We look forward to serving you at Crimson Coward Lake Forest. We are dedicated to bringing the Nashville Style Hot Chicken phenomenon to Lake Forest & Los Angeles. Our expertise in excellent quality & flavorful Hot Chicken Food is inspired by our time spent meeting local Nashville chefs and exploring the best eateries and hot chicken joints in Nashville.
Here at Crimson Coward hot chicken restaurant, we pride ourselves on serving the best Nashville hot chicken, tenders, wings, and sandwiches that do not compromise quality or flavor. We only serve premium, halal, all-natural, non-GMO chicken. That’s free of hormones & antibiotics from some of the most reputable farms. All of our signature sides are made fresh, and we always cook to order.
Based on 78 reviews, the restaurant has received a rating of 4.2 stars. Price $$
✔️ Dine-in ✔️ Takeout ✔️ No-contact delivery
Address:
23706 El Toro Rd, Lake Forest, CA 92630
Phone: (949) 215-3269
Website:
Hours
| Friday |
11 AM–10 PM |
| Saturday |
11 AM–10 PM |
| Sunday |
11 AM–10 PM |
| Monday
(Labor Day)
|
11 AM–10 PM
Hours might differ
|
| Tuesday |
11 AM–10 PM |
| Wednesday |
11 AM–10 PM |
| Thursday |
11 AM–10 PM |
Menu
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Menu Photos
Photo Gallery
Reviews
Aaron F
The Crimson Coward is pretty good, they gave me a huge chicken breast in the sandwich! The price was a little high (probably for others too) but it was still very tasty with great spice. Also the establishment has good customer service and is kept very clean. I will be coming back when I am in the area again!
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Zee jenkins
❤️ This was some of the best chicken I had in a long time it was seasoned to perfection and made fresh to order. The two guys in the kitchen deserve a raise. The owner was present and very friendly made us feel very welcomed. I was only on a three days vacation and visited twice. If you’re in the area you don’t want to miss this. Tell the owners, “Zee sent you”. (Disclaimer it won’t save you any money.)
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Zachary Zeiler
Crimson Chicken makes an exceptional quality chicken sandwich! You can choose your flavors and it’s is flavorful even when it’s mild. The portions are great and the flavor is just right.
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فلسطين الحرة
Their chicken sandwich is one of the best flavor of the freshness quality is really delicious ,very clean place .
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Brian Freitag
The best Nashville chicken I’ve had in California. Spicy and moist. Unlike other “hot chicken” places, this is hot and you can taste the chicken not just the spice. The fries were perfectly cooked too. Oh, the sauce was tasty too. This place should be packed every day. The staff was friendly and knowledgeable. I highly recommend this place over just about any other hot chicken.
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Asim Latif
This a new halal food joint in Lake Forest. I was impressed with the cleanliness. The restaurant is located conveniently in a big strip center. Parking was easy to find on a Sunday evening. The Staff is courteous and friendly.
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Dave Elder
I ordered the Crimson Coward chicken sandwich with mild heat. This is not a fast food restaurant so don’t expect your order to come out fast. I waited for more than 5 minutes but I don’t think it exceeded 10 minutes.
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Joshua Shepardson
The Crimson Coward is another restaurant joining the recent influx of Nashville inspired hot fried chicken joints in south OC. With big chains like KFC and Popeyes already championing similar style chicken in the fast food arena (inspired by Kentucky and Louisiana, respectively) it’s interesting to see how the new chicken sandwich shops set themselves apart from the competition. The Crimson Coward does so with delicious, perfectly seasoned, fried to order chicken and a “choose your own heat level” model. Still, with locations like Zach’s Chicken (just opened in Lake Forest), Burning Mouth (to open in the Irvine Spectrum very soon), and Dave’s Chicken (with a location opening in Mission Viejo within the next year), all of which do (or, will) offer the exact same upsides mentioned above, it seems the biggest thing setting the Crimson Coward apart is the price. A chicken sandwich, no fries or drink included, just the sandwich, is $14. Not outrageous, to be sure, but a shock to see from an “upscale fast food restaurant,” as I’d call it. Still, I must admit I don’t regret the money spent on the delectable meal I enjoyed at the Crimson Coward. If your wallet will allow you to take a trip yourself, I’m sure you won’t regret it either, but as more affordable, equal quality options continue to pop up, I can’t see myself going back any time soon.
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Film Professor Angelo Ford
Really good but very expensive. $30 for sandwich combo with fried pickles is on the pricey side for lunch. A nice treat on payday though.
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Jasper Lam
What a terrible experience! Line going out the door and not enough staff to handle the huge wave of orders. It took over 45 mins for our order to come out. Fried chicken is supposed to be fast food. How does it take that long???
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