Fried Chicken Fest is at it’s midpoint. Monday, I wrote about my weekend meals, and today I’m writing about my weekday meals. Over the last three days, I have added four more fried chicken fest meals.
Fried Chicken Fest Meal
A Trip Down South – The Merchant Kitchen
My first order this week came from The Merchant Kitchen. This is a place I recently reviewed. When I ordered, there was a mix-up and the order originally got sent to the wrong address. When I inquired about this, The Merchant Kitchen quickly corrected things, and sent a new order to the correct address, no charge.
A Trip Down South: Fried boneless chicken thigh, TMK collard greens (contains pork), corn bread with peach butter, rice & beans, side of homemade buttermilk ranch and our habanero hot sauce.
The thing I really like about this deal is that there is a whole meal. One where are the different elements complement each other very well.
There is nice crunch on the chicken thigh, and with it being thigh meat, it is exceptionally tender. With the three sauces that come with the meal, there is a good mix of savoury, hot, and sweet. I found the greens to be good and crisp. The corn bread had a nice, crumbly feel to it. If they are not selling the peach spice jam in jars, they should be. It puts the much overrated Stellas berry jam into the shade.
Buttermilk Chicken – Capital Grill Broadway
Tuesday afternoon I order a late lunch from Capital Grill. This is a place that I reviewed. Since reviewing the restaurant, I also visited it as part of a Downtown Biz patio tour. Last year, they were the winner for Fried Chicken Fest.
This is a huge burger. I actually had to eat the pickle so that I could stack all the ingredients together. The burger is crispy, and the addition of the avocado adds a nice element of smoothness as well. On top of that you get nice bursts of heat with the honey hot sauce.
Double Fried Chicken Fest Wednesday
Wednesday features Fried Chicken Fest meals for lunch and supper. For lunch I decide to order from The Tallest Poppy. It has been quite a while since I last visited this restaurant. In addition to great food, it is always enjoyable to visit with the owner, Talia Syrie.
The Tallest Poppy entry is called the Harissa Tomei:
Harissa marinated fried chicken with homemade hot sauce, mustard slaw, crispy Onion, lemon + garlic aioli and pickles on brioche bun.
All of the various entries have something that sets them apart. The Harissa Tomei is so far the clear cut number one for crunch. It is like biting down on a crispy potato chip, with moist chicken inside.
Wednesday evening I waited for a delivery that I was told would arrive at the church before 8 pm. I followed the delivery tracker until 7 pm until they told me that an attempt had been made, and they had left me a note about the parcels future availability. Only two problems: One, no one had attempted a delivery and no one had left a note.
Smith Restaurant
I decided on Smith restaurant at Inn at the Forks. Smith is a place I have visited in the past, but not reviewed. I did mention their food when I wrote about attending a Bruichladdich tasting event. The Smith entry into Fried Chicken Fest is described this way:
The Seoul Nine Yard: Spicy fried chicken sandwich featuring gochujang mayo, kimchi, sweet pickled cucumber and shaved iceberg lettuce on a sesame kaiser roll.
I really liked this burger. One thing that marks out all the burgers at Fried Chicken Fest, is that the chicken is always the star. This burger is no exception. Not overly spicy, but enough to give the burger a piquant taste.
That is it for today. I will have one more Fried Chicken Fest post at the beginning of next week.
