Iva's beats Zehnder's any day. The chicken was so tender it practically fell off the bone, and it was packed with flavor. The menu had a good selection too. We did have a pretty long wait for our food, but they were slammed with people picking up large party orders, so it was understandable. The staff was friendly. It was a cozy, old-school atmosphere. read more

Iva's Chicken Dinners - Biscuits - New American Near Me - Sterling, Michigan

Everything was delicious! Had the 2-piece chicken dinner with mashed potatoes and cabbage salad. (Which is basically coleslaw). Great price for what you get. Worth the drive off the beaten path. Will go again read more

We ordered the chicken lunch platter. The fried chicken was crispy and flavorful, the side dishes as well. Portion wise, definitely large portions. Our server was friendly and efficient and attended to us very well. I was impressed how Iva's Chicken consistently served its patrons when the house was full. The food kept coming and there were a lot of happy faces. Highly recommended. read more

This is the best chicken I have ever had hands down so juicy the mashed potatoes and gravy are amazing as well the dressing is a so so. Oh and Also I ordered the rhubarb jelly for my biscuits it was incredible. This place has incredible service and a very casual ambiance I was blown away with the food quality a must try even if your not in the area lol read more

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This place is a legend. The chicken is delicious and comes with tons of side dishes. The chicken noodle soup was delicious. The service was above and beyond. Cute old time restaurant but very very clean. read more

Iva's Chicken Dinners - Chicken dinner and friends had the walleye - New American Near Me - Sterling, Michigan

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Food was very good!! Stopped in on a Friday for a late lunch. Ate in and had a to go order. Chicken on salad was wonderful! Their chicken soup is great and has thick noodles. read more

Iva's Chicken Dinners - New American Near Me - Sterling, Michigan

This was the best fried chicken dinner I've ever had in my life. Do the math...if this place has been around since 1938 in a very rural part of the state, the food is probably dynamite. You don't just survive on hopes and dreams. You must have good food. The lunch plate is more than enough food but if you're feeling super hungry then get the dinner portion. Potatoes and gravy are amazing as well! Wait staff is composed of friendly locals and the interior makes you feel like you're at your grandmother's house. It's heavenly all around. read more

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Will be back for the dinner .the food was served fresh and hot and very friendly staff read more

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On the way back from a trip up north, we decided we wanted to try something new and different, instead of a multi-course chicken dinner somewhere else. Iva's is a little off the beaten path (and the highway), but totally worth a stop. It's a charming place inside, you're eating in an old house. The servers are very friendly, and the food comes out in good time, but you know they're cooking it in back. The soup was very tasty, but the star is the chicken. Cooked in big cast iron skillets, it's amazing. Yes, it's better than that other place you're thinking about. Everything was good, but this isn't a Bavarian chicken place - as long as that's not what you're expecting, you're going to be very happy here and your wallet will be, too. We will be back. read more

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This is a big house. Very relaxed atmosphere. They serve some of the best chicken. Service has always been good. And for me the food is great. Is not on a main route. Is worth going to find this place. read more

Worst food. Very old and unfresh. Very bland and rubbery whatever they called scallops. Believe me the scallops were not real in any way. Then the fried shrimp were so overdone and hard they shriveled down to next to nothing. Its hard to believe this restaurant stays open with food that badly done. Do your self a favor and drive on by. Not worth for a second getting sick over really bad food. read more

If you're looking for classic comfort food that hits the spot without emptying your wallet, Iva's Chicken is it. The fried chicken is golden, crispy, and perfectly seasoned exactly what you'd hope for from a place that clearly knows what it's doing. The mashed potatoes with gravy are creamy and rich, and that scoop of dressing with homemade gravy? Just like grandma used to make. Portions are generous, service is friendly, and the atmosphere is simple and welcoming. It's the kind of place you come back to again and again. Don't miss it. Great value, great food, and that small-town charm that's getting harder to find. read more

Iva's Chicken Dinners - A la carte chicken- two thighs, two sides, and a biscuit $9.95 - New American Near Me - Sterling, Michigan

Step back in time to Sunday chicken dinner at your grandma's house. Very good food and the prices are also good. Don't wear tight pants read more

Iva's Chicken Dinners - Family style dinner - New American Near Me - Sterling, Michigan

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A frankenmuth type place without the hype. Located in a very old house. Went with family style dinner server was quite good. Started with homemade rolls & chicken soup- both good. Sides of coleslaw,cottage cheese,potatoes,gravy,stuffing were great. Green beans weren't my favorite. Chicken- tho good and plentiful was quite dry. $19 a person - probably about 1/2 the price of frankenmuth & nearly as good read more

