Could Zaxby's be dethroned?

Eden Hodges

Statesboro loves their chicken.  It’s the birthplace of Zaxby’s, opened in 1990, one of the fastest growing businesses from the city, spreading across the southeast.

34 years in, there’s a bit more competition. There are over a dozen quick-serve chicken restaurants sit in the city, so I wanted to re-establish a pecking order.

I did my research and found two of the newest built chicken places were almost identical to the staple we already have so I headed off, first to the staple.

Then I did the same thing at Huey Magoo’s and Slim Chickens, both of which opened up in the past few months. It seems they offer more variety than Zaxby’s in how you want your chicken, offering to hand-bread them, toss them in sauce or have them grilled.

I stuck with what we know it’s all about, fried chicken tenders and fries, with each restaurant’s signature sauce.

After about 30 minutes round trip, chickens were finally wrangled. All of these places were within just a few miles of each other.

Then, I called on my three worthy volunteers. They’re self-proclaimed ‘chicken connoisseurs’. I tried keeping things anonymous with the plating, but they saw right through me.

Starting with fries scaled to 10, Zaxby’s and slim tied with a solid 7… but I did order the Zaxby’s first, and I’ve never known a crinkle cut to truly stand the test of time.

Huey’s came in last, and they came in last on house sauce. My judges noted Slim’s had a uniquely robust black pepper flavor that was polarizing.

Finally, after I’ve starved my friends for long enough, time for tenders, love and care.

Out of 30, boasting the filet mignon of chicken, Huey Magoo’s came in last with 22 points. Judges saying plainly, ‘no one likes a dry tender.’

Then, at a surprising one-point difference, the chief chicken chain Zaxby’s – defeated?

Naturally - the judges found this stirring, demanding a recount. The accounting major of our group checked my work. Turns out - I’m bad at math.

Slim Chickens rides a close second 25 to 27. In our non-scientific consensus, Zaxby’s can keep its throne.

In the receipts, Slim Chickens appears to be the most expensive – but Huey Magoo’s doesn’t offer any meal with a drink. By adding a cool 2.69 on top of that total, Zaxby’s was the cheapest, then Slims, then Huey's.

Statesboro is a town that loves tradition, so it’s possible my judges were biased. Maybe it’s more comfortable to believe that Zaxby’s is the best, but the only way for you to truly know is trying it for yourself.