Fast becoming ground zero for fried chicken, Dallas will get a celebrity-chef rendition with the opening of Funky Chicken, a fast-casual concept from famed California chef and James Beard Award winner Bradley Ogden.
Spokesman Henry V. Thiel confirms Ogden will also open a branch of his farm-to-table gastropub, Pour Society, in Dallas. "I'm not sure if the leases have been signed yet, but there are plans to open both concepts in Dallas," he says.
Ogden is the lauded chef whose string of restaurants include the acclaimed Lark Creek Inn in California's Marin County, as well as Bradley Ogden at Caesars Palace. He and his son Bryan opened the first Funky Chicken in Houston in 2013. They use chicken with no hormones, which is marinated, lightly breaded and fried in fresh batches.
The menu also has roast chicken and chicken pot pie, plus sides such as mashed potatoes, mac and cheese, French fries, Brussels sprouts, and carrots. Eric Sandler, esteemed colleague at CultureMap Houston, described the fried chicken as "definitely crispy, if more mildly seasoned that some of the Cajun-inspired versions seen at Popeyes or Frenchy's." He also appreciated that the batter stuck nicely to the meat.
Dallas already boasts a number of fried chicken options, including Sissy's Southern Kitchen and Chicken Scratch, not to mention the original fried chicken purveyor Babe's. Dallas was also the first flyover-state outpost of buzzy Korean fried chicken chain BonChon Chicken.
Pour Society was originally called Hops & Harvest when the first branch opened in Las Vegas in 2013; that closed in December. Focused on local craft beers, the menu features a steak burger, grilled cheese sandwich, turkey chop and butterscotch pudding.
The Ogdens have been busy in Houston. They just opened a third concept, called Bradley's Fine Diner, with a seasonal and local-centric menu.
Funky Chicken does a pancake spin on the prototypical chicken and waffles.