Iva's Chicken Dinners - I as - New American Near Me - Sterling, Michigan

Atmosphere: 5/5 Stepping through the doors of this house turned resturant is a step back in time. It's a very unique concept and worth a little detour off the freeway to get some fried chicken. My wife and I visited on a weekday, so maybe that had something to do with it but we were significantly below the average age of the customer demographic. Not that it matters, but this place is very popular with the grandma and grandpa crowd. Food Quality: 4/5 This is the reason we decided to try Iva's. If you are coming here and order anything besides chicken, you are doing it wrong. Chicken- Very good. Slightly greasy but everything you want fried chicken to be. Mostly meaty pieces of chicken although my wife's drumstick was on the small side. Mashed potatoes- Homemade and buttery goodness, like what your mom makes at Thanksgiving Gravy- Light colored chicken gravy. I used liberally :) Dressing/Stuffing- Very moist and heavily seasoned. Not a show stopper but I enjoyed it. My wife thought it was too peppery. Green beans- pretty standard and clearly frozen/not fresh but they were nice and hot. Biscuit- small and a little tough/dry. Ours were well done on the bottom. I'm going to be critical and say that they tasted like Jiffy Biscuits. With enough honey, they tasted good but I've had much better biscuits. These would not fly in the south. Coleslaw- Simple diced cabbage with a vinegar/sugar dressing. Cottage cheese- Clearly a GFS (Gordon Food Service) product/nothing special here. Service: 4/5- Our waitress was attentive and efficient. No complaints. The wait for our food was reasonable. Value 5/5: The menu was reasonably priced. I think the a la carte options are good. The luncheon portion was also good/I didn't feel like I was missing out vs the family style chicken dinner. Overall: 5/5 The big question is, how does Iva's compare to Zehnder's chicken dinner of Frankenmuth? The short answer is that Zehnder's is better. However, I still think Iva's is worth a try and a great value. Zehnder's breading on their chicken is lighter and less greasy and their season salt is magical. Iva's has a nice crispiness to it and has a thicker breading. Zehnder's has gotten pretty expensive ($31 per person for the family style dinner) vs Iva's ($18.95). I will definitely give Iva's another try when I am in the area. read more

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Move over, Zehnders... this is the best chicken dinner I've had in Michigan. The cute, cozy, country-feel ambiance allows you to step back in time and into grandma's dining room for some good home cooking. Absolutely amazing chicken, southern-fried, was juicy and crispy! The chicken noodle soup was delicious and the mashed potatoes/gravy reminded me of my nana's on thanksgiving Service was wonderful! You can tell that locals and people from far and wide come to enjoy a nice dinner where you feel like family. Their endless refill dinner is BEYOND worth $18.95 for all the food you get! read more

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I don't know how hidden of a gem this is because so many friends and acquaintances have said that they've been to this place on their travels up north. This is wonderful freshly made food. Definite German country vibe. Items cooked with real ingredients and taste absolutely delicious. We will be back. Point of reference: My favorite cuisine is Korean and Vietnamese. read more

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The food was good, the service was very good. Here is what bothered me. My husband and I both paid $22.95 for our family style chicken dinners. You can ask for seconds, but you can't take anything home from the seconds you order. Fair enough. So okay, the original serving was FIVE pieces of chicken. Five. For two people. That meant one of us who paid $22.95 got three pieces, while the other got two pieces. If you ask for more, you can't take that 3rd piece home. So one of us might get a leftover piece to take home, the other doesn't. Or one person gets to eat three, the other two. Yet we paid the same price. I don't understand the logic here. read more

Not sure what's going on lately at Iva's. but the last two times my wife and I have ordered carry out, the chicken has been extremely dry. We have been going here for 15 plus years and always have had great chicken! I hope the dry chicken was just a fluke . read more

