Uptown gets civilized (Harold's Chicken Shack on Wilson)

Finally, a classy joint up North!

http://chicago.eater.com/archives/2010/ ... uptown.php

Should be a boon to all of us Northsiders.

You must mean a boon for those who don't want to travel all the way up to Rogers Park...

Harolds Chicken Shack #44
6952 N. Clark St.
Rogers Park
773-465-2300

I'm very familiar with that Harold's - I used to live three blocks away. Based on experience its actually one of the best city-wide.

Having a Harold's between Rogers Park and Wicker Park on the Northside (sorta, kinda smack dab in the middle of it) can't be anything but good for all of us. Well maybe not our cholesterol counts.

Am I mistaken? I thought there was a Harolds in Uptown not too long ago. I vaguely recall something about some U of Chicago grads opening it.

Marco wrote:Am I mistaken? I thought there was a Harolds in Uptown not too long ago. I vaguely recall something about some U of Chicago grads opening it.

I know that back in the early 80s, a Harold's opened on Sheridan just around the corner from this new one. As I recall, it was not one of the better Harold's, but it had a great animated neon sign of the Chicken King chasing down a chicken with an axe.

d4v3 wrote:

Marco wrote:Am I mistaken? I thought there was a Harolds in Uptown not too long ago. I vaguely recall something about some U of Chicago grads opening it.

I know that back in the early 80s, a Harold's opened on Sheridan just around the corner from this new one. As I recall, it was not one of the better Harold's, but it had a great animated neon sign of the Chicken King chasing down a chicken with an axe.

Was it that long ago? I seem to remember the Chicago Reader making a big deal about a Harolds opening in Uptown but this woulda been late 90's early 2000's. The big deal had to do with the fact that the owners were very young, very educated, and very white.

I noticed Harold's #84 in Bolingbrook, near the Ikea, recently.

I am trying to imagine who, besides me, would think of combining the two, and what their kitchen must be like.

Marco wrote:

d4v3 wrote:

Marco wrote:Am I mistaken? I thought there was a Harolds in Uptown not too long ago. I vaguely recall something about some U of Chicago grads opening it.

I know that back in the early 80s, a Harold's opened on Sheridan just around the corner from this new one. As I recall, it was not one of the better Harold's, but it had a great animated neon sign of the Chicken King chasing down a chicken with an axe.

Was it that long ago? I seem to remember the Chicago Reader making a big deal about a Harolds opening in Uptown but this woulda been late 90's early 2000's. The big deal had to do with the fact that the owners were very young, very educated, and very white.

Must have been a different place, that does not fit the description of the guys that ran the Harold's I am thinking of. I am sure of the dates, I lived up the street from there, and can even remember seeing the infamous Chicken Car parked in front.

It's not a genuine Harold's if it doesn't have a bullet proof barrier under which the food is passed, like the Harold's on 53rd in Hyde Park...

pnking wrote:It's not a genuine Harold's if it doesn't have a bullet proof barrier under which the food is passed, like the Harold's on 53rd in Hyde Park...

I stuck my nose inside the Harolds underneath the 55th street green line stop and noticed they offer tilapia.

Yes there used to be a Harold's in Uptown, it was right at the corner of Wilson and Sheridan where the pollo loco is now. It was amazing, but it got robbed all the time and eventually closed. I am super pumped about this opening up, I won't have to keep stopping at the one in Roger's Park on my ride home from work.

Just in case you were wondering, this place is legit. The chicken is what you would expect from a Harold's, as is the wait time, so call in your order ahead. Okra!

I ate the perch and okra today - yup, legit, even without bullet proof glass. The cashier and cook are downright friendly, too.

Last night had a bucket of chicken for a group of folks at Harolds Uptown location: 1132 W Wilson Ave
Chicago, IL 60648.

Chicken was well worth it.

A big bummer was there they were out of biscuits, potato salad, chicken livers, and this was at 6pm, very disappointing.

They forgot to pack the four orders of okra we ordered.

We tried the cream corn nuggets, some had jalapeno bits in them, others did not. Both kinds were not good, no flavor, stay clear of these.

Upon leaving we realized we needed some paper boats for the group, Nita wanted to charge us 55 cents per boat (we needed 10 of them). I just ordered $60 worth of food, tried to order more (but they were out), then they want to charge us for paper boats!!??, big bullshirt move in my opinon.

Per Facebook post, Harold's Chicken has opened up at the Shops at North Bridge (520 N Michigan Ave) 4th floor food court as of 2/5. They also got a business license issued recently to open at 3933 N Broadway, just south of Irving Park Rd.

marothisu wrote:Per Facebook post, Harold's Chicken has opened up at the Shops at North Bridge (520 N Michigan Ave) 4th floor food court as of 2/5.

Will this location still have the rotating plexiglass bullet proof window?
I used to be a regular customer of the Harold's on 53rd St....

Giovanna wrote:

marothisu wrote:Per Facebook post, Harold's Chicken has opened up at the Shops at North Bridge (520 N Michigan Ave) 4th floor food court as of 2/5.

Will this location still have the rotating plexiglass bullet proof window?
I used to be a regular customer of the Harold's on 53rd St....

For nostalgia sake, that would be hilarious but it would probably scare all of the tourists and also transplants for the upcoming one in Lakeview.

I really hope they can keep this new location open. I love Harold's and always frequently supported all their previous Northside locations (Wilson + Sheridan, Roger's Park, Wilson Redline) but they always end up closing. 5 dollar lunch special is the real deal.

marothisu wrote:Per Facebook post, Harold's Chicken has opened up at the Shops at North Bridge (520 N Michigan Ave) 4th floor food court as of 2/5. They also got a business license issued recently to open at 3933 N Broadway, just south of Irving Park Rd.

I have also updated my new retail food business license issuances map through 2/7.

Possible "Location of the Damned" candidate? I eat at Windy City Gyros across Broadway 3 or 4 times a month. That corner was 2 other chicken places in the last year. It was Quizno's for a good stretch in the early 00's, probably a couple other things along the way.

That 3933 N Broadway location seems to have a revolving door of fast food. At one point a few years ago, there was a halal fried chicken place named Special Kudo in that location which was some of the best fried chicken I found in the area. It only lasted about 5 months or so.

Giovanna wrote: Will this location still have the rotating plexiglass bullet proof window?
I used to be a regular customer of the Harold's on 53rd St....

Heh heh heh heh.
The last Harold's I visited was on S. Halsted in Homewood, IL. when visiting Rabid Brwg.{recommended} - because LTHF GNR Uncle John's BBQ was out of meat when I called ; it did not have the rotating plexiglass bullet proof window.
What it did have was a spectacular Wednesday special of ½ dark chicken, fries, and bread for $6.00.
I saw one northbound Pace route #352 bus roll by while waiting for my order to complete. Since it was on a 30-minute headway, I took Harold's bag and walked to the bus stop for the next one. Yes, I began eating while waiting for the next #352. This also led to a peculiar sight at the Red Line “L” 95th St. terminus. I couldn't finish eating in the span before that bus arrived, and I was not going to postpone eating any further for the subsequent “L” rides, so there I was noshing away inside the unpaid area of the station.
Anyhow, it had been a long time since I had bone-in-chicken. This was really good, especially considering I had wanted to eat the BBQ while drinking Rabid's beers, but because of the lack of meat at Uncle John's, had not eaten anything for a considerable number of hours.
I recommend visiting and enjoying Rabid Brwg.'s beers & atmosphere. I would visit more often if it did not take 135 minutes via transit from the abode. Your brought-in food options should be ① Uncle John's, or ② Harold's Homewood.