Salt Lake City has become a gastronomic capital. We sampled RubySnap cookies, Mrs. Cavanaugh’s ice cream and chocolate, an excellent downtown Italian Restaurant called Michelangelos, and far more. However, our first experience in good eating occurred at Pretty Bird Chicken.
Ruth & I first heard about Pretty Bird when its fried chicken sandwich was judged the best in the state of Utah. It took us 2 years to sample it. A local favorite, it is described on websites as both buzzy and absolutely phenomenal. Both are pretty accurate descriptions.
The location we went to was Pretty Bird’s first and rather difficult to access restaurant at 146 Regent Street in deep downtown Salt Lake City. Ruth & I were very lucky. We spotted it before leaving our car in the garage of the City Creek Shopping Center. This center offers 2 hours of free parking because a very popular Macy’s and food court are part of it. We walked to Pretty Bird from there. A woman on the street helped us relocate it. She told us this restaurant’s food was sensational and that she often dined on its fried chicken on special occasions. One reviewer, Scott A. Bernauer, used 3 verys before the word delicious to describe the Pretty Bird chicken sandwich. Another reviewer called it “the best chicken sandwich I’ve ever eaten”.
The chicken sandwich we received was certainly jumbo and only available via curbside pickup and preorder.
The lady who served us took pity on us and helped. She described the sandwich and the sauces available. I ordered the ranch dressing and found it the best of 3. The usual sauce we both found rather spicy, and we had a lot of chicken left over to share with family that confirmed its spiciness. Pretty Bird offers 3 levels of heat in its dressings and spicy, original chicken coatings.
The lady saw our inexperience and recommended we try Pretty Bird’s new Sugar House location. Used to long lines and full tables, Pretty Bird opened a 2nd seller of its deep-golden-colored chicken at 675 East 2100 South in a vacated restaurant space. Its 2nd location opened on Friday, March 12, 2021, in a fine tribute to Pretty Bird’s success. The Pretty Bird lady assured us that the new location offered more dine-in space and far more tables that meant less waiting.
Pretty Bird’s happy owner is Viet Pham, an experienced chef. His sandwich creation, a Nashville-styled hot, fried chicken sandwich that surprised us when we opened the box in the City Creek Food Court. The Box contained several pieces of chicken, a piece of bread, some pickles and the 3 sauces that are delighting foodies in the Salt Lake City area.
It’s hard not to judge this sandwich the best in Utah.
Hank
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