The 9 best chicken and waffles in NYC right now

Here, organic buttermilk fried chicken is served over a red velvet waffle and dusted with powdered sugar for an Instagram-worthy brunch. The waffle, with its deep red hue, stands out among its standard golden-brown competitors. On Sundays, brunch is served all day and night, with eggs and pancakes served until 9:30pm. Now you can get your chicken-and-waffles fix even if you spend most of the day stuck on the couch after going too hard on Saturday night.  

The so-called “Dekalb’s finest” chicken and waffle here might just live up to its name, with the crispy bird and waffle drenched in a tropical coconut rum syrup. It’s a cozy spot that’s often packed with the Pratt students who flock to its happy hour and boozy brunch. (Don’t be surprised to find yourself dancing to the music!). They serve up the kind of homemade, low-frills chicken and waffles that makes you feel like you’re eating dinner with your family.  

This bastion of soul food goodness has stood in Harlem since 1998, with both of its stories perpetually packed with diners eating mac and cheese, fried okra and cinnamon cobbler. Their chicken and waffle platters are the real draw here, which are served fried or smothered with gravy and named for the Reverend Al Sharpton. There’s almost always a line outside the door, so don’t come too hungry—you’ll work up an appetite by the time you sit down at the table and smell the sweet scent of waffles wafting from the kitchen. 

Melba’s signature chicken and waffles feature both dark meat and white meat, which are served with strawberry butter over eggnog waffles. (Melba uses her grandmother’s recipe, which just happened to beat Bobby Flay’s during a Throwdown on the Food Network.) The eggnog adds a hint of warming spice, while the fried chicken’s pepper and paprika do their thing. It might not be the most traditional version of chicken and waffles in Harlem, but it definitely gives you that comfort-food feeling. 

Celebrity chef Marcus Samuelsson brings his haute cuisine sensibility to this Harlem mainstay, where his “Yep!” chicken and waffles, which are served all day, lean more towards spicy and savory than sweet. Here, a fried chicken leg is paired with chili-maple hot sauce and a pickle for a plate that’s a little bit fancy and a whole lot savory. Pair it with chorizo-packed shrimp and grits and a ginger-forward Harlem Mule for another sweet and spicy kick.

This beloved north Brooklyn joint started as a spot for greasy bar food, and it retains its (well-deserved) reputation as a destination for soaking up a night of booze. It does, in fact, serve both pies and thighs, and the chicken and waffles takes inspiration from Mom’s apple crumble: two pieces of fried chicken on buckwheat waffles are topped with baked apples and cinnamon butter. If you’ve still got a taste for something sweet (or boozy), go for a slice of the bourbon pecan pie.

With locations all over NYC, Sweet Chick lets you get your fix of chicken and waffles without heading up to Harlem. Its version is more nouveau than classic: order two or three pieces of bone-in fried chicken served over your choice of apple cinnamon, bacon cheddar, chocolate chip or vanilla-glazed waffles. Go for the traditional fried chicken, or dress it up with BBQ, soy honey garlic, Nashville hot sauce and even salted caramel. (A vegetarian chicken option is available, too.)

If you’re going on a chicken-and-waffles tour of NYC, you simply can’t miss Sylvia’s. (Sure, there are always tour buses idling outside, but what better place for a tourist to be trapped?) Get your chicken smothered or fried atop one of Sylvia’s fluffy waffles, which have been getting served up to adoring Harlemites since 1962. Wash it down with a sweet iced tea or a rum punch, and join the many generations of New Yorkers who have enjoyed a meal at Sylvia’s beloved corner of Malcolm X Boulevard.