J's Hot Chicken
Chicken · Santa Barbara
About J's Hot Chicken
J's Hot Chicken brings Nashville heat to Santa Barbara! We're a local restaurant serving up delicious hot chicken with options for dine-in, takeout, and convenient delivery. Rated 3.8 stars based on 38 reviews, we strive to provide a satisfying experience for everyone. We offer no-contact delivery a...
J's Hot Chicken brings Nashville heat to Santa Barbara! We're a local restaurant serving up delicious hot chicken with options for dine-in, takeout, and convenient delivery. Rated 3.8 stars based on 38 reviews, we strive to provide a satisfying experience for everyone. We offer no-contact delivery and in-store pickup for your convenience. Our location is wheelchair accessible, featuring accessible entrances, parking, restrooms, and seating. We also offer gender-neutral restrooms. Find us open Monday through Thursday from 11AM-9PM, Friday from 11AM-10PM, Saturday from 12PM-10PM, and Sunday from 12PM-9PM. We look forward to serving you!
What Customers Say About J's Hot Chicken
J's Hot Chicken (formerly Dave's Drip House) is known for its fun atmosphere and sweet treats like ice cream and funnel cake. Customers rave about the friendly staff, especially Serena. However, some have experienced long wait times and inconsistent food quality, particularly with the hot chicken.
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Tip: The ice cream sandwich swing is a hit with kids. Be prepared for potential wait times.
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Frequently asked questions about J's Hot Chicken
J's Hot Chicken Santa Barbara Reviews
Tasty ice cream and other sweet treats in a fun atmosphere for both kids and adults. This is a great place to stop when the weather is warm and you need something to cool you down! The ice cream sandwich swing is a magnet for kids, and the ice cream flavors and toppings are plentiful and interesting. The funnel cake is delicious and perfect for sharing.
Fun and yummy ice creams. Awesome cookies. Funnel cakes too!
Tasty ice cream and other sweet treats in a fun atmosphere for both kids and adults. This is a great place to stop when the weather is warm and you need something to cool you down! The ice cream sandwich swing is a magnet for kids, and the ice cream flavors and toppings are plentiful and interesting. The funnel cake is delicious and perfect for sharing.
Fun and yummy ice creams. Awesome cookies. Funnel cakes too!
I absolutely love Dave’s Drip House—and now with the new chicken concept added inside the shop, it’s even better! My go-to treat is the Dole Whip because it brings back memories of Disneyland. Their ice cream is also top-notch. Every time I visit, the staff is incredibly friendly and welcoming. No matter how busy it gets, I’ve never had to wait long. I recently tried their new chicken and was seriously impressed. I just had a chicken finger with their homemade dipping sauce, and it was incredible. The chicken was perfectly cooked—super juicy and flavorful. Honestly, there’s no comparison to any other chicken spot in town. This is hands-down the best. It's a bit of a hidden gem, but Dave really hit it out of the park with this new concept.
Amazing fried chicken fingers! The Mac n cheese balls were so tasty and the seasoned fries aswell. The chicken was nice and juicy and their “pink sauce” was perfect with the food. Great customer service aswell and the decorations are instagram worthy/trendy.
Serena has the best smile and customer service! You’re lucky to have such a great employee! She deserves a raise🙋🏼♀️whoop whoop
Ice cream was great. Shop is super cute. Staff was friendly and lovely as my kiddo tried to decide what he wanted. The ice cream sandwich shaped bench swing was a big hit
Great funnel cake and you definitely get your money’s worth - i definitely couldn’t finish it in one sitting.. Super cute store with a little swing. Good customer service. Wait time was just a little longer than expected
The new chicken fingers are amazing, best chicken spot in town hands down! 🙏 Great customer service, everybody was happy to fulfill my order.
Started at Dave's Dogs Grill and finished across the parking lot to have a killer dessert. Quality, fun ice cream joint.
Serena has the best smile and customer service! You’re lucky to have such a great employee! She deserves a raise🙋🏼♀️whoop whoop
I absolutely love Dave’s Drip House—and now with the new chicken concept added inside the shop, it’s even better! My go-to treat is the Dole Whip because it brings back memories of Disneyland. Their ice cream is also top-notch. Every time I visit, the staff is incredibly friendly and welcoming. No matter how busy it gets, I’ve never had to wait long. I recently tried their new chicken and was seriously impressed. I just had a chicken finger with their homemade dipping sauce, and it was incredible. The chicken was perfectly cooked—super juicy and flavorful. Honestly, there’s no comparison to any other chicken spot in town. This is hands-down the best. It's a bit of a hidden gem, but Dave really hit it out of the park with this new concept.
Amazing fried chicken fingers! The Mac n cheese balls were so tasty and the seasoned fries aswell. The chicken was nice and juicy and their “pink sauce” was perfect with the food. Great customer service aswell and the decorations are instagram worthy/trendy.
The new chicken fingers are amazing, best chicken spot in town hands down! 🙏 Great customer service, everybody was happy to fulfill my order.
