White Fence Farm, Don't Overlook This Joliet Spot: Ferak Column

JOLIET, IL — Last Saturday afternoon, I was driving my son to the Town & Country Lanes to get his bowling ball re-drilled. Just before we reached our destination, the traffic light turned red on us at West Jefferson Street and Barney Drive. I looked off in the distance. Then it dawned on me. Oh, there's the White Fence Farm carry out restaurant in Joliet!

I figured this was the perfect place for this week's Joliet Patch food review column.

For starters, I had never been here before. Plus, it's been a while since I last wrote about any chicken restaurants around Joliet. Growing up in Joliet, heading out to the original White Fence Farm in Romeoville was always a special and truly memorable occasion for the family.

Even when I was living in Appleton, Wisconsin, six years ago, we celebrated my 40th birthday at the world-famous White Fence Farm restaurant at 1376 Joliet Road in Romeoville.

But would the Joliet carryout business pass the test?

Was it worthy of the bold advertising slogan that greets motorists traveling between Jefferson Street and Glenwood Avenue, a sign that declares, "THE WORLD'S GREATEST CHICKEN."

The Joliet White Fence Farm carryout restaurant focuses on three complete dinners: Chicken for $9, Shrimp for $9.25 and Fish for $9.50.

Of course, I went with the chicken. And with sales tax, my total bill was still less than $10.

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This meal is a steal, folks. You get a half-chicken, which is four pieces, your choice of fries or mashed potatoes and gravy, plus you get some great tasting coleslaw and White Fence Farm's tasty treat: their legendary fritters.

The carryout service was super fast. There were three guys in their twenties all working diligently in the kitchen, all wearing their trademark White Fence Farm T-shirts.

My carryout bag was ready in five minutes from the time I placed my order. The place wasn't empty, either.

An older woman was walking out holding a large carryout bag as I walked in. There was one gentleman in his fifties sitting inside waiting to pick up his order. And there was a young man in his early twenties who showed up just before I did, but he was ordering a shrimp dinner.

But when I think of White Fence Farm, it's all about the chicken. And Thursday's dinner proved to me that the White Fence Farm chicken on the west side of Joliet is just as remarkable as its famous chicken being served on Joliet Road at the main sit-down restaurant, over in Romeoville.

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"Fresh, never frozen chickens arrive daily to be coated with our closely guarded secret recipe for breading which is milled exclusively for us in Chicago," the White Farm Fence takeout order menu explains.

"The chicken is pressure cooked thoroughly before being flash fried for only three minutes."

If McDonald's can get cars through the drive-thru windows in record time, I think it's fair to say that the folks at White Fence Farm have conquered speed, too.

They can make chicken as fast as anyone.

"We can cook up to 60 pieces in as little as 3 to 5 minutes with no advance notice," the Joliet menu notes. "We suggest anything over 100 pieces at least 24 hour notice."

The takeout hours for White Fence Farm on Barney Drive in Joliet are 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. Tuesday through Friday, noon to 8 p.m. Saturday and Sunday. It's closed Mondays.

There are also carryout locations at: 3704 South Harlem in Riverside, Joliet Road in Romeoville behind the main restaurant, 5005 Fairview Avenue in Downers Grove and 12337 Route 59 in Plainfield.

In closing, I'm glad I got stuck at the red light last Saturday near Town & Country Lanes. I never would have realized the White Fence Farm carryout restaurant was literally just a block away.