Monday, August 31, 2009

Fuel Pizza & Price’s Chicken Coop (Shaw Goes to Charlotte, Part 2)

Concluding the culinary recap of my trip to see Chris, Michelle, Nora and Hank.


Fuel Pizza
We stopped by Fuel Pizza for some late night eats after hitting downtown Charlotte on Friday night. There are actually a number of these around town, all decorated with scavenged old gas station signs and related paraphernalia.

Fuel Pizza serves it up New York style, and does a solid job. I picked out a slice of pepperoni from the case, and it had just the right amount of double-crisp once it was heated up in the oven. I do love a slice with a good double-crisp.


Price’s Chicken Coop
As mentioned in the first part of this entry, according to Urbanspoon the #1 restaurant in Charlotte is The Penguin. Mac’s Speed Shop BBQ is #2, and although we didn’t have a chance to go, Chris assured me of its quality (he swears by the brisket). But he’d never even heard of #3, Price’s Chicken Coop,* so we headed that way to pick up lunch on Saturday.

Despite warnings of lines stretching around the block, we hit a sweet spot in the traffic and were able to order within minutes. Good thing, too -- the aroma of delicious fried chicken would’ve made the wait unbearable.

Price's Chicken Coop is no nonsense and all business, from the location to the decor to the employees. One of the guys working there even bore a striking resemblance to Colonel Sanders. I like to think it actually was The Colonel, having defected to The Coop to lead a revolt against the blasphemy of Kentucky Grilled Chicken.

Suspecting, and correctly I might add, the cashiers to be the type that expect customers to be ready to order, we made a point to look at a menu ahead of time. We went with a whole mixed chicken (8 pieces, $9.65), an order of hushpuppies ($1.30), a pint of potato salad ($2.25), and tater rounds ($1.20). Then we hustled to a nearby park to enjoy the goods before they got cold.



The chicken itself is incredible, moist without being greasy. Whatever the secret is to perfecting fried chicken, The Coop clearly must’ve discovered it a long time ago. Sides-wise, the hushpuppies and potato rounds were both good -- but the potato salad was the real standout. Mustard-based with a tangy kick.

Reluctantly, I had to leave before I got to try more of the local fare. Special thanks to Chris and Michelle for being great hosts, Mel for hanging out on Saturday, and Andrea for babysitting on Friday so we could hit the town. But the biggest thanks goes to Nora and Hank for being cool-ass kids. Looking forward to seeing you guys again, so hurry up and come see us in KC.

Don't make me publicly shame you guys into visiting -- Lunch Blog has literally tens of readers.

*As of the time of this visit, Price's was in third place but has apparently since been overtaken by Big Daddy's Burger Bar on the Charlotte leaderboard.
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Fuel Pizza:
214 North Tryon Street | Charlotte, NC 28202 Fuel Pizza Cafe on Urbanspoon

Price’s Chicken Coop:
1614 Camden Road | Charlotte, NC 28203Price's Chicken Coop on Urbanspoon

1 comment:

  1. So many crap-restaurants, so little time... Don't you worry your pretty little Shaw-head. We will visit soon. And we will bring our appetittes and lust for bad food with us!

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