For anyone who thinks chicken is that default category for strange meat with a stringy texture or just a brick of tasteless protein that graces wedding dinners, here’s a list of fine dining establishments in SoCal that treats our feathered friend with the culinary dignity it deserves.  

Dinah’s Fried Chicken:  So good, it had a cameo in LITTLE MISS SUNSHINE when the family have their sit down dinner.  There are two locations, but Glendale is my favorite.  Their chicken has a crispy seasoned crust and tender, juicy meat that will convert even the die-hard dark meat fans to give whitey a chance.  The sides are super old-school 50s picnic type.  They are a bit on the sweet side, but are fresh and tasty compliments to the deep-fried, savoriness of the chicken.  I recommend the cole slaw with pineapple and three-bean salad which has a sharp vinegary bite.

Shiraz:  I’ve only ever been to the one in Glendale but Shiraz is your slightly upscale family-style Persian restaurant with over the top baroque interior design, Middle East techno-pop and belly dancers.  The chicken koobideh – ground chicken with spices slowly cooked on skewers is the dish to get.  I’ve had this dish pretty much everywhere and Shiraz somehow gets the right amount of spice and achieves the kind of meat that’s charbroiled to juicy perfection.  Make sure you get the cherry rice with the koobideh – it’s a pillowy bed of saffron rice dotted with sour cherries that’s a subtle, sweet counterpart to the chicken.

Dong Nguyen: Dong Nguyen is an unassuming Chinese-Vietnamese restaurant set inside a faux western stripmall on Valley Blvd. in Alhambra and is know for their Hainan chicken rice.  The dish that is to Singapore what hamburgers are to Los Angelenos – so deceptively simple, yet difficult to perfect.  If you’ve never had it, it’s fresh poached chicken, chicken broth/schmaltz (aka melted chicken fat)/garlic-infused rice, and chili and/or ginger-onion dipping sauces.  Nothing out here can really compare to the Hainan chicken rice of Singapore which pulls off the holy trinity of chicken/rice/sauce with aplomb, but Dong Nguyen gets pretty close.  Their strength is in the freshness and tenderness of their chicken that is nicely offset by their tangy chili sauce.  

Zankou Chicken:  Zankou Chicken is as much Lebanese as it is Los Angeleno.  Cheap, quick, and fresh it’s hands-down the best fast-food rotisserie chicken in LA.  Smother it with their house made garlic sauce – an intense concoction of garlic and olive-oil that will keep you from being good company for several hours.  But when you have food this tasty, who really cares about conversation?

Chung King:  There are two Chung Kings – one on Garfield and one on San Gabriel, but admittedly I am partial to the one on Garfield because the owner is a sweet little Chinese lady who hovers around my table checking on my food like my grandmother.  There’s great Szechuan food here with the addictive, soul quenching burn of Szechuan peppers and peppercorns gracing every dish.  Of the chicken variety, their fried chicken is like crack for gourmands – little nuggets of deep fried chicken teasing your taste buds with the burning sensation of Szechuan peppercorns.  And to neutralize your scorched palate, they have a nourishing eight ingredient herbal chicken soup that is absolutely soothing.