I had the opportunity to participate in a taste test for rotisserie chickens, led by Bryan Vance of Stumptown Savings. I joined a handful of local food writers on Tuesday, November 18 to taste a total of nine chickens from eight stores. Bryan has published our results over on Stumptown Savings (subscription required to read—it’s free to subscribe), but I thought I’d share some additional thoughts on this very fun gathering.
Some Background
You may remember back in July I was joined by Bryan Vance and Judith Rich to taste supermarket deli salads for Salad Week, with a surprising outcome. The whole experience was a really good time—tasting a variety of grocery store salads, spending time with friendly people, and enjoying the summer weather.
This time we were inside during autumn, but the experience was similar—truly a good time. The people judging the chicken included Bryan and myself, Ben Coleman, Katy Osuna, and Misty Milioto—five food writers (talking shop was inevitable) in total. I brought in three chickens: Costco, and two from Safeway (Open Nature and Signature Select).
Additional background: Back in September I emailed Bryan because I had seen this comment posted on Discord: “What’s your guys favorite grocery store rotisserie chicken? Tried Safeway, Costco, and Fred Meyers so far and I think Fred Meyers might be my favorite.” I thought maybe it would be a good subject for one of his taste tests. (Also: sorry about your fave chicken, Discord fren…)
He told me that a rotisserie chicken tasting had been on his mind and did I want to participate in a taste test of supermarket chickens. Heck yeah I did!
And the rest is history.
Rotisserie Chickens Taste Test: The Process
The plan was to gather rotisserie chickens from eight locations—aside from the two Safeway chix and the one from Costco, we had birds from Fred Meyer/QFC, Market of Choice, New Seasons, Whole Foods, WinCo, and Zupan’s. Note: All chickens were paid for out of our own pockets; this was not a sponsored occasion.
Katy was kind enough to slice up the chicken into dark meat and white meat pieces, and placed them on platters in a way that did not divulge which of the chickens we were eating at any one time. That said, I told them, “I’m going into this expecting to like the Costco chicken the most. But who knows, maybe I’ll be wrong.”
Bryan had put together a grading packet where we could write down our thoughts about each chicken. We gave each sample a ranking from 0 to 5 on flavor, texture, and value. We ranked flavor and texture right after tasting the pieces, and then value after we were done with them all.
And while we agreed not to share any observations during the tasting, there was one chicken where we looked at each other and just knew what the others were thinking.
I also brought a tub of little chocolate chip cookies (bought at Costco when I got the chicken) as a palate cleanser of sorts. They ended up being more popular than I expected, so I’m glad I got them.
Rotisserie Chickens: The Results
Well, my personal favorite didn’t win, but it got close, and my points ranking matched that of the winner. For me, Costco really satisfies, and even in a blind taste test I said “It felt ‘friendly’ to eat. Not too salty, a little peppery. The dark meat was almost delicate, with a soft yet firm texture.” I will continue to buy them (and next time I get one I will be making this phở).
However, Costco has a barrier to entry, which is their membership; the winning chicken had a competitive price and anyone can shop there.
I will say—New Seasons was just plain bad. Sadly, Market of Choice was a disappointment, too. For that one, Bryan quoted me, that it “sucked the moisture out of my mouth.” This was not a good experience.
Additionally, the question of “Is it rotisserie or is it actually roasted” came up. I know the Costco one is cooked on a spit, but are the others? Honestly, I’m not sure, but I suspect some are simply roasted.
So can you guess which one was our winner? Head over to Stumptown Savings to read more about which chicken won, and more commentary on those we tried. Or, post your guess in the comments. I also welcome your opinions on who makes you favorite rotisserie chickens in Portland.
We taste-tested 9 rotisserie chickens to find the best. [Stumptown Savings]
Updated December 11, 2025 with the name of the winner in the comments.
Updated December 12, 2025 to clarify how to access the source article.
Meg Cotner
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Aww I understand why but I’m bummed that the results are pay walled, I was about to share this with a friend. I’m glad you taste tested, that’s so fun! My guess/hope is Winco maybe?? I need to go get one and try it.
Yes, I wanted to respect the paywall (though I can see it with a free subscription), but now that it’s been a couple of days, I’ll tell you here: yes, it was WinCo! It was really a surprise. So now they have a great bulk section, as well as some of the best supermarket donuts and rotisserie chickens.
To clarify, it’s not pay walled. It’s free to read, you just need to be a free subscriber.
Thanks for clarifying that, Bryan. You’re right, they are not the same and I think I used the term in its broader sense. I’ll go in and change it to make it more accurate. I appreciate your input!