Restaurant Review: Brian Fisher’s Kitchen

A fried chicken sandwich, when done right, can make you wonder why you spend so much time ordering burgers. It can reawaken your taste buds and offer a much-needed change from the typical food fare. But it’s often the difficulty in finding a mouth-watering chicken sandwich that usually leaves this item on the back burner of our minds. Well, Chef Brian Fisher’s Kitchen at the newly reopened Time Out Market in the West Loop is here to ensure that Chicagoans have good reason to have chicken on the brain. 

Fisher, the award-winning chef who ran the kitchen at the Michelin-starred Entente in River North, has reined his culinary focus on poultry with the addition of his namesake kitchen to the Time Out Market. While the menu features only six items, if you do them to perfection, there is no need for extras, as is the case here. 

First and foremost is the fowl. Fisher’s fried chicken sandwich is a testament to succulence and taste that will have you rearranging your schedule to spend more time in his kitchen. Each bite delivers the crispy crunch that is often so hard to find when it comes to sandwiches of the chicken variety. The sandwich is perfectly accented by the addition of sweet pickles and smooth cole slaw, creating a blend of flavors that is sure to appease even the most peculiar taste buds. The toasted brioche bun that holds all this taste together guarantees deliciousness from the first bite to the very last.  

Perhaps you aren’t in the mood for the brioche bun and want to dine on the chicken solo. No problem. The menu offers three- and six-piece fried chicken entrees served with sweet pickles and sour honey. You simply can’t go wrong with any of the chicken options on this no-nonsense menu.

Rounding out the offerings at Brian Fisher’s Kitchen is the noteworthy cornbread kicked up a notch with the addition of spicy jalapeno honey butter that will make you forget about the boring old cornbread you have been accustomed to. The mac & cheese provides a super creamy and decadently cheesy taste explosion highlighted by the smart choice of including flavorful pimentos to the mix. Fisher’s savory cole slaw bookends the menu, and despite its brevity, there is more than enough taste to make up for the limited choices. 

So if you’re looking for something that is both familiar yet new, head over to Brian Fisher’s Kitchen at the Time Out Market located at 916 West Fulton Market in one of our favorite Chicago neighborhoods, the West Loop. 

ERIC KAPLAN AND DEAN’S TEAM CHICAGO