SEAReview
photo credit: Nate Watters
The Chicken Supply
Included In
The Chicken Supply specializes in Filipino fried chicken dredged in a blend of tapioca starch, rice flour, and potato starch. You might be skeptical about celiac-friendly breading, but know that it’s not just spectacular in spite of being gluten-free—it’s spectacular because it’s gluten-free. If anything, their coating is crispier than chicken at other spots in town. From thigh skin that crunches like potato chips, to skewers of cubed white meat juicy enough to make us swear off tenders forever, this poultry has occupied our thoughts more than poultry probably should.
The small dining room only has a handful of tables, and even though you could feasibly eat here while listening to deep-fryer sizzles and the staff calling out the names of chicken parts, it's best used as a takeout operation. Especially because most of the food travels extraordinarily well.
Our favorite way to experience this place, however, is when The Chicken Supply hosts sandwich pop-ups, which happen occasionally on random Sunday afternoons. Along with phenomenal fried thighs, pickles, and ripe tomato between halves of a toasted pandesal bun, they serve fluffy waffle fries with kewpie mayo and drumsticks drizzled with hot honey. If you see them announce this Sunday pop-up on Instagram, drop that brunch reservation you've had for weeks and come here instead.
When we’re not daydreaming about their crackly chicken, we’re thinking about sides like coconutty collard greens with pickled shallots and peanuts, or garlic rice, or a bite involving both. Sure, the rice can be dry at times and the greens can be bitter, but on a good day, they're fantastic accompaniments. Even the tiny little cup of tart dipping vinegar (with floating whole chilies) to dunk your sticks in is delicious when seeped into the chicken’s crisp shell.