Good news: Charlottesville has a legit Harold’s. Bad news: they’re moving.
In Chicago, where the legendary chicken franchise began, quality can vary from one location to the next. The variance stems from the hands-off approach of founder Harold Pierce, who launched the first Harold’s Chicken Shack in 1950, before franchising to family and friends. Franchisees have since grown beyond that intimate group, and unlike a chain, the locations are independently owned, so, while menus are consistent, quality and procedures may vary. North Side Chicago residents have been known to travel all the way to the South Side for their favorite Harold’s, passing a dozen others on the way.
Pierce died in 1988, and Harolds Chicken Corp. is run by his children, Kristen and J.R., who are prioritizing consistency across franchise locations, which now span eight states. But, nowhere is Harold’s more beloved than Chicago. As Pierce expanded Harold’s, the transplant from Alabama to racially tense Chicago didn’t risk opening in White neighborhoods. “They’d kick my ass out,” Pierce said. Instead, it became a fixture of the Black community and part of its culture, celebrated by musicians like Common, Kanye, Rhymefest, Chance the Rapper, and Kendrick Lamar. “Everything about Harold’s is Black, and everything about Harold’s is really Chicago,” said culture scholar Arionne Nettles. “It’s like the best of both worlds for someone who has that specific identity.”…