HOLD YOUR FORK EATS HOT CHICKEN PART 3: Larder + the Delta
For this chapter of the Hot Chicken Hunt, due to scheduling issues, we had to eat without our dear friend Tyka. Tyka, if you are reading this … we love you and you missed out.
When we went the weather was decent, this was probably the LAST day of sub 100 degree weather in Phoenix, so we took advantage and rode our bikes downtown. Before we left Bryan’s house we called Larder + the Delta to confirm that they were serving Hot Chicken … because they only do it on Tuesdays and we would rather double check before riding there.
The lady on the phone told us that we have to get the chicken to-go, unless we waited until 7 pm, then we could eat at the restaurant, but if we ate at the restaurant we would only get 4 pieces of chicken as opposed the 8 pieces to-go … Confused? Same.
Whatever, we don’t make the rules, or the food, we just want to eat. We told the lady to start cooking the chicken, we will be there soon.
*Bike ride ensues*
NOW WE HAVE THE CHICKEN, BUT NO WHERE TO EAT IT. WE CAN’T CARRY A BOX OF CHICKEN ON OUR BIKES!? WHAT DO WE DO?
I called my dear friend Allie, who happens to live a block away, and she was gracious enough to give us a table and some beers. Plus, food is always better shared.
HOT CHICKEN REVIEW:
When you order the Tuesday Hot Chicken at L+D you get a whole bird, some pickles, slaw, and bread. Below are our thoughts on each:
Whole Bird:
This might be, the best damn fried chicken in the city … I mean … it was so fucking good. Let me add the price is $18 which is a great price point.
But … yes there is a but, it isn’t hot chicken. Why you ask? Because it wasn’t hot, no heat, nothing to make you sweat, or even need to grab a glass of water. It was heavily seasoned in spices that were flavorful but simply not hot. That being said this was some of the best fried chicken and I’ll still go back to eat it because it’s just DANK. The chicken was brined well and you could taste it in the final product. The skin held nicely and didn’t fall off the bird, which is an issue you run into a lot. The crust of the chicken was crunchy and flavorful, I could probably just eat a bowl of this.
Pickles:
The pickles were homemade, and that is always great to see, but we feel like they were lacking … maybe they were too fresh? Or their base was lacking in flavor? Would want to go back and try them again to see how they hold up on different days.
Slaw:
The slaw was awesome, perfect amount of sweetness and acidity, you could eat it solo or put it on the chicken or bread for a little party in your mouth.
Bread:
Let’s say the good things first, Noble Bread, always a good time. Killer local bread, grilled perfectly.
Personally, we love shitty white bread with chicken, the soft white bread allows us to soak up the juices and provides a nice mix up to the crunch of the fried chicken.
Overall:
The chicken was DOPE. They need to do this on all days, not just Tuesdays, because all of you industry folk that have Sundays and Mondays off need this.