Little Chicken House

The ribs were juicy, tender& very meaty. My husband loved his chicken & mashed potatoes. Everything was fresh,delicious & hit the spot, the service was very friendly. I would come back again for sure.

This has been one of my favorite places for over 8 years, ever since my husband first took me there. Today, May 24, 2025, I stopped by the drive-thru and ordered BBQ ribs and chicken with mashed potatoes and garlic bread as sides. The service, as always, was excellent, and the food was just as delicious. They've given the place a bit of a makeover; it looks more elegant. It's a very cozy place. I recommend it 💯%. I love the Jalapeños !! I love everything about this place 💕

The food is delicious! The server was helpful and great at explaining the different options and sides. The chicken was moist and so delicious. It has a cozy little dining area with limited seating. We loved it! We noticed a lot of people did the drive through option.

This place had some of the best chicken I've ever had. That said, it's a hole in the wall, but the smell that greets you when you walk in will make you hungry if you aren't already hungry. The only issue is the price, but the food is worth it.

I have been in USA from 1st October on holiday, travelled all over, and this was the best meal I had all holiday! Fresh, juicy chicken with an amazing side of mash and gravy, the garlic bread was the best I had tasted. The staff were friendly and welcoming too. If your ever in Monterey area, I would highly recommend this place.

Got their rotisserie chicken, pork ribs, Mac and cheese, and mashed potatoes. Their chicken and ribs were tender and taste good. I would order these again. Their mashed potatoes and gravy is pretty standard and tasted fine. The Mac and cheese was inedible. It was dry penne pasta with dry melted cheese over it. It was either a dry clump or broken mess. Looked like it sat out for hours. I had to soak it in the gravy to make it edible but eventually just threw it out.

This review is for anybody getting food to go (maybe dine-in is better?) This was the WORST FOOD we have ever been given in the last 20 years of traveling. It was by far the worst BBQ we have ever seen or tasted. We totally agree with the previous review that received take-out that was so bad they just threw it away. We ordered 1 of the the 3 meat plate (Pork, Chicken, Ribs) with fries and cornbread (about $29). The pork was days old, dry, and tough. The chicken was also old and tough. The ribs were the worst without much meat on them at all. All 3 meats were slathered with a red colored sauce that absolutely had no flavor! It wasn't sweet, salty, spicy, or even like ketchup, it was just red and wet. The meats we were given should have just been thrown out. I can't imagine this place can stay in business giving this kind of food to their drive-through customers. It may have been because we had out of state plates and they knew we wouldn't be back, but hopefully enough of us leave honest reviews to help others avoid this place. SERIOUSLY, avoid this place as ANY OTHER FOOD would have been so much better.

Been to this place a few times but this time I got the BBQ brisket sandwich. Very good and a lot of food for one person I felt the BBQ sauce lacked some spice or flavor. The beans were pinto beans but needed more spices and the mashed potatoes were great. Cornbread is like cake, yum.

Okay, I am giving this place a 5 STAR with a caveat. The chicken is really good, but that is not why I go. Their coleslaw is not bad, but not my style, as I prefer it a bit sweet. Their beans are, well, good beans, but not notably different. The restaurant is pretty much 1960s take out style. We usually drive out to Piñon Point and eat in the car while watching the sunset. Yeah, ribs in the car. I know, not a great idea but what a view. So why do I go nearly 150 miles one way to eat here? Simply put, the RIBS are INCREDIBLE. Yes, I have seen other comments to the contrary. I can't explain them. I once drove all the way because my daughter had claimed she knew a great rib place. We came back with enough ribs to feed her family of 4. They never made it home. She normally eats like a bird, but she, to our surprise, consumed all the ribs herself. Needless to say, we changed her mind that night. :) They literally fall right off the bones. I would love to have their recipe for the rib BBQ sauce. They have a BBQ out front where I believe they smoke the ribs then I pressure-cook them, but I can't swear to it. I consider myself a good BBQ cook and though I have come close, I cannot replicate their sauce. If you go, at least TRY the ribs!!! They are awesome. And this is Pacific Grove. There is a reason these guys have been there for so long. It is one of the most expensive places in California. Their restaurant is Just around the corner from 17-Mile Drive!!!!

The food was delicious as always. I come every year when I'm in town for a conference. See you guys next year!

This places rating does not reflect how good the food is... is places like Monterey and Carmel people are used to a certain standard and when you are a hole in the wall spot maybe the chairs are not from restoration hardware... this place is an easy 10, great great food and the staff are so nice. Never judge a book by its cover... go sit down and eat.

This 5 star review is only for the chicken. This chicken is absolutely delicious, especially if you get it to go. The cole slaw and beans were excellent. The broccoli was extremely under seasoned. Service was very nice. Pricing was reasonable. Not much ambiance.

