Fry the Coop (Portage Park) — Restaurant in Jefferson Township

We love this location, and it was even better that it’s a neighborhood joint for us. We used to be regulars until we moved a little bit further away. Now it’s something that’s more of an occasion for us. Normally I would be giving them 5 stars all around, but the last few times we’ve ordered food, it’s been disappointing and confusing.

For one of our orders or sandwiches was labeled wrong so one of the people in our group who doesn’t do spicy well had to suffer the heat as no one else got the same level as he did. In addition our fries were burnt. We assumed that it was just a busy day and didn’t care as much as we knew the quality of this location was usually on par.

However the last 2 times we got food from here my husband and I realized that the fries portion was MUCH smaller than what they usually give us. Normally we’re able to share an order of fries, but now it just doesn’t satisfy like it used to. In addition our sandwiches were more on the drier side. Normally the chicken is thick, juicy, and moist… but my the chicken from my last sandwich reminded me of the dryness I would get ordering a sandwich from popeyes and getting one that’s been sitting under a hot lamp for an hour.

I don’t know if it’s a change in staff making the food, or changes in food in general, but I’m really rooting for this location to get back to how great they were when we were...

I’m going to start by saying that I have probably written one review in my life. It has really taken a lot for me to write this review after eating food from Fry the Coop for easily over a year. The food is delicious 10/10. But the service and care made into each order is another story. I completely understand workers in the food industry and how over worked and under payed they are. But I can confidently say that every single time I have ordered food from any of the locations there was something wrong with my order. It first started with the messy fries my partner and I would order. We always asked for NO coleslaw as I have an allergy. It had coleslaw at least 7/10 times we ordered it. At that point I contacted management to see if it was possibly an issue with uber eats and it would not show up on the restaurants side. The CEO sent me an email back stating it was a fault on their end and compensated me with a 10$ gift card which didn’t even cover the price of one order of messy fries. We stopped ordering the messy fries because of this. We both love the spicy butter sandwich and every single time we order for it to be CUT IN HALF. It never is. Please for the love of god teach your employees to put a little more care and pride into customer orders, even the ones ordered online. Just because they aren’t there in person doesn’t make them any less...

Stopped by Fry the Coop to check out this chicken place that looks spicy! The restaurant does not have any tables inside, just a few stools with a small countertop lining the window facing the street. There are 5 well-shaded picnic tables outside and it was a gorgeous day, so we decided to sit and enjoy the weather. We ordered the tenders, their "messy" fries (pictured), and their Nashville chicken sandwich (pictured.). They have a sign on the countertop (pictured) which shows their spice levels for their sandwiches. I went with the "Crazy" level, which was the second hottest. I do love spicy food, and this sandwich brings some serious heat! I had to take things pretty slowly to give my mouth a chance to recuperate. The chicken was tender and juicy. Loved the sandwich and the spice, very well done!

The hidden MVP of the meal, though, were the messy fries. This is a large box filled with a bed of fries completely covered with a layer of pickles, slaw, and sauce, and then ANOTHER layer of cubed pieces of chicken. This was absolutely delicious and an incredible value, almost worth a trip in itself to come just for this dish.

I would very highly recommend Fry the Coop for a great...