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[Coconutt]

As a kid I remember KFC was top tier fast food, it was so good South Park even made an episode comparing its gravy and chicken skin to a drug. I remember always being excited for KFC and I know its not just nostalgia speaking they definitely fucked with the recipe or where they get their chickens from. The most important component to their business is their chicken and the last couple of times I have tried them I wasn't 100% I was actually eating chicken meat.

Is this a case of some locations in the US having better KFCs than others or is it just bad all around? When do you think everything went downhill personally a part of me died when they got rid of the grilled chicken legit preferred it over the fried chicken.

 

[I collect VHS tapes]

I remember KFC being better too but idk if its just nostalgia. nowadays Popeyes is much better. Churchs is worse but has better biscuits.

when it comes to big fried chicken chains, my personal favorite is Jollibee, which is a filipino chain.

 

[San Dan Glokta]

Not a direct answer but I've been all over the world having tried fried chicken in dozens of places. 90% of the time the local stuff has always been better (and cheaper). I think that although KFC has definitely gone down in quality over the years it wasn't that good in the first place.

My experience comes from 2013 and on so take that as you will.

 

[bitbydeath]

It’s still good in Australia

 

[Durien]

It's awesome in Japan. It is ok where I am at in Wa state.

 

[newtypepilot]

they just don't give a fuck about the US market. KFCs in Asia are actually good and have a variety of items, like shrimp burger, mushroom rice, and portugese style tarts.

 

[The Lunch Legend]

I remember their double down sandwiches being good.

 

[Rentahamster]

Less dedication to quality, more dedication to cutting corners and boosting profit at the expense of brand value because a lot of Americans just don't care and will eat any kind of slop. It's also why KFC and many other American fast food restaurants taste better in Europe and Asia than in America, ironically.

 

[Illiterate Actual]

My local KFC is also a Taco Bell so it never really had a chance. They employee total degenerates, the place is gross. Wouldn't even think to try this particular KFC. Back when it was still Kentucky Fried Chicken I remember it being pretty tasty, but also a completely different location. Was kind of hoping that normal KFC was still decent.

Popeye's is somehow pretty tasty despite also having pretty low-quality employees. But you do have to wait forever. I'll go to Chick-Fil-A or Raising Cane's given my druthers.

El Pollo Loco ain't bad.

 

[Bumblebeetuna]

The same thing that happened to Taco Bell and Pizza Hut, they are all owned by Yum Brands and in the US, have all gone way downhill. They were owned by Pepsi, but in the late 90’s Pepsi spun it off into something else which later became Yum.

I think the chicken is still pretty good, and the sandwiches are nice. But the only good chicken there is the original recipe, and even that pales in comparison to Popeyes. Also the downfall only really applies to the US, apparently the chains are all still pretty great in other markets.

But if you have a Korean fried chicken place near you, check that out.

Go into a Pizza Hut though, it’s jarring. You go into a Dominos or Papa John’s and there are at least five people there working and looking clean and happy. You go into any Pizza Hut and there may be two people working and both look like they are high on drugs. I don’t know when it happened but it was like one day PH was fine the next it was taken over by zombies. I worked there in college and it’s bizarre.

 

[Mohonky]

It’s still good in Australia

Yeh I like KFC here; but there's not much reference as it seems in America there are a lot of places that do fried chicken, here it's pretty much just KFC.

Do love a Zinger stack and hot n spicy chicken tho

 

[Lord Panda]

It’s still good in Australia

You must live in one of the states where KFC Hot and Spicy is the norm.

Anyway, fast food in Australia is overpriced trash but I do make an exception for KFC Hot and Spicy. But it only hits the ACT once a year seemingly at random, and there have been years where it's come and gone and I've been oblivious

 

[BlackTron]

Not a direct answer but I've been all over the world having tried fried chicken in dozens of places. 90% of the time the local stuff has always been better (and cheaper). I think that although KFC has definitely gone down in quality over the years it wasn't that good in the first place.

My experience comes from 2013 and on so take that as you will.

In 2013 I already thought it went downhill. It's not just nostalgia, 90s KFC was worth making an episode about. Back on AOL people brought up how good it was, now everyone asks what happened. Not a coincidence.

Now I can go whenever I want! Have one five minutes away as closest drive thru. Stop twice a year because a promo baited me into a tepid nostalgia hit. It's kind of like a shitty remake being the only surviving version of a great game so you fire it up for a rare session and try not to be too grossed out by the changes you already knew about.

 

[drganon]

Haven't been to a KFC in over 10 years. Last time I went the experience wasn't great, in particular the food wasn't hot.

 

[ShirAhava]

KFC was amazing when the sign looked like this.

PepsiCo selling KFC to Tricon (Yum) in 1997 is when quality started to decline
2007 was the last decent year of KFC its been awful ever since.

 

[user friendly]

In Canada the thigh is cut in half and served as 2 separate pieces. Been that way for about a decade now. I don't think most people even notice though.

