Bingo with a twist — you can bet on chickens pooping at this Lincoln Heights brewery

A brewery in Lincoln Heights is hosting bingo games with a Texas twist you’ve probably never played before.

It’s called, excuse our language, Chicken Shit Bingo. And the name says it all.

The game has become an annual tradition at Benny Boy Brewing on Daly Street. On a recent Sunday, spectators and players surround a wooden enclosure — think a ping-pong table but with a giant bingo board at the base and wire all around it — hooting and hollering and egging on a well-fed chicken in a handkerchief and tiny cowboy hat. (And yes, L.A. County Public Health is well aware.)

Gameplay is simple: you can put a bet on one of the 72 squares. If a chicken poops on your number, you get $100.

A bet will cost you $3. For another $2, you get a cup of chicken feed to coax the bird toward your coordinates.

Participants get their numbers for the next round of bingo.

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Kat Hanegraaf

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Benny Boy Brewing

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The backstory

The game originated at The Little Longhorn Saloon — formerly Ginny’s Longhorn Saloon — in Austin, Texas, decades ago.

That’s where Matt Farber, Benny Boy’s bingo MC, first played. When his cousin Benny Farber decided to open a brewery, Matt knew the chickens needed to make their Los Angeles debut.

“Ben and I both grew up on farms, so this kind of hit home for us,” said Matt, decked out in a Dolly Parton T-shirt and a palm leaf cowboy hat. “When [we were] brainstorming … events to do at Benny Boy Brewing, this was something that just kind of came up.”

“It seemed like a no-brainer,” Benny said.

Meet the chickens

The chickens are sourced from Future Foods Urban Farms, a small urban farmstead in Glassell Park. Chicken keeper Teresa Meza, who stands by the birds’ enclosure and (I like to imagine) hypes them up before their bingo debut, was immediately taken by the idea.

“I had never heard of [the game],” she said. “But I was immediately into it.”

The chickens get quiet time in the shade between rounds, and are kept separate from food and beverage service for everyone’s safety. Future Foods and other urban farm partners are experienced in chicken-handling, and follow standard animal care practices appropriate for backyard and farm environments. Beyond that, the mechanics behind the actual pooping are very simple.

“Chickens are extremely prolific poopers,” Meza said, gingerly placing a tiny cowboy hat on an enormous chicken named Sophie. “As long as they're well fed and well watered, they will be pooping. It’s probably at least once every 30 minutes.”

Chicken keeper Teresa Meza and Benny Boy co-founder Benny Farber hold two of the chickens participating in bingo.

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Kat Hanegraaf

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Benny Boy Brewing

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How it works

Proceeds from each bet go right back to the urban farm. Aside from bingo, the Future Foods chickens tend not to make public appearances, but for five years now, Meza and the birds have been at Benny Boy every month from March through August.

After you place your bets, you can browse booths of Western-themed art from local artists, chow down on some standout barbecue and, of course, sip on some of the brewery’s fantastic beers and ciders.

Each game day has a theme. For example, the most recent round of bingo on April 12 featured a Dolly Parton lookalike contest and line dancing lessons with The Honky Tonk Hunnies.

While the bingo games are seasonal, Benny Boy stays busy year-round. Between chili cookoffs, competitive cornhole and outdoor drawing sessions, there’s always something on the calendar. You’ll find pop-ups from some of L.A.’s favorite local restaurants.

Can’t visit? You can find Benny Boy beers and ciders on tap at more than 50 breweries and eateries throughout the city.