It’s fast, casual, cheap and serving chicken. If the image of newly bronzed Colonel Sanders, with his pristinely white beard and jet black bolo tie, popped into your mind, I beg of you to think again. Instead, I offer you the image of a corner restaurant with a wall that looks as if it was constructed from magazine rippings, basically the epitome of what a third grader’s art project would strive to be, but edgy and sleek. It’s pretty unsuspecting as it hides ever so slightly behind a black awning with the word Chook written as its title. The pop of color from their walls boldly contrasts the white hexagons placed in the perfect puzzle on the floor. Counter seats, high tops, a communal long table or the classic round kitchen table are what bring customers into the family mentality offered by this newest gem on Pearl Street. The entire restaurant looks as though it was cut from a contemporary kitchen design magazine because, although elegant, it can’t help from feeling like home. While the whole aesthetic will have you coming back for a comfortable seat, it is the food that makes you feel warmer than toasting up by a fire. Interestingly enough, the air conditioning might need to be turned on because with the exposed exposed kitchen they proudly displaying their glorious chickens roasting above red coals on the spit.
Chook is taking the reigns as the neighborhood lunch place, so other Pearl Street restaurants better beware. Adam Schlegel—the founder of Snooze—and his partner Alex Seidel, creator of Fruition and Mercantile, have hatched a farm-to-table vision that is suitable for all. Chook means chicken in Australian lingo, so you better believe they are making the star of the show the humble bird. With options of just white or dark meat and half or whole chickens, the succulent bird will be put before you after being kissed by the heat of burning coals. Their cooking technique takes these chickens to a new level, but it’s their sauces that really change the game. They are known for their Piri Piri sauce, which is an electric Portuguese sauce made of red peppers and a hint of spice. You can leave ketchup to the McDonald’s fries and the orange sauce to Panda Express because we don’t need those artificial messes drowning this masterpiece. Their menu is á la carte, so take a bit of this and mix it with some of that to get the best combo bucket available.
Chicken being their defining dish, they have also proven themselves as masters of vegetables as well. If meat is not you or your friend’s style, no worries, because their side of delicata squash could sucker punch any steak out of this world. The brown butter adds a sense of holiday warmth, while the fresh parsley adds brightness and color, a must order. Then the celery-apple slaw has the much needed crunch factor while the vinegar adds acidity strong enough to cut through the richness in the rest of your meal. Coming here and ordering sides would be a vegetarian paradise. Even though they aren’t made in house, the Hawaiian rolls provided by Fudmill Bakery are fluffier than a teddy bear and taste of the ideal sweet bread.
After finally narrowing down your order, which can take a bit, all that’s left to do is wait for your bird to stop spinning, but in the meantime they hand you a token. But this one won’t get you a ticket from the arcade. It will, however, donate a portion of your meal to one of their three local organizations of the month. Not only do you get to rejoice in what feels like a home cooked meal, but someone else benefits from your decision to dine at Chook. At Chook you can even satisfy your chicken fix on Sundays, so thank God there is no need to sit sadly in your room waiting for Monday to roll around once more.
