a lover of tasty food, so I decided to get the 'medium'. I was more than pleased with the level of heat. Anything hotter would've been overkill for me. I just visited Prince's on Friday and have been craving it ever since!!!! Unfortunately, for me, I live in Atlanta. Sadness. Pros: great food, great service Cons: parking more

I live in the neighborhood and it's not THAT bad. There are much worse places in Nashville. However, I've been to Prince's 3 or 4 times and I'm not that impressed. I wish it was good because I live 5 minutes away.\r \r Is the chicken decent? Sure. Is it INCREDIBLE! Absolutely not!!!\r \r I got a somewhat juicy piece of chicken one time, but it's been dry all the other times. It's spicy, but the recipe isn't that great. And the health score is scary.\r \r I think Wendy's Spicy Chicken sandwich is probably better quality than Prince's. I'm not impressed. Pros: Unique experience Cons: Low health score, dry chicken, long wait more

ok, so nashville is the hot chicken capital of the world according to several internet sites. my boyfriend and i kept reading conflicting reviews about these various hot chicken joints in nashville. so we decided to try them ourselves.\r \r being from new orleans (pre-katrina) we LOVE hot food. so we tried bolton's, prince's and 400 degrees (the top 3 chicken places in tn according to most people you ask). prince's was about a 60 on a scale from 1 to 100. bolton's was about a 65. 400 degrees is a 98!!! oh my gosh! this place has the best recipe for hot fried chicken i've ever tasted. and they're nice too.\r \r prince's had great fries, but the chicken is awful (terribly dry unlike 400 degrees). obviously there are 2 types of people giving this place good reviews on this site. people who own prince's and people who have never tasted the unbelievable flavor of 400 degrees hot chicken!!! Pros: Best fries in nashville Cons: chicken is terrible, service is lousy more

I have been going there for 17 years.I live in bowling green ky.I will continue to go there for many more years.If you try it once you will be addicted. more

I can't believe some of the ignorant reviews on here..First of all I live 5 minutes from Prince's and I can honestly say no one has ever been hurt there..You must remember it is located next to 2 hair salons and several other business..No the place isn't an up scale resturant..It is a little hole in the wall but it is safe..No one bother YOU..I have known Andre the owner almost my entire life and she is an older lady and does the best she can..And she does a mighty good job making sure that our food is always fresh and made to order..It is the best chicken...Barbara Mandrell tried to have the same type of chicken shack and couldn't survive...\r \r At the end of the DAY..No one is making anyone eat at Prince's...It's your loss..Something has to be right because the place is always crowded..If it was that bad people wouldn't keep coming back...STOP YOUR WHINING..What fool with good sense ride with their husband and already dial 911..STUPID FOOL Pros: FRESH HOT DOWN RIGHT GREAT Cons: CROWD more

My first experience with Prince's Hot Chicken was at a party - someone had purchased a large bucket of mild chicken wings and a large bucket of medium. I had 4 pieces of medium because I enjoy the spicier things in life. Needless to say, at the end of the 4th piece I was reaching for the nearest tissue. It was the most delicious fried chicken I had experienced - the spice is cooked into the skin - no sauce dependency here! Fast forward a year or so later: I now live on the East Side of the city and no wing place (-Zone, -Basket, -It, my own half-baked home made attempts) has matched Prince's goodness. I ventured out down Dickerson and Ewing on a Friday night at 7PM to find the place hoppin' as hoppin' can be. I might as well have parked in front of a dance club on Broadway! My friend and I walked into this crowded room for the very first time, and lo and behold, I was greeted by former co-workers of mine, waiting on their own meals!!! ""What kind are you getting,"" one of them asked. ""Hot,"" I replied. ""Oooo! You're asking for it!"" ""What? I like it hot!"" ""Good luck, then!"" About 50 minutes or so later (again, dinner time, Friday night...the busy aspect is to be expected then), we had our meals, and my, were they tasty! My friend started off with a leg portion of ""medium"" and couldn't even finish the meal. The heat and the portion filled her up quick. I partook in a breast portion of ""hot"" and whatever else was left of my friend's leg portion. ""Hot"" didn't defeat me, rather it felt like when I began eating a 2nd piece of ""medium"" over a year before, though the ""medium"" had my friend looking for extra tissues (I'm obviously not the best person to ask if something is spicy or not)! Sadly, it's Monday and I want hot chicken now. Looks like I'll have to wait until tomorrow to try my tongue at ""X-tra Hot"". Bring it (and by ""It"", I mean the food, the fun, the friends, the experience and, of course, the heat)!!! more

