Chicago’s Home of Chicken & Waffles II

The Fried Chicken and Waffles are fantastic but everything else I tried was disappointing, especially for the price paid. This place is way over priced considering there are so many places in chicago that serve decent soul food.
Fried fish — Dried, overcooked
Greens — nothing special. Disn’t care for the seasoning used
Mac n Cheese — dry with overcooked pasta. Not, creamy, cheesey or seasoned.
Gravy — too salty. Tasted like it came out of a box
It may not have been, but thats what it tasted like.
Cajun Red beans and rice — very dissapointing. Not flavorful or spicy. They added sugar to it which was off-​putting to me.
Peag Cobbler — decent. Hit the spot, but I’ve had better.

Absolutely loved this place! I had never had chicken and waffles together before and when I discovered this place so close by I had to stop in and I’m sure glad I did!
I ordered a piece of chicken (mind you I’m not too much of a fried chicken type of girl) and a waffle (so good!) which were just splendid together! Like you NEED to try this combination together if you havent! Service was great and extremely attentive. I seriously cannot wait to come back in about week with some other friends to get them hooked!

Well I guess it couldn’t last I called to order a side of peach cobbler for pick up. It took two hours no lie! Then cobbler was disgusting it was greasy of all things. The owner/​manager can be rude.

Was not as good as when I had eaten there before. There were only two other tables with people, and yet it took them more than an hour to feed my party of three. The waiter kept visiting our table very apologetic and full of excuses. I had ordered smothered gizzards. After a long while, the waiter came to my table and told me they were OUT OF GRAVY. I couldn’t believe that. When we were finally served our meal, most of it was burnt. I complained to the waiter, and his response was «I wish I had cooked that for you». And when I got the check, they didn’t discount our meal. Yes, I had to pay full price for a meal I couldn’t eat. Last time I am ever going there.

I came here with my five brothers, mother, and grandmother for an early Mother’s Day celebration. A large party of 8, my brother made the reservation for 6p earlier the same day. Upon arrival, we see the restaurant is barren save for the entire middle section, filled by two large parties. I notice a portion of the parties have yet to be served. Only 15 minutes early, we wonder how close to our reservation we’d be eating. 30 minutes later we found out.
I have conflicting feelings about the situation. The restaurant should accommodate all customers until they’re ready to leave; however, reservations must be honored. I’ve been to restaurants where people were made to wait because servers knew they wouldn’t be finished in time for a reservation in the area.
Aside from the wait, the food was delicious! I had fried catfish filets and two waffles, great for a midnight snack later. Their gizzards, red beans and rice, fried chicken, collard greens, waffle fries, and chopped-​chicken stuffed omelette (different locations call it different names), and gravy-​covered rice were the all-​around faves! The waffles weren’t spectacular, but restaurants’ breakfast rarely surpasses average ratings for me.
A final star was lost due to an elongated exit process. Although we showed all obvious signs of being finished (cleared plates, packed takeout bags, crossed hands atop the table, searching gazes for our server) it took 15 minutes to get our check. Surely the patrons waiting for 30+ minutes would’ve appreciated placing their orders fifteen minutes earlier!
This restaurant is a force to be reckoned with once they rectify seating and leaving processes. Great food!!! Yum!

The driest chicken I’ve ever had. Must love cinnamon — overload on the waffles, just way too much. Server was nice but slow service. I’m disappointed.
Ok​.so now that I have a minute I can expand on this. First off the place is nice and comfortable. The food though! My son has been asking for this for over a year and I finally got to take him and it was such a let down. The waffles should really be called cinnamon waffles as it was just an overload, had I known believe me I would not have ordered them, I would have gone with a different option, it wasn’t a hint it was full blown cinnamon.
The chicken — I wanted to like it but I couldn’t! My kid is a chunky that does not let a crumb go uneaten and we left behind two pieces of chicken. I felt so bad that he didn’t have a good experience and he in turn was apologizing to me that he «made me take him there».
I really, really wanted to like this place but it just didn’t work out.

