Kennedy's Premium Bar & Grill: 1/27/13

It's me again! For my third stop in the quest for Charlotte's best chicken tenders, I had a few extra people along for the ride. Ross and Kelly (friends from Elon) decided to come to Charlotte for the weekend and they went with Madison and I to this bar called Kennedy's Premium Bar & Grill near Elizabeth Avenue. Kennedy's is your typical sports bar with large televisions everywhere (when we were there the Boston Celtics were playing the Miami Heat...the Celtics won). I decided to try Kennedy's because I purchased a Living Social coupon for 2 appetizers (one of which was the chicken tender meal I am critiquing below), 2 entrees, and 2 beers a few days before. Now that you we have established a backstory on my meal, let's move on to the critique.

 

My disappointing chicken tender lunch at Kennedy's.

 

Batter and crispiness: D-

-The batter on these chicken tenders was not good at all. It lacked any sort of flavor and was clearly not applied carefully because the tenders simply had a light "dusting" of batter and they were not crispy whatsoever. They were very much like the chicken tenders that me and one of my best friends, Danielle, made back in college when we were sophomores and even we came up with a better batter formula over the years! It is hard to believe that I actually bought these chicken tenders at a restaurant because they seemed so homemade. On the plus side, the lackluster batter did not add any unwanted flavors to the chicken and the ranch dressing I got on the side complemented the chicken tenders nicely. I do not think I would have eaten them if I did not have the ranch to dip them in.

Tenderness/juiciness of chicken: B-
-The chicken tenders themselves were very juicy and tender, but there were some things I did not like about them. For starters, the tenders did not have any flavor and were quite bland. Not only that, but the ends of most of the tenders was very tough. I feel like the chefs at Kennedy's need to put more effort in the preparation of their chicken tenders.

Portion size/presentation: C
-The size of the meal was decent, but there were clearly a lot more french fries than chicken tenders (as you can see in the picture). Also, the tenders themselves were very small. It's a good thing that I had this as an appetizer or else there would not have been any chicken tenders left for me to reheat later. I gave the portion size/presentation a C because while I was disappointed with the amount of chicken tenders, Kennedy's did give you tons of fries and that was the best part of the meal.

Options for side items: D
-While I chose to have french fries with all my chicken tender meals, I know that some people would rather have onion rings or maybe some fruit. However, from what the menu stated, the only side that came with the tenders was the french fries. Now, the fries were very good (the perfect amount of crispy), but from a critic's standpoint, I wish there were more options for side items. 

Reheating: B+
-I have eaten a lot of chicken tenders in my life and I definitely experienced a first that was very unexpected when I heated up my leftovers at work the next day...the chicken tenders were better reheated than they were originally! Honestly I was not looking forward to trying these tenders again (I probably would not have done so if it were not for this blog), but I was quite surprised. The chicken was just as juicy as when I first ate the chicken tenders at the restaurant, but it seemed like the tougher, lower quality chicken, became softer once reheated. Not only that, but I also preferred the batter once it was reheated too. Even though the batter was not crispy, the tenders had more natural flavor, which was brought out. This was definitely a new experience for me, but I do not think it is a positive about the chicken tenders at Kennedy's because in my opinion, a meal should taste its best right out of the oven, which was not the case.

Description on menu:  
-Served over fries with your choice of sauce, Honey Mustard/BBQ/Ranch. $8.95 Tossed in your choice of mild, medium or hot sauce for $0.99.

Side item:  
-The french fries that came with the tenders were delicious. They were thick, crispy, and golden brown. It must be a common recipe at an Irish pub because the day before Madison and I had fish and chips at Fitzgerald's, an Irish pub in Uptown, and they tasted basically the same.

Overall my grade for the chicken tenders at Kennedy's Premium Bar & Grill is a D and I do not think I will be back to there anytime soon. The chicken tenders were not good (the positives about that meal were the fries and how the tenders reheated) and neither was either of the other dishes we got (corn beef and cabbage, Dublin broil (London broil), and the garbage plate...a mound of french fries with 2 beef patties, a pound of macaroni salad, and meat sauce on top, I felt a little sick just looking at it). If you're in the area then I would check it out for the bar atmosphere, but definitely not for the cuisine. 

So there you have it...my third chicken tender critique. As of right now, this was my most disappointing meal, but hopefully next week's will be better. I guess you'll have to wait until then to see. 

