Who has the best fried chicken in Greenville?

Fried Chicken is more than a personal favorite food for many; it’s serious business and a national holiday

Your wife tells you that she wants some of the fried chicken from Spinx, which she’s been hearing so much talk about.

You think, how can a gas station compete with serious restaurants and Kentucky Fried Chicken?  She eats it and raves about its succulent and crispy taste.

You shrug it off as a fluke.

Then you learn that July 6 is actually Fried Chicken Day.

Another surprise

You learned that Spinx, the locally owned gas station chain, has been making amazing fried chicken with its special recipe for 40 years.

You wonder what could be behind all the furor about fried chicken? So you investigate and learn some fun facts.

Tasty and home-grown, always available, and boasting a Duke's Mayo collaboration are three ingredients that make Spinx one of the area's most popular fried chicken establishments.

July 6 is National Fried Chicken Day, and the Upstate offers a variety of options for fried chicken.

Is Spinx's fried chicken the Upstate's favorite?

While Greenville recognizes the local favorites of M&J's Wings and OJ's Diner of Greenville, Nana's Kitchen and Smokin' Wings in Mauldin, and pays respect to franchise newcomers like Rocky's Hot Chicken Shack, Spinx's secret, and proprietary herbs and spices recipe boasts a strong case as the area and state's top fried chicken brand.

Approaching 40 years in existence, Spinx's original fried chicken recipe was crafted by his "Aunt Pearl" and later sold by Stuart Spinks, who has owned the Greenville-based gas station and convenience store franchise since 1972.

"When chicken was introduced at Spinx in 1986, the idea was that it was born out of Stuart's fondness for the food from his Aunt Pearl's farm and watching her make fried chicken," said Hayley Thrift, director of public relations for Spinx. "Now, our bone-in chicken is easily our best-selling food item."

In the four decades since Spinx entered the retail fried chicken market, it has become a favorite local choice alongside grocery store chains such as Ingles, Publix, and Food Lion.

Yet, as of May 2025, Spinx hosts more storefront locations (43) than the aforementioned three grocery retailers combined (32) and outnumber other national chicken retailers such as Zaxby's, Bojangles, and Chick-fil-a, who all have 17 locations within Greenville County, according to a May 2025 market study by Datassential.

"There's a lot of good competition out there," Thrift added. "But I think our recipe resonates with a lot of people who are true to the South and have similar remnants of an 'Aunt Pearl's' cooking."

Datassentials also shows that Spinx boasts a 50 percent market share in convenience store chains within county limits and operates 24 hours a day at 90 locations in the Carolinas. These numbers contributed to nearly 4.4 million pounds of fried chicken sold by Spinx in 2024, making it the Palmetto State's most popular home-grown poultry retailer.

Their popularity has continued in recent years with the addition of Spinx's Cluck Truck, which is spotted at the majority of significant Upstate events. In March 2025, a new signature sauce collaboration with Duke Mayo became available, marking a connection between two Greenville-originating brands popular throughout the South and beyond.

Although the recipe from Aunt Pearl has been slightly adapted from its original and co-manufactured by Wynn's Grain and Spice, Spinx has become just as well-known for being a gas station and convenience store option as it has for its chicken.

The word on the street, correct or not, is that the Spinx location on Washington and Laurens Road has the best fried chicken of the brand.

Who do you say has the best friend chicken in town

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