Chicken-N-Spice – Joliet, IL

18 12 2008
  • 251 N. Chicago St.
  • Joliet, IL 60432
  • (815) 727-1100
  • No Known Website
  • No Online Menu
Chicken-N-Spice in downtown Joliet, IL

Chicken-N-Spice in downtown Joliet, IL

The biggest chicken breasts you’ll ever see.  That’s how I used to describe the chicken from my favorite chicken joint.  I went to school at the University of St. Francis in Joliet.  I wasn’t quite the foodie then that I am now.  When I ordered out, it was usually to Papa Johns or one of the other national chains.  I wish I knew then what I know now about food in the Chicago area.  I’m sure there are hundreds of places I missed out on.

Fortunately, one of the places I didn’t miss out on was a little chicken joint in downtown Joliet.  Chicken-N-Spice sits on Chicago Street near the ballpark, theater, and casino.  There’s not a lot of food options in downtown Joliet but as far as I’m concerned, there only needs to be one.

I was on my way to my parents how from DeKalb when I got the idea to detour to Joliet.  I was tired of paying tolls anyway and I was running out of cash.  I now owe the Illinois Toll Authority some money since they still have the change baskets on I-88.  Seriously, who carries $1.10 in change?   I thought they were doing away with all of those and didn’t bring enough home with me.  Instead of dealing with that, I got off  I-88 and made my way to Route 30 which would eventually take me into Joliet.

Chicken-N-Spice is the kind of place you look at and think twice about before going in.  It’s not a very inviting building.  It’s a small store that needs some work down to it.  The thing I always notice is that it’s constantly surrounded by Joliet PD, Will County Sheriff and a number of prisoner transport vehicles from surrounding counties.  For once, that’s not a bad thing.  Chicken-N-Spice is a gathering spot and if the cops eat there, it must be a good place. Read the rest of this entry »


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Categories : Chicken, Downtown, Illinois, Joliet, Local Flavor, Restaurant, Reviews

Lansing Fish Market

6 11 2008
  • 815 Edgewood Blvd.
  • Lansing MI 48911
  • (517) 882-2676
  • No Known Website
  • Menu
Lansing Fish Market on Edgewood and Washington in Lansing.

Lansing Fish Market on Edgewood and Washington in Lansing.

I’ve seen a couple of these “You Buy, We Fry” places around town and I’ve been curious.  I don’t like fish, so that’s kept me out, but for some reason, I was cutting across Edgewood Blvd. a few weeks ago and noticed the Lansing Fish Market.  It said they also did chicken, so I made a plan to go back.  J wasn’t able to come home for dinner tonight, so I was free to explore a little bit and not drag her to a place she might not like. 

The Lansing Fish Market is on the corner of Edgewood and Washington right next to a liquor store in a little strip mall.  There’s not much to the place.  There is a small dining room on the right side of the room with less than six tables.  On the other side of the room, there’s a fresh fish case with different fishies on ice.  There was no menu posted, but they did have paper menus in a couple different locations.  I grabbed one on my way in and flipped back to the chicken section.  They have a number of different options mostly consisting of whole chicken wings.  There’s also options for half a chicken and a “specials” board had buffalo wings and chicken strips.  I settled on the 6 wing dinner since it was pretty cheap and came with coleslaw, fries, and bread.  The clerk was on his cell phone when I walked in and didn’t even set it down when I ordered.  He was kind enough to the person he was talking to to move the phone away from his face so when he asked me what I wanted they didn’t have to hear it.  He never did tell me how much my food was.  He just kept going with his conversation.  I handed him a ten knowing it would be around five bucks. Turns out, it was just under five bucks.  Read the rest of this entry »


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Categories : Chicken, Lansing, Michigan, Reviews

Popeye’s Chicken & Biscuits – Lansing

26 10 2008
  • 3010 S. Martin Luther King Jr.
  • Lansing, MI 48910
  • (517) 887-9861
  • Website
  • Menu
Popeyes Chicken & Biscuits on MLK in Lansing.

Popeye's Chicken & Biscuits on MLK in Lansing.

Who doesn’t “love that chicken from Popeye’s?”  I freakin love Popeye’s Chicken.  I know that’s really unlike me since Popeye’s is a chain, but I’ve never found chicken anywhere that I like better.  I’ll try to search out the local chicken joints, but I always end up back at Popeye’s.  Well, that’s not entirely true.  There was one place in Joliet, IL that I did like better, but out of hundreds of examples, that’s the one exception.   We’ve been looking for this store for quite a while.  The day we moved to Lansing, we drove around forever trying to find it.  We tried calling 411 and they said there was no listing in Lansing.  We put it into the GPS and nothing came up.  We were trying to feed not only ourselves, but our families who made the long trip to Michigan to help us move into our new place.  A few months ago, I drove down MLK just looking around and we finally found Popeye’s Chicken.

