I confess, I went to Hill Country Chicken on opening night. Not to see the press and celebrities (there were none, save for Michael White of Marea who is a celeb in my book). Nor for the right to be the first to post a review, because clearly I’m a few days delayed there as well. But instead, because I could not wait one more day to try fried chicken rumored to be as good as what I grew up with in Texas. This, after all, is why I blog.

I would love to say I blog for fame or fortune, but truly I blog because eating is my favorite part of the day. As you’ve seen, I rarely write about cooking because, to be fair, I don’t do much of it. But I do love the restaurant industry. And I love talking about the food, the chefs, the restaurateurs, and all those on staff who make great meals happen. From your corner cafe who really knows their coffee to the Chelsea Market fruit vendor with the best produce in town to Madison Avenue fine dining, I respect the work that goes in to each venture and look forward to exploring new ones each day.

Writing about food may be new to me, but planning my day around it is certainly not. Growing up we would often detour a few hundred miles on a family road trip for the right waffles for breakfast or the best tamales for dinner. Nothing has changed there, so on Wednesday night I found myself standing in line with the crowds at Hill Country. I first heard about the coming of Hill Country Chicken in June after speaking to Elizabeth Karmel at the Big Apple BBQ, one my favorite annual NYC events. I’ve been tracking their progress ever since, anxiously awaiting the opening.

On Wednesday, I immediately appreciated the limited menu choices. I cringe to write a review based on a limited tasting, but here I could do some real damage to the menu - as you can see I did from the picture up top (note: there were only 2 of us plowing through that Pick of the Chick order). And I could see the team’s focus: they were here to do fried chicken and pie, and to do them right.

With a full sample of the Hill Country Classic and Mama El’s chicken styles, biscuits, some Boylan soda (from the fountain!), and a 3” cherry pie we settled in to feast. I would not be true to my Texas roots if I said this was the best fried chicken I have ever had. True enough, in my opinion Babe’s in Roanoke, TX (ie the middle of nowhere) is as good as it gets.  But Elizabeth Karmel, the chef of Hill Country, has done her research and puts up a damn good fight. Let’s just say I’ll be back for seconds.

While the chicken was delicious, the real gems in my book where the items not yet part of a NYC food craze like fried chicken: biscuits and pie. Here Hill Country Chicken blew me out of the water. The biscuits, which I’ll admit I toss to the side at most restaurants as empty calories and stomach filler, were the perfect balance of buttery, sweet, and fluffy. Quite the accomplishment and not to be missed.

Oh and then there was the pies! Hill Country Chicken is not throwing in dessert as an after thought. In fact, I expect I may end up returning for the pie and grabbing some fried chicken just because I’m there more often then not. The selection is vast, from Whiskey Buttermilk to Margarita to all the fruit classics. I settled for a cherry pie, which the chef described as a perfect balance of sweet and tart cherries. I couldn’t agree more, and the 3” size made it perfect for an individual sweet snack.

Judging by Hill Country BBQ, which is hands down the best brisket in town in my book, and Hill Country Chicken, now hands down the best pie and putting up a great fight for best fried chicken, I truly can’t wait to see what comes next from the Hill Country team. Eating with chef Elizabeth Karmel feels like going home, and I think the thousands of Texan ex-pats in NYC will agree. So go out of your way, whether it be a few blocks or across town, and detour to Hill Country Chicken. I’m sure you won’t regret it.