Hot chickenMidtown$$$$
Hattie B's Hot Chicken
The hot chicken most visitors try first: a clear heat scale, good sides and a line that keeps moving.
#1 in Hot chicken
What to get
- Small dark (leg and thigh quarter), Medium
- Pimento mac and cheese, potato salad and banana pudding: Infatuation says the sides beat the chicken
- Tenders with three heat levels in one order if you're unsure (Michelin tip)
- Peach cobbler with vanilla ice cream
When to go
Shortest wait: Tue, Wed 3 pm–5 pm. Busiest: Sat around 7 pm (up to 30 min wait). From Google's popular times.
Off-peak weekday afternoons (2–5 pm). Every location gets long lines; Infatuation steers people to the Melrose shop for the shortest wait. The East Nashville shop (2026) has its own parking lot.
Insider tip
Not sure about the heat? Hattie B's itself suggests getting one spicier tender with your milder ones. The new East Nashville location is the biggest, with a Quonset-hut hangout (putting green, bocce, pinball, pool) and on-site parking. $1 from every Shut the Cluck Up order goes to The Busyhead Project in 2026.
Heads up
The most touristy of the big three. Infatuation: 'Is it where the locals go? Again, no' and it's 'Hot Chicken Disneyland'. Expect lines.
Find it
- Phone
- (615) 802-5700
- Website
- hattieb.com
- Reservations
- walk-in only
Recognition
- Michelin Guide American South (inaugural, Nov 2025): Recommended (112 19th Ave S), tagged 'Iconic'
- Nashville Scene Best of Nashville 2024, Readers' Poll: Best Hot Chicken (winner; Prince's second)
- Nashville Scene Best of Nashville 2025, Readers' Poll: Best Hot Chicken (second place)
- The Infatuation Hot Chicken Power Rankings: #5 (7.8); praised for consistency
Checked Oct. 1, 2026. Ratings are a snapshot from Google and Yelp; ranks are ours (how we rank). Something out of date? Tell us.
Eat & Drink
More in Hot chicken
-
#2Hot chicken + bar · East Nashville
Party Fowl
Hot chicken for a crowd: big tables, boozy slushies, and an East Nashville location open until 1 AM on weekends.
-
#3Hot chicken · South Nashville
Prince's Hot Chicken Shack
The family that started Nashville hot chicken, still frying it on Nolensville Pike. A plain room and serious heat.
-
#4Hot chicken · Midtown
Red's 615 Chicken
A walk-up window a block from Centennial Park, doing hot chicken and a hot chicken crunchwrap with its own following.
-
#5Hot chicken · East Nashville
Brave Idiot
A Main Street truck that critics rate for both its hot chicken and its Crispy Boi smashburger. Carry your order into a neighboring bar.
-
#6Hot chicken counter · North Nashville
400 Degrees
Owner Aqui Hines deep-fries her hot chicken instead of pan-frying it, for an extra-crunchy crust. A small counter on Clarksville Pike.
-
#7Hot chicken + hot fish · East Nashville
Bolton's Famous Hot Chicken & Fish
A Main Street counter where locals come for the hot fish as much as the chicken.
The NashvilleTN Insider · 10K+ readers
The best of Nashville, in your inbox.
The shows worth buying tickets for, what just opened, where happy hour is good right now, the weekend plan, and a heads-up before we go live.