J doesn’t agree with me.  She grew up in Chicago where Brown’s Chicken reigns supreme.  When I lived in Joliet, IL there was a Popeye’s and a Browns right next to each other.  I tried both but always went back to Popeye’s.  Popeye’s aren’t really that prevelant in the Chicagoland area so the first time J had Popeye’s was right after we started dating in Peoria.  I had to work late and she had a box of chicken and a six pack of Budweiser’s waiting for me when I got to her house. Read the rest of this entry »


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Categories : Chains, Chicken, Lansing, Michigan, Restaurant, Reviews

Poor Boy Restaurant – Kankakee, IL

5 10 2008
  • 1514 E. Court St.
  • Kankakee, IL 60901
  • (815) 939-1880
  • No Known Website
  • No Online Menu
Poor Boy Restaurant on Court Street in Kankakee, IL

Poor Boy Restaurant on Court Street in Kankakee, IL

After twelve hours, I finally got to welcome my niece into this world.  Needless to say, after twelve hours, my sister-in-law was exhausted and hungry.  Her first meal post delivery was Wendy’s, but the next day, she wanted something deep fried.  I went back to the hospital hoping I could hold her again, but she was put under the blue lights due to the jaundice, so instead, I just got to hang out with my brother and sister-in-law. 

About 3:00, the new mom decided she was hungry, but the hospital kitchen stopped serving.  No bid deal.  LIke I said, she was really in the mood for deep fried anyway.  When she worked at a flower shop on Kankakee’s southside, Poor Boy Restaurant was a frequent stop for lunch. Read the rest of this entry »


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Categories : Chicken, Illinois, Kankakee, Restaurant, Reviews

YaYa’s Flame Broiled Chicken – Saginaw Hwy.

30 09 2008
  • 5415 W. Saginaw Hwy
  • Lansing, MI 48917
  • (517) 886-0995
  • Website
  • Menu
YaYas Flame Broiled Chicken on Saginaw Highway near the Lansing Mall.

YaYa's Flame Broiled Chicken on Saginaw Highway near the Lansing Mall.

What a great idea for a chicken restaurant.  Just the other night, I was craving chicken and considered going to Popeye’s.  Knowing I was kind of bad on my diet over the weekend, I didn’t want to splurge on fried chicken.  This afternoon, J asked me to run out to Horrocks to get some more of them delicious honey crisp apples.  She went to work a little early, so I just waited to eat lunch until after she was gone.  I made my stops at Wal-Mart and Horrocks then got thinking about lunch.  When I was working this weekend, one of the guys I worked with had said something about YaYa’s near Frandor.  For some reason, I remembered there was one near the Lansing Mall, so that’s where I went for lunch.

YaYa’s is a chain of 17 restaurants with locations in Michigan and Florida.  The first restaurant was opened in Seminole, FL in 1985, but the first franchise location was opened in Flint, MI in 1988.  There are two locations here in Lansing and both are on Saginaw Highway.  There’s this one by the mall and the other is farther down Saginaw near US 127.  This particular YaYa’s is located in a shopping plaza in a very commercialized area of Saginaw Highway. 

It was a little after two when I went looking for lunch.  There were no cars parked in front and the inside was empty.  The store is not very big.  It’s longer than it is wide and there are a handful of tables in the space to sit and eat.  The counter is located at the far end of the space.  The menu board is behind the counter above the grills where the whole chickens are butterflied and grilled.  Read the rest of this entry »


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Categories : Chains, Chicken, Lansing, Michigan, Restaurant, Reviews

Munchies

30 08 2008
  • 4100 S. Martin Luther King, Jr. Blvd.
  • Lansing, MI 48910
  • (517) 887-2500
  • No Known Website
  • Menu
Munchies on MLK in Lansing. Serving up the Cheapest Wings in Town....Period!

Munchies on MLK in Lansing. Serving up the "Cheapest Wings in Town....Period!"

A few weeks ago I had to run to the Walgreens on MLK instead of the one I usually go to on Cedar.  As I’m driving down MLK, a small restaurant with a big banner out front catches my eye.  A lot of times, you’ll see stuff like “Best Wings in Town” or something similar boasting about the taste.  Not this banner.  It read “Cheapest Wings in Town.”  There’s something to be proud of….I guess.  When I got home, I told J about it.  She looked at me a little funny and said I was on my own for that one.  If all they can advertise is the cheapest wings in town, she wanted no part of it.

