Clash of the crispy: Can Chicken Buzz dethrone Best Fried Chicken?
Newcomer Chicken Buzz is making waves in a market long dominated by BFC—so is it worth the hype, or does the classic still reign supreme?
Best Fried Chicken or BFC – a name so familiar to us that the 'B' might as well stand for Bangladesh. Starting their journey in 2002, BFC has been around for more than two decades. If you are reading this, chances are that you have had BFC at least once or more times than you would like to admit.
Offering affordable prices, with over 20 outlets scattered around in the capital, BFC have always enjoyed a loyal customer base. However, maintaining dominance in a particular field often doesn't lead to the best outcomes, more often than not not leading to complacency.
With so many restaurants sharing similar names, menus, and aesthetics, choosing the right one can be a challenge. Social media, filtered food photos, and enthusiastic bloggers only add to the confusion. If you've ever picked a trendy spot based on reviews and left disappointed, you're definitely not alone.
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From trendy, artistic restaurants to street food vendors and cloud kitchens, Dhaka's food industry continues to flourish, despite its intense competition and lack of regulation. On the subject of cloud kitchens, if you haven't heard of them yet, let me introduce a newcomer—Chicken Buzz.
Coming up with a new fried chicken business in such a saturated market was definitely an interesting choice. Albeit being new in the game, Chicken Buzz or CB have generated quite the hype over the past few months. As of today, they are delivering to Mohammadpur, Uttara, Bashundhara, Gulshan and Mirpur via Foodpanda.
Browsing the menu of CB, it is impossible not to notice the eerie similarities to BFC. The price range, menu, logo, packaging – you name it. At this point, one is bound to question if CB even tried to be subtle about their game. This may or may not have made them susceptible to the wrath of BFC's vicious fan club.
Jokes apart, as a fried chicken enthusiast and a lifelong BFC fan, I was intrigued, to say the least. I could not wait to find out what the new 'buzz' (pun intended) in town was about. So I decided to take matters into my own hands and settle the debate for the readers of TBS.
To keep the verdict fair, I tried ordering the most popular items from both menus. Those were, to nobody's surprise, again identical to each other's.
Fried Chicken 2pcs (Regular)
While ordering two fried chicken pieces, BFC lets you choose from one rib/thigh and a leg piece for Tk260. For Chicken Buzz, the price lowers to Tk240 but they offer no choices.
I found the fried chicken from both places to be almost equally crispy on the outside. With CB's BBQ dip, their steaming hot fried chicken tasted incredible. In fact, BFC definitely has room for improvement when it comes to spices – or the lack thereof.
Coleslaw (Regular)
BFC's coleslaw is a cult favorite, so even though I don't usually order coleslaw, I decided to try one—Tk65 from BFC and Tk60 from CB. To me, they both tasted like, well, coleslaw. In terms of texture and ingredients, there wasn't much difference. However, if you prefer a slightly more flavourful option, CB's coleslaw might be the better choice.
Hot Wings 4pcs (Regular)
To my relief, I finally found one distinct detail for you to note. There is just a Tk5 difference between BFC's and CB's prices. But in my order, Chicken Buzz's wings (Tk125) were a lot smaller than BFC's (Tk130). To get your money's worth, you might want to stick to BFC for the wings.
Burgers
After moving to Dhaka in 2010, I remember having my first 'proper fried chicken burger' at BFC. However, I am not a fan of their burgers anymore. I had their Best Burger for Tk275 and the Crispy Chicken Burger from CB for Tk240.
For these prices, I was not expecting gourmet buns, but even with basic ones, both can do a lot better. If you are not precisely craving burgers, I would not try my luck with these ones.
Dips
I ordered the spicy dips from both menus. But Chicken Buzz mistakenly sent me their BBQ one. This was a happy mistake anyway, since my friend and I loved it more than BFC's spicy dip. The dips were for Tk20 each.Whichever place you are ordering from, I would suggest you to order multiple dips for a way more delicious experience.
For my final verdict, at the risk of sounding non-committal, it narrows down to a single decision – choosing whether to stay in or go out. You might want to go out with your friends, accompanied by good food, laughter and the taste of good old nostalgia. Then again, some days are just for sharing a bite with your loved ones in a cosy area.
That is where Chicken Buzz can come in, since they are operating as a cloud kitchen. Considering that, their prices being affordable does make sense. Especially because they are a cloud kitchen, they should upgrade the quality of packaging and make it sturdier. However, it definitely looks like Chicken Buzz is here to stay.
The question of the moment is, with new competition in town, will BFC chicken out (pun intended, again) from the challenge? Or will they step up their game, reminding everyone why they indeed call themselves 'Best'?
