Chicken sandwich taste test at How Crispy Express

Atlanta adores its chicken sandwiches and especially when they're homegrown.

• Meet a relatively new local to the scene: How Crispy Express, a Summerhill spot that keeps it simple while keeping it interesting — and without chasing the hot chicken bandwagon.

Details: Hatched (get it?) by some of the creative minds behind Ticonderoga Club, Argosy and your favorite restaurants' designs, the sandwich counter's chicken has scored applause from critics like Wendell Brock.

• The menu centers on five chicken sandwiches that include classic, lemon pepper wet, and chicken salad options, along with a vegan patty made from chickpeas.

The selection: Being the Indiana Jones of cuisine that I am, I opted for the non-meat option, and I walked away pleased. Crispy and crunchy on the outside, puffy and light on the inside. I added barbecue and Texas Pete for a little kick.

Flashback: The pandemic caused delays in construction and opening, so How Crispy got creative by working as a pop-up in Halfway Crooks across the street — and lowered customers' chicken orders in a bucket.

One more bite: I came back later and picked up the Honey Boi, a delicious (definitely non-vegan) chicken thigh glazed with a garlic-honey butter sauce, sesame slaw, pickles and a pillowy bun.

• So crispy that it crackles when you bite, the sandwich offers sweet, salty and sour.