A James Beard Award-Winning Chef Opens His New Restaurant Next Week

Four years after opening Mercantile Dining & Provision, James Beard Award winner Alex Seidel is debuting another Denver restaurant, this one a fast-casual chicken shop on Old South Pearl Street. Chook Charcoal Chicken will start serving lunch and dinner on Friday, December 7 at 1300 South Pearl, formerly home to the Village Cork.

The new business’ menu is based around plates of coal-fired rotisserie chicken, with grilled vegetables, salads, and more sides for accompaniment. With its simple menu, Chook is focusing first and foremost on quality sourcing of poultry — eventually Seidel’s Fruition Farms will house a full flock — and affordable meals for families. Customers should be able to fill up for less than $10, but beer, wine, and cocktails will also be on tap.

For this venture, Seidel has partnered with Adam Schlegel, co-founder of Snooze restaurants, and Randy Layman, a longtime Denver bar manager. The team will donate 1 percent of all restaurant sales to various local charities, which will change each month. In addition to Mercantile, Seidel runs his original Fruition restaurant, Füdmill commissary, and the Fruition farm and creamery located in Larkspur.

• Alex Seidel Is Opening a Fast-Casual Chicken Restaurant [EDEN]
• Alex Seidel Wins the 2018 James Beard Award for Best Chef Southwest [EDEN]
• Rotisserie Meats and More Comfort Foods Come to Avanti [EDEN]