Good Taste
Roast chicken redux If Boston Chicken's sad chain birds long ago ruined take-out chicken for me, Philly's new poultry roast-master, Rotisseur, has given the genre new life. At this rustic-chic 21st Street nook, hormone- and antibiotic-free Lancaster Count
/arc-anglerfish-arc2-prod-pmn.s3.amazonaws.com/public/QCAAB7SDAFHZBBCOLOKSHFSEPQ.jpg)
If Boston Chicken's sad chain birds long ago ruined take-out chicken for me, Philly's new poultry roast-master, Rotisseur, has given the genre new life. At this rustic-chic 21st Street nook, hormone- and antibiotic-free Lancaster County chickens get a secret brine ("I make a concoction," co-owner Aaron Matzkin says, "with quite a bit of Japanese ingredients. . . .") before spit-roasting to a superb juiciness that is chicken at its straightforward, sauce-less best. Add in some excellent sides - creamy mac-n'-cheese with lots of crunchy croutons; "green chips" of kale or chard roasted to an addictive crisp, some bright house-pickled tomatoes and okra, plus a fresh apple cobbler - and you'll have a take-out chicken meal that just might fly.
- Craig LaBan
Half chicken with two sides, $11; whole chicken, $14; Rotisseur, 100 1/2 S. 21st St., 215-496-9494.