One of the places on our Fayetteville Bucket List is the Monte Ne Inn Chicken, located east of Rogers at the corner of Monte Ne Road and Highway 94. And I can say that it is one of the things you need to add to your Northwest Arkansas bucket list. 

It’s some of the best homestyle fried chicken I’ve ever had. Seriously, AQ Chicken House, the perennial Fayetteville favorite, doesn’t even hold a candle to Monte Ne Inn Chicken. It’s good enough that I am indeed writing about it on the most popular start of diet day of the year. 

Despite the bizarre name and the proximity to the grand (and now underwater) Monte Ne Resort, their family style service and menu is decidedly simple. Enter into the restaurant, whose the walls are peppered with chicken and northwest Arkansas paraphernalia, and it’s like going to grandma’s for Sunday supper, complete with grandma-esque decor. You sit at large tables and waitresses bring tons of food. There’s no messing with ordering more than what you’d like to drink. Just like at grandma’s.

The meal starts with a large crock full of a delicious soup. What’s in it exactly, I’m not sure. I got whiffs of potatoes, chicken, and love. I’ve been dreaming about it lately. It breaks my heart they’re closed the whole month of January.

After you’ve eaten as much soup as you can handle, because it is so scrumptious you can’t stop, they bring out the main show. Bowls of corn, mashed potatoes, white gravy, green beans, coleslaw (not pictured), apple butter, and, of course, fried chicken, take up any remaining space on the table. Family style at its best.

Add in some gargantuan cuts of homemade bread, and you’ve got yourself a meal that rivals the best. Of course, grandma’s is still better, right? Right?! As you can see, my chicken didn’t hardly make it to it’s blog debut. Or the three other drumsticks that went with it.

And just like at grandma’s, the waitresses ask you if you’d like more, even maybe adding in a tisk if you say you’re stuffed. But if you’re feeling really adventurous, like I was, you can cram in some warm chocolate cake, covered in hot chocolate sauce and doused with cold vanilla ice cream.

Will I be going back? Yes. Again and again! And if you’re visiting the South and want some real southern cooking, this is certainly a place you must go. This fried chicken is so good that I’m sure it could convert even a vegetarian.