Los Angeles Fried Chicken Sandwiches Worth Seeking

We get it. Angelenos have a steady supply of pristine, seasonal produce at their disposal, but sometimes, it’s more satisfying to opt for comfort food that may not be local, organic, or sustainable, but still tastes damn good. It is with great appreciation for an evergreen comfort food classic that Food GPS presents 15 of the best fried chicken sandwiches in L.A.

Updated November 5, 2014
Added: Night + Market Song, Poppy + Rose, Standing Room, Trencher
Removed: Sandwich Smith (closed)

Canelé [CLOSED]


Fried Chicken Sandwich Los Angeles

More restaurateurs are descending on Atwater Village every month, but Chef Corina Weibel and front of house business partner Jane Choi remain at the head of the pack. Canelé is especially popular at brunch, which includes a simple but impactful Fried Chicken Sandwich ($15) featuring thigh meat coated in crispy batter, crunchy slabs of tangy pickled green tomatoes, creamy mayo and thin-shaved onion on a soft toasted bun. The towering sandwich comes with a lightly dressed mixed greens salad. – JL

Cooks County [CLOSED]

Fried Chicken Sandwich Los Angeles

Chefs Daniel Mattern and Roxana Jullapat joined forces with restaurateur Claudio Blotta and his wife Adria on this refined seasonal restaurant in 2011. They continue to add flourishes to their menus. At lunch, they now offer a Fried Chicken Sandwich ($14) that combines juicy thigh meat shrouded in a thin sheathe, a tangy Calabrian chile & apricot chutney that finishes with some heat, light aioli, and crisp lettuce on a soft house-baked brioche bun. A slightly bitter arugula and radicchio salad completes the balanced plate. – JL

Food + Lab

Fried Chicken Sandwich Los Angeles

Nino Linsmayer and mom Esther followed up on the success of their eco-friendly West Hollywood cafe by opening a branch of Food + Lab in Silver Lake, complete with wooden tables, a blackboard menu backed by white subway tiles, and the occasional tabletop dandelion. Organic Chicken Wienerschnitzel ($10.50) is a nod to Esther’s time in Salzburg, Austria, complete with a chicken cutlet that’s breaded and pan-fried in vegetable oil until crispy, then pressed in soft ciabatta with tangy lingonberry chutney and aioli. The sandwich comes with a container of tart pickled carrots and cauliflower. – JL

Free Range [CLOSED]

Fried Chicken Sandwich Los Angeles

Chef Jesse Furman sets up shop at West Hollywood’s Melrose Place Farmers Market on Sundays from 10 am – 2 pm. The rest of the week, a Free Range truck roams L.A.’s streets, and his poultry creations are available daily at Coffee Commissary in Burbank. The former Red Medicine bartender and MILK wholesale manager produces an exemplary fried chicken sandwich ($11) that combines juicy tempura battered thigh meat, crunchy cabbage, pickled green onions, jalapeños (or possibly Fresno chiles) and honey mustard aioli before stacking elements in a soft toasted Portuguese bun. – JL

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Joshua Lurie

Joshua Lurie founded FoodGPS in 2005. Read about him here.

Blog Comments

Josh, these are some pretty bougie sandwiches for that intro! Haha.

nomsnotbombs, Inflation might be to blame, but it’s hard to find a good fried chicken sandwich these days for less than $10. I tried a bunch of other fried chicken sandwiches for research’s sake, some at lower price points, but none of them were up to standard when it came to quality. For example, there’s a spot inside a Highland Park grocery store called Monte 52 that only charges $5 for their fried chicken sandwich, and it’s pretty good if you’re already in the neighborhood, but not worth a special trip.

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