If you’re headed down to Chinatown, there’s a committed new window to visit for some fried chicken, with Le Coq Frit now dishing up crisp-fried pieces from a small counter in the neighbourhood.
With just a couple of square metres for customers, and the rest dedicated to kitchen, it’s very much a take-out affair; delivery is also being offered.
Owner Eva Hu tells Eater that Coq Frit is cutting out distractions, and focusing in almost entirely on one thing: chicken. The menu features various options — chicken by the piece (breasts, thighs, and drumsticks), wings, and even a whole fried Cornish hen to take home and tear to pieces. There’s also popcorn chicken, which will be made with dark meat — “the tastiest part”, Hu says.
Hu says she wants to boost Montreal’s fairly limited fried chicken, and is putting the focus squarely on the meat itself — not sauces or toppings for it. She has sourced hormone-free chicken (“not that supermarket type that doesn’t even taste like chicken”), with the meat brined and seasoned before frying, permeating it with flavour instead of just coating the crispy exterior with herbs and spices. Her hope is that the chicken will be perfectly seasoned, tender inside, and crispy outside, to the point where customers won’t even want to or need to add sauces on top.
Coq Frit is offering three varieties of chicken — spicy, garlic, and a tangy plum option; all are made with dry seasoning instead of a glaze-like coating as at some chicken joints (plain chicken is an option, too). Beyond those varied chicken options, the menu is rounded out with fries and coleslaw.
The counter will eventually serve fried chicken to late night crowds, with Hu considering staying open until 2 or 3 in the morning (various restaurants in Chinatown also operate past midnight); however, it likely won’t be open 24 hours as had initially been advertised. At the moment, it’s in soft-opening mode, but still open day and night.
STATUS — Le Coq Frit is open at 52a de la Gauchetière (corner Clark) from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. daily, with extended hours in the works.
- Le Coq Frit [Official]