Been going here every year. The smoke flavor of the ribs!!! And the bbq chicken is delicious!

Fantastic chicken !!! Wonderful flavors !! Every time we are in Pacific Grove/Carmel/Monterey we go to Little chicken house ! Location is basic , service is prompt and polite . They do offer Ribs from smoker outside , but stick with the Chicken . It may not be Fancy , but it's worth it

Great fresh smoked meat friendly service real mashed potatoes and gravy I will come again

Very generous portions! Everything tastes extremely fresh, will definitely be back - good option for takeout in the area

A simple place with a small dining room and drive thru. The bbq looks small and basic. The food is disappointing. The ribs were way over cooked, the links seem to be boiled and commercial, the beef was tough, dry, boring, and the chicken was on par with an old rotisserie chicken from a grocery store. That's the best part of the meal. The salads were terrible. All of them. potato, macaroni, and Cole slaw. I can't imagine going back. That said the staff was friendly and enjoyable.

Amazing the way that the chicken is smoked, our thighs were delicious unfortunately the white meat and legs were way overcooked. Dry to the bone. Skin was crispy. Potato salad and garlic bread are solid but not amazing. Will go back to try other items on the menu.

A quick, easy stop for some BBQ food. The small indoor area was packed when we entered. We grabbed two plates, one got the pork sandwich and my husband got the chicken. I will say, the meat was pretty delicious! I wish I tried the ribs, which a lot of people ordered. The sides just didn't do it for me. The mashed potatoes were bland, even with the gravy. And the Mac & cheese was definitely just noodles with cheese on top. The guys running the restaurant were very friendly and helpful, so i am glad to see it doing well, even if it's a miss for me.

Been coming since I was a kid, same taste, same people, great memories. Chicken and rib combo, fantastic. Mashed potatoes with extra gravy and extra bbq sauce as the side. Delish, no frills.

What happened? This used to be one of the best restaurants in Pacific Grove. The chicken was juicy and tender, the ribs fell off the bone and the sauce was INCREDIBLE...not any more. The last few times I went before I gave up the meat was rubbery and skimpy. The sauce was bland and watery. I miss what it used to be. I can only hope it gets back to what it used to be. I had so many fond memories I would like to relive one day.

Terrible attitude and cold chicken. This used to be a pretty decent place, but has definitely gone downhill since the original owner left a few years back.

I have grown up in the area. We use to always eat here as a kid. Decide to give it a try on my lunch break and was definitely disappointed. It is super over priced. I got the two meat plate with beef and chicken. You don't know what kind of beef it is, Tri tip, brisket or whatever. The beef was so dry and chewy I had to give it back. I couldn't even eat it. The chicken was fine not a lot of flavor. The barbecue sauce isn't great at all super watery. The potato salad was just store bought. Definitely pass on this one.

I love the drive through experience at this spot. Easy, quick, and the guys behind the scenes get you the best slabs of meat they can. Beef brisket is my number 1 favorite. SO GOOD and lathered with bbq. My number 2 is definitely the chicken. They cook it all right there in house. The smell of the barbecue outside while they are doing their thing is the most incredible smell ever! I'd suggest skipping on the sides. They don't travel well at all. Meat is the way to go when ordering here.

We had a great time...2nd time here food is excellent...finger licking...don't wear whitefriendly warm workers/owners, so glad still here!

Always great finger lickin good BBQ!! Do not let the looks fool you. It looks weathered but the food is hot and ready super quick, and tastes amazing!!

Not sure when the best time is to go, but I've had good food and soso food. When it's not great it's overcooked and dry.

We did the drive through, food came out quickly (plus) but lukewarm (minus). It was about 4 pm and they ran out of beef briskets (minus). The chicken is better than the BBQ pork, which was kind of dry.

Food had no flavor. Did not finish the food. We ordered two different plates to get a variety, not the best bbq option for food.

I've been coming here for as long as they've been open, and have never been disappointed in the food, with the exception of sometimes the baked beans you end up with more juice than beans but every time I mention this, they do a good job of reversing that. Staff are always friendly services is always fast.

Not a bad place for being the only bbq joint in the area that I could find. It doesn't hold a candle to the bbq places in Texas or Oklahoma, but it satisfies a slight hankering for some smoked meats. The beef and cole slaw were metiocre with the potato salad and smoked chicken being the best two of four on my plate. Washing it all down was a Coca Cola that was somewhere between super bubbly and flat being right on the cusp of tolerable. It's a dive on the inside with only one bathroom accessible via the kitchen, but service is good.

