Chicken Shops in San Diego, CA

“Order ahead if you're in a hurry and avoid the wait (although it's totally worth it). The food speaks for itself as the best spicy fried chicken you can get from a chain restaurant (Cane and Kentucky who??). The staff at the Mira Mesa location are awesome too as they are patient, calm and very helpful with any customizations and recommendations too“

“Great food and good service 😍“

“We found this hidden gem on Instagram and WOW—what an amazing discovery! We’re visiting from Seattle, and as a Thai person, I can proudly say the noodles here are incredibly authentic and full of flavor. We ordered a few different noodles, Chicken and rice, Every bite reminded me of home! The service was wonderful too. Absolutely highly recommended!“

“Karaage was pretty good, served hot and juicy, but very lightly seasoned, could have had more of a Karaage taste. To me the original Hokka Hokka Tei Karaage from Japan is the standard to be met. A lemon wedge and Karaage spice packet would have made it a sure winner. Gizzards were tough, I wouldn't recommend those. The staff are Japanese which adds to to authenticity. Would recommend to others and I would return to try their other menu items. 🤤“

“Visiting family from the East Coast and my daughter took me here today. I was stationed in Daegu South Korea for 2 years while in the Army. we used to get bb.q chicken almost every weekend. The kids loved it and so did I. This was my first time having it in 8 years and it immediately brought me back to being in Daegu. The food was amazing and brought us right back to being there. I highly recommend you check them out, you won't regret it!“

“We got the Cluckin Hot Jumbo Slider with a 2nd piece of Jumbo strip. The 2nd strip was the Hot flavor. The Cluckin Hot sauce is definitely hot and was excellent. We were happily surprised with this. They said they recently changed the recipe to make it hotter, great choice. The fries were well done like we asked and the sauce options were excellent. We will definitely go back to this place!“

“Great customer service. Food came quickly and was so fresh. Highly recommended the Korean side chick and fries amazing!!!“

“Great taste, great price!“

“This is my favorite Dave’s hot chicken restaurant! I’ve been to a few others and the service and food quality here are awesome. It is clean, the employees are friendly and provide a great service. But we love the chicken. we each get a slider and a tender. Great food for a great price.“

“The clerk was a nice guy but not keen on the obvious. I ordered a 15 piece wing combo and he asked if that was for here or to go. Who would dine in and eat 15 wings by himself? Chuckled all the way home. Poor guy.“

“I had an amazing experience here! The staff were professional and friendly, making me feel right at home. The highlight of my visit was definitely the spicy chicken wings - the Gabli wings were phenomenal! The flavor was just perfect. I highly recommend this place for anyone craving delicious Korean BBQ food and excellent service. Will definitely be coming back!“

“Had a very nice conversation with Brenda at the drive-through. The food was delicious. The parking lot was clean. Brenda spoke loud and clearly she was very kind showed great customer service. I will probably be back to this location soon to eat again.“

“Stopped by The Melt at Del Mar Highlands and was thoroughly impressed. The BBQ Bacon MeltBurger was juicy with a perfect balance of smoky bacon and tangy sauce. The garlic parmesan fries were crispy and flavorful, making them a great side. The staff was friendly and attentive, adding to the overall positive experience. If you're in the area and craving a satisfying meal, The Melt is a solid choice.“

“Great customer service. Food came quickly and was so fresh. Highly recommended the Korean side chick and fries amazing!!!“

“Seating inside is limited. Looked like a worker was sitting at one of the front tables and the tables in the back with the iconic sign were being used for restocking. The food is delicious. Tomato soup is tasty but not hot enough. Triple grilled cheese is fantastic and the fries are super crunchy!“

“Ordered the original rice chicken and also the roasted chicken.....it was all delicious.....found a new favorite Korean restaurant and it’s in the neighborhood 👍🏼“

“I love crack shack. I was born n raised in San Diego but moved to Memphis where I learned what good fried chicken is. This is the fried chicken spot in Southern California. Fire nugs+fries+pickles you can not go wrong. The bar tender is really awesome and the food is seasoned perfectly. Really good desserts as well.“

“First experience on 11/16/25, and stumbled into this place on a very late Saturday/early morning on Sunday, which was a nice surprise due to it being one of the only places open late once all places have closed. I was happy to find this gem of a chicken shop. The place has a very cool retro diner-like feel plus amazing customer service from some really hardworking staff.
I would like to give a very special shout out to ROSA and JOSH who work well together as a team and took very great care of the customers, which made for a nice first experience!
I’m definitely spreading the word about this spot.
I tried the chicken sandwich with the tenders and fries. Yum, yum, yum! My eyes were crying , but the flavor was delicious and addicting. A little drizzle of ranch definitely helped, thank you Rosa! Thank you to the kitchen staff - the food was delicious.
I can’t wait to come back to try the waffles!
Highly recommend this place. You’re missing out if you don’t.
If coming in on a late night after drinking, please just be kind to the staff as they work hard and also create a really nice atmosphere to end the night. This place has good music too!“

“Excellent service, amazing and delicious food. Highly recommended!“

“Ordered half of the whole chicken with Monster sauce and it was really good.

