Crazy Little Chicken
Pollito Loco is a zero-waste sustainable street food concept in Portsmouth and we went in to try their menu. Pollito Loco translates, in Spanish, to Crazy Little Chicken and as you may expect, the menu focuses on (darn good!) chicken.
It took us a little while to find the premises (opposite Stagginly Good Brewery on Rodney Road) but that’s no bother because it’s not a place to eat in. It’s a kitchen with a simple modern office next door which we felt comfortable in and at home. We met Gemma who kindly offered us a beer and said she had a selection of dishes for us to try.
Pollito Loco
We instantly took a liking to Gemma’s enthusiasm and abundance of energy. She told us about her previous experience working as a caterer in the music industry which sounded pretty cool – who wouldn’t want to cook for rock stars? She then went on to explain how Pollito Loco came to life, an idea born from her time living in Spain. This explains some of the Spanish influence clearly seen on the menu like chicken empanadas, asador de pollo, sopa de ajo and pisto. The menu includes many innovative ways to prepare chicken, inspired by places across the world.
Zero-waste sustainable street food
We’ll move on to the food in a bit (and boy was it good) but I’d like to first tell you a bit about Pollito Loco and why I think it’s so great. As I mentioned, Pollito Loco is a zero-waste sustainable street food concept. Everything is made from scratch and nothing is wasted. The high-welfare chickens arrive the morning after they went to heaven, so they are as fresh as can be and of course, free-range. How many times have you bought a chicken and used the whole bird?
I remember my mum spending hours in the kitchen after our Sunday roast, getting every bit of meat off the bird to use for the coming week. We had chicken sandwiches, chicken curry and chicken soup. Nowadays, people (and me included) are more likely to pop into Tescos on the way home and grab a couple of fillets for tea. But, how sustainable – and not to mention costly – is that? I hate wasting food, especially when it comes from an animal, so this labor-intensive, skilled method of food preparation gets my vote.
Pollito Loco’s menu
The first menu-tasting platter we tried included chicken lollypops, chicken empanadas, and Maryland chicken. We loved the idea of the lollypops which are stripped back mess-free chicken wings – perfect when enjoying food with friends. I loved the empanada too, most definitely one of the freshest empanadas I’ve ever had.
More tasty chicken..
Next up was a piece of the Yankee Doodle (chicken thigh burger as good as Natty’s) yuca fries, plantain fritters and chicken with a Caribbean mango and apple salad. It was all fantastic, bursting with flavour and quite obvious the chicken was of excellent quality. Whatever chicken dish we order next time, plantain fritters and yuca fries will be added too! Lastly, we enjoyed a selection of chicken soups and cornbread – again all very nice with a variety of flavours. They would certainly cure a cold!
How to get your takeaway
There’s a number of sides and sauces to choose from like the Mumbi mental and the Jah Jah Jamaican Jerk. There’s also a vegan falafel burger too. So, whether you’re vegan, gluten-free, wanting to be healthy or looking for comfort food, the menu has something for everyone. You can order your takeaway via Uber Eats, Deliveroo and Just Eat and we’ll be doing just that! Give them a follow on social media.
H x
Ambience N/A
Quality 9.5
Value 9
Service 9
Overall 9.5
Return? Yes!