Call us biased, but we’ve always wanted to try Bird Bird for ourselves, since owner and chef Bjorn Shen has a rep for creating spectacular dude food, or, comfort food that’s super unhealthy and sinful though utterly drool-worthy, and we’re glad we got to. With the restaurant’s recent relocation to the East, the “Upper East Side” of Frankel Avenue in particular (fellow Easties, rejoice!), we couldn’t be more pleased too.
This time, he’s taking on one of the world’s most relatable food: fried chicken. “It’s about taking a low brow dish like fried chicken and bringing a chef’s approach to it,” he says. Okay, you’d better own it then, and not surprisingly, he does. Everyone loves fried chicken — you’ve gotta love at least one form of it — and while it’s hard to go wrong, it’s also incredibly hard to perfect, which makes Shen’s effort even more laudable.
So why is this the best? Our criteria for “best” should really discount the ones we eat out of pure shiok factor (ever tucked into a hearty plate of wings for supper at a hawker centre?), nor are we counting Korean Fried Chicken because we consider them in a league of their own; simply put, Bird Bird does great chicken that we’d totally go back for, and in the world of relentless food tastings, that means a lot.
As the rightful stars of the restaurant, he gets the basics of good fried chicken right: crispy skin, great seasoning, tasty marinate, but there are also great twists on the classics, with flavours like Lebanese or Bangkok Fried Chicken that play on interesting flavour combinations. Each also comes with a dipping sauce that adds more complexity to the seemingly-simple dish. Let’s swoop right in, shall we?
First up, the ever-reliable Southern Fried Chicken.
Uh, can someone say finger lickin’… great? We don’t wanna infringe on any copyright here! Anyway, our advice is to eat this fresh, so please don’t fuss about taking a million pictures for the ‘gram, and just tuck in: you’ll find that the skin is crisp and fresh, while the meat tender, since it’s been brined in Old Bay (an American-style spice mix) for 12 hours prior, and then bathed in buttermilk before adding the seasoned flour mixture on top. We don’t even spend that much TLC on ourselves! This option’s the most classic of the three, and the most hearty one too — which is why it’s a diner’s favourite — while there’s also an in-house chicken gravy that accompanies it, for an extra savoury flavour. For the chicken, you can go ahead and order the Whole Damn Bird ($49++) if you’re particularly hungry or dining as a big group, or a Half Bird ($29++) — this applies to all three offerings.
We’re now moving on to the Bangkok Fried Chicken, our favourite of the lot, and … it’s magic! We’ve never thought much about the inside of our fried chickens — usually we’re more concerned on whether the skin’s crispy enough, which adds tremendously to the shiok factor — but this time, the juicy flesh was screaming out at us. Um, not literally, of course. It’s just so tender and soft, compared to the usual ones that we make do with, which means there’s a great contrast on texture. And you get that on your first bite. Compared to the Southern option, the skin’s less fatty, and now made with a crispy rice flour-batter that really made it an early frontrunner. Not that it’s a competition, of course.
What really sealed the deal though, was the blend of flavours; you can smell it right off the chicken itself, that intoxicating scent of Thai herbs such as lemongrass, kaffir lime and garlic that’s sweet and savoury and tangy at the same time. Then, pull apart its flesh and dip the ends in a superb green chilli nam jim dip, a traditional Thai sauce that includes fish sauce and spices; what it does is lift the flavour of the dish with its hot/sour/tangy blend, which makes it ultra refreshing.
Next up: the Lebanese Fried Chicken. This one pays homage to Shen’s other restaurant, Artichoke, which explains the whole Middle Eastern influence. These birds are slathered in honey and lemon, plus a generous amount of za’atar, a spice blend that includes the earthy tones or oregano and thyme, which makes for the most interesting flavour profile. You’re first hit by those aromatic spices, which ends off with the nice sweet tones of the honey. As for the dip, this one’s a creamy garlic emulsion that miraculously ties the two contrasting flavours together. Go for this if you’re the kind who’s always wanting to try new things.
Now, on to the other worthy mentions on the menu.
We’ll limit it to two this time, because you know you’ll be stuffed after those fried chicken. There’s a whole range of Mac & Cheese dishes that we were dying to try, but we were recommended the Crawfish Mac & Cheese ($12). It’s hard to find the ideal version of this comfort food staple, but this comes close; we liked that this was more on the gooey, alfredo-style side, which means you’re getting a whole hunk of creamy cheese with every bite. As for the Sticky Housemade Curly Fries ($11), it was like the jazzed-up version of the ones we’re used to at a certain fast food establishment. And arguably better. There’s no greasiness, instead, they’re more on the crispy side due to how thinly piped they are, while the hearty toppings of maple soy, kewpie mayo and sriracha made us guiltily going back for more, so it’s certainly addictive. If you’d like to opt out of calories-laden side dishes though, we’d even recommend the salads — there’s a salad counter at the restaurant, which refreshes constantly.
The ambience of the restaurant is nice and pleasant, plus it’s located in a quiet neighbourhood that’s a short walk away from Kembangan MRT Station. A nice walk that should sufficiently burn off some of the calories after! If this is your first time though, we’ll tell you this: go right for the chicken(s), and we bet you won’t be disappointed. They are the stars after all, and innovative fried chicken done this well, you’ll be constantly finding new excuses to hang out in the East. Of course, if you guys have any ‘best fried chicken’ contenders, feel free to hit us up in the comments! We’ll gladly scout them out
Bird Bird
Address: 97 Frankel Avenue, Singapore 458222
Opening Hours: Tuesdays – Sundays, 11.00am – 11.00pm | Last orders at 9.45pm
For reservations; hello@birdbirdsg.com | 6694 8270
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