Midtown Lunch

This winter, Kevin Sbraga (Top Chef Season 7 winner) opened his second Philadelphia restaurant, The Fat Ham, right off the Walnut Street bridge in University City. Last month, lunch service began and I was recently invited to check it out.  I love Top Chef and  I love new restaurants that offer lunch.  I sipped a spiced pear cocktail, admired the country-chic decor, and browsed the concise lunch menu.

Though the spot was quite busy at the lunchtime rush, the staff was on top of it and it didn’t feel hectic. Lunch started off strong with the oysters sliders ($10). Oysters picked for frying purposes are usually pretty large. I don’t always love that much seameatiness. Here though, the coleslaw and yeast roll really balance out the briny fried mollusc. While it looks like a high bread to oyster ratio, it works quite well.

Mac and cheese is only better in a skillet. This baked skillet ($8) must be a bitch to clean; it is filled with an inch or two of creamy cheese. I appreciated allllll that cheese, but missed the stringy effect that comes from using different types of cheeses. I also would have liked to see a bit more broiling. And since BBQ chips are my least favorite kind of chips, I personally would have preferred a different bread crumb, but anyone else would probably enjoy the familiar flavor in a new context.

The hyped up hot chicken was what I was really excited to try. I’ve seen it on the latest “top fried chicken in Philly” lists.  Firstly, the wooden plates it comes on are covetable. I don’t mind a heavy breading on my fried chicken, which was the case here, but it did not cling well. The chicken was aggressively fried and there was a lot of visible grease as you cut in to it, which would other the type of people who wipe their pizzas with napkins.  The oysters were fried more delicately.  I knew it would have a kick to it, but I was not prepared for the heat it brought. It was smokey from what must be a sandstorm of cayenne and a bit overwhelming. I found myself wanting more of the ranch dressing to cool my mouth down.  I have never shied away from spice, I grew up eating kimchee from a neighbor as a young girl, but somehow as I’ve gotten older, I am less intrigued by brazen spiciness. For anyone not afraid of some grease and looking for a heat challenge, and I know there are many of you, you should probably try this chicken. I almost had to tap out. Underneath all the fiery skin, though, the meat was moist.

I cooled down with a faintly sweet pecan pie, the only dessert option during lunch.

THE + (What somebody who likes this place would say)

• Perfect oyster sliders
• Adorable plates and decor to match

THE – (What somebody who doesn’t like this place would say)

• Overwhelmingly hot chicken

The Fat Ham, 3131 Walnut St, 215 735 1914