Royals Hot Chicken in J-Town Closes

According to an article just posted on Louisville 1st the Royals Hot Chicken in Jeffersontown closed effective August 8. They are blaming it on the pandemic and the effect they had on it that is being able to establish a regular customer base.

Here's a link to the article for those of you who have access: https://www.bizjournals.com/louisville/ ... uQbs6qwKYI
note: even if you don't have paid access to business 1st everyone is allowed a limited number of monthly articles free.

We went once and while it wasn't bad it didn't compare to Joella's either. With all the great options we have here in town why pay for fair when you can have really great. We are really blessed to have the problem, if you want to call it that ,of having that decision to make.

We went once and while it wasn't bad it didn't compare to Joella's either. With all the great options we have here in town why pay for fair when you can have really great. We are really blessed to have the problem, if you want to call it that ,of having that decision to make.

Locations and personal preferences vary, of course, but I'll take Royals over Joella's 100 times out of 100. Which is really unfortunate since I live in walking distance to Joella's on Frankfort, but their chicken just doesn't have nearly the depth of flavor or spice that Royals' does. We've had some poor service experiences with Joella's recently, too. Very frustrating, overall.

I know this must exist, and have seen mentions but can't remember details.

Are there places in Louisville with hot chicken on the bone? I'm not a fan of tenders, and sometimes you want more than just wings. I'm thinking of Hatties, Prince's, Gus's, even Popeyes or Bojangles (i know Popeyes is here,, but not geographically easy for me to get to).

Thanks for any help!

This hot chicken fad is going to go the way of the bagel stands and wrap places.. it was fun while it lasted.

GG

This hot chicken fad is going to go the way of the bagel stands and wrap places.. it was fun while it lasted.

GG

I agree with this sentiment, at least the other two I like the food, but for this round I'm certainly not impressed. Any effort we've had seemed greasy and really not that great!

Andrew, Louie’s Hot Chicken on Poplar Level has hot chicken on the bone. I think Joella’s does a quarter dark on the bone as well.

[Robin Garr]

I know this must exist, and have seen mentions but can't remember details.

Are there places in Louisville with hot chicken on the bone? I'm not a fan of tenders, and sometimes you want more than just wings. I'm thinking of Hatties, Prince's, Gus's, even Popeyes or Bojangles (i know Popeyes is here,, but not geographically easy for me to get to).

Thanks for any help!

Andrew, would the fried chicken, spicy hot option, at Chicken King or Indi's do what you're looking for, or are you seeking the specific Nashville style?

I'd like to try both again in the same week or so to compare, not been since before the pandemic. In the past I preferred Royals' sides, though I noticed that Joella's now has more options since my last visit. I seem to like Joella's chicken better, but maybe because a place with no bone-in option was hard to take seriously. Certainly not the case at the OG that I visited in '20, a month before the shutdown, Prince's: https://www.princeshotchicken.com/south-shack-menu.

For a current menu comparison
Joella's: https://joellas.com/menu-all.php]
Royals: https://royalshotchicken.com/menu

I believe Royals opened serving bone-in hot chicken but abandoned it pretty quickly. I actually remember getting pushback on this board from someone at Royals when I questions whether the prices they were charging were sustainable. Despite that, my wife and I ate at the Jtown location fairly frequently. I wondered if they put sugar on the white bread underneath the chicken.

I think Louie's on Poplar Level does the best version of hot chicken in town. Not as greasy as some of the others.

Thanks for the recommendations.

Louie's isn't convenient - and neither are Chicken King or Indi- - but I think I'll start w Joella dark quarter and then try the others!

This hot chicken fad is going to go the way of the bagel stands and wrap places.. it was fun while it lasted.

GG

But now we are smothered in Crab/Seafood boil spots. Heard about another one opening in Clarksville in the old Logan's this morning. The Juicy Crab.

This hot chicken fad is going to go the way of the bagel stands and wrap places.. it was fun while it lasted.

GG

I disagree. Prince's in Nashville opened in 1945. Popeyes opened in 1972. Indi's opened in 1982!

True, the proliferation is more recent, but the concept is strong!

I believe Royals opened serving bone-in hot chicken but abandoned it pretty quickly.

I think Louie's on Poplar Level does the best version of hot chicken in town. Not as greasy as some of the others.

Royals did open serving bone-in hot chicken and did abandon it, because the Philistines in this town preferred tendies. Also, I second the recommendation for Louie's on Poplar Level. I've had Prince's (the original location and the second location), Bolton's, and Hattie B's, and Louie's is as good as any of them.

Also while I'm on the subject, Prince's in the South Nashville location wasn't as good as the previous location on Ewing. It's hard to replicate 30 years of grease overnight, I guess.