You will almost certainly scorch your fingers as you eagerly rip into one of the takeaway chooks from Casa Pollo. The golden crisp skin goads you into tearing the bird apart when you know you should let it cool, but the tender meat that lies within is worth a couple of burns.
This classic Portuguese chicken shop sits on a strip along Cronulla Street that boasts many a chargrilled chicken joint, but the aromas coming from the glass counter at Casa Pollo lure us in with a superior blend of spices. The tidy store serves the traditional Portuguese butterflied chooks alongside stuffed and standing versions, as well as burgers, schnitty rolls, and salads and baked veggies for sides.
Grab a burger for less than a tenner, or be honest with your cravings and dedicate your lunch hour to demolishing a whole $15.90 chook in the park or by Cronulla Beach (which is an easy five-minute stroll away). There’s peri peri sauce, a Mediterranean option and a spicy Thai sauce so you can keep coming back to try new variations, perhaps to dine in as a regular at one of the cute tables or stools at the bar.