Bone-in fried chicken, brined and breaded, served with sides at a Southern Black-owned dining room. Paschal's set the standard in the civil rights era.
Where to eat it: 3 restaurants across 1 city.
Atlanta's fried chicken tradition runs through Paschal's, founded in 1947 by brothers Robert and James Paschal on West Hunter Street and a key civil rights organising room where Martin Luther King Jr planned with the SCLC. Busy Bee Cafe opened in 1947 on Hunter Street and won a James Beard America's Classics Award in 2022. Mary Mac's Tea Room since 1945 still serves the cracker-crusted version with sides. The dish is the city's continuous thread from Reconstruction-era cooking to today.
Common allergens: Gluten, Dairy
Tip from the editors. Cast iron at 165C is non-negotiable; too hot and the coating burns before the inside cooks. Rest 5 minutes before serving so juices redistribute.
This is the TableJourney editorial recipe, modelled on the canonical bistro / counter version. The first place to try the dish in its city of origin is below.
Paschal's in Atlanta has served soul food since 1947, when brothers Robert and James Paschal opened on Hunter Street. The civil rights movement met here; SCLC was anchored at the bar.
Signature: Fried chicken, Collard greens, Peach cobbler
Order: Fried chicken plate with collard greens, mac and cheese, candied yams.
Tip: The current Castleberry Hill location since 2002 expanded with a banquet space; the original Hunter Street site is preserved at Clark Atlanta.
Busy Bee Cafe in Atlanta opened 1947 on MLK Drive and won the James Beard America's Classics Award in 2022 for its decades of soul food service near the AUC campuses.
Signature: Fried chicken, Oxtails, Collard greens
Order: Fried chicken with two sides; the oxtails on lunch special when available.
Tip: Cash and card. Lunch and early dinner only Tuesday to Sunday; line forms before noon weekends.
Mary Mac's Tea Room in Atlanta opened 1945 and runs Southern Sunday dinner classics in a four-dining-room compound on Ponce de Leon, with the same recipes through three ownership changes.
Signature: Fried chicken, Pot likker and cornbread, Peach cobbler
Order: Pot likker with a side of cornbread, then fried chicken with three sides.
Tip: Order the pot likker as a starter; it comes free with cornbread. No reservations Monday through Thursday lunch; OpenTable for dinner and weekends.
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