The chicken, beef and ribs are great! Plus for the price they charge, you get a LOT of food. My wife and I get the three meat plate and always receive huge portions of the sliced beef and the pork ribs. The chicken is always very tender and juicy! For sides we enjoy the corn bread and mashed potato with gravy. A nice local establishment with very friendly staff. They also have a convenient drive-thru window if need be but its easy enough to just park and order food to-go or dine in since they have small and clean dining area. Thank you Little Chicken House we will definitely keep enjoying your food every time we are in town!

Always a must on our list whenever we visit Monterey. Sauce is drinkable, portions are huge and finger licking good

The chicken and side dishes are delicious. Drive thru service is speedy and friendly. The building itself could use a paint job and facelift. Nevertheless I expect to return for the great food alone.

I've lived in this area nearly my entire life, and had never been here, but had to pop in today to pick up some food for a coworker while they were in class, and got offered a free lunch, so - why not?! As I'm not a huge BBQ person (but I love good food of almost any kind done right - and BBQ chick is UP there), I got the BBQ chicken sandwich with a side of coleslaw that I planned to put on the sandwich. Pros: portions are BIG (I could have split this into two meals, probably), chicken is fresh and pretty tasty. Cons: while they saturated their coleslaw with mayo/sauce (and yes it tasted good but way too much mayo for my liking), they were super skimpy with the BBQ sauce on the chicken! It TASTED good, but some pieces were not quite dry - but on the drier side. It would be great to include a little thing of the BBQ sauce on the side to add more if you want, but I didn't see that as an option. Also - there are NO veggie condiments - no tomatoes, lettuce, pickles. etc. I feel like that would be nice to have, I didn't expect such a plain sandwich. The employees were nice, though. Not sure I'll be back, but it wasn't a bad experience! I just think they could be way better with a just a few improvements! :)

I have so many fond memories of going to eat here with my family as a child, the chicken was always well seasoned and delicious..crispy and juicy, and the sides are always generous and delicious! to this day I will always look for similar flavors and styles in rotisserie chicken although they may be hard to find in my current city. forever love little chicken house.

Do not bother to eat here!! The ribs were tender, but the bbq sauce was so thinned down, it had little flavor. The Mac and cheese was terrible: undercooked macaroni and cheese, no sauce!! I do not recommend this place!!

If your looking for some good bbq I highly recommend this place. Can't go wrong with the ribs & extra sauce! and some chicken on the side I didn't mind the salad And corn bread. The mash potatoes weren't bad at all. Potato salad was ehh I would rate that a 6. But everything else is delicious!! And the hospitality is awesome I love the guys that work their! always greeting with good vibes Y'all should really stop by check them out.

You have to eat it at the restaurant. it is a little bland for my preference, the taste of the chicken and pork ribs. Overall, it is decent.

Best BBQ sauce ever , ribs n chicken are on point . Potato Salad is a lil vinegary and bland fur my taste but all is fresh . And has a drive through

My man and I decided to stop by here after hearing mixed reviews. We got the three meat combo, hot link, chicken, and brisket. The brisket was so overdone, it wasn't great. The chicken was spectacular, hence the name I'm guessing. The hot link, tasted like every other hot link I've ever cooked over a grill lol. Didn't stand out too much. I thought the price was pretty fair. I would have gave it a 3 star because of the food but the customer service was pretty good and the owner was really sweet. PS: their bbq sauce is bomb.com

Ok, we have been coming to Monterey since my days at Ft. Ord. This is the first time we ate at the the Little Chicken place. Little is right- do yourself a favor and go through the drive thru. The chicken and ribs are worth 5 stars. That is where it stops. The brisket is horribly over cooked and tough. The service inside was horrible. We ordered drinks and never got them. The seating inside is very tight and small.

Hidden gem? People who rated this place higher than one star are TRIPPIN! Terrible and rude phone etiquette. Got my order wrong after being hung up on 3 times. FYI they don't say goodbye or reconfirm your order they just hang up lol. I got the brisket bbq sandwich and Mac, but got a sandwich and fries. BBQ sauce needs more effort and less of a certain seasoning you can smell as soon as you walk in. Masks no being worn weirded me out. I wouldn't get chicken or ribs bc what they use to chop those up on, looks like it's never cleaned. I'll never recommend nor come here again but I hope they change their bs up!

I'm surprised this place is still open. I came here on a weeknight and used their drive through. While it's convenient, it took at least 5 minutes for someone to figure out I was waiting. I ordered a whole chicken, 1lb of bbq pork, one lb of bbq brisket, beans and coleslaw. They were out of macaroni salad and potato salad. I got the stuff and took it home to seaside. When I opened up the boxes I was incredibly disappointed. It looked like dog-chow. The pork and brisket were already cold, and I was eating it within 15 minutes of getting it in my car. The meat didn't taste like it was seasoned at all. It was drenched in a bbq sauce that was really watery and not very tasty. Further more, the pork and brisket were not tender at all. It definitely was not the consistency of something that was cooked low and slow. The coleslaw was incredibly bland and the beans were the only thing that was hot ( burnt my tongue). For spending $80, it was definitely not worth it. I won't ever be back. Also, the chicken was so dry that it was literally hard to swallow.

