The Writings On The Wall

Chicken Shop
79 Highgate Road
London
NW5 1TL

Not the usual stop off for WordOfMouthLDN, but a certainly a pleasant surprise.

The name immediately rang alarm bells for Jamelia who is a committed pescatarian, but it was the persistence of a close friend of ours that drew us to this discrete spot on Highgate Road for a cheeky dessert before making our way to a show at The Forum. Jamelia ordered the Apple Pie with Vanilla Ice Cream, whilst Candace opted for the Chocolate Brownie with Vanilla Ice Cream - as you may have noticed lent hasn't gone exactly to plan for us!

This week, we decided to take a trip back to ChickenShop; to eat in this time. Easy to miss, tucked away beside Pizza East, as we stepped into the barn like dirty south eatery, the smell of grilled, flavoursome chicken is enough to rumble a full belly and challenge the diet of any vegan, vegetarian or pescatarian. The waitress who welcomed us was really enthusiastic and seated us promptly.

Lonely Apple Juice

Drinks


Having ordered standard water for the table, Candace opted for an Apple Juice as well – a full glass as you can see. We just looked at each other with confusion and laughed; all great things come in small packages as the saying goes.

Mains

On to our main course, Pesci Jamelia sampled the Crinkle Cut Fries and Corn on the Cob, as Candace ordered a Quarter Chicken with Corn on the Cob. With an open kitchen set up, the food arrived almost immediately and was piping hot. 

Kitchen

Accompanied by ketchup, aioli, lemon and coriander dressing, hot and smokey bbq sauce, ChickenShop spoils diners for choice. The chicken was succulent and moist, and for a quarter, it was pretty filling. The smokey bbq sauce added a really rich flavour to the already well marinated quarter; I would go as far as saying, this was better than Nandos (a big shout I know!)

Quarter Chicken, Corn on
the Cob, Crinkle cut fries

A clean plate, 2 empty corn on the cob and chips bowls later, we moved straight on to the highly anticipated dessert – Apple Pie and Chocolate Brownie with ice cream.

Dessert

The waitress presented Jamelia with a FULL Apple Pie tray and cut her slice at the table. Our eyes were fixed on the delight as we knew what we were in store for. Candace loves a chocolate dessert so this Brownie with macadamia nuts was a no brainer. The rich mixture of milk and dark chocolate was faultlessly balanced; just dreamy. The chunk of Apple Pie was slightly dissolved, this aside, the temperature and consistency was just right. The shortbread like pastry partnered with cinnamon glazed apples bought to a life this very popular dessert.

Apple Pie and Chocolate Brownie
with Vanilla Ice Cream

Overall, the waiting staff were pleasant and the atmosphere, layout and branding of the restaurant are most definitely worth a mention; the brown paper bag and boxes for takeaway meals added to the US vibe.


For Mums who inherit the ‘less is more’ lifestyle, the intimate, raw, basement feel of this venue is very intriguing and encourages the simple pleasures of dining.

An all round great London hideaway that reminded us not to dismiss an initial spit from a potential chew.

Tastecard? Denied.

WOM Spits and Chews

Spits:

• Size of the apple juice
• A vegetarian or fish option wouldn't go a miss

Chews:

• Overall taste of the chicken
• Portion size was perfect
• Richness of brownie
• Pastry of the Apple Pie
• Packaging
• Temperature
• The list could go on….

Overall WOM Rating : 4 kisses out of 5

                                                              Verdict? CHEWS :-)