LB

Tenders: 1/20/13

For my second visit in the hunt to find the best chicken tenders in Charlotte I decided to go Tenders, a restaurant that is technically in Cornelius, NC (but it's close enough to be considered in Charlotte). I mean, I could not do a comprehensive study on chicken tenders and leave out a restaurant known for it's chicken tenders solely because the location does not have a Charlotte address. This time I went on my adventure with my friend Alex (who by the way has a blog of his own...http://readerdude.blogspot.com/) who had come up for the long weekend. I told him about my quest and he wanted to join in, so off we went to Tenders!

The outside of Tenders...I never would have guessed this place even served food.

Tenders is a local business that seems like it is family owned and operated. I found this rather large and unassuming restaurant (at least to me when Alex and I were passing by it) because my good friend and coworker Carolena recommended it to me. After Alex and I got over our surprise of the outside look of the restaurant we went in to find a simply decorated business establishment. You could tell that the owners of Tenders do not care about having fancy decor or an flashy outside...they care only about cooking chicken tenders (and a few other dishes...but chicken tenders is obviously the restaurant's forte. After we placed our orders, we found a table in a quiet corner and took in our surroundings. Tenders has a very family friendly atmosphere with very affordable prices...too bad it is not located in a college town because it would easily be the place to go for a quick bite to eat. We were sitting for about 5 minutes before a member of the staff (who were all very pleasant and attractive) called my name over the loud speaker. Luckily Alex has really good hearing because while the restaurant itself is not loud, the speaker does not seem to work that well. Anyways, now it's on to the review.

 My dinner for the night.

Batter and crispiness: B+
-I thoroughly enjoyed the batter on these chicken tenders. It was crispy, flavorful, and the amount did not overpower the chicken. My only complaint was that the chicken did not taste like it was seasoned before the batter was applied, so therefore the chicken did not have much flavor (I feel like if the batter was tweaked then the chicken would have had flavor). However, the chicken tenders were still quite tasty.

Tenderness/juiciness of chicken: A

-The chicken in the chicken tenders was very tender and juicy. I had no complaints about this aspect of my meal.

Portion size/presentation: A

-One of the first things I noticed and liked about the menu is that for your dinner you can order a 3 piece, 4 piece, or 5 piece chicken tender meal. Not only that, but one of the side items is another chicken tender (each one costs $1.35 extra each). I really liked the variety in meal sizes and the fact that you could make your meal as big as you would like (a big plus if considering taking some back for another meal later). Also, I really liked the presentation of the chicken tender dinner being in a basket with the chicken tenders on the top and a lot of fries on the bottom.

Options for side items: B

-The options for side items were pretty varied in nature, which I liked. The options are fresh cut fries, fresh blueberry slaw, and apple slices and dip. So kudos for including sides that are salty, sweet, and healthy. The reason I gave the side items a B was because I know that some people would rather have chips or onion rings with their chicken tenders.

Reheating: B

-The chicken tenders from Tenders reheated pretty well, but the fries did not heat up as well. The tenders tasted almost exactly like they did when I first had them (except not as juicy, which I expected), but the fries were no longer crispy which left them almost soggy.

Description on menu: 
-Fresh Tenders Meal...Crispy chicken tenders with choice of homemade sauce, fresh cut fries or coleslaw and beverage. $6.99 for 3, $7.99 for 4, or $8.99 for 5 chicken tenders

Side item: 
-For my side I chose the classic french fries (how can you go wrong with the combination of chicken tenders and fries) with a side of homemade ranch. The ranch was very good and you could tell from the use of spices and the consistency that it was homemade. However, I was not a big fan of the fries. When Alex brought our dinners to our table we noticed that some of them were a little cold. Also, some were crispy while others were placid and a too smushy. When it came to the seasoning it did not seem like typical french fry seasoning because it was too sweet. The pluses for the fries were the various sizes so you could tell they were homemade (which Alex really appreciated) and I liked how some of the fries had the skin on them. If I go back to Tenders then I might try a different side.

Overall, I would give Tenders a grade that one of my favorite teachers at Elon University, Tom Nelson, loved to give his students, a B+/A-. As he would say (and I'm paraphrasing here) it wasn't quite A- work, but it is better than a B. The batter was flavorful and the chicken was juicy, both very important aspects of good chicken tenders, but the chicken just did not have much flavor. Also, I have heard raving reviews for the restaurant, so I think my grade reflects on that as well. However, Tenders gets points for never freezing its ingredients, having pleasant employees, and using high quality ingredients (hormone free chicken products and whole potatoes for the fries). For a restaurant that prides itself on chicken tenders, I felt like they could have been better. I will most likely go back to Tenders, but seeing as it is over an hour away from where I live, this will probably not be a regular stop to satisfy my chicken tender craving.

