Bird N Hand flies into Fairfax Avenue dining scene

The Beverly Grove area is a dining destination for most seasoned Angelenos. Home to the historic 24-hour deli Canter’s and power-dinner staples such as A.O.C., Animal and Son of a Gun, this is not a training ground for culinary amateurs. Thankfully, Chef Adel Chagar is no amateur; his Moroccan deli concept, Chameau, was a huge hit with savvier locals. The couscous and duck bastilla were rave-worthy, and anyone who wanted a little Moroccan food in their life would find a refined iteration of the culture’s cuisine tucked away on Fairfax Avenue.

It comes with a bit of surprise, then, that Chagar shuttered Chameau, renovated the restaurant, and tried his hand with the more glitzy Bird N Hand, which opened earlier this month. The new restaurant’s chicken-focused offerings and hip décor fit more snugly into the area’s overall dining landscape, and should be a welcome addition to the dining options on Fairfax Avenue.

Upon approaching the restaurant, the restaurant’s concept becomes immediately apparent — a large storefront window stands ajar, with the restaurant’s laid-back, porch-picnic ambiance seemingly spilling out onto the sidewalk. Pop art-inspired profiles of a rooster line the walls and attractive recessed lighting illuminates the main dining area. The chic-picnic concept is just in time for the warm California summer.

None of this would matter from a business standpoint if Chagar wasn’t putting equally good food to prop up his concept, and Bird N Hand, while slightly inconsistent, delivers the goods. The entrees use exclusively free-range chickens in a myriad of preparations, including flavored wings, chicken “tall boy” sandwiches, garlic lemon roasted chicken and, of course, the obligatory fried chicken.

Bird N Hand’s rendition of the classic American finger food is a master class in chicken wing execution. An order of spicy Harissa Wings arrives with four full wings (drumette and wing) to a basket, garnished with batons of celery and carrots. The wings themselves are healthily sized, significantly larger than the ones found at the typical Wing Stop or Buffalo Wild Wings. Size isn’t the only improvement here, though. The gently battered wings are dressed up with carefully concocted sauces.

The Harissa spiced wings have a restrained heat balanced with sweetness. The gentle kick of spice will make diners reach for a cold Pabst Blue Ribbon beer (sold by the can and served in bright blue mason jars). The wings themselves are incredibly juicy and packed with succulent meat, making four pieces a filling order for one — or order both the Harissa and Szechwan wings and share. The less spicy, yet equally tasty “Asian barbecue” sauce-laden Szechwan wing balances soy and sweetness and manages to stay from being too salty. It’s this type of thoughtful attention to detail and execution that elevates Bird N Hand from a mere dressed-up Wing Stop to a truly refined wing-eating experience.

The side dishes, however, reveal some cracks in Bird N Hand’s armor. Tater tots have a satisfying crunch and are an able replacement for French fries (which are also available), but a puzzling gnocchi and cheese dish is confused from concept to palate. On paper, gnocchi and cheese sounds like a brilliant reinvention of the traditional macaroni and cheese dish. It presents itself as such, replete with a baked panko breadcrumb topping. But the gnocchi is steeped in a cheese sauce that doesn’t add any nuttiness or appetizing textures, instead shrouding the palate with the funk of missed opportunity.

Another surprising side dish is the inclusion of waffles on the menu; but the execution here is top-notch. A quartered waffle arrives attractively arranged in a row on one of Bird N Hand’s ubiquitous baskets, and the textures employed by Chagar are evidence of a superior attention to detail. The waffle is crunchy and nutty on the outside and light and airy on the inside. They would be an excellent complement to the restaurant’s fried chicken.

Unfortunately for those seeking an upscale chicken-and-waffles experience at Bird N Hand, the fried chicken reveals a potential area for improvement; the meat is certainly succulent and moist, but the batter manifests in a cracker-crunchy shell, and the combination of the two elements is oddly disconcerting. The skin and meat seem to exist exclusive of one another, failing to create the textural synergy that is fundamentally expected of a solid fried chicken.

Things pick up with the “tall boy” sandwiches — the carbohydrate-laden bombs consist of a fried chicken thigh, Harissa mayonnaise, coleslaw and a hash brown served up on a pillowy brioche bun. They taste every bit as good as they sound, with the crunchiness of the chicken thigh and coleslaw playing excellently against their soft brioche vessels.

If some of the dishes seemed to stumble, Bird N Hand makes a marvelous landing at dessert. The bravely named Croissant Crack Pudding nearly undersells its addictive promise. What sounds too rich and too sweet at first glance is neatly restrained by a slightly bitter and deep, earthy dark chocolate and a masterfully executed bread pudding. Chagar again plays with a balance of texture, topping the soft bread pudding with a flaky croissant crust and rounding out the proceedings with a dollop of vanilla ice cream. The resultant dessert is a mind-bending ending to an incredibly solid meal.

Despite being surrounded by such culinary heavyweights in the Beverly Grove district, Bird N Hand can more than hold its own. Its casual concept pairs more-than-fair prices with execution worthy of upscale-dining. Chameau’s excellence was under-appreciated, but Chagar’s true winner might be the humble chicken dinner.