Food is the real deal
Fish is one of the dishes served at Heavy Chicken and Coffee in Makindye. Photo / A. Kadumukasa Kironde II.
What you need to know:
- Heavy Chicken. A joint that prepares chicken in all forms, among other dishes, writes A Kadumukasa Kironde.
Fred Sentanda is the founder and owner of Heavy Chicken & Coffee which he opened in the middle of the Covid-19 era. Luckily for the young man, during those times of the pandemic, rentals for commercial space were relatively inexpensive due to the alarming then prevailing market situation brought about by the scourge. During those difficult times, many businesses had gone bust and since nature abhors a vacuum, he was fortunate to come across his current premises which formerly housed a liquor store. Needless to say the rent is reasonable and affordable.
Fred is enterprising and dabbles in the selling of retail frozen dressed chickens, he is also involved with radio and uses social media to the hilt. His presence on Facebook along with his status on WhatsApp is always there to ensure that people know about his joint and related activities. Without a doubt, this strategy has paid tremendous dividends and from its inception he has gained a loyal following.
Specialty
The joint is where the specialty is chicken, prepared in many ways. To wit, the very popular heavy chicken basket which comes with eight pieces, chips, a salad plus a free soda and clocks in at Shs34,000 and with the exception of whole chicken at Shs 36,000, which is among the dearest items available.
They also have other types of chicken such as chicken lollipop and the so called lusaniya for two which is Shs 28,000 or the same item for four at Shs55,000. There are also pizzas and whole fried fish available but all in all it is the chicken which is the real deal. Speaking of chicken, fried chicken at these joints is the rule than the exception.
However, Heavy Chicken & Coffee offers grilled chicken as well as fried though one would have to wait a little longer for the latter. The quality of the food is par for the course with good service and above all a spotless environment.
Our order and verdict
We ordered for whole deep fried fish and a quarter grilled chicken both served with pilao. The former was of reasonable size and nicely deep fried while my only complaint regarding the latter was the fact that instead of the chicken being a whole quarter piece as advertised, we were served two pieces. The solution would have been for the waitress to explain to us that for whatever reason, the whole quarter piece was unavailable and would we mind being served two pieces instead. Thus, the problem is nipped in the bud.
Heavy Chicken and Coffee is barely the size of a postage stamp, but still able to cater for small birthday parties for a couple of dozen invitees.
The size of the place is really not of much import since there is a significant amount of take away orders.
The deal…
Our rating: Worth a Visit
Place: Heavy Chicken & Coffee
Location: Opposite Calendar Hotel, Makindye
The space: Small but nicely laid out and spotless
The crowd: Locals from within the neighbourhood
The bar: Juice and soda
The type of food: Deep fried and grilled chicken, whole deep fried fish, pizzas, burgers, chips, and pilao.
The bill: A couple can get by with Shs30,000 including a drink
Parking: Limited but available
If you go: Daily and open until late
RATINGS:
Not to be missed, worth a visit, OK/so so, don’t waste your time.
These ratings are purely the reviewer’s personal reaction to food, ambience and service with price being factored into consideration. The menu listings and prices are subject to change without notice.