And now ends another review. Thanks for reading and until next week....

LB  

First Post! Kristopher's Sports Bar and Restaurant: 1/13/13

It's time for my first post!

When I was thinking of a great first stop on my quest to find the best chicken tenders in Charlotte I thought the perfect place to start would be a sports bar. So, after thinking of different sports bars that are close to my apartment I decided on Kristopher's, a sports bar I've been going to for over 10 years!

Picture from Kristopher's menu

I went to Kristopher's with my roommate Katie and she wanted to support me in my quest for the perfect chicken tenders, so she decided to get them too! It was a beautiful, 70 degree day in Charlotte (very uncommon for January) and we decided to sit outside and enjoy the fresh air. This was a great plan until we noticed that people were smoking outside (in case you didn't know...smoking inside has been prohibited in Charlotte since January 1, 2012). Luckily for us, the smokers left after 5 minutes and we were able to enjoy our lunch smoke (but not siren) free. I decided to have ranch with my chicken tenders and Katie decided to have honey mustard with hers. Now, on to the review...

Batter and crispiness: B
-When it comes to the batter I was very torn. On the one hand I very much enjoyed the crispiness and texture of the batter, but I disliked the amount and flavor of the batter. It seemed like over 60% of each chicken tender was batter and it simply overpowered the chicken. Also, the batter lacked flavor, so it seemed kind of bland in comparison to many of the other chicken tenders I've had in my lifetime (and trust me...I've had a lot of chicken tenders in my time...just ask my friends!) When it came to the flavor, I feel like I could easily make a better tasting batter. Luckily I had my trusty ranch to dip my tenders in! In the end, the crispiness of the chicken tenders was the determining factor for this B rating.

Below is a close up picture of a chicken tender so you could see what I'm talking about. 

 Notice the amount of batter used.

Tenderness/juiciness of chicken: C-
-I'm not sure if this was just an off day for Kristopher's or what, but today the chicken in the tenders was dry and stringy. Katie said that they reminded her of chicken tenders she would get at a theme park. I found myself drinking a lot of the sweet tea (my drink of choice, especially for chicken tenders) in between bites of the tenders.

Portion size/presentation: B+
-It was a good size (if I'm getting picky...I wish there were 6 tenders instead of 5 because then it would have been perfect to eat 3 for lunch and then 3 for leftovers). However, I was disappointed with the presentation, something I've never noticed before. The basket the chicken tenders and fries came in made it appear that you got a large amount of fries, but both Katie and I were disappointed in the amount because we wished we had more for our leftovers.

Options for side items: A
-I thought the options for side items with your chicken tenders was excellent. The options are french fries, fruit, chips, or onion rings with fries being the most popular.

Reheating: A
-These chicken tenders heated up very well. While they aren't as crispy as they originally were, they tasted pretty similar to how they did when I first tasted them...hence that A rating.
  
Description on menu:  
-Chicken fingers... $8.59 Five chicken tenders lightly battered and served with fries, honey mustard, and BBQ sauce.

Side item: 
-For my side item I chose the classic french fries, which were amazing. They were very crunchy and had just the right amount of seasoning so they weren't overpowering.

Overall I give the chicken tenders a B rating. The chicken tenders (or fingers as Kristopher's calls them) were very tasty, but I wish they were juicier and there was not as much batter on them. 

 My lunch for the day! 

So if you want some good, filling chicken tenders, be sure to check out Kristopher's in Downtown Matthews!

Well that's all for now! Until next time!

Laura Beth 

Introduction to My Blog

Hello fellow bloggers!

My name is Laura Beth, I live in Charlotte, and I love chicken tenders! Since I love chicken tenders so much (and I know so many other people love them too), my boyfriend thought I should start a blog reviewing one restaurant that served chicken tenders a week (so 52 reviews) and critique the tenders. Each week I will critique the chicken tenders using the same criteria:

-Batter and crispiness
-Tenderness and juiciness of the chicken
-Portion size for price/presentation
-Options for side items
-How good they are for reheating

In addition, I will also include the description of the dish on the menu and my opinion of the side dish I chose. So there you have it...the birth of my blog! I hope you enjoy it!

Laura Beth