Ezell’s Famous Chicken

This is a welcome change to my fried chicken past. The half & half spice was perfect for me.

Your run of the mill fried chicken tenders. The mac and cheese could have been straight out of the freezer. Don’t rush here.

I’ve heard Ezell’s was the best fried chicken around from a buddy of mine, so I had to stop by now that there is a location in Bellevue. I was very excited at the thought of a fried chicken place so close to home. Unfortunately, I can’t trust my friends taste anymore. The chicken wasn’t bad, but it wasn’t the best fried chicken I’ve ever had. It was pretty mediocre.
I’ve been here twice now and ordered the fried chicken with some sides. The mashed potatoes and gravy were pretty good, but the macaroni and cheese didn’t do it for me.
Staff seem very nice, although one of the times I was here they mixed up a lot of the orders, so my food took an exceptionally long time to come out.

I haven’t eaten at Ezell’s since 2001. At that time it was their restaurant in the CD in Seattle.
I quit going since I didn’t like receiving an extra helping of bad attitude with my order.
Since then the company has gone through major changes and I decided to give it another try.
To my pleasant surprise the service was excellent and so was the food.
The guy that completes your order makes sure that you receive what you ordered and makes sure you have everything you need. And he is very friendly and smiles.
I love good fried chicken and this is close to the office.
Great food and service!
I highly recommend this restaurant!

The new Ezell’s location in Bellevue is the bomb. Clean, organized, fast service, AND, amazing fried chicken. The location in Kent could learn a lot from this place.

I’m from Seattle & was excited that for a visit home they had opened an Ezell’s down the street from the hotel. I now live in the South.
I’ve been spoiled by Southern Fried chicken because Ezell’s was a huge disappointment after all the hype of it being a Seattle institution & being hyped by co-​workers as comparable.
The oil not sure if they are trying to go for special dietary but it is not the oil that you would expect to taste on fried chicken. The skin came off all in one piece which was good so that I could eat the chicken itself.
The biscuit was good. The corn & potato salad were standard fare & nothing to write home about. Maybe I’ve become too spoiled by genuine Southern fried chicken & the delicious sides that come w/​it.

Oprah loved this chicken so how could it be bad? Ezell’s is an institution and if you want good fried chicken in Seattle there is no better place to go.
We ordered the eight piece dinner combo to go. In addition to chicken it comes with four rolls and two side. For our sides, we ordered baked beans and corn.
The chicken is superb. I like the original – but the spicy has some kick. The chicken is juicy and the coating is perfect.
The rolls are excellent also, particularly with butter and honey. The beans were also really tasty. The corn was good, but hard to make that exceptional.
We have been to Ezell’s several times and will definitely be back.

I’ll admit, I only get one thing when I’m at Ezell’s, and that’s their ½ lb or 1 lb spicy chicken tenders with the honey mustard sauce. That’s what I’m basing my review on here. I came by for lunch at this newer Ezell’s location by where we live, I had heard this had just opened and I’ve been craving Ezell’s ever since! My expectations were high.
They didn’t disappoint! I got what I wanted, the tenders were exactly as expected. Spicy, tender, and juicy, what more can you ask for. I also enjoyed that the space was clean and well kept. The staff was also friendly and quick to serve. It’s nice not having to travel too far for chicken this famous!

I’m certainly happy to have an Ezells «closer» to home. Bothell and the central area are the other spots I go to.
The chicken is done to perfection. There are so many combinations that everyone should come away with exactly what they want. I’m pretty happy with the spicy white. Love the rolls and rather have more of them than the sides tho they are good too.
First visit at the noon hour and the place was hopping. My timing was perfect as right after I got to the counter there were at least a dozen people behind me.
It’s probably good that I don’t live closer as I’d be there all the time cause I love fried chicken. So do give them a try. You will love it.

