Gus's World Famous Fried Chicken — Restaurant in Memphis

Many people will tell you that "Gus's World Famous Fried Chicken" is one of the best (and most popular) fried chicken restaurants in the United States. They currently have over 30 locations with many of them in the South but a few locations in Michigan, Illinois, Kansas and even a few locations as far west as Arizona and California. Their original location, in Mason, TN is still standing to this day. The location I visited (built in 2001) was in the heart of Memphis, TN and is located directly on S. Front St. and tucked in between E. Pontotoc Ave. & Vance Ave.

I arrived roughly at 4:30pm on the afternoon of Saturday 9/25/2021. Parking can be a little tricky but I was able to find a spot only a block away. As soon as I walked in, I was immediately greeted by a friendly woman that said I could sit anywhere I'd like. Fortunately it was not too busy and right before the dinner rush so I lucked out. Once seated, I was given a menu with an iced water. I decided to start with a cold refreshing beer, a 24 oz. of Shiner Bock.

I was absolutely starving! So I went all out and ordered a plate of their "2-Piece White" (Breast & Wing). This comes complete with baked beans, coleslaw, & white bread. Since I wanted a broad spectrum of their menu items, I also opted for two additional small sides, Fried Okra and Mac & Cheese. With as busy as it was getting as the 5:00 hour was nearing, my entire meal came out in a very timely manner, roughly 12 minutes.

After indulging in the first bite of my chicken, I was immediately impressed with the spicy coating combined with the tender and juicy white meat. Now I know why chicken is way better in the South than in other parts of the country. And the thick cut white bread provided that spongy comfort that accompanies the chicken. The coleslaw was crunchy, refreshing, and delicious. The baked beans were just a-ok and they tasted quite ordinary. As far as the fried okra, this was a home run as they were crisped to perfection. And finally, their mac & cheese was creamy while the dusting of paprika added a little kick to it.

Here is a rundown of my rating of each individual item:

2-Piece White (breast & wing) - 9/10 Baked Beans - 6/10 Coleslaw - 8/10 White Bread - 7/10 Fried Okra - 9/10 Mac & Cheese - 7/10

All in all, "Gus's World Famous Fried Chicken" is a very safe route to go if you're looking for some authentic soul food/comfort food. They do have over 30 locations though so if you're looking at a small hole-in-the-wall fried chicken restaurant in Memphis, I would recommend "Uncle Lou's" or "Alcenia's". But for excellent tasting fried chicken with above average service and very affordable prices, definitely give Gus's a try. My rating, a...

Essentially this joint may have created some of the best fried chicken I have ever had anywhere in the United States, and after lots of recommendations from both locals and travelers, I can safely recommend it to others as well. The fact that they cook their fried chicken in peanut oil and still manage to maintain food taste and quality is quite impressive, especially considering many have not been able to replicate such.

To start with, every piece of fried chicken, whether dark meat or white meat, was extremely juicy and flavorful, despite not the biggest in size. They do equip each table with a bottle of Louisiana hot sauce, which I ended up using for my chicken sandwich. Speaking of the chicken sandwich, it was an upgraded version of the Popeye's type for sure, and I am saying that as a Popeye's loyalist. It was impeccable. The fried green tomatoes were also very seasoned and maintained the right amount of crunchiness with the crust. Many of the sides ranging from the mac & cheese to the fried okra to the baked beans have been tasty in the most conventional sense as well, especially the fried okra, which was right on in terms of its crunch to softness ratio.

The only relatively okay item was the greens, which was understandable since it's hard to cook greens in mass in a restaurant setting. It was a bit plain which might have been caused by the amount of juice it contained. The catfish sandwich tasted more like an upgraded version of filet-o-fish rather than containing actual catfish. The combination of the sauce and the fish (the way they cooked it along with the crust) was giving McDonald's quite a bit. I can see how it can turn some people off. I wasn't bothered by it, though.

Regardless, for anyone visiting Memphis I would strongly recommend this establishment. Even among all the food options around the downtown area, especially barbeque, I stuck to fried chicken twice while in Memphis, which spoke to how good the food here...

Oh Em Gee! We were staying in Nashville and took a day trip to visit Memphis & Graceland... All my boyfriend kept talking about on the 3hr drive there, was how he was on the trek to find really good fried chicken. I drove & he googled, read yelp reviews, etc... And everything kept leading back to Gus's.

We spent a good portion of our day at Graceland & before leaving, I asked two of the girls who worked there, "where should we go for the best fried chicken in town?" And they both said Gus's, with zero hesitation. We we're sold on the idea.

We get there & it's my favorite type of place... Not stuffy or fancy, just a neighborhood hole in the wall feel, kinda like walking into an old friend's place. Staff was friendly and inviting and everyone was wearing a smile. And... It... Smelled... AMAZING!

We sat down & it didn't take long to decide... We started with the fried green tomatoes (which were delicious) and then each ordered the 3 piece special. His sides were fries & coleslaw, I opted for fried okra and the greens, and we shared a medium mac & cheese. When it came, his eyes lit up... That thin, crispy coating on the golden brown chicken... The healthy portions on the sides... We couldn't wait to dig in.

Let me tell you... I've eaten a lot of fried chicken in my life and this... This has got to be the BEST fried chicken I've ever eaten, outside of my grandmother's recipe when I was a kid. Everything was perfect, down to the fries!

His only complaint was that we don't have a Gus's at home in Vegas,...