Within the past month, two notable chicken dishes have landed on the menus at D.C. restaurants: the fried “coq au vin” at Convivial and the hot chicken at Crisp Kitchen + Bar. Convivial is the new project from Cedric Maupillier, the chef at Mintwood Place. Crisp is the new gathering spot in Bloomingdale from Jamie Hess (an alumnus of Ivy and Coney) and Alex McCoy (the opening chef of Duke’s Grocery). Here’s a closer look at each of the newbies.
Fried chicken ‘coq au vin’
Convivial, 801 O St. NW; $17; convivialdc.com.
The inspiration: Months before he opened Convivial, Maupillier decided to grab a bite at a Korean fried chicken restaurant in his neighborhood. “I liked the texture, but not the sweetness,” Maupillier says of the honey sauce topping. “It was almost like a dessert to me.” Inspired, he wondered if there was a way to put a French spin on it. As the opening of Convivial drew near, the French-born chef developed a fried version of a very traditional French dish, coq au vin, which is normally made with braised chicken, red wine, lardon (extra-thick, fatty bacon) and aromatics like garlic and onions.
The preparation: Chicken thighs are brined in water, citrus, garlic, black peppercorn, salt and sugar. A sauce is made with red wine, garlic, onions, leeks, carrots, bay leaves, smoked lardon and pigs’ feet, which thicken the sauce. The chicken is coated in a mix of flour, rice flour, baking soda and soda water and then deep-fried in a pressure fryer, which cooks meat nearly twice as fast. It’s then tossed in the sauce and served with caramelized carrots and pearl onions.
The best part: The rice flour makes the chicken extra crispy, plus the bird is fried twice before serving.
Hot chicken
Crisp Kitchen + Bar, 1837 First St. NW; $13; crispdc.com.
The inspiration: This dish — famous throughout Tennessee —
is traditionally composed of fried chicken doused with a cayenne pepper-based paste and served on white bread. “In Nashville, hot chicken is king,” says chef Alex McCoy, who designed the menu for Crisp. (Akiem Brooker is Crisp’s executive chef.) Prince’s Hot Chicken Shack in Nashville, Tenn., is credited with creating the sandwich, McCoy says. Bolton’s Spicy Chicken & Fish in Nashville is also famous for its hot chicken, which it serves with pickles and onions. “Ours is a blend of both,” McCoy says.
The preparation: Crisp Kitchen + Bar deep-brines a skin-on half-chicken it butchers in-house, and then deep-fries it in an oil blend that includes lard. It’s then dragged through a lard-based cayenne pepper paste and topped with a dry rub, onions and pickles. The dish is fried to order, so it can take up to 20 minutes from when you place your order to when it hits your plate. It all comes on a piece of white bread covered in ranch dressing.
The best part: When we cut into the chicken breast, a huge burst of juice spit out.
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