I don’t know about you, but if I attend a potluck and don’t see fried chicken, I’m disappointed. Whether from a chain or homemade, I always grab a piece for my plate.

But, let’s face it, as good as the chains and grocery stores are (we all know Publix makes great fried chicken), it’s always best when someone gets a huge order from the local mom-and-pop. (It’s usually always the first food that disappears, along with the mac and cheese.)

In this spirit, we’ve been talking about Alabama’s best fried chicken this week on AL.com. We’ve talked about Huntsville, Birmingham and Mobile’s best, but now it’s time to talk about the entire state — because there are lots of small-town joints making some amazing fried chicken.

For the sake of this list, I focused on bone-in chicken — no chicken sandwiches, no chicken fingers. I also left out chains, including Champy’s — I know y’all love it, and I do too, but it started in Chattanooga, Tenn., and I want to give Alabama-based businesses love in this list.

So let’s get to it, shall we?

MORE: Huntsville’s best fried chicken

Birmingham’s best fried chicken

Mobile’s best fried chicken

10. Little Donkey

Locations in Homewood, Hoover and Montgomery. thelittledonkey.com/

Yes, Little Donkey is a Mexican restaurant. But in this eatery, you’ll find burritos, fajitas, tacos and fried chicken. In fact, fried chicken has its own section of the menu, labeled “famous fried chicken.” I’m normally pretty wary of any restaurant that calls its food “famous,” but I’ll let it go in Little Donkey’s case — it’s that good it should be world famous. The chicken is served with rice and pickled veggies, along with a choice of pinto or black beans. (There’s also a fried chicken sandwich with Wickles Pickles on it, and you can never go wrong with fried chicken and Wickles.)

Order this: Order the family-style whole chicken. It feeds 3-4, so everyone won’t be trying to get a bite of your chicken.

READ MORE: 5 Mexican restaurants we love in the Birmingham area

9. Betty Mae’s Restaurant

2007 N. Memorial Pkwy., Huntsville, facebook.com

Betty’s Mae’s fried chicken has the best seasoning of any I’ve had in Huntsville. Just a pinch more to dance on your cutaneous buds without getting showy, silly or aggressive with it. It’s easy to like this place. Fast service (in my experience), laidback vibe, diverse mix of folks. A crown jewel of North Huntsville more locals from other parts of the city should add Betty Mae’s to their regular dining-out rotation. And the next time I have a cool friend from a cool city visiting, this might be the first local restaurant I’d take them to. It’s an experience, it’s easy and the food’s killer. — Matt Wake

Order this (besides fried chicken): If you’re not already a root vegetables enthusiast, Betty Mae’s candied yams will make you one.

8. Neighbor’s Seafood & Chicken

5830 Three Notch Road in Mobile; neighborsseafood.com

The funniest moment of this fried chicken quest was when I was sitting in my car in the parking lot at Neighbor’s, waiting for the 11 a.m. opening. As I sat there looking at my phone, I suddenly was hit by the smell of fried chicken. I looked up. It was 11:02 a.m. It was like they’d flipped a switch. Or as if they’d somehow kept the aroma bottled in until the door opened for the first customer at 11, and it took 120 seconds to waft across the parking lot and into my vehicle. Anyway, this locally owned restaurant has been serving “traditional Southern comfort food” since 1992, and the sign spells it out: Seafood – Chicken – Vegetables.” (Does anybody else put “vegetables” on the sign?) The chicken is excellent. Daily specials include Chicken Parmesan, pot roast, chicken & dumplings and more; livers and gizzards also are the menu. — Lawrence Specker

Order this: As a side note (see what I did there?), the fried squash is cut into wedges suitable for dipping, so don’t be surprised when they ask if you want ranch dressing with your squash. You probably do.

7. Dot’s Soul Food Restaurant

18152 Alabama Highway 20, Hillsboro

I try not to duplicate restaurants on my food lists, and although Dot’s Soul Food Restaurant got big love on our best meat-and-three list, I have to mention it here. Dot’s is just a small-town Alabama restaurant at its finest: It has little social media presence, and it doesn’t need it — people just know that it’s the place you go if you want good eatin’, and you can depend on finding a crowd of people there. The fried chicken is moist and perfect, everything you want from fried chicken.

Order this: I know it’s pretty hard to save room for dessert at a place like Dot’s, but save room for dessert. Trust me.

6. Stagecoach Cafe

52860 State Highway 59, Stockton. facebook.com/stagecoachcafe/

Stockton is a tiny unincorporated town in north Baldwin County, but it’s well-known across the state for one thing: Stagecoach Cafe. The restaurant serves country cooking that makes people stumble off the interstate. You can order off a menu or get the buffet. Owner Joyce Overstreet told Mobile Bay Magazine that in the early days of the restaurant, they didn’t serve fried chicken one day because the chicken truck wasn’t on time — and she found out how much their crowds love it. “When customers arrived, they just about ran me out of town! It was mutiny on the bounty!”

Order this: Definitely get some banana pudding while you’re there.