I've picked up chicken from Iva's several times, but I really wanted to eat there, especially after seeing it on "Under the Radar". So, I decided to head up north when I had a couple days off of work and I based my timing on getting to Iva's on the way. I like how homey the restaurant looks. It feels like you're eating in someone's home, especially with the family photos on the walls. I ordered the chicken dinner, since you can't take leftovers of the all-you-can-eat dinner. It killed the frugal part of me to pay only a dollar less, but I knew I could only eat a couple pieces -- especially with all of the sides -- and I wanted the leftovers. Most of the sides are really good. I was pretty bowled over by the homemade chicken noodle soup. It was really good and hearty. I liked the fresh vegetable plate, but I couldn't stand the pickles. The biscuit was good, but not outstanding. The cottage cheese was ok, but it seems like an odd thing to serve. I didn't want stuffing (I ONLY like the kind my sister makes at Thanksgiving!), so they gave me double mashed potatoes. Definitely homemade -- there were telltale lumps, which I like. And, while I don't usually like gravy, their gravy is really good. The chicken, of course, is the star of the show. It's fried perfectly, not too greasy, and just delicious. The only thing that was really not good were the green beans, which tasted like they came out of a can. I definitely will continue to stop here when I can make it be on my route, and you should, too! But, seeing as they're only open Thursdays-Sundays from March-November, it can be hard to work around it. read more

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Iva's is a classic. Best chicken dinners around. A lot if memories of coming here for 40 years and the food quality has not changed. Very good. read more

Quaint old style diner that we found while driving south on 23. Excellent service, generous portions and home style cooking.

I love Iva's. The the chicken dinner is absolutely delicious. The southern fried chicken is juicy on the inside and crispy on the outside. The mashed potatoes are homemade with a delicious chicken gravy on top of them. The stuffing is delicious too. I like to put the chicken gravy on top of it. Their homemade biscuits in honey a wonderful. I tried the fried cod dinner today for the first time, and it was excellent as well. The vegetables that come with the meal are not great, but they're not really intended to be the star of the show. They hit you with a delicious chicken noodle soup, cottage cheese, a little relish tray with some celery, carrots, and pickles, a lovely coleslaw. They have a full bar and their prices are reasonable. I also like the place because it's really old school. The main room has green paneling on the walls. It just feels like a really old school restaurant that was at one time a boarding house. I love the atmosphere. A lot of family works there and there tends to be some young kids waiting tables. They don't seem super motivated. They're friendly enough but not overly friendly, whereas the older people that work there and the owners are delightful. The carpeting could use some updating as it's pretty stained. A good shampoo I might do it some good. I'm not suggesting the place is dirty. It really isn't, but the carpeting makes it look dirtier than it actually is I think. They close down in the winter time, so you really only have spring summer and fall to enjoy it. I love going there and highly recommend it. read more

I like this place. It's like someone's house that they turned into a restaurant. Very homey and personable. Staff are excellent- attentive and friendly. We both ordered the chicken dinner plates. My friend ordered all drumsticks- no extra charge. Best "Southern" fried chicken I've had in awhile. Came with mashed potatoes, stuffing, coleslaw, corn, gravy, biscuits and honey. They had beer, wine and liquor!! All in all a very good experience. Highly recommend. read more

Iva's Chicken Dinners - New American Near Me - Sterling, Michigan

Took my mom, sister and BFF to try this restaurant. A bit out of the way but worth it. Best chicken dinner in Michigan! So much better than Frankenmuth. Can't wait for next time! read more

Iva's Chicken Dinners - Outside - New American Near Me - Sterling, Michigan

Best #1 restaurant in all of Michigan that I've tried for excellent broasted chicken dinner. Set inside an older house, you'll feel like you eating at grammas house all over again. Very pleasant staff! Very reasonably priced! Watch the open hours! There is a wait during peak times. Iva's closes for a well-deserved vacation during the winter months. Winner..winner, chicken dinner! read more

Seen the sign many times driving past on I-75. Been told it's a must...for decades...but never stopped until last week. Sorry I put it off this long! Entering Iva's, you step into a bygone era. The place is basically a converted home, and the tables and chairs will make you feel like you're visiting your grandparents' place. No attempt at cool whatsoever, which is cool AF is my book. Lots of different options for how to take your chicken, ranging from family style to individual full dinners to lunch plates and sandwiches. Plus some items for those not in the mood for chicken. I ordered a "create your own" lunch with 2 breasts and two sides. Chicken was excellent--juicy with a splendidly crisp and just slightly spicy batter. For one side I got chicken noodle soup, which was great. Noodles were about the size of french fries, and I'm guessing were homemade. My cabbage salad slide was the only disappointment of the day. Much sweeter than I like. Maybe one of the sweetest salads I've had that didn't involve Jello. My wife got an "Iva Bowl," mashed potatoes topped with stewed chicken, gravy and corn. She liked it a lot. Mashed potatoes were clearly homemade. It's no surprise Iva's has been around for 80+ years. read more

This is thee best clucking chicken you will find anywhere!!!! I use to go with my father in law on our way north now that I have a place in Bentley we usually order carry out on Friday night and it's unbelievably good!!! In fact I think I'm going to warm so up for breakfast. Good lawrd have mercy it's so damn good. The coleslaw good god the taters yummy don't get me going on the chicken old miss may it's unreal! read more

