A trip to their website showed me that Tex's is a NYC chain. Reviews compare them to Popeye's,…read morebecause of their fried chicken. But because they also serve burgers, I think a comparison to Roy Rogers is more appropriate (minus the fixin's bar I really liked). (Side note: There are no more Roy Rogers in New York State, they're only in Mid-Atlantic states at this point). The restaurant is tiny, with about 5 booths and a few small tables, but when I came in for lunch, it was immaculate.
My first meal here was a chicken combo, spicy, with cole slaw. I really like their chicken; their spicy chicken has exactly the right amount of heat and flavor that I want. It's also extra, extra, crispy. I feel sorry for those who have to clean up after anyone who eats in, because there will be lots of batter flakes all over the place. And there's no sporks, it's all plastic forks, knives, and spoons.
And now, for the picky stuff:
You get a slightly larger amount of cole slaw than at similar restaurants. But the chop is finer, and there's more mayonnaise, so for me, it was too mushy. I probably won't order it again, instead I'll check out other sides.
The biscuit was fluffy and less salty than at other places, but it was slightly dry, probably having been under a heat lamp for a while.
The combo includes a fountain drink, from a smaller, older-style Coke dispenser for which there are only 6 options, one of them being sweetened iced tea. Unsweetened ice tea was not available as far as I could tell, so if that's true, your only unsweetened option is water, out of the dispenser or bottled.
I found it amusing to see, in big letters under the counter, "We cook fresh all day," with about 3 dozen pieces of chicken under heat lamps in the back. Just how often during the day do you cook fresh?
The bathroom was clean, but the dispensers were out of soap and paper towels. This is not a good thing for a place serving fried chicken. And it was only about 75 minutes into the day when I was there, I would find it hard to believe it was all used up in 75 minutes. More likely, it was never restocked at the start of the business day. C'mon, you can do better. This is easy to fix.
I'll definitely be back if only for the chicken, but I do intend to try the burgers and also the other sides. If those are as good as the chicken, and the beverage and bathroom stuff gets better, I'll add more stars to a revised review for sure.