Restaurant review: Bawk adds to Sacramento’s fried chicken (and cocktail) scene
As I noted in my last review, 2019 has been the year of the fried chicken sandwich. I haven’t had a chance to try Popeye’s viral exemplar of the breed, but Sacramento offers plenty of indie claimants to the fried-chicken throne. This week’s entrant? Bawk Fried Chicken, a collaboration between Rob Archie — of Urban Roots and Pangaea — and the Selland Restaurant Group that’s now frying birds aplenty (and some cauliflower for the vegetarians among us) in the space formerly occupied in part by Magpie and its more casual successor, Nido.
I know, I know: The restaurant renders its name in all-caps and with an exclamation point, presumably the better to sound like a chicken who suspects she is about to be fried, but I told my editor that I would only do that in print if my byline also gets to be KATE! Kidding about the name aside, Bawk has a unified, appealingly simple concept: They fry chicken. Then they serve it either between bread or with sides, alongside cocktails with a Southern twist.
Yes, there are also some salads, which I hope will keep Bawk afloat during the lean January of dining self-discipline that lies ahead. For now, throwing caution to the winds and digging into fried chicken is a good fit with what one friend of mine calls Winter Eating Season.
In the spirit of indulgence, cocktails also flow freely here. In keeping with its R Street location, Bawk could be treated as more of a bar with an unusually strong fried chicken scene, if guests wish, than a restaurant; on my visits, the bar was occupied even when the restaurant tables were still filling up.
The happy hour, which has an unusually expansive and inexpensive menu, is a particularly good deal, and even outside of happy hour, there is a list of “Bawktails” that come with $5 refills. Of these, I liked the tart, strong Hurricane, a bold choice for a cocktail menu, associated as the name is with the sickly sweet New Orleans version that aims only to get Bourbon Street tourists as plastered as possible. Here, lime, hibiscus, and passion fruit all make the deep-red concoction nearly astringent, balancing out sweetness from the rum.
I was surprised, on the other hand, by the sweetness in the celery gin and tonic, which I expected to have more bitter notes. Sprinkled with coriander seeds (a weakness of mine), it went down easy, but was less complex than I’d hoped. Not so the Vieux Carré, a bitter-leaning rye-based New Orleans classic that’s very different from the Hurricane. The Big Easy vibe carries through to some of the aesthetic touches and the menu’s nods to the South: cocktails served in cut glass, marble tabletops, oyster service.
One rainy, dark late afternoon I stopped in for happy hour and asked for a Vieux Carré and the fried chicken tacos, and the server looked at me and said, “Oh! We are friends!” Our bond has not extended past the restaurant service, but the combination of the smooth cocktail and the spicy tacos, loaded with crunchy slaw and crisp-skinned juicy chicken, did indeed make the hour I was killing as happy as promised. Friendly and very into fried chicken was the general vibe I got from the servers, who mostly operated seamlessly, with a very occasional stumble when asked about what some dishes contained.
The star of the show here is obviously the fried chicken, here cooked to a deep, almost mahogany color and veered more toward the crunchy, almost hard style of breading, rather than lacy-crisp. Salt- and grease-forward, Bawk’s specialty can soak up all the booze from those cocktails and then some. We got, and needed, extra napkins. Dark meat is moist and juicy; white meat a little less so, but still not dry. The boneless pieces fried for use in sandwiches are majestic in size and messy in construction.
The question of how hot a hot chicken sandwich is can be vexed; everyone’s scale for what’s really hot is different. I found the Nashville hot chicken sandwich definitely spicy, but the burn was never intolerable — a nicely judged level and, since comparisons are somewhat inevitable, a tad hotter than the sandwich’s counterpart at Fixins, described last week. The regular fried chicken sandwich, messy with slaw, is also a success. For those with fear of frying, there’s also a leaner roasted chicken sandwich that misses the crunch but not the flavor.
All the sandwiches come with skinny fries that one dining companion of mine compared to McDonald’s fries, high praise indeed. I’d have loved the option to sub in a salad, but was denied. That’s a pity, because the house salad with cider vinaigrette was chock full of shaved vegetables and fresh flavor.
Other sides include creamy mashed potatoes with sausage gravy, that slaw, a slightly dry cornbread rescued by honey butter, and baked beans. Mac and cheese, with smoked gouda and breadcrumbs, suffered from overcooked pasta that made it stodgy, though the flavor and richness of the cheese sauce was on point.
If the meals sound too big, there are lots of great — also mostly fried — snacks on offer: wings, some unusual and interesting chicken tikka croquettes with a mildly spiced yogurt for dipping, a mixed fry with shrimp, cauliflower, fennel slices and olives. All of those make fantastic bar food, underscoring my sense that Bawk is a flexible destination for drinks or snacks or a group — very much in keeping with its surrounding on R Street.
The question is: How much fried chicken can one town eat? So far, the limit does not seem to exist, but it does for your faithful reviewer. I am ready for a break from both consuming and describing fried food — until at least next year.
Email Kate Washington: beediningcritic@gmail.com. Follow her on Twitter: @washingtonkate. For an archive of all her reviews: kwsacdiningreviews.com
Bawk! Fried Chicken
1409 R St., Ste 102. 916-465-8700. bawkfriedchicken.com
Hours: 11:30 a.m. to 9 p.m. Sunday through Thursday, 11:30 a.m. to midnight Friday and Saturday
Cuisine type: American, with a strong focus on fried chicken
Price range: Sides and appetizers $5-14, sandwiches and entrees $12-16, whole fried chicken $30
Rating: ☆☆☆
Food: Do you like fried chicken? If so, you will like it here, with crunchy, highly seasoned birds, wings and pieces on offer in several formats, including, yes, tasty fried chicken sandwiches. Not into the grease factor? Oysters, well-balanced salads and sides — some heavy, like a stodgy mac & cheese, others lighter, like a zippy slaw — provide a counterweight.
Service: Highly congenial and mostly well trained and speedy, though some servers needed to check on dish ingredients when asked.
Ambiance: The homey, light-filled space on R Street that used to be Magpie has undergone a makeover, with graffiti-style painted floors, bright murals on the exposed brick walls, and sleek marble tables that along with the name make for a fun, cheeky feel.
Accessibility considerations: Parking along the restaurant-heavy R Street corridor can be tough. Booths are comfortable and there’s enough open space in the restaurant to navigate easily. Restrooms are all-gender.
Noise levels: Can get loud at busy times.
Drinks: Full bar with original and classic cocktails and “bawktails”; the latter come with $5 refills and include a tart, stripped-down version of a hurricane and spiked sweet tea. Compact but well-chosen and well-priced beer and wine list, plus soft drinks.
Vegetarian options: Some salads and a fried cauliflower option (including on sandwiches) for those who eschew chicken, but the theme here is definitely chicken.
Allergy and dietary considerations: Menu warns that nothing on the menu is strictly gluten-free and may have come in contact with common allergens (and watch out for the rare cocktail containing peanuts). Those with severe allergies or specific sensitivities may wish to call ahead, as servers weren’t always clear about what dishes contained.