Chicken and Waffles made pretty. Best for Sunday, lunch, or brunch… although with the heartiness of the chicken, I guess you could really go any time.
They’ve got a lot of different choices for combos. White meat, dark meat, different pieces. Half a chicken, a whole chicken. Smothered or unsmothered.
Warning: their fries are not fries, unless you ask for them waffled. They’ve got a potato cut on them.
If you want to try the gravy, I’d opt for adding it on the side. Getting your meal smothered means that perfectly crispy skin is gonna get pretty soggy, unless you’re real good about eating your food quick (to beat the gravy from sinking in). I wasn’t all too impressed with the gravy, and was just as content having it solo.
The waffle. Fluff. and yum. And syrup. and yum.
I got myself a combo with two pieces dark. One waffle instead of two. And i think it was plenty for myself. If you’re hungry, you can get a larger combo to go.
Because I wasn’t too happy about the fries (I was hoping for a Popeye’s cajun kinda fry, I guess). I was able to trade out for mac and cheese, and was much more happy. But the cheese had a grit to it, as long as you don’t mind that texture of whatever kinda cheese that is. Honestly, it kinda reminds me of the Michelina’s frozen stuff. Not poor quality, but just reminiscient of that texture.
The sweet tea was maybe a little too sweet.
Oh. and if you love 90’s R&B, this is the perfect spot for you. I’d come back, and it ranks #1 for a chicken and waffle craving for me, but it is a little out of the way. I’d definitely want to try other things, like their catfish.

My friends have come here so many times for brunch and for dinner. They always came without me and finally I came to try it out.
The wait was about 5 minutes — worth it. It’s so beautiful inside and the menu has so many options. My eyes were hungrier than my stomach. I definitely got a waffle with wings. My friends had catfish, chicken, Mac and cheese, waffle fries.
Everything was so good. Next time I’m definitely getting the catfish. Service is great too. There was live music tonight. I highly recommend this place for families. Two people celebrated their birthdays with their families and friends tonight.
Looking forward to coming by during brunch and trying out some of the other options.

Ten of us came for chicken and waffles yesterday morning. I called ahead of time to let them know a large group was coming in and they accommodated us with no problem. The restaurant itself is not very large, but it is nicely decorated, clean and they have a very friendly staff. Our server, Jade, did a great job serving the 10 of us with all our different requests. She provided good service with a smile. Their fried chicken with a very crispy crust is crazy good. The gravy is to die for! It’s definitely the place to go for good chicken and waffles.

Looks like this is Numero Dos of two locations: One in the city (Bronzeville) and one here in Oak Park. The Oak Park location has live jazz on Fridays and Saturdays from 7 – 10:30pm and Karaōke on Thursdays from 6−10pm. Will definitely have to check those nights out one of these days!
On to my review of the food: their menu is fairly large. If you’re hungry (like we were), you might be tempted to order everything on the menu LOL. Here’s what we ordered:
The Betty Lou: ½ fried chicken with 2 waffles. It’s an extra $ 1.00 to get it smothered (with gravy), which is totally worth it because. Well. Gravy. Duh. It’s OK, we ordered one of the chicken dishes NOT smothered so that we can taste test the crispiness of the fried chicken. I think the batter could use some work in the flavor department, though.
Aunt Joyce’s: ¼ dark fried chicken with a waffle, grits (or rice, but we got the grits of course) and 2 eggs that way you want (we got it over medium). The grits were really good, it wasn’t too mushy or anything like that. For those of you not familiar with grits, it’s almost like an oatmeal or porridge type dish made from ground corn kernels (maize) boiled in water or milk. Some people like it savory with cheese or salt, some people like it sweet with sugar or cinnamon or something like that. I prefer savory all the way!
Out of the Soul Food Special Combo section, we ordered the Fried 2 pieces of dark chicken meat with 1 fried catfish fillet (so that we could try out the fried catfish). This combo includes cornbread and you can choose 3 sides, so we got mac n cheese, collard greens, and gravy and rice. The breading on the catfish fillet was different from the chicken — I could tell that it was more of a cornmeal, which gave it a nice kind of crunch on the outside. The inside was super moist and flaky, just the way a white fish should be. I mostly dipped this and the fried chicken in hot sauce, just to add a little bit of kick to each bite. Come to think of it, I dipped most of my food in the hot sauce. What can I say, I love spicy!
I almost forgot that we ordered a side of fried chicken gizzards. Some of you might be wondering what gizzards are. The gizzard is an organ found in the chicken’s stomach used to digest its food. The gizzard essentially grinds the food in the digestive tract. As you can imagine, it’s pretty chewy but does not have that organ-​y metallic taste that other organ meat can have (like liver). This is actually a very common food that Koreans eat (it’s typically served as «ahn joo», or side dishes to eat while drinking) and is served grilled or deep fried. The deep fried version of anything is usually going to be better, but it’s good both ways. So these fried chicken gizzards look to be fried up using the same batter as the fried chicken… it’s pretty crispy but it seems to lack some flavor. It was great to try it here, but I probably won’t be ordering it again unless I’m really craving it.
Stay hungry, my friends!

