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The newly opened “Chicken Shack” is starting to become synonymous with its amazing chicken. The chain, which has been around for over 16 years, opened their 27th restaurant in their sixth state giving people the “Taste of Las Vegas” every time they come in for a bite to eat.

After looking at the menu, I was shocked at the number of options I had to choose from. The Chicken Shack sells its signature fried chicken in the form of fingers, wings, and bites. The restaurant also caters to those who are vegetarian or vegan, as it serves salads, fries, mac n’ cheese, wraps, chicken sandwiches, desserts, and plant-based meat products. If you are a little bit unsure about what flavors you want with your chicken, do not worry. The Chicken Shack has 24 different sauces to choose from and two types of rubs for the chicken, along with several sauces for their fries.

When speaking with the Des Moines Register, the owner Justin Krull, stated that “the biggest thing that sets The Chicken Shack apart from its competition is the fact that the chicken is always fresh and never frozen, along with the portion sizes and  a menu that caters to everyone.”

After all the hype, I had no choice but to go down and try it out for myself. To get the best results, three of my friends and I went to the restaurant’s two main rivals, in the same week. The six-piece combo was the first meal ordered; it was $18.19, before tax. The combo included six wings, fries, and a drink. To say we were disappointed when we first saw the size of the meal, compared to the price, was an understatement.

Sven Waldmeier, sophomore at Grand View said, “If I wasn’t so hungry, I would have asked a question.”

Regardless of this, the food was very nice, the meat tasted fresh, and the wings had us all agreeing that they were the best we had on our chicken pilgrimages. However, the exact same meal at WingStop is $10.29 and there is no extra charge if you want to add another sauce to your wings. So, unfortunately, the competition won this one.

For the second meal, as per the cashier’s recommendation, we decided to try the buffalo chicken strip combo. This was $16.87 before tax and it included a drink. This meal was our favorite of us all, the flavors of the buffalo chicken, along with the sauces that you could smother the meal in, were delicious. The portion size was huge so make sure when you come to order this, you will come hungry. I still could not particularly justify almost $17 for some loaded fries. However, my friends completely disagreed with me saying, “This is the nicest meal I’ve had in 3 months of living here.” [EC1] 

For our final choice, we were saved from the extremely terrifying thought of ordering vegan chicken. This is because The Chicken Shack does not yet offer T.L.C (taste like chicken) (taste like chicken) products, which was amazing for me! So, instead, we went for the three-piece finger combo, which was $14.29. I was again shocked at the price but at this point, we had to keep going. When the food came out, the three pieces were bigger than usual, but compared to the prices at the competitors’ restaurants, I would not get excited. Again, there were no complaints about the food itself, hot, fresh, and juicy chicken was all that we encountered, but it was hard to enjoy this great food without wondering what else you could have had for that same price.

If money is not an issue for you, this place is amazing, the staff are great, even when it is busy the food is  quick, and the location is just five blocks from Grand View. But for me, if I am paying $20+ for a fast-food meal, then I am getting up and going to a proper sit-down restaurant where I can get a meal for the same price or even cheaper. However, I could not find any other problems with the place at all and would recommend to anyone who is looking for some amazing chicken, just be prepared to get your wallet out!