From the very first bite, I could feel my mouth light on fire. The burn was greater than anything I had tasted before.

Over the past year, new hot chicken locations have opened up around Fresno, branding their spice. One of these restaurants is Houston TX Hot Chicken. Houston TX Hot Chicken is a chain that has locations primarily throughout the Western United States. Alongside Houston TX Hot Chicken is Al’s Hot Chicken, Al’s is a smaller chain with a few locations in California and one in Washington. 

My spice tolerance is very low, so I try to avoid spicy food as much as I can. Recently, I decided to expand my horizons and visit these new locations with my family to give my perspective on them.

Houston TX Hot Chicken

We started our adventure at Houston TX Hot Chicken, which was founded in 2020 by Houston Crosta and Edmond Barseghian. The restaurant started as a small passion project but has become an ever-growing chain continuing to expand across America. They pride themselves in having a varied menu and being able to mix and match according to your spice tolerance.

This restaurant is located in Park Crossing Shopping Center in Riverpark off of Friant and Fresno, which made parking difficult.

When my family and I walked inside, we noticed the vibrant and upbeat aesthetic along with a greeting from friendly employees. Purple LED lights sparkled on the counter, and ‘80s remix music played. The decor was modern and stylish with an inviting atmosphere. The prices of the food were very reasonable with the sandwich combo being $13.99 and the two tender combo being $11.99 which made us feel we got a good bang for our buck. We ordered the “original sandwich,” chicken tenders and fries in their various spice levels which are:

•  No Spice, 0 
•  Honey Butter, 0 
•  Mild, 10K 
•  Buffalo, 25K 
• Medium, 30K 
• Spicy, 150K 
• Life-Off, 600K 
• Houston, We Have A Problem! 2M (Must sign a waiver)

(Measured in Scoville Heat Units, SHU)

The wait staff was extremely polite and attentive. After ordering I stood near the counter, observing the restaurant, inadvertently standing in front of a door to the kitchen. A waiter popped out the door behind me, carrying food, and nearly ran into me. Even though I had been in his way he apologized profusely and made a point to apologize to me again later when he served us our food.

After ordering, we found a comfortable corner booth and waited about 20 minutes for the food. Even though there was a long wait, the food was fantastic and well worth the wait time. The chicken had great flavor with and without spice. The chicken had a color-coded stick that indicated its spice level. The spice tingled and burned my mouth and lingered for a while after I finished eating. The spicy level seemed to be the best blend of spice and flavor. Their French fries and Belgian waffles were excellent palate cleansers.

Al’s Hot Chicken

Al’s Hot Chicken was founded by Almasri Abdal and was built upon making fresh and delicious Nashville-style chicken. He partnered with Burhan Saleh, who has a background in marketing, to help develop the business and expand past California. Their slogan is “We have the best comfort food to get you through the hottest of times.”

Al’s Hot Chicken is located in a less popular area on Blackstone, and the parking lot was nearly empty. Their mascot, displayed above the restaurant, is a fire-breathing chicken, which seemed very accurate and on point. 

Upon walking in, we were greeted by a huge, but charming mural of the chicken driving a red convertible sports car. For a Sunday afternoon, there were only a few customers and one employee. The ambiance was a cheerful, fun vibe, which is great for families. The chairs were moderately comfortable with limited seating. 

The employee was friendly, knowledgeable and helpful as we tried to decide on a good variety of menu items to sample. The pricing was middle of the road, not too expensive, but also not cheap. The slider, tender combo is $14.95 and the two slider combo is $15.95.

We did not even have to wait five minutes before we got our food. The waitress made sure to clarify the spice level of each dish. The chicken was presented on white bread with a slice of pickle. The chicken was very greasy, which made the experience feel messy, but the contrast of savory and scorching flavor was well worth it.

Al’s Hot Chicken spice levels according to their website are:

•  Country, original fried chicken
•  Mild, gentle heat
•  Medium, spicy
•  Hot, burning spicy
•  X Hot, extremely spicy
•  LA’s Hottest, 2.2M SHU (Must sign a waiver)

The spice was way more upfront than Houston Hot Chicken and attacked my mouth. The X-Hot level of spice lingered in my mouth for an hour and was the most spice I have ever experienced.

Overall, both places had good and bad qualities. Houston Hot Chicken beat Al’s in terms of taste and atmosphere, but Al’s had better prices for similar portion sizes. Both had very kind and polite staff providing excellent service. These restaurants provide great places to go to if you are on a casual date and looking for an adventure.

Both had great food and are worth trying out, but for those looking for the spiciest chicken they can get, Al’s Hot Chicken is the place to be.

For more reviews, check out The Feather’s A&E section.

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