This place is just darling! Ambiance is like eating your Grandmas food in her house. A must stop off the beaten path. It is noticeable that everything is made from scratch. We all absolutely loved it! We ordered the fresh fried chicken dinners with cabbage salad, stuffing, green beans, mashed potatoes and gravy and scratch biscuits. The rhubarb pie plus fresh strawberry shortcake topped off our delicious lunch. The service was great! read more

I finally got to try Iva's fabulous chicken dinner, where friends have highly recommended years ago! The ambience is simple tables and chairs, pictures of the family and business from past and recently. The dining room was quiet except for the murmurs of conversation. My lunchtime size meal was just enough: 2 pieces of chicken, stuffing, mashed taters and gravy, corn, a biscuit and coleslaw. You can also order family style depending on how big your party or appetite is, no refills on food. The fried chicken was fantastic! Came out hot and juicy, you have to be careful not to burn your mouth or fingers! Using a fork was safest way to start. Cole slaw was a non-creamy type plus a little sweetness to it. Biscuits were flaky and warm, came with butter and honey. If you don't want fried chicken they have a chicken stew type option but I didn't notice any other diners with that. Service was very timely throughout our meal, Ethan was very attentive and hospitable to us plus all the other diners in our area. The building is a house converted for restaurant dining, Handicapped accessible entrance is a ramp leading to door, rails on both sides as incline requires your full attention. Room inside for wheelchair or walkers to get around. Bathroom doors might be tricky, can't recall. They serve old fashioned sodas, iced tea, I think Pepsi products and they have beer, wine and liquor. Prices were $$ for the amount of food you get. There's parking around the building I believe on 3 sides. read more

Good food, iconic business! Recommended years ago- keep coming back!!! Love the chicken- always fresh, moist& delish!! read more

Ambiance - fine , what I expected from pictures , smaller inside , chairs from the 50-60's era . Plastic - vinyl table cloths . Greeted and sat quickly , server brought drinks quickly but she was busy Food , soup great , a lot of noodles . Cole slaw with vinegar very good . Quite a wait for chicken , mash and dressing with gravy . Chicken tasted dry and over cooked . Asked for more which also appeared very cooked and dry ! Reviews I had read said way better than the other well know chicken place ! No , the chicken is not better , the chicken at Golden Corral is better ! Wanted to love it but nope . Maybe it was an off day ! See for yourself . The people at the table next to ours had plated chicken which looked fresher and not over cooked perhaps family style gets the over cooked oops ? read more

I loved my time at Iva's! My fiancé and I loved our meals and will definitely be back. The chicken noodle soup and the chicken dinner were amazing! 5/5 Also I don't normally like cottage cheese but there's was fantastic. Our waitress was so kind and it felt like eating at my grandma's house in the best way possible! read more

Delicious down home cooked dinners. The chicken dinner is amazing and comes with all the fixings. The highlights were the cole slaw, biscuits and the fried chicken. Only the dressing was disappointing. Wait staff was friendly and the atmosphere feels just like eating at home read more

Very good fried chicken served hot with good sides, and portions. Service was good with everything being served in a timely fashion. Ambiance was what we expected for a restaurant that has been serving fried chicken since 1938.Two thumbs up. read more

I look forward to visiting this old school restaurant whenever I am traveling in upper Michigan. Love the food, the service and the vibe. Outstanding hospitality and ambience. Sometimes I google them just to make sure they're still open! read more

Nice place for a home cooked meal. The chicken was good but I can't say that it was the most flavorful. However it was homemade and it definitely was pan-fried. That being said, it was a good dinner. The sides were outstanding, and I have to say that I truly enjoyed the potatoes and the gravy both homemade. The dressing was just like my mom used to make. Proportions are huge, and the price is good. read more

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Forget Frankenmuth! We went to Iva's this past weekend and had the best family style fried chicken dinner in so long. This meal brought me back to my childhood eating Sunday dinner at my grandparents house. If you haven't been, this is a must for your list! read more

I've been here a few times and it is a delightful old school restaurant with great food and good fast service for those who want a hearty meal on their way up north. They have fun books on the tables and historic pictures on the walls. 11-11-17: back for more and it doesn't disappoint!! FYI; they close for the winter Nov 20th and reopen March 1st, 2018 read more

Food was great with lots of options beyond just the all you can eat chicken dinners. Prices are much better than competitors in Frankenmuth.