We asked readers where you can get the best chicken in the Green Bay area. Here are the top three choices.

GREEN BAY - Local options for chicken dishes are plentiful, though much of the news lately has focused on high-profile chains. 

Popeyes Louisiana Chicken opened in Green Bay last October and plans to open a second location in December. Chick-fil-A recently broke ground on its first location in the area, outside Bay Park Square Mall. Finally, Mad Chicken opened two locations, one in the mall in 2020 and another this summer in downtown Green Bay. 

But what if fast-food chicken isn't what you're looking for? 

In an informal survey, the Green Bay Press-Gazette asked readers which locally-owned restaurants they go to for chicken. 

From the responses, these three restaurants are the area's stand outs:

Redwood Inn

John Smits was 10 years old when he started making chicken. Now in his 50s, Smits owns the Redwood Inn, but that doesn't mean he doesn't make chicken anymore. 

"It would be 47 years ago that I started roasting chicken," Smits said. "You can count on the chicken being good because there's always the same person cooking it." 

That same person is Smits. He spends his time in the kitchen making sure the food, especially the chicken, is consistent — and delicious. 

"It's the best broasted chicken in the area," said a reader. "Taste bud perfection."

Redwood, 3220 Main St. in Bellevue, sells roughly 17,000 pounds of chicken weekly, and the restaurant's success doesn't only show in sales. Redwood also was the Green Bay Press Gazette's Best of the Bay winner for fried chicken. 

Smits said the chicken is hand marinated which is part of what sets it apart. But mostly, he said, what makes their chicken so great is the time and care he and his employees put into each meal.  

"You have to care about what you're doing," Smits said. "You have to have heart and put soul into your building, your customers, everything. You have to care about everything." 

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Suster's Arcade 

Suster's Arcade, 117 N. Wall St. in Denmark, sells between 1,500 and 2,000 pounds of chicken each week, so it's no surprise that their chicken is popular.

"Suster's knows chicken," a reader said in a survey response. "You should know Suster's."

When Suster's opened in 1909, it wasn't known for serving chicken, but rather for serving drinks. From its early days as a tavern, Suster's went through several evolutions before becoming a destination for Broasted chicken.

When owning a tavern was no longer legal because of prohibition, the business was converted to an arcade. When prohibition lifted, Suster's began serving alcohol again. In 1939 they added bowling lanes (which were removed in 2013) and in the 60's they added Broasters, which led to the chicken and fish recipes customers love today. 

"We've been doing it a long time," said Jason Baugnet, the owner of Suster's. 

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Van Abel's

If you're up for a short drive, you can make your way south to Hollandtown, in the far southeast corner of Brown County, to eat at Van Abel's, 8108 County D, for their family-style Broasted chicken. 

Van Abel's began broasting chicken in 1965, but the restaurant has been open much longer, inviting customers through their doors from as early as 1848. 

Chris Coenen, the general manager, said their chicken is popular because they hand marinate their chicken in small batches. 

“We do it all on site, in small batches," Coenen said. "We have our own recipe for our coating. It gets a lot of love and care, I would say, compared to a lot of places.”

According to Press-Gazette survey responses, the trimmings are just as good as the chicken. 

"Not only is the chicken the best either Broasted or roasted but the traditional sides can't be found anywhere else but Van Abel's," one person said. 

While the three most popular chicken restaurants for the Press-Gazette's informal survey have different hometowns and histories, all three were praised for their consistency and family-friendly atmospheres.

Honorable mentions for the best locally-owned chicken restaurants, those that received multiple mentions in the survey, include: Home Town Café on West Mason Street in Green Bay, Kroll's East on Main Street in Green Bay and The Ravine Pub on Manitowoc Road in Bellevue.

Alexandria Bursiek Kloehn is a business reporter for the Green Bay Press-Gazette. You can reach her at abursiekkloehn@gannett.com or view her Twitter profile at @bursiekkloehn.