I brought my mom in for an early Valentines Day breakfast. This was my first time at the Oak Park location. We came in around 3 pm on a Thursday and there was no wait. I had the taste for the signature dish of chicken and waffles along with an egg white omelette and grits. The waitress was helpful with putting together a combination so I got everything I wanted without paying extra. I really like when the server takes the time to make sure I get exactly what I want and not having me pay more than needed. The only thing I was not able to get was potatoes which they were out of this day.
The waitress was very helpful and checked on us periodically to make sure we were ok. She was very deserving of the tip she got. When the food came I quickly devoured mine because I was so hungry. The chicken was fried to perfection and the waffle was good as well. The egg whites were a little to salty for my liking though.
My mother ordered eggs as well but had to send them back due to being over cooked. There was no issue with the request and the order was saved.
My overall experience here was good. There was nothing over amazing about this place but I would come back if in the area.
Enjoy!

I’ve had better at this location. A little disappointed.
Great location and okay staff. Hostess never smiled, but was courteous. Ordered the «Alicia lucious». 3 wings w/​a massive amount of beans and rice. They took over the plate. Chicken wings were fried too quickly & not completely done. The waitress was quick to replace with no questions.
I will try again another day.

If you are in the Chicago area and looking for some bomb ass waffles come here! I am not lying when I say those were the best waffles I ever had! Or maybe I was too tipsy to tell… Nope my taste buds were drunk in flavor goodness! Of course if you don’t know by now, I went with the chicken and waffles. I also got a side of mac and cheese. Notice I havent mentioned the chicken. Unfortunately, it was dry and lack seasoning that night. My mac and cheese was a greasy mess. From experience, mac and cheese is one of those dishes that us either a hit or a miss. The mark was missed that night… overall good vibes, music, service and waffles!

Hubby and I were about to conduct our usual grocery-​shopping routine in Oak Park. However, we thought it would be wise to have food in our stomaches since «starving» was the only word that was audible to our ears at that time.
Many breakfast/​brunch joints were about to close at approximately 1500 hour. «Chicago’s Home of Chicken & Waffles II» is located within a walkable distance from the CTA Oak Park Green Line station, about ten (10) minutes southeast bound. I’ve heard of this place ever since we moved to Chi-​town almost three (3) years ago. Nevertheless, their reviews on Unilocal weren’t stellar enough to raise my strong curiosity.
Speaking of a long wait, hubby and I were fortunate to snatch a table immediately near the entrance. Subsequent patrons arriving after were invited to the waiting booths.
Although the servers and cooks had the full house to handle, our orders were promptly taken and delivered within a reasonable time frame. My «Kisha’s Creation» was delectable. The entrée came with one (1) waffle, two (2) large pieces of catfish (choice of fried or grilled), eggs of your way (mine were over-​easy), and a side (choice of rice or grits).
First of all, I was glad that Miss Kisha only spared me a waffle because that bad boy could get you full very, very quickly! I almost didn’t finish my catfish, but the Louisiana hot sauce on the table gave me a helping hand. With a slight change-​up of the flavor, my last bites of catfish were still crispy and delicious.
Their cheesy grits were decent. I spent most of my adolescence in South Carolina. Miss Betty who worked in my high school cafeteria really made excellent grits. Well, ya’ll need to give her a call and ask her how she made this southern speciality.
Hubby’s «Carol’s Treat» was also portioned generously. He kept on asking if it was inappropriate to eat his chicken with his hands. I was quite busy tackling my dish, so I could really care less on his inquiry.
A spritzer (a mix of Sierra Mist and sweet tea – with unlimited refills) and two (2) entrees came to $ 33 and some change. Chicago’s HoC&W actually had a great ambiance with some cool nostalgic decors. They also played good R&B music, even though the background was a bit noisy with all the patrons’ happy conversations.