Ice cream was great. Shop is super cute. Staff was friendly and lovely as my kiddo tried to decide what he wanted. The ice cream sandwich shaped bench swing was a big hit
Great funnel cake and you definitely get your money’s worth - i definitely couldn’t finish it in one sitting.. Super cute store with a little swing. Good customer service. Wait time was just a little longer than expected
Started at Dave's Dogs Grill and finished across the parking lot to have a killer dessert. Quality, fun ice cream joint.
No hate, this is the only place that I know of where you can get funnel cake year round, but the strawberries…. My friend and I ordered the funnel cake w strawberries and whip/ice creams… we could see it while it was being made…and we both thought chocolate sauce was being put on it…it was the strawberries. I assume they were out of a can or something and not rotten… But I fear this weird gross topping may be their downfall…
Dave’s drip house serves up delicious ice cream and friendly service. We dropped in for an ice cream because we heard it is good. We were greeted by friendly young women who answered all of our questions with a smile. I went overboard and ordered a sundae. It was huge with generous toppings. It was an absolutely delicious super bomb. Loved it. It was not cheap mind you, but what is these days? The shop is a basic ice cream shop. Nothing special by way of decoration except maybe the giant ice cream sandwich looking swing? We loved Dave’s and will return. Perhaps a dog for lunch followed by a scoop? Sign me up!
We got the urge to grab a sundae, and remembered to give Dave's Drip House a try. We both ended up with Churro Sundaes. The staff hadn't made one yet, but followed their guidebook and made it delicious for us. We brought our dogs and they loved being included and enjoyed the fake grass sitting area. We got pup cups for them, but one of the dogs wouldn't touch it. She's prissy and likes actual ice cream. (The pup cups are whipped topping with dog biscuits on top.) Looking forward to trying some other ice creams there.
Dave’s drip house serves up delicious ice cream and friendly service. We dropped in for an ice cream because we heard it is good. We were greeted by friendly young women who answered all of our questions with a smile. I went overboard and ordered a sundae. It was huge with generous toppings. It was an absolutely delicious super bomb. Loved it. It was not cheap mind you, but what is these days? The shop is a basic ice cream shop. Nothing special by way of decoration except maybe the giant ice cream sandwich looking swing? We loved Dave’s and will return. Perhaps a dog for lunch followed by a scoop? Sign me up!
We got the urge to grab a sundae, and remembered to give Dave's Drip House a try. We both ended up with Churro Sundaes. The staff hadn't made one yet, but followed their guidebook and made it delicious for us. We brought our dogs and they loved being included and enjoyed the fake grass sitting area. We got pup cups for them, but one of the dogs wouldn't touch it. She's prissy and likes actual ice cream. (The pup cups are whipped topping with dog biscuits on top.) Looking forward to trying some other ice creams there.
June 6th, 2025 around 8pm. I ordered the #3 with two chicken tenders with the spice level as mild and one hot. They all came out hot unfortunately and the Mac n cheese balls tasted off. The fries weren’t properly seasoned and were soggy. The cashier was nice, I really liked the environment and cleanliness of the store. I was really looking forward to the food, hope things can turn around!
First time coming to this place. Kids got ice cream and they had many size options. They actually have a kids size which is great. We got a strawberry and banana funnel cake. The strawberries had a bad taste and did not look fresh may have been from a jar. The funnel cake overall ok. We also got a churro sandwich but make sure to eat within 5 mins or else the hot churros will melt ice cream. We ate in the parking lot and it wasn’t even past 8 mins that it fully melt. We will try again and give it a try again. We will see if anything changes.
June 6th, 2025 around 8pm. I ordered the #3 with two chicken tenders with the spice level as mild and one hot. They all came out hot unfortunately and the Mac n cheese balls tasted off. The fries weren’t properly seasoned and were soggy. The cashier was nice, I really liked the environment and cleanliness of the store. I was really looking forward to the food, hope things can turn around!
First time coming to this place. Kids got ice cream and they had many size options. They actually have a kids size which is great. We got a strawberry and banana funnel cake. The strawberries had a bad taste and did not look fresh may have been from a jar. The funnel cake overall ok. We also got a churro sandwich but make sure to eat within 5 mins or else the hot churros will melt ice cream. We ate in the parking lot and it wasn’t even past 8 mins that it fully melt. We will try again and give it a try again. We will see if anything changes.
My kids love this place and I love to support our local community businesses! Hot chicken is a little over seasoned for my liking. But the chicken was hot and juicy. Kids love their hot dogs across the street!
My kids love this place and I love to support our local community businesses! Hot chicken is a little over seasoned for my liking. But the chicken was hot and juicy. Kids love their hot dogs across the street!
Funnel cake was extremely greasy and doughey, not crisp and tender inside. Disappointing.
Funnel cake was extremely greasy and doughey, not crisp and tender inside. Disappointing.
