The Cowl

by Andrew Auclair ’29 on December 11, 2025

Over by Brown University, right off of Thayer Street, a new hot chicken spot has opened up, adding a new flair to the already food-packed lineup. Birdies Hot Chicken is a small chain restaurant with a menu adjacent to the world-famous hot chicken joint, Dave’s Hot Chicken, but brings it closer to home in Providence, RI. Its other locations are in Brockton, New Bedford, Boston, and Westwood, MA, with our local installation opening this past October. I found out about this new food spot while I was downtown getting a much overdue haircut at The Barbershop on College Hill. I knew there were a lot of great spots to eat around Brown, and my dad was texting me about this new chicken spot. I sat down in the barber chair and made some small talk with the barber, and when I asked about Birdies, he seemed very enthusiastically in favor of it. He told me I should order the two chicken sliders with fries, and that if I could handle spice, order it spicy. At that point, I was dead-set on where I was going to get dinner that night.

I walked in, and the vibes were great, with art on the walls, friendly employees, lots of places to sit, and spotless tabletops. Regardless of whether I can actually handle spice, I certainly enjoy it, so I ordered exactly what my barber had advised: two spicy chicken sliders with fries (plus a bottle of water, of course). The service was fast, and even though the restaurant has counter-style ordering, the worker brought my order right to my table and cheerily said to enjoy my meal. The presentation was amazing, and the portion was honestly huge. For what I ordered, it was only about $17.50, but it was plenty of food. 

The chicken itself was super fresh and cooked to perfection. Sometimes, with fried food, my stomach gets upset if the oil is too old or the food is overcooked, but I had no problem with this meal whatsoever. The pickles and slaw that came on the sliders added the perfect amount of sweetness to the extremely savory and spicy chicken. Thank God I ordered that water, because this chicken had a real kick. The potato bun was sweet enough, but also soaked up the spice from the chicken perfectly, making every bite truly delicious. The fries were pretty alright; with so much food on the plate already, by the time I got to the fries, I wasn’t able to finish them, but they seemed to be cooked pretty well. On the side was a small cup of their house sauce, which I believe is what they drizzled on top of the chicken sliders. It was pretty good, almost like Raising Cane’s “Cane’s Sauce.” About halfway through my meal, a completely separate worker came over to every single table and asked the customers how they were enjoying their meals. This is just one example of the great customer service they exhibited, despite being a counter-service restaurant.

In the Thayer Street area, there is plenty of competition for the best spot in town. Birdies held their own and is a very strong contender for the title. Overall, Birdies Hot Chicken was a great experience, and if you’re in the mood for some amazing hot chicken but don’t want to take the train all the way to Boston, then Birdies on 183 Angell St., Providence, RI, has you covered.