Wanted to try something different, and get out on a Saturday night, so brought my son and a friend here. We got there around 7:30 on a Saturday night, and got one of the last available tables. It was nicely decorated, and they had live music playing.
The waffles are TO DIE FOR! ooooh the yumminess. There’s a hint of some seasoning, i couldn’t place it — but it was deliciousness. I got the standard chicken and waffles because — hey — that’s what i went there for, right? While the waffles were to die for, the chicken was only so-​so. I found it to be dry and honestly, it tasted like yesterday’s chicken that they pulled from the fridge. The skin wasn’t very crispy, and it was a little tough.
The cornbread was dry. Not my favorite. The mac and cheese was great! and the grits were really good, too! My friend had the fish, and he said it was really good.
Great:
— Waffles
— Mac n cheese
— Grits
— Fish
Not-​so-​great:
— Chicken
— Cornbread
Service was good. We had a nice young girl who was perfectly attentive, and very friendly.
My only complaint (outside the chicken) was that the music was WAY too loud. When going out on a Saturday night, I’d like to be able to carry on a conversation with whomever is with me. But we could not have a conversation like, AT ALL. The music should enhance the dining experience, not ruin it. Price was very fair.
OH! One last thing, apparently it’s a BYOB — which we didn’t know in advance. So plan to bring your own alcohol.
Overall, we had a nice experience. Would not go back if they had the music going. But if i were in the neighborhood, I would stop back for those delicious waffles. Absolutely worth checking out!

*****Yay! One of my favorite places for my 200^th review! *****
I love this place. I was seriously addicted to it for a few months. Their waffles are so good… soft and cinnamonny. I like the rosemary omlette too with chunks of chicken and cheese in it. I add chopped veggies to it and it’s amazing.
I have catered trays of chicken from this place before and was very pleased with the way everything turned out. The food was ready when they said it would be and the chicken was moist and tender.
They often have Groupons for this location.

The worse delivery. Food took 1.5 hrs to get here. The «chef» says hes not the driver, the food is every bit of luke warm temp. A wasted $ 60
Never again

Ive been to this place a handful of times, service is always decent. I think they are a little over priced seriously, I noticed one of their other locations went out of business not sure the reason, but it gives off the wrong impression when 1 out of 3 locations goes under.
As far as the menu selection of course its a soul food place, the greens «are life to my soul the days I’ve tried it». I never been ate here during the dinner hours, always during the afternoon, thats why I always get sleepy after eating here.
sleepy food for real!

If you are looking for Soul Food, then you’ve come to the right place!
Located right off Lake Street in Oak Park which is perfect placement with ample and FREE parking!
After living in Oak Park for 3 years, I finally had a chance to pay this place a visit and it didn’t disappoint.
I ordered the KEV MO which was delicious minus the overload of gravy. Might want to ask for that on the side next time. My chicken however was SPOT ON!
The interior is beautiful and great place for a first date. Even the music was a perfect setting! They get bonus points for that :)

Been here twice and each time, I’ve tried something different and I’ve loved it all.
Smothered fried chicken, ah, yay, very special. The famous chicken and waffles, must dip your chicken in the syrup. So wonderful.
Coffee, perfect cup but be warned, it takes a little time to get a cup.
Catfish and fried chicken platter. Comes w many sides. Mac and cheese, collard greens, cornbread. Not bad.
Service is great. They have live music on Fridays.
The only part that I wasn’t thrilled with. Isn’t the photographer who walks around offering to take your picture. What they don’t tell you prior to snapping photo is that it’s for sale. What will you do? You cough up the $ 10 or might have been more to get the photo. He ended up giving us a second print. God! I was having a bad hair day and that’s that I wish had said no for the photo. Of course you are not obligated to take a photo or to purchase.