J had to work in Kalamazoo today so I waited until she left to get a late lunch.  I pulled into the parking lot and parked up front.  There was only one other guy there and he was leaving.  I went inside looking for a menu and didn’t see anything about wings.  When I got to the register, I noticed a piece of paper taped to the counter.  That’s where the wing prices were.  There were serveral options, but I went with six wings and wedges.  They weren’t kidding.  These probably ARE the cheapest wings in town.  The whole deal cost me about $4.50.  Read the rest of this entry »


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Categories : Chicken, Lansing, Local Flavor, Michigan, Restaurant, Reviews

McDonald’s – Holt

20 08 2008
  • 2400 S. Cedar St.
  • Holt, MI 48842
  • (517) 694-9431
  • Website
  • Menu
The McDonalds on South Cedar St. in Holt

The McDonald's on South Cedar St. in Holt

Surprisingly, McDonald’s is one of my favorite fast food restaurants.  I don’t eat there often because I don’t eat fast food all that much, but I do really like their “burgers.”  Since moving to Lansing, I haven’t eaten at one even though there is one right down the road from our place.  J and I needed to make a run to Target this morning to get a diaper bag and some bottles…..for my brother who’s wife is expecting my first niece in about seven weeks.  While we were out, we decided to just run and grab lunch instead of coming home and trying to make something.

J wants to get back on the Weight Watchers diet and the only way it will work is if I get on it too.  I’m not super excited about it because it takes away all the foods I like and makes me eat larger portions of the foods I don’t.  But, she wants to do it and I want to help her, so I’ll do my best. 

Since she wants to start this diet, my usual double quarter pounder with cheese value meal isn’t really an option.  For the first time since I was five and ordering happy meals, I ordered something other than the #4.  I didn’t really know what any of their salads were so I just ordered what J did.  We both got the Southwestern salad.  I got grilled chicken and she got crispy chicken. Read the rest of this entry »


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Categories : Chains, Chicken, Fast Food, Holt, Restaurant, Reviews

Buffalo Barbeque Wings

18 08 2008
  • 1085 N. Wisner St.
  • Jackson, MI 49202
  • (517) 782-4344
  • Website
  • Menu
Buffalo Barbeque Wings in Jackson

Buffalo Barbeque Wings in Jackson

I first heard about Buffalo Barbeque Wings (yes, Barbeque, not Wild) a few months ago when the Jackson Citizen-Patriot ran a blurb about it’s opening.  I blogged about (here) and I have gotten hundreds of hits for that post.  When you type “Buffalo Barbecue (sic) Wings” in Google, that post is the first hit you get.  Seems there are a lot of people wanting to know more about this place but since they don’t have a website, they keep getting directed to my site.

My girlfriend and I were down in Brooklyn for the Sprint Cup race.  I was doing some work and we both had garage passes.  The concession stands in the pits suck and the media lunch was at noon, so by the time 6:00 rolled around, we were both starving.  As we were waiting for Carl Edwards to make his way to the conference room, J asked about dinner.  Since we were already going through Jackson, I asked her if she was up for some wings.  I figured if people are going to come to this blog looking for information, I might as well give it to them.

We avoided the mess on US 127 by staying on US 12 after leaving the track and cutting through the country on Jackson Rd.  We ended up only sitting in traffic for 20 minutes instead of the hour plus we did last time.  Since we took Jackson Rd, we ended up going all the way through town to get to where we were going.  That’s not necessary on a normal day.  We found on the way home Buffalo Barbecue Wings is less than a mile from I-94 and US 127.  We found the shop in a strip mall.  There was just a sign that marked the spot.  Had we not been looking for it, it would have been easy to miss.  It’s behind Biggby and that’s how I knew to start looking.  I saw the Biggby and turned into the parking lot.  After a quick scan of the storefronts, we found Read the rest of this entry »


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Categories : Bar, Chicken, Jackson, Local Flavor, Michigan, Restaurant, Reviews, Sports Bar, Wings

White Castle/Church’s Chicken – S. Cedar

27 06 2008

I hate White Castle.   That’s not necissarily a slam on the business.  I just don’t like thier slyders.  I’m not a huge onion fan and I really don’t like them on or in my burgers.  I’m well aware that people travel hours just to get to a White Castle, but I’ve never bought into it.  So when my girlfriend said she wanted something greasy for lunch, I was kind of surprised that she said White Castle.  I went along with it because this particular location also has a Church’s Chicken.  I figured I could get some chicken and she could get whatever greasy concoction her heart desired. Read the rest of this entry »


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Categories : 24-Hour Diner, Burgers, Chicken, Fast Food, Lansing, Restaurant, Reviews

Frankie’s Beef, Pasta & Catering – Oak Lawn, IL

23 06 2008
  • Frankie\'s Beef5721 W. 95th St.
  • Oak Lawn, IL 60435
  • (708 ) 423-4444
  • Website
  • Menu

I love Italian Beef and there’s really only one place in the world to get it.  Italian Beef is a Chicago specialty.  Other places will try it, but the only places that get it right have roots in the Windy City.  My girlfriend and I did some grocery shopping for a cook-out we were going to later that night and needed to find something quick for lunch.  Her family eats at Frankie’s quite often and she knew it would be something that would be right up my alley. Read the rest of this entry »


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Categories : Chicago, Chicken, Italian, Oak Lawn, Restaurant, Reviews

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