Roaming Rooster — Restaurant in Washington

I have to give props to Roaming Rooster. Let it be known that during the chicken sandwich wars of late summer 2019, Roaming Rooster managed to grab a small bite of the attention by serving up delicious chicken sandwiches of their own. It is a local business located in the eastern corner of DC. According to them, their chicken is free range and grain fed, and they've done some magical things with it to make it very tender and juicy and perfectly seasoned and spiced. There are five sandwiches to choose from, and although we only got to try the Nashville Hot and honey butter versions, I am pretty sure the others are just as worthy to try. Hands down, I would get Roaming Rooster's sandwiches over a lot of the many choices out there if they had a location closer to us.

One thing to note, is that this place was PACKED when we went on a weekday afternoon recently. I am pretty sure others like myself were there because of the recent good publicity they received from local reviews, comparing them favorably over the fast food giants. There was a line almost out the door, but getting to the front did not take long at all.

Waiting for our food was another story. Most of the folks inside were waiting for theirs and not even eating yet, and we definitely caught a vibe that felt similar to waiting at the DMV. We were all just looking for a spot to sit or stand against a wall. It is mildly frustrating having to wait nearly one hour from arriving to finally taking a bite considering we were hungry from smelling the delicious aroma of fried chicken, but it is understandable (and definitely worth it). Our sandwiches were freshly prepared and perfectly cooked, every bite from start to finish was bliss. The fries were perfectly crispy and tasty, and even the sweet tea was on point and paired beautifully with our meal.

In the end, it was definitely worth the trek to this side of DC, and we look forward to our next visit. We always like to support local businesses, and Roaming Rooster is very much worthy of receiving good word from...

I've been hearing about and riding pass this place a lot!! I am glad that I finally gave in when my fiancé and I didn't feel like cooking. Man! I got the medium Honey Butter Chicken Sandwich, he got the hot Buffalo Chicken, we shared a side of fries and a side of the coleslaw.

Both of the chicken sandwiches were really good! If you like just a tad a spice, the medium is a good pair with that honey butter and cheddar cheese - OMG!! The hot buffalo chicken sandwich was just the right spicy with the sauce and, to think, I don't like blue cheese but I wanted to ask for another bite of his sandwich after tasting it.

The fries are definitely good but they're better when they're piping hot. The coleslaw - OH MAN - love that they took a different approach to your traditional coleslaw by using a vinaigrette instead of the basic coleslaw dressing and the jalapeño slices add the perfect kick and flavor profile to make their coleslaw VERY unique and delightfully delicious - definitely recommend trying!!!

The only thing I didn't particularly care for was the cashier not really knowing the menu and offering suggestions and not saying that the suggestions would be an additional charge. Be not mistaken she was very polite and, although it wasn't a lot, if you recommend additional condiments, you should always let the customer know that it's an extra charge for them to decide if they still want to add them to the order. The only other thing was the young lady that was at the front with the cashier didn't have a hair net on and she had a lot of hair that was down and out. Restaurant Business 101 - hair net or maybe a bun, etc. especially when grabbing food, etc. Other than the latter - fast service, great food, friendly staff. I definitely recommend and would...

This review is from February 12, 2020:

This is a review of the food truck. After getting sick at every food truck I've tried in the L'Enfant Plaza area, I had sworn off food trucks. Until I saw this truck and it's burgeoning line. I had never seen this truck before. I decided to hop in line and take a chance. It wasn't clear where the ordering line started and ended so a woman and her friend, along with a gentleman hopped in front of me. Needless to say, I wasn't too happy about that, but I didn't make a fuss.

I finally get to the window to order. The cashier's printer isn't working. As a result, he's moving slow as molasses. There's only 4 things on the menu!

I order a mild chicken sandwich with cheese and pickles, fries and a drink. That's $13. Not too bad, I guess, but not cheap either. There's 3 people in the truck. One cooking, one prepping and the cashier. I noticed my fries were not fresh out of the grease. Instead, they were coming from a bowl that sat on the counter. As I sat and stared at them, I was praying they were hot.

Update: I did not get sick! YAY!!

No such luck. When I sat down to eat, I noticed the sandwich was on a hoagie styled bun, not a round bun like in the photos (yuck!), and the fries were barely warm to the touch.

I take a bite. The chicken has NO flavor. Granted, I got the mild version, but I did expect the meat to be seasoned. Nothing.

The fries were... well, fries! Warm (not hot) french fries.

Lots of food. I couldn't eat the whole thing. I could have totally shared this with someone.

Stand-by.... I'll let you know if my intestinal tract was also displeased. Was it horrible? No, but I doubt I'll try this...