Prince’s Hot Chicken Is One of America’s Essential 38 Restaurants

Today, Eater’s roving national restaurant critic Bill Addison released his annual list of 38 essential restaurants in America for 2018, and named Prince’s Hot Chicken among them. For five consecutive years, Addison spent 34 weeks traveling and eating nearly 600 meals in 36 cities across America in order to compile this final list of the country’s best restaurants. Prince’s has made the list all five years, thus achieving icon status. Here’s what Addison has to say about Prince’s in his 2018 guide:

Prince’s Hot Chicken

Nashville-style hot chicken can no longer be considered a trend or a local delicacy; its countrywide popularity over the last five years cemented its place in the foundation of American dining. But no matter how many people succumb to the masochistic pleasures of capsaicin and the endorphin rush that follows, or how many restaurant groups fashion their own variations, credit for the dish should — and will — always go straight back to the business that made it famous. James Thornton Prince founded the restaurant in the 1940s; his great-niece André Prince Jeffries remains the guardian of the recipe. The heat levels range from plain to “XXX Hot.” The “Hot” version is as far as I go, and as a full-body sensory happening, it’s plenty. Everyone should visit North Nashville and face the flames for themselves.

• America’s 38 Essential Restaurants [EATER]