Eat Arkansas

ZAXBY’S While the appearance of yet another fast food restaurant in the Little Rock/North Little Rock market usually isn't much to crow about, we'll make an exception in the case of Zaxby's. While we were thoroughly ready to be underwhelmed — most of the menu is chicken; chicken wings, chicken strips, chicken with chicken and chicken — Zaxby's turns out to be a really quick place for a nice bite. During our visit, we tried the five-piece chicken strip meal ($3.79), with a side of spicy fried mushrooms ($2.99). Both were served with a cup of something called "Zax Sauce" (which tastes something like Thousand Island dressing with a shot of pickle juice… not the highlight of the meal). The chicken strips were very generously sized, with a peppery, herby flour coating. Even better were the fried mushrooms, which were just spicy enough to make them something memorable. A word of warning, however: scarf them up quick. Once they cooled off, the mushrooms went through some kind of horrific transformation, and our little bites of deep-fried bliss turned into something akin to damp circles of sponge dipped in sand. In short, even though Zaxby's is a chain, it's the good kind of chain: Affordable, with a manageably sized menu of nicely-prepared items. Best of all, for well under ten bucks we managed to get a meal that kept us clucking the rest of the day. 208 Brookswood Road. No alcohol. CC $ 833-9777 LD daily.