Carl’s fried chicken at the Roosevelt Hotel’s Fountain Lounge turns up a fair amount in this space. I am an ardent supporter of this venture. So it was easy to say yes to an invite to have it last night. The occasion was to promote this weekend’s Fried Chicken Festival. I have declared this the best fried chicken I have ever tasted, but it was less so last night, naturally, because I had talked it up so much to my companion. Their report was great but not life-altering, as is always the case when something is overhyped. It was also really quiet at Fountain Lounge last night,, and this weekly Monday night event is usually a scene.
Carl will have many cheerleaders for this weekend’s competition. And competitors. There will be the newcomer to town, Gus’s World Famous Fried chicken out of Memphis. (now at a spiffy location in the Warehouse District on Diamond Street. There will be last year’s best chicken sandwich winner, Blue Oak BBQ, and Fiorella’s Cafe which was also a winner last year. And a couple of Dat’s like We Dat and Heard Dat, and McHardy’s Chicken and Ribs and Willie’s Chicken Shack. There are Asian places and District Donuts and food trucks and dessert places, and snowballs and music. In other words, the Fried Chicken Festival is growing at a nice pace in its four years. It’s at Woldenberg Park this weekend.
National Fried Chicken Festival
Friday, September 20th Noon-9
Saturday, September 21st 11-9
Sunday, September 22nd 11-8
friedchickenfestival.com