After hearing so much about Prince's I had to try it. I went to the restaurant one day about 2-ish. There was NO where to sit and the people who were there looked like they had been there for hours. I looked around and saw people lined up behind a wall with a cut out hole in it with a sheet over it. I went and got in line behind this little half wall and just looked around and waited like everyone else. As I looked around I noticed just how dirty the place was. The floors looked like they hadnt been cleaned in years, the tables were dirty, the walls...it was horrible!\r Then I did the unthinkable....I looked at the health score....it was in the LOW 60s. Me and my friend ran out of there as fast as we could and have not looked back since. Whenever I hear anyone say they wanna go there I try and warn them, your health is more important! They should be shut down!!!!!! Cons: someone call the H.D. more

Prince's Chicken is definatly at Nashville local spot. If you are from out of town, if you're expecting the Grand Ole Opry or a KFC, then you need to keep it pushin'! This is indeed the South, so expect a Southern Style. Prince's is obviously not newly renovated or corporately ran. But the food is awesome. Yes, it is in a predominately black neighborhood, and so what! Maybe that's why the food is so good. If you are not black, ain't nobody going to bother you. The only color Prince's see is green! Yes, you will have a long wait, just expect it. Don't expect always service with a smile. But expect good food and to maybe be entertained by the characters that patronizes Prince's. It is a hole in the wall, but that is what give Prince's it authenticity. Locals love it. If your visiting ""the Ville"", do as the locals do, or just go home. Pros: excellent food, great prices Cons: slow service more

Is it possible to dream about chicken after you leave a city? I think so. Ever since moving fromn Nashville a year ago, I've craved Prince's. At a bar in NYC, I tried to convince a native Nashvillian to arrange an interstate chicken run. When I first moved to Chicago, I arrived with three orders of Prince's that survived the trip in the moving van. One was eaten on the way and the other two were safely lodged in my fridge for later consumption. If there is a more perfect food than a quarter dark with fries and lemonade, I don't know what it is. I spent a year training up to the extra hot and was beaming with pride when I received the brown bag with the big red X on it. I recently got engaged and have begun to entertain the idea of a Prince's station during the cocktail hour of the wedding. Do not leave Nashville without trying this chicken! Pros: Perfect Chicken, Friendly Service, Great Value (less than $5 but I'd pay $50 for an order right now) Cons: Not in Chicago more

I had a chance to try this place out while I was visiting Nashville at the end of July. The chicken was great but the place was filthy. I don't know when the picture in this review was taken, but my guess is that it was over 10 years ago. When I was there, the floors were dirty, those wodden-bench booths were only vaguely white, the walls had lots of unpainted spackle, and to top it all off, there was no air conditioning (it was 90 degrees outside and at *least* that warm inside).\r \r The icing on the cake though was the health inspector's rating posted on the wall. The health inspector writes the score in big numbers on the document that is required to be posted in plain view in the restaurant. Prince's got an 89... until you get closer and really look at it... They had posted the health inspection UPSIDE DOWN! It was really a 68!\r \r I'll try anything once and like I said, I liked the chicken, but I won't be going back there the next time I'm in Nashville. There are plenty of excellent places to eat that at least *try* to make their places look clean. more

Don't let these yuppies scare you. I have never ONCE been afraid wile at Prince's. I have gone at midnight before and felt perfectly safe. It's not ""white out"" that late but it is safe. The employees have been nothing but nice to me. I felt very welcome there. I think it has more to do with people's insecurities about being a minority in a situation than it has to do with it being unsafe. That being said...\r The chicken is unmatchable. It was my first hot chicken shack and always my favorite. 400 Degrees is good but Prince's is the original. I often dream about the delicious, fried, spicy chicken with that pickle slapped on top and the soppy, greasy bread underneath. If you like spicy, TRY IT! I miss it the most of all food in TN now since I live up north. more

While driving upon the area in my Navigator, I was scared silly. My wife had 9-1-1 dialed on her cell phone with her thumb hovering above the send button.This place is a hang-out for criminals. It's full of ganngsters. The employees are probably into ganngs as well. Needless to say we just grove on and had our ""common"" fix at a Kentucky Fried Chicken, which was very good. I urge you to be very careful. This place is dangerous in a black part of town. Reminded me of something from Cops or America's Most Wanted. Go elsewhere, your life is more important than some silly ethnic food that will probably just make you ill anyway. Pros: We know to avoid this part of Nashville, don't go east of the river. Cons: Evrything else. more

Read all the reviews here before coming to Nashville and was intrigued. We went on a Saturday night\r and ordered the whole chicken with sides to go. Wait was 45 min to 1 hour, service at the tiny window\r was rude and abrupt. Place not to clean, but the whole experience was a hoot and the food was\r wonderful. We were unable to talk after taking our first bite, (medium) and son in law was sweating buckets.\r I would highly reccomend the food and the experience of being treated rudely, if you expect it going\r in no problem. more