 

[DragonsBen]

KFC is dreadful in the UK now also. The prices are insane considering you then receive the tiniest greasy morsel of what apparently is chicken. Quality control seems to have gone out the window and I always walk out of there feeling ripped off.

 

[Hookshot]

In the UK KFC always had the worst chips, they were nasty tasteless soggy things so I’d never really bother with it over the smaller regional chicken chain that had some locations where I lived.

 

[Bitmap Frogs]

trans fats taste better... ever since they switched to healthier frying medium the flavour took a nosedive

on the other hand, trans fats give you heart attacks... so tasty chicken or heart attack?

 

[segasonic]

Germany dialing in. KFC has been shit for as long as I can remember (the 90s). It‘s absurdly overpriced, the restaurants are disgustingly filthy and the costumers are mostly younger immigrants or other low-income people which is strange considering the prices. German families would never go to KFC over McDonald‘s.

 

[StabbyStabStabStabStab]

It’s still good in Australia

You guys are weird over there. I remember ordering a meal of chicken with chips and mash n' gravy, so I asked my aussie GF at the time why I would need 2 potato dishes with my chicken tits and she suggested I needed to dip my chips in the mash and gravy - absolute instanity. I guess its still better than Red Rooter :<

 

[bitbydeath]

You guys are weird over there. I remember ordering a meal of chicken with chips and mash n' gravy, so I asked my aussie GF at the time why I would need 2 potato dishes with my chicken tits and she suggested I needed to dip my chips in the mash and gravy - absolute instanity. I guess its still better than Red Rooter :<

Did you not try it?
Delicious!

 

[Mohonky]

You must live in one of the states where KFC Hot and Spicy is the norm.

Anyway, fast food in Australia is overpriced trash but I do make an exception for KFC Hot and Spicy. But it only hits the ACT once a year seemingly at random, and there have been years where it's come and gone and I've been oblivious

Wait. What? Hot n Spicy isn't part of the normal menu in ACT? Seriously?

 

[Punished Miku]

Slim Chickens is better if you must have some fried chicken. Korean BBQ sauce.

Only good thing KFC ever had was the biscuits. Walking in the restaurant was always gross as you could feel the grease on the floor out in the lobby. It was in air. It was on everything. No one wants to go anywhere with "fried" in the name, so they have to abbreviate it. No one likes the obnoxious old looking logo and stripes. No one likes the stupid mascot.

 

[Great Auk]

It's shockingly easy to make fried chicken that tastes as good as the restaurant at home. I didn't believe it myself until I tried it. I bought a box of Kentucky Kernel seasoned flour on Amazon. I dipped the chicken in water, dredged it in the flour, and fried it in oil until golden brown. Nothing fancy, just oil in a pot on the stovetop. It tastes EXACTLY like the good ol' days of KFC.

Mind you I tried the gluten free version of the flour since my kid has Celiac and there was basically no taste or texture difference, absolutely delicious.

 

[The ninja farmer]

KFC is dreadful in the UK now also. The prices are insane considering you then receive the tiniest greasy morsel of what apparently is chicken. Quality control seems to have gone out the window and I always walk out of there feeling ripped off.

Was always a hot wings, corn and gravy man

Back a few years ago it was a fine feed, or great treat to have

Don’t go so much now. Last time it was like dipping fried chicken bones in a pot of stodgy brown, almost liquid. The corn. Well they must be growing them smaller these days

Shame. But they can’t even use a low cost, low quality excuse

Out my way the drive through is usually always in use. But you rarely see more than a couple of people eating in. Would also think local chicken places must be able to deliver a better option

 

[StabbyStabStabStabStab]

Did you not try it?
Delicious!

Oh yes of course (when in Rome etc.). It was a slightly peculiar experience consuming a chip coated in mash, although the gravy wasn't bad I must say (quite flavoursome in fact for what is just a cheap stock type affair). In the UK we're typically served a side of barbeque beans for chip dippin' instead which I found oddly absent from Austaslian KFC menus (although I realise you're not particularly big bean heads like the brits are so that's understandable). I just put it down as one of Australia's quirks, like your penchant for putting beetroot in burgers.

 

[AJUMP23]

The Colonel died and people that don't care as much about quality take over.

I have a KFC with a buffet in my neighborhood.

 

[Spyxos]

It is still pretty good in germany, but we also don’t really have alternatives.

 

[PrimetimeKnight]

I like KFC pretty well still and frequent it somewhat often. When I hear comments like "it's not as good as it used to be" I sometimes have to roll my eyes because I don't think its always true. I've heard people say the same thing about McDonald's fries and I still think they are great. I don't have a lot of other options for fried chicken near me other than Popeyes but I actually prefer KFC original to Popeye's regular or spicy. Popeye's regular has 0 flavor and their spicy is ok but its still just bland breading with some spice, no other seasonings.

 

[Paltheos]

No clue when it went downhill. I tried it once in the '90s and absolutely loved it. Years later (decade+?) I tried it again and it was absolute garbage. I think I've had it one other time since then and the experience did nothing to improve my evaluation.

