Nashville Hot Chicken

Hot Chicken, Pimento Mac & Cheese, and Fries – Hattie B’s Hot Chicken, Nashville, TN

Despite the incendiary side effects, spicy food holds a special place in our Prilosec-soothed hearts. Western New York has Buffalo sauce, Korea has gochujang, Jamaica has scotch bonnets, Ethiopia has berbere, and China has Sichuan peppercorns. No matter where or what the heat source is, diners flock to these fiery foods for a rush of endorphins they would never otherwise receive sitting down for dinner. Nashville’s Scoville-packed claim to fame is Hot Chicken—a cayenne-spiked spin on a traditional southern-fried treat.

Hattie B’s, along with its contemporaries Prince’s and Pepperfire, dishes out some of the finest Hot Chicken in the music city. They offer a variety of spice levels from mild to “shut the cluck up!!!” for the more masochistic gluttons among us. I wisely chose the middle option, “Hot!”, and found the heat level to be pleasant without being painful. The burn has a slow crescendo throughout the meal before coming to a climax at the total sinus expulsion caught in the roll of paper towels that are wisely placed at each table.

The key to Hot Chicken is that the spices are mixed in with some of the hot cooking oil or melted butter that is then re-applied to the chicken. This results in a moist and spicy bird that maintains the crispy golden brown deliciousness we expect from fried chicken. The food fire is contained by the acidity of the pickles and extinguished by the creamy Mac’ n cheese that I strategically chose as a side dish.

Whether you’re looking for a subtle kick or a full-on gastronomic sauna session, Nashville Hot Chicken provides a flammable take on a soul food classic. The chicken packs a punch without overpowering the juicy white meat, the crispy, sinfully fatty skin—the reasons fried chicken is such a beloved institution of southern cuisine. Like a sip of Tennessee whisky, Hot Chicken leaves your taste buds tingling for more of the music city’s sultry serenade.