I don’t want to knock this place entirely, because I have not tried the ice cream at Dave’s Drippin House X Jay’s Hot Chicken, but after my experience here, I don’t foresee myself ever, EVER coming back. A friend and I thought we might try some fried chicken here, but immediately as I walked in, I saw an insect crawling about the store, but that was something I was willing to overlook. But let me just say this: not only was it the most poorly seasoned, dry/flavorless chicken, but it also had the worst breading possibly ever put on a chicken. I’ve licked a can of pepper spray before, and let me tell you, that had more flavor than this sad excuse of a chicken sandwich. The fries were unequivocally mid, and don’t get me started on the sauce. But you know what? I was willing to let all of this slide, until just moments later, my stomach ached so bad that I thought I might have been having an ulcer. My rectum is still not happy from my dining experience here.
I don’t want to knock this place entirely, because I have not tried the ice cream at Dave’s Drippin House X Jay’s Hot Chicken, but after my experience here, I don’t foresee myself ever, EVER coming back. A friend and I thought we might try some fried chicken here, but immediately as I walked in, I saw an insect crawling about the store, but that was something I was willing to overlook. But let me just say this: not only was it the most poorly seasoned, dry/flavorless chicken, but it also had the worst breading possibly ever put on a chicken. I’ve licked a can of pepper spray before, and let me tell you, that had more flavor than this sad excuse of a chicken sandwich. The fries were unequivocally mid, and don’t get me started on the sauce. But you know what? I was willing to let all of this slide, until just moments later, my stomach ached so bad that I thought I might have been having an ulcer. My rectum is still not happy from my dining experience here.
For anyone even thinking about trying their “Js Hot Chicken”: PLEASE rethink. I have tried the best hot chicken from all over America, I even worked at a critically acclaimed “Dave’s Hot Chicken”. And I am beyond disappointed, this meal was a lousy excuse of Hot Chicken, The chicken was just spicy lacking flavor, the mac and cheese balls tasted like fried air, and I questioned whether the fries were even potatoes. I am a young broke college student so spending 13 dollars on a meal can mean a lot. Never in my life would I have expected the experience that I just had, the food was poorly made and felt difficult to go down. My stomach feels heavy and like it is about to rip open. Based on the reviews I am sure the Ice Cream is great but please stick to ice cream! If you can’t do Hot Chicken right don’t do it at all. Everything about this was just WRONG. The spicing needs to be remodeled! The chicken in a hot dog shape does NOT work, and the fries have too much wrong going on with them. There’s the meme “We gotta go bald” and honestly that’s what I have to say about the chicken game here. Fix everything and DO BETTER! I didn’t want to be this harsh, but I felt like I had to come here since my stomach feels like it’s about to explode. Not trying to bash this place rather give my honest opinion so we can all see some improvement here.
“Hello, I waited 20 minutes for my order, and it was just one drink. When I arrived, there was no one in the store, so this delay seems unreasonable. This creates problems for delivery workers. Please improve your order preparation times.”
Despicable customer service. Very post pandemic. There was also a worker who had just gotten off shouting insults at me as I was trying to walk up to read the -10 pm sign at 9 pm. (Owner commented saying “it was 9:30 not 8” as if had ever said that I was there at 8. Said it was before the closed posting time. {10} Owners are awful)
“Hello, I waited 20 minutes for my order, and it was just one drink. When I arrived, there was no one in the store, so this delay seems unreasonable. This creates problems for delivery workers. Please improve your order preparation times.”
For anyone even thinking about trying their “Js Hot Chicken”: PLEASE rethink. I have tried the best hot chicken from all over America, I even worked at a critically acclaimed “Dave’s Hot Chicken”. And I am beyond disappointed, this meal was a lousy excuse of Hot Chicken, The chicken was just spicy lacking flavor, the mac and cheese balls tasted like fried air, and I questioned whether the fries were even potatoes. I am a young broke college student so spending 13 dollars on a meal can mean a lot. Never in my life would I have expected the experience that I just had, the food was poorly made and felt difficult to go down. My stomach feels heavy and like it is about to rip open. Based on the reviews I am sure the Ice Cream is great but please stick to ice cream! If you can’t do Hot Chicken right don’t do it at all. Everything about this was just WRONG. The spicing needs to be remodeled! The chicken in a hot dog shape does NOT work, and the fries have too much wrong going on with them. There’s the meme “We gotta go bald” and honestly that’s what I have to say about the chicken game here. Fix everything and DO BETTER! I didn’t want to be this harsh, but I felt like I had to come here since my stomach feels like it’s about to explode. Not trying to bash this place rather give my honest opinion so we can all see some improvement here.
The store staff are extremely irresponsible and careless. The service is absolutely terrible – 0 out of 10. If you plan to visit, be prepared to waste at least an hour of your time. !!!!!!
Despicable customer service. Very post pandemic. There was also a worker who had just gotten off shouting insults at me as I was trying to walk up to read the -10 pm sign at 9 pm. (Owner commented saying “it was 9:30 not 8” as if had ever said that I was there at 8. Said it was before the closed posting time. {10} Owners are awful)
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About J's Hot Chicken
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199 South Turnpike Road Ste. 104, Goleta, Santa Barbara, CA 93111
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199 South Turnpike Road Ste. 104, Goleta, Santa Barbara, CA 93111
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