Playing Chicken

By
Appears in the February 2023 issue.

By Peter Gianopulos

Food from Chicken Salad Chick

Just try it. That’s all Kim Seaman and her husband, Garrett, are asking of you. If you happen to be in Batavia, stop by their brand-new spot, Chicken Salad Chick (220 N. Randall Rd.) and sample a free spoonful of the house’s chicken salad.

There’s a possibility that what you taste will be as good—or dare it be said, even better—than the secret formula your great-aunt Gertrude has hidden away in her Recipe Rolodex.

Why such confidence? Because Chicken Salad Chick is a Southern institution, with locations stretching from Wilmington, North Carolina to Waco, Texas. They’re everywhere down in SEC country, but the Seaman’s new spot in Batavia is the northernmost Chick Salad Chick location in the nation.

“We steam our chicken,” Kim says, “so we don’t have any fryers. Everything is shipped fresh or made fresh, which is why we think it’s such a healthy choice.”

Diners can select from more than a dozen chicken-salad options: Perhaps a Southern-style made with eggs and pickles. A picnic-basket option with bacon, cheddar cheese, and ranch. Or a sweet take made with Fuji apples, grapes, and pecans. Whether you go with traditional, savory, fruity or spicy, pick how you’d like it served—scooped straight, spread on a sandwich, sealed up in a to-go pint.

To keep things interesting, customers also can order pimento spreads and BLTs, turkey sandwiches and salads, soups and mac and cheese, but in the end, can you really resist a chicken-salad flight, served with artisan wheat crackers? Just try it. After all, what Great-Aunt Gertrude doesn’t know, can’t hurt her, right?

 

Photo courtesy of Chicken Salad Chick