Finger Food Faves

General manager Katie Nguyen has a recommended must-try for new customers to Shakey’s Pizza Parlor — the chicken. That’s right. The boss at the family-friendly pizza restaurant wants everyone to know how good its chicken is. Pizza? Everyone knows Shakey’s pizza, but the chicken appetizers are tasty, juicy and burdened with too much sauce that hides flavors and make the joysticks in the game room hard to handle. She may be on to something.

The wings come in four-, eight-and 12-piece sizes and range from $5.99 to $15.99. Topped with ranch dressing and a Dr. Pepper barbecue sauce, the wings are crispy and a little sweet. If tempted, you can turn up the heat with a dip into the Budweiser Hot and Spicy Sauce. The combination wings fit perfect with the restaurant’s patrons. Keiki will enjoy the sweet coating, and with just a dunk it becomes an adult-themed meal starter that will have you sweating.

A nice selection to go along with the wings is the Mojo Supreme ($9.99), a potato version of nachos that has everything a spud needs. Bacon, Cheddar and mozzarella cheese, olives and onions are placed on the bountiful slices, with salsa and sour cream on the side. Nguyen says the potato and wings partnership has been strong since they opened.

“A lot of families like to come in and order the wings and Mojo Supreme,” she says. “They taste great and are fun to eat.”

If you like your pupus comparable to a complete meal — and who doesn’t? — the Golden Fried Chicken with Mojo Potatoes ($9.49 for four pieces and $18.99 for eight) is a good choice. Not only is the serving size large but the chicken is delicious. Seriously. This is perhaps the juiciest chicken I’ve ever had. Each order of the proprietary chicken — meaning the birds are found only at Shakey’s — is individually cooked, so there is no heat lamp to sap flavor and moisture.

One final pupu suggestion is something customers themselves have created. Pizza and football just go together, and thoughtful fans have figured out that bite-sized pieces of their favorite Italian pie just work better in party settings. So they ask for an alteration.

“We have a lot of people who come in and ask us to cut their pizza into small pieces, which we are happy to do,” says Nguyen. There ya go. Finger food just for the asking and the smiling faces of keiki. Mom and Dad, are you listening?

Shakey’s Pizza Parlor