5 Items You Should Always Avoid Ordering From KFC, According To Reviews

KFC in the United States has been going through it lately, with profits down and a lot of people just not being impressed with the menu items, generally. KFC USA's same-store sales consistently declined in 2024, and in 2025, it's been more of the same. A lot of people just seem to believe that KFC USA was just better in previous decades, despite attempting to turn things around this year by introducing new menu items.

Actually, as it turns out, we at Chowhound have some ideas to help bring the chicken chain back to life in the U.S., including borrowing ideas from KFC's international menus that include breakfast or bringing back discontinued menu items of KFC past well-deserved of a comeback. Frankly, while we're at it, we'd also love to see a resurgence of the fan-favorite honey BBQ wings at KFC.

Yes, KFC could add these much-loved (and lost) items to its menu, but, honestly, it could also benefit from removing a few items from its menu forever. There are five KFC menu items that, according to reviews within the past year, you should just stay the heck away from and avoid ordering at all costs (no matter how cheap). These are those items — you have been officially warned.

Mike's Hot Honey is everywhere these days, and for good reason – it's delicious. It didn't nab the runner-up spot on our ranking of hot honey brands for nothing, after all. Unfortunately, however, its collaboration with KFC just didn't hit. And this doesn't appear to be a Mike's Hot Honey problem, but rather KFC's. It just doesn't seem to be doing a great job making the item.

According to reviews, the proportions of honey are always off — there's always too little of it, leaving the chicken dry. Also , the chicken is either not spicy at all or too spicy. And usually, there's some sort of quality control issue where the honey winds up more on the outside of the box rather than on the chicken. What customers get doesn't seem to match the pictures of the chicken on the menu or in commercials. It's not gross — it's just really disappointing. You're better off getting chicken from somewhere else and pouring your own Mike's Hot Honey on there.

From the looks of it on its website, KFC's Famous Bowl looks like a big bowl of comfort, complete with mashed potatoes, gravy, corn, crispy chicken nuggets, and a three-cheese blend. For those craving a fast-food homestyle meal, this item should hit the spot. And apparently, it once did, for a lot of people. According to reviewers on Reddit, the Famous Bowl used to be just as it was described and much better than it is today, in its current form.

The present-day KFC Famous Bowl appears to be nothing but a sad trough of mush. Instead of well-distributed ingredients and crispy chicken nuggets with lots of cheese, customers tend to receive more of the cheaper ingredients (mashed potatoes, corn) and soggy breaded chicken. Oh, and by the way, that chicken may or may not actually have any meat in it — there's a big chance you'll just wind up with breading and skin. Unfortunately, it's better not to take your chances with this menu item anymore, but rather take it on as a DIY meal. People have taken to making their own versions of KFC's Famous Bowl at home, to save themselves from disappointment — and rightly so.

KFC's Double Down, the sandwich consisting of two fried chicken pieces in place of a bun with cheese and bacon inside, first unbelievably appeared on menus in the U.S. back in 2010. And although it hasn't been available since 2014 in the US, this year, KFC brought it back for a limited time. But even a limited time is too much time for this monstrosity of a "sandwich" to be on the KFC menu — and here's hoping it never, ever returns.

This time around, there appeared to have been a recipe change — where it used to have BBQ sauce inside, it now had your choice of mayo or spicy sauce, and fans didn't love this. Some also complained that it was soggier than usual. Personally, I remember this sandwich from when it first came out and am as horrified now as I was back then. And, yes, I tried it — it was awful. Frankly, it shouldn't even be referred to as a sandwich — it's just two pieces of fried chicken stacked on top of each other with a pathetic slice of cheese and some bacon inside. This menu item is more of a dare than a meal. I have a personal vendetta against this KFC menu item — may it please go away forever this time.

If you're wondering how KFC makes its mashed potatoes, prepare to be disappointed. They're made by simply combining a pack of instant mix with warm water, which doesn't exactly scream "quality," and Colonel Sanders himself knew it. Even after selling his company, he would make stops at KFC restaurants and let it be known that he was not pleased with this mashed potato fact. And while mashed potatoes at KFC used to be a fan favorite, the quality has gone down in recent years.

Now, just because mashed potatoes come from a mix doesn't automatically make them terrible. However, many customers complain lately that KFC's mashed potatoes, instant or not, are boring and without any texture. In fact, they placed second to last in a taste test conducted on Tasting Table, as they just don't have much flavor anymore and are sort of just a pureed, bland mush. If you order them, be prepared to douse them with seasoning — and eating them without gravy is not a good idea unless you're a fan of something tasting like nothing.

Well, it's time to face an inconvenient and uncomfortable truth: KFC's fried chicken, generally, just isn't that good, especially compared to all of the fried chicken chain competitors out there like Popeye's, Raising Cane's, and others. This is a pretty big problem since, well, fried chicken is sort of its whole thing. In fact, KFC's chicken is largely viewed as being not just bad, but the worst fried chicken out there. Chicken fans regularly call it soggy or describe it as bland, mushy, and without any joy. Many believe it used to be a lot better back in the day, but has sadly gone way downhill over the years.

Perhaps the quality might be improved by a tip ensuring KFC gives you fresh fried chicken when you order it, but, according to reviews lately, this might not even matter. Even former longtime fans of KFC are moving on from the chain after being served chicken that isn't just subpar, but actually gross. For example, lately, multiple people have complained that its chicken tasted like it was cooked in old oil. Yikes. Hopefully, KFC can make the comeback it's hoping for and fight its ever-growing decline with actual solutions (and good menu items) and not just clever marketing.

I researched reviews from the past year on sites like Reddit, Facebook, and YouTube to see what KFC items were being complained about the most lately. I went down a KFC rabbit hole, sifting through the opinions of groups formed, apparently, to specifically complain about KFC, and explored TikTok to see what the food influencers were saying about the chicken chain's menu items. I also called upon my own (unfortunate) past experience and memories of the items, like the regrettable Double Down.

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