Hutch’s Hot Chicken in Harrison Serves it Nashville-style
At Hutch’s Hot Chicken in Harrison, classic country music plays through the speakers, setting the vibe for savoring the restaurant’s Nashville-style chicken.
Customers are served plates of fried chicken in rich hues of red that denote the degree of spice level. As is Nashville-style, the chicken is served atop soft white bread and topped with pickle chips. Hutch’s also has chicken wings and catfish along with other entrees and great Southern side dishes such as creamy mac and cheese, turnip greens, “hutchpuppies,” chunky sweet relish, and fried okra.
A small stage for live music stands in the middle of Hutch’s, and photos on the walls testify to one owner’s career in Nashville and the other’s photographic art. Jason and Candra Hutcheson own Hutch’s Hot Chicken.
Jason grew up in nearby Lead Hill with Harrison as his main stomping ground. He spent three summers in his youth playing music at Dogpatch USA, a theme park that was once located between Harrison and Jasper. There, he met popular country singer Tom T. Hall and his son Dean, who invited him to move to Nashville and room with him while he tried his shot at making it in the country music business. Jason had enough money saved to live in Nashville for six months. If he didn’t make it in that time, he planned to come back home and become a state trooper like his older brother.
Jason made his mark in Nashville as a bass player, tour manager, and personal manager. He worked for legends from Tom T. Hall (for 13 years) to Taylor Swift (for five years) and also worked with Patrick Swayze on a movie. After a remarkable career in Nashville, he returned to Harrison in 2014, where he decided he still had something to mark off his bucket list—becoming a state trooper, which he has been for the last 10 years.
He met Candra in 2018. From Mountain View, she grew up clogging and playing music in a family band at Ozark Folk Center State Park. She used to visit Nashville and sit on the side of the stage of the Grand Ole Opry to watch her grandfather, Grandpa Jones, of the television show HeeHaw fame. Today, she is a registered nurse and photographer.
While Jason’s life seemed to have come full circle back to his hometown, something was missing: Nashville hot chicken. While in Nashville, he used to stand in line at the iconic Prince’s Hot Chicken Shack, which opened in 1945 and is credited with inventing the dish.
He also was a fan of the now-defunct hot chicken restaurant opened by country music stars Lorrie Morgan and Sammy Kershaw and remains a fan of Hattie B’s, one of the newer hot chicken ventures in Nashville.
Despite having no prior experience in the restaurant industry, Jason and Candra took the bold step of launching Hutch's Hot Chicken. Their journey had a learning curve, but they have gained valuable insights to produce an authentic dish. Sandra’s son, Colton Conway, plays a pivotal role as their manager, contributing to the business's success.
Candra said she’s proud of the food they serve because it’s all about quality. For example, the chicken is fresh, never frozen. It is brined and hand-breaded. “There’s a certain way to prepare the heat and we do it the original way,” Candra said. “There are varying degrees of spice levels and we can cater to each one.”
Lorrie Morgan best describes the wide-spread enthusiasm for hot chicken in her aptly-titled song, “Nashville Hot Chicken.”
“When you get a hankering for
Something that will drop your tongue to the floor
No bones about it
It’s the only choice worth picking
It may be the grease
May be the bread
May be the sauce that brings the sweat to your head
It's a genuine certified fiery food addiction
When you get that craving
For Nashville hot chicken.”
Except, now you don’t have to go to Nashville. You can satisfy your hankering in Harrison.
In addition to Nashville-style chicken tenders, wings and catfish, the menu includes chicken nachos, loaded chicken french fries, chicken quesadilla, chicken & waffles, hamburgers, burger on greens, shrimp baskets, salads, family platters, milkshakes, and desserts. The banana pudding, in particular, is to die for. Hutch’s has been voted the “best fried chicken” and “best fried chicken and wings” in separate years by the Harrison Daily Times.
Hutch’s has music on most Friday nights and most of the acts they book are regional or beyond. “We’re picky about music,” Jason said. He and Candra, along with her sister, plan to have their own band play, but they aren’t taking the stage at Hutch’s just yet.
Hutch’s is open Tuesday through Saturday from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. It’s a family-friendly atmosphere. Hutch’s also has a gift shop selling country-themed T-shirts, mugs, cutting boards, specialty bath items, artwork and more.
