Jill’s Chicken Shack offering creative new dishes two years after opening

IONA – A beloved chicken-oriented restaurant in Iona has become a community staple since it opened in 2021.

Jill and Clint Reading, the owners of Jill’s Chicken Shack, say their restaurant has amassed many local regulars over the past two years, which is easy to believe with their incredibly tasty dishes.

“We are just barely over two years old. We do southern-style fried chicken and homestyle sides,” says Jill. “Even down to the buns are being made here in the shop.”

EastIdahoNews.com was lucky enough to taste three of their favorite and most popular items, starting with the “Hot Mess.”

The hot mess is a loaded french fry dish topped with shredded cheese, homemade diced chicken strips, and their “sweet heat” sauce.

“The chicken, we are cutting and breading in-house. We source fresh chicken. Clint cuts it every morning, we do a brine process, then we bread it, and it’s fried,” says Jill. “It doesn’t come in frozen, it’s not pre-breaded somewhere else, we are doing all of this in-house.”

The Hot Mess | Kaitlyn Hart, EastIdahoNews.com

The sauce alone was enough for me to fall in love with this dish, giving it just the right amount of heat and sugar to pair with the fries beautifully.

“We make buffalo (sauce) in-house as well, it’s our own recipes, but you get buffalo everywhere,” Clint says. “This is something unique to us.”

Next, we tried the Maverick Sandwich, the only chicken sandwich available.

The Maverick consists of a homemade bun with fried chicken, mayonnaise, and the house slaw.

The Maverick Sandwich. | Kaitlyn Hart, EastIdahoNews.com

I’m not a huge fan of coleslaw in general, but this was amazing. Jill’s uses cabbage, bell peppers, and a cilantro vinaigrette dressing, giving it a sweet and refreshing flavor to add to the creaminess of the usual ingredients.

When asked how they came up with their dishes, the Reading’s glanced at each other, laughing.

“Jill’s a foodie,” says Clint. Laughing, Jill replied, “We’ve been foodies for a long time.”

Lastly, we tried the homemade cinnamon roll, which was about as big as my head and probably the best I’ve ever had. Sorry, mom.

The icing is creamy and light, and the dough is airy and sweet, making me want to curl up in a heated blanket and stare at some falling snow through the window while I eat it.

Cinnamon Roll | Kaitlyn Hart, EastIdahoNews.com

“It’s just a basic cinnamon roll. We are not a bakery,” says Jill. “So, we bake cinnamon rolls every day, we bake them throughout the day, but we don’t always have them.”

For the Readings, the business is all about quality and community.

“There is a lot of quality involved, and it does sometimes mean that we run out,” says Clint.

The owners recommend that if you plan to stop in for a bite, especially for cinnamon rolls, to call ahead and order beforehand. Since everything is homemade, it can take a while to prepare, and the Readings want everything to be warm and ready when you arrive.

Make sure to stop by Jill’s Chicken Shack at 3372 North Main Street in Iona. They are open Tuesday through Saturday from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m.

To call and order ahead, call (208) 607-9773.

Make sure to check out their website, and follow them on Facebook and Instagram as well.

“Wanna Strip?” shirts for sale at Jill’s Chicken Shack in Iona. | Kaitlyn Hart, EastIdahoNews.com