It was indeed good chicken, great chicken actually, but not life changing as the hype made it out to be. I’m glad I finally got to try the ever so famous fried chicken at Ezell’s, it was crispy on the outside and tender on the inside. I got the combo meal where you could choose between a couple of sides and the choice of either original, spicy, or ⁵⁰⁄₅₀ for their chicken. The spicy was not spicy to me, but your taste bud might be more sensitive. That’s where the hot sauce does the trick, adds the perfect kick to my chicken. I choose the mac & cheese and mashed potatoes for my sides and sad to say that both were not something I’ll crave for again, but the chicken made up for it. I’ll just order only chicken next time.
Take out was fast, there’s also a dined in area where it’s pretty spacious and looked clean. There’s a refillable soda fountain if you were to dine in. Service was friendly, couldn’t asked for more.
Tell me about your experience if you’ve been here or is going to after reading this review:)

This new location has more seating than most of the other Ezell’s location, and it also has more of a look of a chain restaurant. Let’s face it, Ezell’s has gone downhill since Ezell Stephens and the Ezell’s corporation had a falling out several years ago. This location and its chain restaurant looks is just a period at the end of that sentence.
This chicken is good, but it’s not as good as it used to be when Ezell was in the kitchen. (His Heaven Sent locations are closer in taste and quality that. They are just better at executing the recipes.) Still, this location has the signature crisp skin and juicy chicken, but there seem to be some spices missing from the breading.
Sides at the Ezell’s have always been so-​so and kind of an after thought, and they are like that at this location too. Rolls are good. Slaw is good. But pre packaging sides in a cup to sit there until served leads to things like congealed mac & cheese — — eeew.
It’s nice to have a place where you can get decent livers and gizzards. That’s definitely a positive.
So, it’s decent overall. It’s not on par with the great fried chicken places in the south though. And it does not come close to some of the amazing fried chicken I’ve had at hole in the wall places in Dallas — — which is where the original Ezell (the man, not the chicken) is originally from.

Ezell’s is supposed to be legendary. I’ve been to the original location in the Central District of Seattle a couple of times. Now that one has opened in Bellevue, there are more opportunities to try their chicken. Except the Bellevue location is virtually identical to the one across from Garfield High School; there are no noticeable differences. Put simply, I can’t see any reason to go to either location.
This chicken simply isn’t that great. It’s junk food. The skin on their chicken is particularly crispy, but once you get past that, the meat underneath is nothing special. I also hate how they can’t get pricing right. I ordered two pieces of chicken and one roll. This came to $ 6.01. Not only do they not have enough sense to choose a price that doesn’t end in $ 0.01, but it’s ridiculously expensive too. Just go to any supermarket where fried chicken isn’t overpriced.

re: Dinner
It’s nice to have an Ezell’s not too far from my house, but I would have driven either to Renton or Woodinville from Bellevue to get it. This is probably one of THE best fried chicken places I’ve ever had. Anyone visiting me out of state, I make sure this is a requirement for them to try and they agree. The only neg I had about this visit was that the rolls were small. Although they gave us an extra roll, they are substantially smaller. I definitely like the option to have ‘white’ meat vs ‘dark’ meat. Definitely will come back, this is in my opinion, the best fried chicken I’ve ever had.

Familiar with Ezell’s chicken but this was my first visit to the Bellevue location which is a typical Eastside strip mall restaurant. This location appears to do more business than the other locations which means they keep a larger amount of chicken ‘ready’ and under the heat lamps. On this visit that meant my spicy recipe chicken was a tad more dried out than usual; a matter of degree — it was not dry per se, just drier than I’ve come to expect at Ezell’s.
The gravy is a little bland and thick as compared to Popeye’s but still good. The sides are pretty pedestrian but they’re not the reason one seeks out Ezell’s. The actions of a diverse behind-​the-​counter workforce were bottlenecked a bit by a new cashior learning the register, but he was friendly and helpful.
Saw some folks ahead of me place a large party-​size order. They were just getting it as I was finished eating so I made a mental note to call in any large order I might have in the future.
All in all I was happy to be in Bellevue enjoying Ezell’s and listening to Motown through the restaurant’s sound system.

The spicy fried chicken was very good. I was less enamored with the chicken-​tenders, but the batter is slightly crispier than most restaurants. The spicy batter was tasty without being too hot. I liked the Mac & Cheese, but the Mashed Potatoes didn’t do anything for me.
I think the staff is still getting used to the new place; the ordering process was a little cumbersome, but the food came out fast.
The restaurant was nearly empty at 11:15 on a Saturday. I have a feeling it will be packed during the week-​day lunch rush.

