Timmy's Hot Chicken

 

Located at 237 West 5^th Street in Winston-Salem’s Downtown Arts District, Timmy’s Hot Chicken serves Nashville hot chicken from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. Tuesday through Sunday. A second location is planned for Greensboro.

 

As a fan of Nashville hot chicken, I’ve had versions that have ranged from fairly faithful to loosely adapted and done right to butchered beyond all recognition. This made me curious about Timmy’s, and I’m pleased to report that it falls in the former categories rather than the latter.

 

A long, narrow, dimly lit space next door to Small Batch, Timmy’s boasts a wall of plates to commemorate the winners of its Hellfire wings challenge (one order eaten in ten minutes or less without drinks). I opted for takeout during my first visit, but it seems like a casual, relaxed spot for dine-in.

 

Timmy’s menu suits its concept well and offers a fair bit of flexibility. You can get wings, tenders, boneless thighs, or fish. All are available with bread on the side and pickles, or you can opt for sandwiches that are varying degrees of loaded (Beyond Meat is also an option here) or even chicken and waffles. Sauce heat levels range from medium to the aforementioned hellfire.

 

I decided to play it safe with a medium Timothy: tenders, pickle, American cheese, slaw, bacon, and comeback sauce. At $12 for the sandwich only (sides are another $4 to $5), it wasn’t cheap, but it was well worth it. The sandwich delivered the sweet-and-heat combination I was looking for while the slaw and bacon added a welcome crunch. Surprisingly for a sandwich as loaded as this one, it didn’t completely fall apart while I tried to eat it.

While I can’t attest to Timmy’s sides or the dine-in experience, the sandwich was enough to tell me where to go the next time a Nashville hot chicken craving hits. Here’s hoping the Greensboro location opens soon.

Big Ed's Chicken Pit

Located at 105 West Peachtree Drive in High Point, Big Ed’s Chicken Pit specializes in fried chicken. It is open from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. Thursday through Saturday. Food and drink specials change daily.

 

I’m hesitant to post this review given that I’ve yet to try Big Ed’s fried chicken. It could very well be a game-changer. However, the other offerings suggest a mixed bag.

 

Big Ed’s is a small-ish place with a gravel lot and somewhat closely packed tables inside. That and the dim and dated interior make it a better option for takeout than dine-in. On the other hand, the staff are friendly and welcoming even if the ambiance is not.

 

While fried chicken is Big Ed’s calling card, the menu also offers other chicken dishes, burgers, hot dogs, and salads. I’ve had occasion to try the double hot dog special and the chicken pie. The latter is available by the slice with two sides or as a whole pie to go (allow for an hour of prep time if you wanted it heated).

 

Boasting soft buns and a tasty, firm bite, the hot dogs are surprisingly good. A pair with your choice of toppings and a side (I went with fried okra, and it was a solid choice) are very affordable at under $8. The chicken pie is homemade and features an excellent flaky crust. While satisfying, it could have benefitted from more depth of flavor (black pepper, perhaps?) and smaller pieces of chicken (they are in large chunks). At $17+, it’s probably not something I would get again.

 

I will keep Big Ed’s in mind the next time I’m craving a hot dog or fried chicken, but it’s otherwise going to be an infrequent destination.

Bonchon

Located at 607 South Elm Street in Downtown Greensboro, Bonchon specializes in Korean fried chicken and also offers other Korean eats. The restaurant is open for lunch and dinner daily. Drinks (including sake specials), lunch specials, online ordering, and delivery are available.

As a chain in close proximity to a plethora of eateries on Elm, Bonchon needed to be something special to have a chance at survival. Fortunately, it is. Delicious food, friendly service, and a surprising number of options make Bonchon a must for downtown dining.

Ironically housed in a former antique shop, Bonchon is bright, clean, modern, and inviting. There is plenty of seating around the bar and no shortage of conventional tables as well. One caveat: the latter come with low chairs that are not particularly comfortable.

While Korean fried chicken is the marquee attraction here, Bonchon offers quite a bit more. Rice bowls, tacos, sliders, salads, and more can be found here too. While Korean cuisine is well-represented (bulgogi and bimimbap are just the start), the fusion/pan-Asian offerings bring a strong dumpling game including takoyaki (Japanese breaded fried octopus poppers).

For our first visit, my wife and I split an order of strips (half soy garlic, half sweet crunch) with radish and an order of pork buns (pork belly, cucumber, slaw, spicy mayo, and sauce). Given that the chicken is made to order, the food didn’t take terribly long to arrive.

Both dishes were hits. While the chicken was perhaps dryer than it would have been were it in wing form, it was nicely breaded and crunchy without any greasiness. The pork buns were tender and practically inhalable. All of the sauces delivered big flavors, but none were overpowering, and the radish provided a cool, fresh counterpoint.

Everything proved to be surprisingly affordable. Ten-piece strips ran $12, three pork buns were $10, and the quantities were filling.

Some restaurants can leave you wondering if you’ll be back. With Bonchon, the only things left to wonder are when and what to try next.

Scratch Handcrafted Donuts and Fried Chicken

Located at 1220 Battleground Avenue in Midtown Greensboro, Scratch Handcrafted Donuts and Fried Chicken offers its namesake items as well as breakfast and lunch sandwiches and coffee drinks. It is open from 6 a.m. to 3 p.m. daily, and specialty donuts rotate regularly.

The brainchild of Buddalicious Food Truck owner Jimmy Chhay, Scratch is Greensboro’s first chicken-and-donut shop. Given that the city lost both Rise and DonuTime in recent months, its arrival is fortuitous. It also brings a breakfast option and a lower-priced lunch alternative to the Midtown stretch of Battleground. However, neither novelty nor proximity will keep a restaurant afloat in the long run. Fortunately, Scratch has several indicators that point to staying power.

For starters, the selection here is commendable. Regular donut flavors range from simple glazes to pb&j and maple bacon to fritters. Breakfast sandwiches come on your choice of a biscuit, a donut bun (unglazed), or a glazed donut. Chicken is available in dry or wet flavors that evoke Southern (BBQ or buttermilk ranch) and Asian (Siracha honey or Korean) influences.

For my first time out, I went with one of the specialty donuts (caramel macchiato) and a fried chicken, egg, and cheese sandwich on a donut bun. The execution wasn’t flawless, but there was more good than bad. The donut’s icing was deliciously sweet and delivered both of the expected flavors. The donut itself tasted fresh though it was not especially remarkable. The breakfast sandwich was substantially bigger than a McMuffin clone, and the donut bun, though odd at first, held everything in place nicely. The chicken was a thin cutlet, crisply breaded and surprisingly moist. The sandwich as a whole, however, was frustratingly dry, and the establishment should definitely consider offering sauces and/or spreads as add-ons.

Scratch’s pricing won’t leave you feeling gouged. The donuts are mostly either $1.25 or $1.75 (only apple fritters run more). Breakfast sandwiches start at $1.50 with one topping included and 50 cents for each additional topping ($2.00 if that topping is fried chicken). For the quality and quantity, those rates are tough to beat.

Though Scratch is minimally decorated – unadorned tables and bare brick walls – it isn’t an eyesore. Seating, for a donut shop, is more than adequate. The counter staff seemed a bit harried at times, but no one was rude, and food came out relatively quickly (a sign by the menu advises patrons to expect a fifteen-minute wait on fried chicken orders).

All told, Scratch is no Rise, and there is room for improvement, but there are definite high notes, and its concept is one that does more than just sound good on paper. For anyone with an eclectic donut itch, Scratch is worth a try.

8/10