Sunset Fried Chicken is one of my favorite secret restaurants in Seattle. Sure, it’s not really a secret, it’s just small. They take up about 5 feet of counter space inside Rachel’s Ginger Beer on 12th Ave on Capitol Hill in Seattle. Also, plenty of people know about it. Food & Wine said they have some of the best fries in America (see my review here). I think the difference is that I visit during lunch and most others come by later during bar hours.
My lunch during this visit was phenomenal. I had their spicy fried chicken sandwich which had a well balanced mix of heat, buttery richness, and sour notes. I ordered the fried green tomatoes to try something new. It had been a while since I’d had fried green tomatoes anywhere, it’s just not a common side around here.
Overall, I liked them, but I didn’t love them. At 18mm it’s one of the thickest fried object I’ve reviewed, and that girth provides a satisfying and firm bite. The breading managed to mostly stay on the tomato slices. Given the moisture of the tomatoes this is a bit of a miracle.
There are a couple of things that keep these from being next level good. Number one, the tomatoes weren’t nearly tart enough. Right or wrong, my palate wanted more sour notes, like a fried pickle. Marinating the tomatoes in some sort of vinegar brine would add that element. I also found the breading a bit unevenly salted. Some bites were great, others were very underseasoned. The cornmeal breading was also a bit gritty. Hard to avoid that.
These tomatoes are fine, but compared to the fries and the hushpuppies (*swoon*) I can’t give them more than a 7 out of 10 on my rating scale.
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Catalog:
Sampled in May 2017
Update June 2, 2017 – I tried the Fried Green Tomato Sandwich (the Charleston) and it was delicious! Having the tomatoes combined with a lemony slaw/sauce and pimento cheese really elevated the whole thing. I enjoyed it much more than the tomatoes on their own as a side. Next time I’ll make sure to get a fried egg on it as well, but it was good as-is.
The Sodafry 