I couldn’t be happier that they opened an Ezell’s on the Eastside. Great fried chicken, super tender with scrumptious crispy skin. I think both the original and spicy are equally good, but if you have an aversion to heat, suggest sticking with original. I’m good with the sides and rolls, but prefer to have an extra piece of chicken vs. wasting the calories and room in my stomach on the sides.
The only drawback is that the inside is pretty small so if you are here when it’s crowded, you might be out of luck eating in and have to take your order to go.

New location, great place for fried chicken and comfort food side dishes!

I was ecstatic to find out they opened up so close to home! When I lived in Renton, I loved going to the highlands to get their chicken (before it was Heaven Sent). Now when I crave this, I don’t have to travel down the nasty i405 corridor!
One thing can be said about all Ezell’s locations (i’ve been to four of them), the Ezell’s chicken recipe is consistent in all locations, it always tastes the exact same, and it is really quality food for not asking for my entire wallet. The bellevue location is the largest with the most seating which is great because when that chicken is fresh out of the fryer, it is really at it’s best. i’m not saying don’t order this take-​out, but it is seriously something else to try it when it is really fresh.
Got here with my girlfriend right around 6:30, it was fairly busy but the actual line to order was short, it’s kind of a weird set up, but a lot of people were standing around waiting right near the door, so it looked a bit like they were actually in line to order. service was great, we managed to snag a table and the food came out to us within 5 – 10 minutes of ordering. i even forgot to order hot sauce (there’s a nominal charge for sauces, hot sauce included) but the gentleman who brought our food went and got me a small container of it without a fuss. Waist-​line be damned, We’ll be back for sure!

Get your Ezells on!!!
Oprah fly this chicken in from here. We all know that. We’ve had Ezells at least once if not several times if you’re a food obsessed person in Seattle. I’m not a fan of their Seattle location at all! Such a shady parking lot with bums and hobos terrorizing you at all hours!!!
But this one?! Yes please! I can now get my spicy strips without getting harassed! Ha! Easily accessible fried chicken? This could be a bad thing. Could get dangerous for your waist line!
This place is new, clean and bright. You can’t get the make your own sammiches and gizzards till Jan 25^th! But you can get your chicken strips! Bread on top of breaded chicken? Yea too much carb for me. I’ll take the spicy tenders though.
They also have cajun fries, beer battered onion rings and such! For me: it’s all about the bird! In and out with some piping hot chicken?! Free parking? And next to a Starbucks! Yes!!!

Hope you like fried chicken! If you are new to Ezell’s, you first pick how you’d like your chicken (breasts & wings– white, thighs & drumsticks-​dark, original, spicy, or half & half-​tenders, buffalo– tenders, or you could go with a sandwich or salad). Once you figure out you category, pick how many of them you’d like (2 – 3 pieces/​person is a good ration) and if you’d like to add a side item to make it a combo. Pretty much everything comes with a baked roll and dipping sauce (you only get 1 sauce, and it’s 41 cents per sauce but totally worth it). You pay at the counter, are given a number, and then have a seat.
My boyfriend and I came in, had an easy ordering experience, sat down at a table, and someone brought the food to us. It was probably only a 5 minute wait for our meals. We also noticed a sign at the table that said not to worry about busing our tables. The cashier who took our order was very helpful when I had questions.
There was a good amount of seating room for a business in this shopping center. There are 9 tables that can seat 4 people each and 1 long standing table (probably can support roughly 10 people). I can see this place filling up quickly during lunchtime on the weekdays, especially with their 3 specials before 2 p.m. (half-​pound tenders $ 8.99, three tenders $ 7.99, two piece chicken $ 7.99 all with one side dish, roll, and 24 oz drink).
The chicken is very tasty, and one thing that is different about it versus Chick-​Fil-​A is that they cook the chicken with vegetable oil instead of peanut oil (my mom has an allergy to peanuts, so I was made aware of this). They also use bigger birds than other quick serve restaurants and cut the chicken into eight pieces, instead of nine like most dining places, to give customers bigger pieces.
About $ 8 for a tasty fried chicken meal and side is a pretty good deal. It’s more than what you’d pay at a fast food restaurant, but I believe the quality is worth it! Plus, don’t you like supporting a Seattle business?
With great customer service, consistent quality (I’ve been two 2 other Ezell’s, and the chicken is consistently good), and decent prices, I’ll definitely be returning.