What You Need to Know About Chicken Dinners in Frankenmuth
Make room for TWO unforgettable chicken dinners in Frankenmuth, Michigan.
That’s right. Frankenmuth is home to two of the largest independently owned restaurants in the country that feature world famous chicken dinners.
Although each restaurant brings something unique to the table, you have to try both before you leave Michigan’s Little Bavaria. Here’s what you need to know about dining family style at Zehnder’s of Frankenmuth and the Bavarian Inn Restaurant.
You can be sure you will get your fill of poultry during your visit to Frankenmuth as each meal comes with loads of chicken. At the Bavarian Inn Restaurant, chickens are never frozen and arrive fresh to Bavarian Inn. They are then steamed for up to an hour. The stock created from this process is then used as the key ingredient for their soup, gravy, and sauerkraut. The chickens are cooled rapidly in a quick chill freezer, and expertly cut using a bandsaw. They are then covered in a homemade egg wash, and flour and cracker meal. The cooked chicken only spends three minutes in the fryer, making it nice and crispy, but still tender on the inside! If you are dining family style, each of the following items (including chicken) are served all you can eat with giant platters of food that can be shared with your entire table.
Fried chicken and mashed potatoes go hand in hand. Creamy, flavorful, and downright delicious – everyone’s favorite accompaniment to chicken dinners can be devoured in Frankenmuth. Both Zehnder’s and Bavarian Inn serve their mashed potatoes with homemade gravy – made from the tasty stock of the chickens.
So we’re going all in on the starches?
“When in Bavaria…” Homemade noodles served with just the right amount of butter add an extra layer of comfort to the Frankenmuth experience. Now it’s time for the bread stuffing. You can expect traditional goodness from such a dish at both Zehnder’s and Bavarian Inn. Both restaurants serve homemade bread, which is also used in their famous stuffing. Add homemade bread along with onion, celery, carrots, and hamburger for a tasty side dish.
Each restaurant offers a wide range of appetizers. Of course homemade bread comes with the meal (including stollen bread), along with creamy butter. You can also choose between cranberry relish, coleslaw, pasta salad, fresh salad, or chicken noodle soup! Don't forget about the featured vegetables, such as the locally grown blue hubbard squash.
Be sure there is room for dessert because now it’s time for ice cream.
In Frankenmuth, you can get vanilla, chocolate, orange, or orange swirl ice cream. Because every memorable meal ends with something sweet! As we mentioned, Zehnder’s and Bavarian Inn each have unique aspects to their meals. You will have to try them both and see for yourself!
Be sure to snap photos of your family’s experience at these iconic restaurants and share them on Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram and use #Frankenmuth!
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