Chick 'n' Sours (Covent Garden)

The thighs of a chicken are rarely as desirous as they are here at this second outlet of Americana-foodie enterprise Chick 'n' Sours, which opened its debut branch in 2015 in hip Haggerston in east London. Nothing here is content to be simply a classic southern recipe, from the starters — including tasty wings (with a choice of four adventurous sauces) and the popular Szechuan aubergine — to the real reason for coming here: the next-level, über-crispy/chunky and meaty fried chicken (with six dipping sauces, notably the sriracha sour cream). Side dishes such as Hunan-style cucumbers and fries (in beef fat) likewise cry "foodie!". There are also generous, pile-high chicken buns and craft beers and sour drinkees (as per the restaurant's name). This basement Covent Garden space, with a rather busy but inoffensive concept decor, opened August 2016, just a one-minute strut from Soho.