Spicy San Antonio: Xtra Hot and Fire in the Hole Tenders from Urban Bird Hot Chicken
Bottom Line: Urban Bird is the latest hot chicken place in San Antonio, and they are slinging some tasty tenders that deliver on the heat.
There’s a new spot in town serving hot chicken, and they’re doing a pretty good job of cooking up some bird with a burn. No, it’s not Pete’s Hot Chicken on South Presa, though that place is definitely worth a visit (read my review here). No, it’s not Dave’s Hot Chicken, which has several locations around town, but that place is serving some good piquant poultry (read my review here). And no, it’s not Krazy Katsu on McCullough, but their Japanese-style tenders are quite tasty as well (read my review here). Nor is it The Cookshack, which has two locations in town and serves some pretty good hot chicken and ribs (read my review here).
The newest hot chicken slinger is Urban Bird Hot Chicken, a Houston-based chain that has recently opened a location in the San Antonio area with another on the way (and one in San Marcos). This fast-casual joint follows the familiar pattern we’re seeing from other places of offering tenders served on bread, as a sandwich, or with waffles, and with multiple heat levels available. As you can see from how I started this review, there are quite a few places serving hot chicken in town already (and I didn’t even cover them all), so the question is whether Urban Bird can stand out among the competition.
For my first order, I went with one of my standard selections: two tenders with two different heat levels. This gives me the chance to sample their chicken and also gauge how far they’re pushing the burn. I got their two hottest options, Xtra Hot and Fire in the Hole, and they have five milder levels below that for those looking for less heat. And take note, they did not require me to sign a waiver for the hottest level like Dave’s, Krazy Katsu, and The Cookshack do.
My meal arrived with two sizable chicken tenders, a generous portion of fries, two pickles, and their Bird Sauce (which is very similar to Raising Cane’s sauce). The tenders have a good breading-to-meat ratio, and the crust delivers a satisfying crunch. They’re tender throughout and not dry at all, as Urban Bird manages to fry these up just right. I tasted the Xtra Hot first, and it has a bit of sweetness with a strong peppery kick (these are loaded with seasoning, featuring a cayenne base with other peppers added to amp up the heat). Next, I tried a bite of the Fire in the Hole, which has a much more intense peppery flavor. It still has a touch of sweetness, but that’s less noticeable through the burn.
As for the heat, these things pack a punch and both levels will set your mouth on fire! The Xtra Hot lands right around Fiery on my scale, while Fire in the Hole pushes beyond that and approaches Insane. I was able to finish both tenders without much problem, though the hotter one certainly tested my limits. It’s not quite at the Reaper level of Dave’s or the DNA level of Krazy Katsu, but it’s getting close. I probably wouldn’t order that one again, as I didn’t enjoy it as much as the Xtra Hot. And the average mortal should definitely run screaming from either of these. As a bonus, the after-effects the next day were not nearly as bad as what I previously experienced with the Reaper or DNA levels.
The fries were the fairly standard crinkle-cut version, though they were on the edge of being over-fried. Still, I really liked the seasoning they put on them, and they offered a nice respite from the heat between bites of chicken. The sauce is sweet and peppery and went well with the tenders, but it didn’t do much to douse the burn. The piece of bread the tenders were placed on absorbed a lot of the seasoning from the chicken, and when I finished that off, it set my mouth back on fire! They don’t show the calorie info, but I’m guessing the full meal is somewhere between 800 and 1,000 calories, so it will require some penance in the gym.
So how does Urban Bird Hot Chicken compare to the competition in town? I’d rank them quite favorably, as they checked all the boxes you expect from a place like this. They’ve got good chicken that’s cooked perfectly, and it definitely delivers on the heat. I don’t know that I’d rank them above Pete’s Hot Chicken (my favorite in town) or Krazy Katsu, but you certainly can’t go wrong with hot chicken from Urban Bird. And as it turns out, the Stone Oak location is now the closest hot chicken place to me, so I’ll definitely be returning there because of its proximity. And I will also be adding this place to my Spicy San Antonio list.
Urban Bird Hot Chicken
22106 U.S. Hwy 281 N #102
San Antonio, TX 78259
Phone: (210) 429-8566
Coming Soon:
8802 Potranco Rd # 111
San Antonio, TX 78251
Website: www.urbanbirdhotchicken.com
