2008 Woodie Awards
There's No Cure for the Chicken Box Craze
Chicken Box is a 33-year old La Habra favorite.
Jessica Chen
Issue date: 10/4/06 Section: Local
Come see what all of the cluck is about at Chicken Box. Featuring broasted chicken, ribs and seafood, this home-style country restaurant located off of Whittier Boulevard serves hearty, homemade, cooked-to-order take-out foods.
It specializes in broasting, which is a slow cooking in a tight sealed vessel, locking in the natural juices of chicken while eliminating the absorption of most of the cooking oil. The process creates mouthwatering chicken that is moist and much less greasy. The idea cooks up a fresh concept in chicken-cooking, and produces a flavor more original than Colonel Sanders' Original recipe.
The building is a small and quaint cottage, with a country-home quality. Standing even 20 feet away, one's senses are flooded by the smell of frying chicken. Stepping onto the porch, the surrounding white picket fence and local residents littering the outside patio furniture adds to the home-style feel.
The historical site has been serving the La Habra community for 33 years. The regulars that come by maintain the good business of the casual spot. The success of the restaurant is due to the regulars, as indicated by the long line of people that snakes out the door on a Monday night.
Monday nights feature the ten-piece special. This is a good deal, with ten pieces of chicken with French fries or broasted potatoes for $10.99. The wait on Monday nights can sometimes be an hour or more. It is recommended to call in and pre-order a plate ahead of time. The food is served in a heavy foil container, to seal in the steam and the special is limited to two orders per person.
Inside is a coop of people eagerly awaiting their feed. The facility is cramped. One half of the room is a pew of waiting chairs; the other half is a shelf of colorful country chicken kettles, frames, napkin holders and mugs. Artwork that hang along the walls feature paintings of distressed-looking chicken cartoons.
The menu features six chicken pieces and eight chicken strip dinners for a group of two. Baby back ribs, one of the most popular items, can also be ordered in conjunction to the chicken. To take the seafood route, one can sample the seafood plate, apprizing two jumbo shrimp, two codfish and three scallops. All these combinations include cole slaw, a dinner roll, French fries or broasted potatoes, or chunky buttered mashed potatoes and gravy for $1 more.
For a quick taste, one can order individual chicken dinners, a half or full slab of ribs, or beer-battered fish to soothe a home-cooked craving.
Furthermore, the menu includes a variety of other sandwiches, soups, vegetables and deserts. A sweet top off of a mouth-watering meal is the individually-cut chocolate chunk brownie or chocolate-dipped strawberries.
Chicken Box is open everyday 11:30 a.m. - 9 p.m, but is closed on Wednesdays.
Cheryl Christy, the manager of Chicken Box stated, "We're doing well. What other restaurant can take Wednesday off?" Christy believes the recipe of the Chicago-originated restaurant speaks for itself. Chicken Box shows no signs of being bawked off. They're doing just fine from the support of the local community.
It specializes in broasting, which is a slow cooking in a tight sealed vessel, locking in the natural juices of chicken while eliminating the absorption of most of the cooking oil. The process creates mouthwatering chicken that is moist and much less greasy. The idea cooks up a fresh concept in chicken-cooking, and produces a flavor more original than Colonel Sanders' Original recipe.
The building is a small and quaint cottage, with a country-home quality. Standing even 20 feet away, one's senses are flooded by the smell of frying chicken. Stepping onto the porch, the surrounding white picket fence and local residents littering the outside patio furniture adds to the home-style feel.
The historical site has been serving the La Habra community for 33 years. The regulars that come by maintain the good business of the casual spot. The success of the restaurant is due to the regulars, as indicated by the long line of people that snakes out the door on a Monday night.
Monday nights feature the ten-piece special. This is a good deal, with ten pieces of chicken with French fries or broasted potatoes for $10.99. The wait on Monday nights can sometimes be an hour or more. It is recommended to call in and pre-order a plate ahead of time. The food is served in a heavy foil container, to seal in the steam and the special is limited to two orders per person.
Inside is a coop of people eagerly awaiting their feed. The facility is cramped. One half of the room is a pew of waiting chairs; the other half is a shelf of colorful country chicken kettles, frames, napkin holders and mugs. Artwork that hang along the walls feature paintings of distressed-looking chicken cartoons.
The menu features six chicken pieces and eight chicken strip dinners for a group of two. Baby back ribs, one of the most popular items, can also be ordered in conjunction to the chicken. To take the seafood route, one can sample the seafood plate, apprizing two jumbo shrimp, two codfish and three scallops. All these combinations include cole slaw, a dinner roll, French fries or broasted potatoes, or chunky buttered mashed potatoes and gravy for $1 more.
For a quick taste, one can order individual chicken dinners, a half or full slab of ribs, or beer-battered fish to soothe a home-cooked craving.
Furthermore, the menu includes a variety of other sandwiches, soups, vegetables and deserts. A sweet top off of a mouth-watering meal is the individually-cut chocolate chunk brownie or chocolate-dipped strawberries.
Chicken Box is open everyday 11:30 a.m. - 9 p.m, but is closed on Wednesdays.
Cheryl Christy, the manager of Chicken Box stated, "We're doing well. What other restaurant can take Wednesday off?" Christy believes the recipe of the Chicago-originated restaurant speaks for itself. Chicken Box shows no signs of being bawked off. They're doing just fine from the support of the local community.
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