Church's Texas Chicken — Restaurant in Beverly Hills

Church’s Chicken, 1515 S Valley Mills Dr, Waco, TX Rating: ★★★★☆

Golden Chaos on Valley Mills.

There’s a certain kind of honesty in the air at 1515 South Valley Mills Drive—not in the form of customer service, mind you, but in the smell of that chicken. It’s bold. It’s greasy. It don’t care what kind of day you’re having. And it hits you before you even walk in the door. If you’re anywhere near Valley Mills in Waco, your nose will find this Church’s Chicken before your GPS does.

Friday night. After five. Paychecks hit, appetites flare, and Church’s is under siege. You walk in and immediately clock the scene: no one at the register, a small crowd forming in the lobby, and a pair of overworked girls juggling the drive-thru and counter like they’re hosting a live taping of “Survivor: Fast Food Edition.” Two guys in the back. One’s cooking chicken. The other? Mysterious. Possibly just dodging eye contact.

The lobby? Disheveled. Tables sticky. Trash cans flirting with overflow. Families lean against walls waiting for their big orders—drive-thru customers who’ve already parked and now wait inside, hoping proximity will get them their food faster. It won’t.

And yet… you stay.

Because the air is thick with that unmistakable promise: golden, crunchy, juicy chicken that makes all the chaos worth it. You place your order—eventually. Maybe it takes ten minutes, maybe more. You order two-piece white, okra, fries, apple pie, fountain drink. You get some of it. You don’t get all of it. The girl forgets the fries and the jalapeño until you ask. The okra’s been sitting under the heat lamp too long. But then… then comes the chicken.

Golden brown. Crispy skin. Juicy inside. That jalapeño on the side? A perfect green flame that ignites the whole experience. In that moment, your missing fries don’t matter. The sticky tables don’t matter. The wait? Forgotten.

Because this chicken slaps.

It’s the kind of fried that tastes like it was earned. Not prepped in a sterile test kitchen, but fried by people who know the oil, who work the fryer like it’s family tradition. That’s why people crowd this place on a Friday night, even knowing full well they might walk away grumbling. Not because they love the chaos. But because they know what waits at the end of it.

So no, this isn’t a five-star joint. It doesn’t pretend to be. The service is spotty. The lobby is a mess. The staff looks one wrong look away from a walkout. But the chicken? The chicken is art. And that earns four stars every time.

Final Bite: If you want immaculate vibes and flawless service, keep driving. But if you’re hungry for the kind of fried chicken that makes people forgive everything else, pull into that lot on South Valley Mills and take your place in the madness. When that hot box hits your hand and that crispy skin hits your teeth, you’ll understand exactly why Church’s is still in business.

Pro Tip: Show up early. Right when they open. No crowd, no confusion—just hot, fresh, undisturbed glory. It’s a different experience when Church’s has time to breathe. And trust me, that first-batch chicken? That’s five-star living in a...

I have eaten here almost every Sunday after church services for the past 16 month. For most of last year they had an experienced crew that worked well together. But these last few months it has been a stream of new faces. Today the cashier (wearing a nose ring tha looked like snot) got my order wrong. I have been ordering the same lunch for 16 months. When I pointed out that what she had rung up was not what I ordered she began to blame me, telling me that what she had input was what I had ordered. I slowly repeatedmy order which with much facial attitude she rang up. I made the mistake of assuming that she got it right this second time. When I received my meal it was not what I asked for (two legs) but was one leg and a thigh! The restaraunt was not clean. While eating my meal a few other customers had to go back to the counter because they too did not get what the had wanted. Good employees make for a good dining experience. Poorly trained employees with an attitude that seeks to blame the customer make for a bad...

Worst experience ever, arrived at 9:50, was told it would be a 15 minute wait after convincing the order person to start my order. They were hesitant to work and did not seem to care that I was there to order something, and online it says they do not close until 11 mind you, and the lady tried to tell me they close at 10:15. Between 9:50 to 10:15 all of the workers sat around and stared at me, doing absolutely nothing but talking. Then one of the employees miraculously filled a box with chicken and left (I thought this box was mine because they told me I had to wait because they were out) and right after that a lady came to the window and told me that they just now started up the machine again, and I have to wait another 15 minutes. More time passes, and I finally get my order 45 minutes later waiting in a drive-through. This is the worst service I have ever heard of, do not recommend at...