AD HOC’S Famous Fried Chicken at BOUCHON
Next to hamburgers and hot dogs, nothing screams All-American like a big platter of crispy fried chicken — in this case Thomas Keller’s lemon-brined, double-dredged buttermilk fried chicken that’s been wowing the regulars every other M0nday night at his Ad Hoc restaurant in Yountville since ‘06.
Why it’s taken it this long to make it south to our humble burg is anyone’s guess, but the good folks at Bouchon served it up with the tastiest, tiniest baby corn you could imagine, a giant applewood smoked bacon biscuit, and collard greens so mineral-rich and meaty you’d swear Aunt Jemima was in the kitchen.
Amazingly, for a recipe that calls for a cup+ of salt in the brine, and all kinds of spices and peppers in the flour, we found our chicken surprisingly tame — with none of the seasoning kick we expected. This was southern fried chicken done to delicate perfection, by chefs who want to let the juicy chicken stand out as much as the spices, so a certain subtlety should have been expected.
And for once, the fact it was probably sous vide-d to ensure tenderness bothered us not at all.
Because as we were eating it, all we could think of was the fried chicken dinners we used to enjoy at Loveless Cafe outside of Nashville (Tennessee, not Illinois), during our formative years, and that choked ELV up….but not enough to keep him from digging in to all that crispy goodness.
The good news is Bouchon is considering running the chicken as an occasional special much like they do with the original, and if that happens, all of this French-i-fied, southern-fried, artery-hardening yumminess will be yet another reason to venture into the Venetian.
The chicken dinner above came to $36.
BOUCHON BISTRO
In the Venetian Hotel and Casino
3355 Las Vegas Blvd. South
Las Vegas, NV 89109-8941
702.414.6200
Restaurant reviews, quips, picks and pans-with some seriously salivating history-from the man who eats his way through Sin City every day.
July 12th, 2011 at 10:43 pm
I came.
July 13th, 2011 at 7:48 am
ELV-When I first heard from you that you indulged in this delicious fried chicken, it inspired me to make a batch at home, (from the recipe in Keller’s “Ad Hoc at Home” cookbook). I cut the amount of salt in the brine a bit. The flavors of the lemon and bay in the brine come through oh so delicately when you bite into the chicken. And if you like a lighter crust, you can rely on the “single-dip” in buttermilk and seasoned flour rather than the standard “double-dip.”
Because of your delicious post ELV, I am now obsessed with making Ad Hoc Fried Chicken once a week through the end of Summer!
July 13th, 2011 at 2:04 pm
I ran like crazy over to Bouchon (which I never do, I think the food here is a little overrated in general compared to other French Bistro fare in the area), and it was pretty memorable.
In fact I think I saw you walking in taking a picture of the poster as I walked out.
This chicken made me rethink that maybe I need to visit Bouchon more often, and I will for sure if they start running this friend chicken special regularly.
My husband is still raving about the bacon biscuit that this came with.
July 20th, 2011 at 6:31 am
Just what I’m in the mood for :-)