This is a going to be a short review. I just ate dinner at a different restaurant, but I was drawn in by the smell and sight of rotisserie chicken being roasted over a wood fire. I ordered just a 1/4 chicken to go ($5.00) and the best way to describe the food is "freaking-fantastic." Flavorful, juicy, fragrant, and tantalizing. The place is not much to look at and there is little to no atmosphere... just really great chicken. As stated, I only tried one thing on the menu, but if the rest of the food is equally as good this place is a keeper.

No flavor one the food Mac and cheese looks like it was done in a microwave smash potato needed more love and ribs we okay but was really disappointed 50 and was not good at all even kfc is better

This place is pathetic. We ordered two plates and they managed to mess them both up. They forgot our beans, mans and cheese, and ribs. The order was soiled and crushed. The chicken was really gummy and pink. I tried to call to speak to a manager but the guy who answered hung up as soon as we said they mess up our order! The corn bread was super dense and wasn't even corn bread. It was literally a slice of white cake. The mashed potatoes were gritty and even worst than KFC's. All and all, it's trash. The food was horrible and the barbecue was watered down.

This is NOT a "hidden gem", and we won't be back. We ordered a whole chicken For $20, a pound of BBQ Pork, garlic bread and potato salad for a total of $47.00. The chicken was dry and had NO more flavor than a $5 Costco chicken. The pork was tough, dry, flavorless and greasy! It seemed like it was reheated from the day before... the side of garlic bread was as flat as a flip flop sandal and tough, the potato salad was commercially made. We were excited to try this place, but these people aren't even trying... they're pushing out the lowest quality food when they could be building a highly profitable business... we were very disappointed. Judging from all the great reviews and then a string of very bad reviews this place is suffering from a lack of consistency, which will kill any restaurant...

Asked for garlic bread instead of a bun. Bread was drenched and soggy. The sliced pork meat had tons of fat and limited bbq sauce. Coleslaw had no flavor I was starving and it was a huge disappointment especially when I paid $17 for this bland , fatty, soggy sandwich.

looking for a place to eat? keep going! We shared a 3-meat combo, brisket, ribs, & chicken with sides of cornbread & coleslaw. The meats were edible, not tasty at all though. The sauce was pretty watered down or something. The cornbread & coleslaw were ok. Filled our bellies, but didn't make it happy. I don't recommend.

Over the past decade I've been coming here after meeting with clients who live in Pebble Beach & Carmel. The BBQ is very good, the prices are fair, and the amigos who run this place work damn hard 6-7 days a week to provide quality food to one of the most beautiful places on the Central Coast. And yes, believe it or not, I have gotten take-out here six days in a row, for many years, which means that, for this area, Little Chicken House is SUPERB!!!

Talk about a hidden gem. Mac n cheese is unexplainable, meat is buttery soft. Service is great, fresh as you can get. Amazing experience, 7 stars. Next to taste which is also amazing. PG has it going on. Had the 3 meat combo, chicken, ribs n hot links with garlic bread and Mac n cheese. It's the best combo! Mouthwatering BBQ. Oak bbq.

The food was so dry and tasted like sawdust. The Mac and cheese was just Mac with some cheese thrown on top!! They could do so much better. Just more flavour and not cooking the chicken for so long would be a great start.

Unfortunately we were not impressed. If there's something we know in the south, it's barbecue. Barbecue is not going outside and grilling burgers and dogs. That's grilling. Barbecue is pulled pork, brisket, and ribs. This poor place seemed promising but didn't deliver. The chicken seemed like it just had tomato sauce on it and the brisket was only marginally better. Tables and the restaurant as a whole weren't very clean.

Got a whole chicken cut up. $28. Too pricey for the quality. Went to the drive up window. Service was fast. Chicken breast was super dry. I am used to a juicy chicken breast when it is done on a rotisserie. Next time going to try getting it whole, and cutting it myself. Maybe they cut it too soon, and all the moisture drained out.

Awesome little place. Amazing jalapeño chicken and little side cucumber thing. Homemade kimchi so yummy

I'm completely blown away, this food hands down is the worst food I ever ate in my entire life!!!! I just don't understand how one can cook such bad food. Dirty smoke like they never smoked anything before all the sides were pure trash. The best thing on the menu was the tortillas, because they buy them.