Now you'd have a tough time getting me back to a KFC. There's so much chicken competition out there. Just within a few miles of me, there's Chick-Fil-A, Popeye's, PDQ, and a local joint, all of which have proven track records with fried chicken and their sides. Why should I give KFC another chance?

 

[RJMacready73]

big fan here but it's gotten too expensive, would rather order a big indian platter for the same price, besides dont you yanks bleech your chickens ffs

 

[DeafTourette]

It still tastes good where I am now in MS. Had some last month and tastes as good as I remember as a child 40 years ago.

Anyone who says they prefer Raising Cane's must be on crack. Their chicken is bland and high-key boring.

 

[Azzurri]

The problem is in the US there is no quality control from one franchise to the next.

It's not like that in different countries. That's why in Canada and a lot of Asian countries it's still pretty damn good.

 

[Audiophile]

Kentucky Fried Sparrow

 

[Chuck Berry]

Gotta go with Popeyes or Chik Fil A. I always feel dirty and need to take a nap for 16 hours after I eat KFC.

 

[violence]

I forgot what documentary I saw, but apparently after the Colonel sold, he complained about kfc going downhill while he was still alive. So it’s only worse now.

 

[kevboard]

KFC here in germany is pretty decent

not crazy amazing or anything, but it's good quality meat and the prices aren't too bad.

 

[StabbyStabStabStabStab]

KFC here in germany is pretty decent

not crazy amazing or anything, but it's good quality meat and the prices aren't too bad.

That's not something people generally associate with KFC - grey and watery is generally what get over here.

 

[Robot Carnival]

over simplified version is that the KFC corporate now no longer actually operates their own stores and don't have much motivation to push it in terms of quality and innovation. oversea stores run by local franchise can at least dictate how they want to promote the brand there and make the kind of changes that can reflect the local tastes. but the US franchise partners are kinda at the mercy of the US corporate and they can't do much innovation even if they want to.


go to 7:50 for the main body of the video

 

[Smiggs]

The Colonel died and people that don't care as much about quality take over.

I have a KFC with a buffet in my neighborhood.

Shit, I haven't seen one of those in years. I'll be over for a visit soon.

 

[jason10mm]

Who expects a place like this to make good fried chicken? Or tacos. Or pizza?

KFC, like Pizza Hutt and ESPECIALLY Taco Bell (I've worked one) were ALWAYS trash tier places, but they were often the ONLY real option, at least where I grew up.

But now, decades later, the choices for all three of these food style (if you can even call the stuff Taco Bell serves a 'style') have innumerable far superior options, both franchises and actual real locally owned and operated joints.

If I had to go get franchise fried chicken, it's Bojangles as #1, then Popeyes, then maybe churches. But really, I'd just get chick-fil-la and call it a day. Zaxby's if desperate.

Wouldn't step into a Pizza Hutt or Taco Bell even to rob the place. Where I live I'm blessed with an abundance of taco type places and now there are so many pizza joints its ridiculous.

 

[Great Auk]

I remember KFC being better too but idk if its just nostalgia. nowadays Popeyes is much better. Churchs is worse but has better biscuits.

when it comes to big fried chicken chains, my personal favorite is Jollibee, which is a filipino chain.

The spicy chicken sandwich at Jollibees is incredible. And the piece of chicken they give you is massive.

 

[Rival]

The last time I had KFC was in 2020 which incidentally is the last time I will ever have KFC. It was terrible.

 

[Dacvak]

Popeyes tastes better but consistently gives me minor food poisoning. It might just be my local store, though.

I do miss the golden age of KFC. They’ve gone way downhill.

At least Taco Bell is still pretty much the same (only 3x more expensive )

 

[Days like these...]

Popeyes is so much better. Throw in the red beans and rice and seasoned fries it's no contest. I'd take Popeyes over Jesus chicken too. It's vastly overrated and even if it were that good which it's not I won't wait in those long lines.

 

[Aesius]

Once a chain restaurant starts down the path of decreasing quality/ingredients to boost short-term profits, there's no going back. It's just a race to the bottom at that point because no executive/CEO wants to be the one on the chopping block for hurting said profits, even temporarily, while trying to boost the restaurant's reputation among customers.

I think the only restaurant that tried that and sort of succeeded is Domino's. Their pizza was trash-tier for years and then they actually made it decent, which I assume involved a lot of expense. I haven't had it in years so no idea if that actually lasted but at least they tried. Most brands just coast on shit-tier food for decades knowing there are enough undiscerning slobs out there who will gobble it up.

 

[MaestroMike]

 

[intbal]

Coincidental timing with this thread.

I had KFC yesterday for the first time in maybe twenty years.
I'm confident it was the worst chicken I've ever had in my life.

 

[OmegaSupreme]

That's funny. I was talking about exactly this to a coworker not long ago. Not only has the taste gone down but it got expensive. Even more than inflation would account for. Their biscuits have definitely gone down hill. I'll still get them maybe once every couple of months but it's not like it used to be