The chicken was crispy and the spice level was perfect!
I find it hard to gauge how spicy Korean chicken wings are at different places because its place seems to have their own level of spiciness whereas I find Thai food level of spiciness more or less the same.
So here's a little background about my taste in spiciness: at Thai food places, I like to get 7/10 for pad thai and 8-10 for drunken noodles/pad kee mao; which means I enjoy quite a bit of spice but I also want to taste the sweetness if the dish is supposed to be sweet.
Korean chicken wings should have some sweetness and but mild sounds too bland to me, so I went with my guts and got the monster. Jackpot!!! This really hits the spot; I got a little bit of spice, a lot of crunch and enough sweetness.

The portion is quite small; so go big next time.

Got this to-go and it was well-packed.“

“la calidad de sus ingredientes su forma de preparar el marinado a sus tiempos el estilo de pure sus salsa de la casa y sobre todo su atencion.saludos equipo hector mayra y carlos“

“This place is close to my work and I thoroughly enjoy their tostadas. Every time I'm sent the coupon for one in the app, I make my way there for another one. They never disappoint and the service if I choose to eat there is always top notch. They're constantly cleaning and asking if you need anything.“

“Wow!!! Food was so good!!!! Clara can cook!! I got the lemon pepper chicken with potato salad and Mac and cheese and she gave me a mashed potato and everything was awesome! I tried my friends peach cobbler and that was awesome too!! And the sweet tea to top it off was great!!! Will be back for sure!!!“

“This place has impressed me. The food is incredible and the atmosphere is very good. I really enjoyed eating at this location. Everyone is also very kind and very patient. But the person I really want to thank was Samara. She really treated me well and helped me a lot. She is a great manager. She was very patient with me I loved it Of course, I will return again to continue trying new things on the menu.“

“Great Mexican food... 🤡 WHOOP WHOOP“

“We love coming here when we come to San Diego. Always an excellent meal“

“Every time I go to work and leaving work, I see this place and planning to go here. I finally got a chance to today. The place is hidden and probably does get busy during lunch hours, but the place is very clean and the aroma is smells delicious! I’ll post a PS after I get my takeout order. Stay tuned!“

“El pollo delicioso 😋 lindo lugar , menú variado , las guarniciones ricas , muchas opciones en las bebidas y excelente atención su personal muy amable ,altamente recomendable!“

“These people were great! They accidentally handmade a mistake with our order and came out and gave us compensation in the form of gift card. Apologize for the inconvenience. I wanted a drink refreshed and in true Chick-fil-A fashion seemed to be genuinely friendly people.“

“es demasiado rico lo recomiendo“

“Always hits the spot! Good food good price what more can you ask for? And they always have friendly smiles too!“

“Ive honestly never gone to a chicken restaurant where ive truly liked the chicken but here the chicken sandwich was so good. the chicken was juicy, the spiciness was just right. I usually have to ask if the most spicy chicken sandwich is actually spicy because I always get disappointed but not here, their supreme level was the perfect spice level I honestly loved it! But warning it is spicy so if you don’t like spicy food I don’t recommend getting it lol.“

“This location at Carmel Mtn has always been so clean and orderly. Most of the time we visit this location has been great customer service experience but not this time. Gladys was the cashier. We got there pretty early so I cannot say she’s been working when she assisted us. We felt so rushed when there’s no one behind us. She made us feel like we are inconveniencing her. Other than that we love the food and other staff’s attitude.“

“I really wanted some chicken and it's hitting the spot!! I don't know if you are bone in or boneless however, I got boneless spicy chicken with waffle fries and a chicken biscuit that I'm going to eat for breakfast in the morning. I'm satisfied so all I can say is go try it for yourself and make your own discovery. If it's you, it's for you. If it's not then don't go back.“

“the grilled breakfast sandwich & Cobb salad wit & Arnold Palmer is delicious 😋“

“came with my family to eat during lunch time everything was hot and fresh. Fast Service clean restaurant friendly team and what can I say about the kitchen team Serving hot food thanks“

“Good service. .good quality and oscar is the best worker at pollo loco!!“

“Brand new, super clean and excellent service. They brought food to my table and picked up the empty plate. They checked on me while I was eating.Ordered the double chicken taco salad. Tortilla shell was crispy, plenty of tasty chicken, ripe avocado, beans, rice and cilantro dressing. I was very satisfying, fresh and tasty. When in the neighborhood, i'll do this location again!“

“Outstanding customer service and friendly workers. Enjoyed dining in with my family. Thank you

Parking: Good location

Kid-friendliness: Great environment for the family

Wheelchair accessibility: Great for military veteran with disabilities“