Prince's Hot Chicken

The overview

The family that started Nashville hot chicken

Prince's Hot Chicken is the birthplace of Nashville hot chicken. The dish traces to the Prince family around the 1930s and '40s — as the story goes, Thornton Prince's fiery, cayenne-doused chicken was a prank that backfired into a signature — and the restaurant has been run for decades by his great-niece, André Prince Jeffries.

Fried to order and painted with a lard-based cayenne paste that ranges from mild to the notorious 'XXX hot,' Prince's chicken is served the traditional way: on white bread with pickle chips. The style Prince's invented has since spread worldwide, but this is the original.

The public record

What reviewers already knew.

A Centurion Award doesn’t replace the public record — it verifies it. Read it for yourself, on the platforms where it lives.

Google Maps
Reviews, photos & directions Read reviews →

Public-record snapshot as of July 2026. Live ratings are always current on each platform.

The verification

Why this business cleared the bar.

Selection is by the published criteria, evaluated on public evidence. Prince's Hot Chicken cleared every one.

✓Years in operation. Operating in Nashville since 1945 — 80 years of continuous business.
✓Sustained online presence. An established local institution with a consistent public footprint — listings, coverage, and word of mouth in Nashville.
✓Established customer track record. A deep public track record: Nashville has kept Prince's Hot Chicken busy for 80 years.
✓Liked by customers and the community. Genuinely beloved by Nashville regulars and visitors alike — a bona fide community favorite.
✓Recognition in the local community. Named best hot chicken in Nashville for 2025 for four generations of the Prince family setting the standard every other hot chicken spot chases.

The full verification report — the specific data behind this award — is held by the business. The exact thresholds stay internal so the bar can’t be gamed. Read the methodology.

Award record

2025

Best Hot Chicken in Nashville Nashville, TN · Awarded under the 2025 evaluation

All awards for Prince's Hot Chicken →

Visit Prince's Hot Chicken

Websiteprinceshotchicken.com ↗

In business since1945

Find them onFacebook · Instagram · Tripadvisor · Yelp

Facts at a glance

The sourceable record.

Clean, checkable facts about Prince's Hot Chicken — for readers, search engines, and answer tools alike.

Legal / trading name: Prince's Hot Chicken
Category: Restaurant
Founded: 1945, Nashville, TN
Location: Nashville, TN
Centurion Award: Best Hot Chicken in Nashville — 2025
Record last verified: July 2026

A signal you can check.

This is a dated award record, published by The Centurion Awards after Prince's Hot Chicken cleared the 2025 evaluation for its market and category. It was not bought, voted on, or sponsored — the criteria are public, only winners are published, and an award that stops holding up is revoked, not quietly removed. Awards run one calendar year and renew only if the business clears the bar again. For everything else — hours, bookings, live reviews — go straight to the business itself.

Quick answers

Frequently asked questions.

What is Prince's Hot Chicken?

The Prince family has been frying cayenne-laced hot chicken since the 1940s. The dish Nashville is famous for started here.

Is Prince's Hot Chicken award-winning?

Yes — Prince's Hot Chicken is the 2025 Centurion Award winner for Best Hot Chicken in Nashville, a verified, criteria-based award. Named best hot chicken in Nashville for 2025 for four generations of the Prince family setting the standard every other hot chicken spot chases.

Where is Prince's Hot Chicken?

Prince's Hot Chicken is in Nashville, TN.