Dave's Hot Chicken — Restaurant in McAllen

Got to try Dave’s Hot Chicken the day they opened on Friday 11/18! I had got tons of ads on Dave’s for months but never had the chance to try their upstate locations so when I found out they were opening one here, I had to try it!

We waited in the drive thru line for an hour (in line by 4:46, got to the ordering screen at 5:48) not bad for opening day, especially with work and school getting out around that time. We ordered 2 #3’s and 2 drinks with a side of mac and cheese, came out to $36 and some change. The #3s come with a sandwich and a tender, which is filling enough for that price. Dom/Don (couldn’t hear correctly my bad!) was able to help us out quickly and explain the menu throughly, very kind of them! They even offered us extra sauce! (Pictured is my #3 in Mild and my mac and cheese!)

The meal itself, best fried chicken you can get in the valley. Hands down. Definitely the crispiest chicken out there. There’s not another fried chicken place hotter, more tender, and crispier than Dave’s. Their fries were the perfect crispy on the outside, soft and fluffy on the inside kind of fries everyone loves. I’m not a huge fan of any kind of “slaw”, I tend to opt out any chance I get, but I chose to keep it in to try the full experience with Dave’s. It was worth it. Their kale slaw adds a nice sour, kind of creamy and sweetness to the sandwich that really solidifies it! The mac and cheese is so creamy and soft, it’s a must have! All the food was flavorful, hot, fresh and crispy! I’m posting this 4 days later and being honest, I have not stopped thinking about Dave’s. Might be my next frequent lunch and dinner stop! Welcome to...

My son loves fried chicken that is kicked up spicy. So off to Dave's Hot Chicken we go for an after school meal. The restaurant is really small,and there are not a lot of tables. Which means there are people standing in line around the tables. The menu is basically chicken tenders, chicken tender sliders, or a combo of both. The prices are a little higher than say Raising Canes but the tenders are definitely larger. There are a few sides to choose from like Mac and Cheese, Kale Slaw, or Cheese Fries. We choose the Tender and Slider Combo that comes with fries. There are different heat levels to choose from, we chose "HOT" My son added Mac and Cheese and I added the Kale Slaw. There were no tables available inside but there were empty tables outside with outdoor heaters (chilly weather) to make it comfortable to eat. They call your name over the speakers, so you can retrieve your food. After getting ours I opened the box and, yes the chicken is as red as the pictures. The Tender is served atop a slice of white bread, and the Slider is actually alot bigger than a normal Slider. I loved the xtra pickles they served on the side. The Slider comes with Kale Slaw, Pickles, and Dave's sauce. Let me say that the HOT Chicken is definitely Spicy!! You can actually taste the spices, and I could feel my lips burning a tad bit. We loved it!! The Chicken was crispy, moist, juicy, and the fries were on point. The Slaw was mostly cabbage with bits of Kale and a little dry. The Mac and Cheese was creamy but not really that cheesy. Overall we had a great experience, and on the way to the car, my son was already asking if we could...

I am not going to lie, when I first heard of Dave's hot chicken coming to the valley, I was a bit skeptical on how good the chicken would be, considering there are many wing shops that provide a good amount of heat with their sauces. I am happy to report that the place overall is actually quite good. First off, the inside of the store is very artistic as every wall has been painted to be either pretty cool or pretty trippy depending on your standpoint, which makes it fun to look around. The food was great too, as the chicken (I ordered it: hot), has a good spice to it with a bit of a citric flavor on the chicken which brings a good flavor to it. The sauce is good too, as it has a bit of a tang to offset the spicy chicken that you will be dipping. The fries though, that was the best part of the meal, as they were crispy on the outside and kinda fluffy on the inside, with some solid seasoning to boot. Lastly, the service is quite nice as the cashiers were friendly and there was always a person running around on how our meals were going and if we needed anything. Overall, this place gets about 4/5 as while everything was good, I will admit that 12.98 for the number one with only 2 tenders, fries, sauce, pickles, and bread is a bit steep, considering that other places give more, with the same quality but with a cheaper price. But other then that nitpick, I have not much...