We’ve got ourselves a throwdown – with all due credit to Food Network’s Bobby Flay for the phrase.

I love fried chicken. My late mother made it pan fried, pan fried then baked but it was always good. Indiana has no lack of fried chicken contenders. The Iron Skillet in Indianapolis has a long history of iron-skillet fried chicken, The Kopper Kettle restaurant in Morristown is pretty darn good. Hollyhock Hill on North College is very homey but needs a little more crunch in my visits. The Eagle, on Massachusetts Ave., has good – albeit a bit spicy  – fried chicken served up by and for the Millennial and Gen Z crowd. I think it’s darn good chicken but the spice was too much for this wimp.

The real heavy weight contenders in the category couldn’t be more different. Wagner’s Village Inn in Oldenberg (near Batesville) and Joe Huber’s fried chicken atop a hill sort of overlooking New Albany are Indiana’s top contenders in my coop. Both have gotten their share of honors and “Best of” lists so both are worth a visit.

I have visited Hubers many times since it’s located less than a mile from Huber Winery, one of the state’s best vineyards and wine producers. I visited Wagner’s for the first time last week. I like both but they are real opposites.

Huber’s fried chicken is super crispy with a mild mixture of spices they don’t reveal. It always tastes fresh. I’m a crunch guy. I used to order the KFC extra crispy but not so much now days because it’s often a bit greasy. No such problems at Hubers the chicken comes out hot and fresh.

Huber has a big edge over Wagner in menu. Hubers offers ham, chicken and noodles lots of salads and Huber wines along with pies galore. The best nearest attraction is the aforementioned winery. It takes a little effort to get up to Hubers but there is an exit off I-64 West, then follow the signs.

The service is usually great at Hubers with many college students staffing the restaurant in summer months. Even when busy the place hustles. It’s also huge! The main dining room seats more than 200 while two large party barns fill up for October weekends and a chicken buffet.

Wagner’s has been no secret around southern Indiana but recently got a huge boost from the James Beard Foundation for Indiana’s Best Fried Chicken. The restaurant has been there for years and years on Main Street. Wagner uses iron skillets and fries its birds in pork fat. It’s a dark brown color and crispy but not as heavy a coating as many others. The only seasoning is salt and pepper which came through nicely.

Wagner was so busy with the accolade they abandoned the rest of the menu for awhile and served just the fried chicken dinner. But recently the full menu including chicken fried steak and pot pies was back when I visited Oct. 26. Wagner’s service was okay on a quiet Thursday evening but not very attentive. The restaurant is small and during the James Beard hype, lines would form down the street. The chicken was different, but interesting and good. You can taste the iron skillet which is an interesting flavor profile. I got sort of pan roasted that the mashed potatoes were clearly not real spuds. Mom and Pop places just can’t get away with that!

Best attraction near Wagners is the town itself – the Village of Spires. Home of the Holy Family Church and Sisters of St. Francis. Take your camera. The village sets just a few miles of I-74 at Batesville exits. Look for Oldenberg signs.

So the two restaurants are quite different. A half chicken (4-5 pieces) at Hubers is $18.99 and at Wagners $18.95 – both include sides. Both offer more to do than fried chicken.

For this fried chicken throwdown, I’ll give the edge to Hubers it’s lighter, crispier bird! These places are real gems you will enjoy and two worth a try.