One of the biggest parts of traveling has always been and will always be the food you eat along the way. Pizza in New York City, cheesesteaks in Philadelphia, pork roll in New Jersey, BBQ in Kansas City, chili in Cincinnati – I could go on and on.
Somewhere along the way, hot chicken became one of the two biggest staples of Nashville cuisine. I’m not really sure how – it seems pretty simple. Add a ton of spices to fried chicken. It’s not that revolutionary.
To some, it isn’t even enjoyable. It’s just blazingly hot, and you eat it simply to say you ate it. Personally, I’m a fan. I enjoy spicy things. That isn’t the case for everyone, though.
The weirdest part of this hot chicken craze is that it seems to have just popped up overnight. I’m 30 years old, have been a Nashville native for my entire life, and only recently have I noticed hot chicken becoming apart of the fabric of Nashville.
After a brief conversation with avid reader Woody in Memphis, I’ve decided to explore how this came to be.
That’s what we do at The SoBros Network – we give the people what they want. Woody demands answers. So, guess what – we’re going to find him some damn answers.
His exact question was, “who in the hell decided the signature Nashville dish would be hot chicken?”
Before I could figure that out, I wanted to see when history tells us the dish came to Nashville…because in my mind, it’s like…….2012 at the earliest.
I quickly stumbled upon an article that told the full story. Folks, you’ll find nothing more comprehensive than this amazing piece by Rachel L. Martin, Ph.D. for The Bitter Southerner.
“For almost 70 years, hot chicken was made and sold primarily in Nashville’s black neighborhoods.”
70 years?!?! WTF?! I was off a considerable bit with my prediction of 2012. The story of how hot chicken was born in Nashville is amazing, and borderline unbelievable, but hey – we’re in the South. Storytelling is just as much a part of life as breathing is. So, I’ll stick with it.
Okay, so Prince’s Chicken materialized a long, long time ago and led hot chicken to having a huge underground following. I get that.
That doesn’t answer Woody’s question. When did this food become Nashville’s gift to the culinary world? Who made that call?
Because it sure as hell wasn’t Woody.
“The craze for hot chicken started in 2007 with the first Hot Chicken Festival. Mayor (Bill) Purcell was stepping down after two terms. He still went to Prince’s regularly, referring to it as his second office. He urged his friends and colleagues to try hot chicken, though when he brought new customers to the restaurant, he would pull Jeffries aside. “He’ll tell us to give it to them hot, don’t give it to them mild. You don’t know if he’s their worst enemy or what!”
“Hot chicken is truly our indigenous food,” he (Purcell) explains. “It seemed a way to convene the city around something special to us, worth celebrating but also allowed everybody to participate.”
He founded a festival committee, and they decided to put the festivities in East Park, which is near the entrance to East Nashville. This meant it was close to downtown, but it wouldn’t be swallowed up by other events happening in the city.”
The next time you’re enjoying your Prince’s, Hattie B’s, Pepperfire, Party Foul, or Acme Feed & Seed (super underrated Nashville hot chicken here), you can thank Mayor Purcell. Or, if you’re aghast at the idea of hot chicken being Nashville’s food, you can find Mayor Purcell and tell him what jerk he is for making us look like idiots who would rather burn our mouths out than enjoy our food. Your call.
So, there you have it, Woody in Memphis, Bill Purcell is who the fuck decided hot chicken was the signature dish of Nashville.
Stoney Keeley is the editor of the SoBros Network, Tennessee Titans Featured Analyst for Pro Football Spot, and covers the WWE for WrestlingNews.co. Follow on Twitter @StoneyKeeley,@PFSpot, @WrestlingNewsCo
Follow us on Twitter @SoBrosNetwork
