Nashville Restaurants and Food
Richie’s Hot and Spicy Kastle
235 Old Hickory Blvd.
Madison
615-860-2604
It used to be an actual blue and red castle-like structure rising up out of a parking lot in Madison. About six years ago Richie’s Hot and Spicy Kastle moved the take-out business to a more generic storefront down the street. It’s tucked away just off of Old Hickory Blvd and before Gallatin Pike. It’s a large interior with plenty of seating, nondescript, but the 92 health score and certificate of excellence from the Metro Health speaks volumes.
There’s a big menu on the wall which is a bit hard to decipher. Asking Richie for help might not always work. When asked what is hot and spicy on the menu the response was that everything can be. When asked for a recommendation Richie simply shrugged and said he wouldn’t want to influence my decision.
Well then.
Thankfully a bunch of readers had already steered me towards the highlight. The hot wings are really unique for this area. The hot sauce smells like buffalo style, however on first bite you encounter a light, delicate sauce that has piquancy but also a subtle sweetness. Perhaps a drop of honey? Maybe a little vinegar for tang? The light saucing is a tasty alternative to the goopy, soup poured over wings in so many places. The big meaty wings really have a chance to stand up and say chicken.
I can’t say I was as thrilled with the Cajun chicken breast. The seasoning was fine, with just enough heat to make it interesting. The chicken itself was either processed or highly abused. The flattened patty is used in the array of sandwiches offered at Richie’s Hot and Spicy Kastle. They have marinated, plain and Cajun varieties.
Richie points out that everything is cooked to order, creating a bit of a wait, but as usual well worth it. The fried catfish, burgers, dogs and polish sausage make up the rest of the menu. I didn’t get a chance to try the dirty rice, red beans or the homemade key lime pie. So, dear readers, please let us know in the comments if you have sampled any of these or any other highlights I might have missed.
I paid $10 with tax and a drink.
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3 comments:
If I wasn't out looking for some used tools I would never have even noticed that place. The exterior embellishments made me not even want to approach the place - it looks like a bail bond office, not a purveyor of food, good or not.
Which leads me to the inevitable question: What is it about restaurants in the south? They either setup in totally obscure locations with the front entrance perpendicular to the main drag with little to no signage (see above). Or they house themselves in filthy hovels in the middle of nowhere with no regard to the upkeep of the physical structure despite being successful in some cases? You drive to the place, park in a puddle, track your muddy feet into a room with bare bulb light fixtures, and your money sticks to the counter. I was always taught that you were supposed to take your profits and put it back into the business. Oh wait, silly me! The one who do that inevitably start franchising "opportunities". Sigh
I agree yazzwho...the exterior of Richie's is perhaps one of the most un-inviting in town...thankfully those wings are worth venturing inside. Many thanks to readers like bp who have been visiting Richie's for some time now
My husband and I have passed this place many times (usually on Saturday mornings on our way to Lowe's) - and we always joke about it. But maybe we'll give it a try!
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