5. Jackson’s Station

123 Broad St., Camden. facebook.com/jacksonsfriedchick/

People from all over drive to tiny Camden in Wilcox County to try fried chicken — and yes, I mean everyone. Even Facebook co-founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg made the trek there in February 2017. And that’s because of Jackson’s Station. (Note: Jackson’s recently moved to a new location and rebranded from Jackson’s Fried Chicken to Jackson’s Station.) The fried chicken is perfectly crispy and perfectly awesome, and you won’t leave disappointed.

Order this: The COB. It’s a sandwich topped with boneless tenders, a tangy sauce, and peppers if you’d like. Locals love it for a reason.

READ MORE: The Alabama chicken shack that’s famous far and wide

4. Sac’s Kitchen

6008 Mastin Lake Road N.E., Huntsville, sacskitchen.com

Sac’s Kitchen cooks their fried chicken to order and it makes a huge difference. When you get it, it’s piping hot and the texture from inside-out is off the charts. Fried chicken is a dish that does well sitting in a steamtable but made fresh for you it’s a three-dimensional portal back to childhood memories of your mom, nana or aunt serving this up on the family table. There are two and three piece fried-chicken options at Sac’s, and you pick the pieces. There’s a lounge out back where you can order food and sip an adult beverage if you so desire, but Sac’s frontage is to-go. Calling in your order for pickup is recommended unless you want to chop it up with the lounge bartender out back and eat it as soon as you get it. — Matt Wake

Order this (besides fried chicken): Dude, the collard greens. Zingy green witchery. Also, Sac’s cornbread is notable — pancake flat, chewy and rad.

3. Eugene’s Hot Chicken

2268 Ninth Ave. North in Birmingham; 3232 Galleria Circle, Suite 101, in Hoover. www.eugeneshotchicken.com

Fried chicken nirvana? Eugene’s has earned a rapturous reputation that’s pretty close to it, even if you prefer your chicken without a fiery kick. Heat levels here range from “Lemon Pepper and Southern (no heat)” to “Stupid Hot (for the bold and daring).” Other choices are Mild, Hot and Hot Damn (“not too smart, not too stupid”). We like a restaurant with a sense of humor, especially when it serves fried chicken that’s crazy-good. Zebbie Carney, the founder of Eugene’s, started with a food truck around 2015, moved to a brick-and-mortar location downtown in 2017 and expanded to Hoover in 2020. More recently, the Eater website included Eugene’s Hot Chicken in its 2022 list of “The Best Fried Chicken in America.” Take your pick among chicken tenders, wings, sandwiches, quarters, whole chickens, chicken and waffles, fried chicken salad and more. — Mary Colurso

Order this: Go for the gusto with a half or full bird, plus your choice of sauce and two sides. You can’t go wrong with Southern Slaw or creamy mac and cheese. Suggested heat level? Newbies might start with mild (“slight heat”) and work their way up the burn scale.

READ: Meet the chef who’s making hot chicken cool in Alabama

2. Chicken Shack

665 Forest Ave., Luverne. thechickenshackluverne.com/

When AL.com went on a statewide journey to find the best fried chicken, the Chicken Shack in small-town Luverne got the No. 1 spot. My colleague Ike Morgan said of the fried chicken, “The flavor was just right. And they kept a great balance between not-too-greasy on the outside and not-too-dry on the inside — and that’s important to a fan of the fried-chicken breast like me.” I gotta agree with Ike — Chicken Shack does everything right. It definitely should be on your Alabama fried chicken bucket list.

Order this: The fried okra. Just do it.

READ MORE: In search of Alabama’s best fried chicken

1. Martin’s Restaurant

1796 Carter Hill Road, Montgomery. themartinsrestaurant.com/

My colleague and Alabama food guru Bob Carlton said, “Every fried chicken list begins and ends with Martin’s.” And absolutely correct. Martin’s has been a mainstay in Montgomery for more than 80 years, so it’s had plenty of time to perfect its fried chicken. And oh, it is perfect. It’s so perfect. It’s crunchy, tasty and is packed with flavor. Even better, it’s one of a handful of places in Alabama that serve “pulley bones” — the part of the chicken in between the breasts. “The thing about the pulley bone is, you cannot just call (a supplier) and say, ‘Send me two cases of pulley bones,’” Owner Maryanne Smith Merritt told Carlton in 2020. “You have to cut a whole chicken to get one pulley bone. We have just so many that we start out with each day, and then they’re gone.” (So in other words, you better get there early if you want ‘em.)

Order this: You know your granny’s pies that have meringue that’s as tall as Dolly Parton’s hair? Martin’s has ‘em, and you gotta try ‘em with your chicken and sides.

READ MORE: Martin’s Restaurant: The story behind the queen of meat-and-threes

More on Alabama’s Best food:

Alabama’s best barbecue: Our Top 10

Alabama’s best burgers: Our Top 10

Alabama’s best pizza: Our Top 10

Alabama’s best ice cream: Our top 10

Alabama’s best hot dogs: Our top 10

Alabama’s best meat-and-three: Our Top 10