1207 SE Hawthorne Blvd, Portland, OR 97214
Chicken. A wonderful bird.
People since the dawn of animal husbandry have found countless ways to prepare this fowl friend of ours. Batter, fried, boiled, skewered, bbq’d and so on. Chicken is not just a part of most any culture but it’s ingrained in our soul. So with that in mind we decided to check out this local cart set up Chicken and Guns.
Located off of Hawthorne in Portland this food cart is part of Cartopia. One of the most invited food pods in the city. With beautiful plant life and a relaxing atmosphere, patrons are welcome to come up and sit around the shaded patio, or on a cold night warm themselves at built in fire pits with a cold beer.
You will be sure to notice the Chicken and Guns booth right away. With its classic hand built pioneer style exterior, simple menu board and savory smells. You will be drawn in and placing an order before you even know what hit you. they really know how to make a statement with this cart
Now of course for the food. This cart as we said keeps a simple menu and that how we like it. So for this out we had to try the titular menu item. The Chicken an Guns. This meal comes with the choices of $26 for a whole chicken, $16 for Half, or $9 for a quarter. So you have options no matter how hungry you are. It also come with your choice of Crispy fried Potato “Guns” or a small salad. We decided to get the quarter to try out and were not disappointed by the portions. It is easily large enough to share although you may end up fighting over the last Gun.
Crispy potato “guns” perfect fried crunchy without being greasy. With just a hint of citrus in the background flavor giving it an unusual flair. The sort of food that once you take a bite you won’t be able to resist picking at it until the plate is gone. There is a reason they come with every meal.
Spring mix salad with a house made dressing. Light and appetite building. The perfect thing to make you forget the calories you are about to eat. Watermelon radish garnished giving just a little crunch to go along with the dish. Not something you will be bragging about later to all your friends but still worth the add on.
Chicken. Crisp roasted skin on the outside. Wonderfully tender on the inside. Flavor wise we must be honest and say the breast meat was a little lacking and could’ve been marinated some, but made up for it with the delicious Peruvian ahi sauce accompanying it. This bright green sauce added a hint of spice and a splash of sour citrus. It’s brightness and flavor enhanced ever bite really elevating this dish to something more, and not only added to our chicken but we couldn’t help but started dipping our guns in it as well.
All in all chicken and gun was a good meal. Not mind blowing but good. The chicken was well cooked if a bit lightly seasoned. The potato guns were well made and the salad was refreshing. All made significantly better with the perfect ahi sauce.
We would define or try Chicken and Guns again because of the comfort and fun of this food and location. The perfectly place to meet some friends and snack on while having a beer.
We give Chicken and Guns Six and a Half Guns out of Ten 💪 💪💪💪💪💪👍🏼
Sibling Grubbery 