The price of a New York restaurant’s rotisserie half-chicken has social media clucking.
It all began on April 8, when New York-based food influencer Mike Chau posted about a meal he had at newly opened restaurant Gigi’s in Greenpoint, Brooklyn.
Though Chau gave the spot high marks, it was the rotisserie half-chicken — specifically its price — that had many social media users up in arms.
“$40 for chicken is crazy,” commented one person.
“id rather go to a dominican spot for the rotisserie chicken with beans and rice for $12,” wrote another, and a third added, “I’m gonna be honest, this post made me cancel my reservation.”
“$10 rice with drippings is sending me,” someone else commented, referring to the chicken’s side dish.
New York City Council member Chi Ossé, who represents District 36 (Bedford-Stuyvesant and North Crown Heights in Brooklyn), posted on his personal Instagram, “$40 HALF CHICKEN AT A WINE BAR? REALLY?”
While Ossé didn’t mention Gigi’s by name, commenters quickly figured it out, and many echoed his sentiment, pointing out a cheaper dish in his district at The Fly for $19.
However, a number of people pushed back on the Council member’s post, calling it “short sighted” and “rage bait.”
“This is really disappointing, tacky, and self-promoting. The behavior in these comments too,” commented one person. “Calling out one (mind you brand new) restaurant in a WHOLE CITY of overpriced food is so f—ing petty. Do you people live in New York? A cocktail is $15-25. A salad over $20. Walk outside and you spend $50.”
“$40 for a half chicken reflects the inability for small businesses to operate at reasonable prices due to the exorbitant costs of commercial space,” wrote another.
Ossé did not immediately respond to TODAY.com’s request for comment.
Gigi’s Says It’s Not Winging It
“It’s kind of very low from someone like him,” Hugo Hivernat, Gigi’s owner, tells TODAY.com. “It’s not small businesses that are creating this crisis. We are at the mercy of it.”
He says his eatery’s prices are based on several factors.
“It was really disappointing to see the comments from an elected official who is actually in a position of power to do something about affordability, and instead chose to make this about our restaurant,” he says.
The skyrocketing cost of eating out in New York City has been a topic of discussion for years, driven lately by rising costs of everything from kitchen equipment to rent to gas and electricity.
According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, the cost of a whole chicken per pound has risen from a little over $1.36 in February 2020 to over $2 in February of this year. And that’s just your average chicken.
Gigi’s half-chicken is at the center of an affordability firestorm.Nick Prum / Courtesy Hugo Hivernat
Hivernat says Gigi’s sources its chickens locally, which costs $13–$14 per bird — about triple the cost of a Costco rotisserie chicken. The big-box store actually loses money on its bird.
He says, with his half-chicken’s trio of sauces and potatoes, the dish’s total cost is about $11 per plate. And, factoring every else from rent to insurance, he says he makes about $4 in profit per half-bird.
“That margin has to support everything else required to operate in New York City,” Hivernat explains. “At Gigi’s, every employee, including our dishwasher, is receiving a living wage and receives paid time off. These are deliberate choices we make to run a fair and responsible business.”
Gigi’s owner Hugo Hivernat speaks over a counter to chef de cuisine Thomas Knodell.Nick Prum / Courtesy Hugo Hivernat
Hivernat says Ossé has reached out to him. In an Instagram direct message, Ossé asked Hivernat if they could talk over the phone at the end of this week.
If they end up speaking, Hivernat plans to ask him, “From now on, how can we make New York City a better and easier place for small businesses to work? How can you actually help us?”
Pricy Poultry Is All Over New York City
Hivernat says his restaurant’s prices are not outliers in the New York dining scene, pointing to similar dishes elsewhere that are even more expensive.
Oxomoco, also in Greenpoint, sells a “Half Roasted Chicken” with chili paste, salsa and crispy red rice for $59; Roman’s in Fort Greene sells a chicken diavola with broccoli for $47; King in Hudson Square sells a grilled half-chicken with a bowl of flageolet beans, watercress leaves and sauce verte for $84.
Chicken and potatoes on a silver platter at Gigi’s.Nick Prum / Courtesy Hugo Hivernat
“You can add to ours a beautiful salad with a dessert, it will cost you less than $50 per person and you’ll be completely satisfied,” Hivernat says.
A July 2025 Reddit post in r/FoodNYC also discussed the “most expensive” roast half-chicken dish. Chez Fifi on the Upper East Side was called out for selling one for $78.
“At the Fly, it’s $19, but if you add sauces and potato, it’s also $38,” Hivernat says. “It’s like that in every good New York restaurant.”
Bababoom, a restaurant in Bed-Stuy, ran a “pay what you feel is fair” deal amid the bird-based brouhaha.
Owners Henry Glucroft and Charles Gerbier say the deal actually resulted in more profit for the restaurant’s half-chicken, which is usually priced at $32. One customer paid $10, though.
“It’s easier for people to see the difference between a Honda and a Ferrari than one chicken and another, but the truth is, both are cars and both are chickens,” Glucroft tells TODAY.com.
“Places like Badaboom or Gigi’s and many of the other nice restaurants in the city challenge that idea, that there is actually a difference in the quality of the chicken you can get,” he adds. “They’re not all the same.”
For his part, Hivernat supports Badaboom’s promotion and says he might run a similar deal one day.
“I think it’s a good thing, you know?” he says. “I think if we didn’t open like three days ago, and being so much in debt, this is maybe something we will do with pleasure in a few months.”