Overview
Danny Simpson and Christopher Craig have been looking to open their own eatery for a couple of years, with ideas bumping between complicated menus and expensive bistros. It was a mutual love to fried chicken that inspired them to focus on something more relaxed — an eatery dedicated entirely to hot and crispy bird. Opening its doors along Takapuna's Hurstmere Road this week is The Coop.
The idea was to create somewhere comfortable to work through a list of internationally-inspired fried chicken. A vintage Street Fighter arcade machine can be found down the back, while the walls have been splashed with a chicken-cityscape by mural artist Jonny 4Higher. There's room for groups of 10-15.
To achieve maximum flavour level with their headlining dish, the pair first takes free-range wings and boneless thighs and cures them overnight in Jamaican-style marinade. From there the chicken is dipped into eggy buttermilk and creole-spiced chickpea flour before being fried and dusted with their signature jerk spice. The end result is gluten-free and can be served eight different ways.
On top of the Jamaican-style foundation, the garnish list traverses every corner of the globe; from the original jerk with chipotle mayo to napa cabbage kimchi with gochujang mayo, hot rosemary honey butter with black sesame, nam jim and chimichurri.
Diners can also take the selected chicken combinations and have them in a toasted po' boy. The selected fried chicken arrives in a polenta-dusted long bun with swiss cheese and apple slaw. To pair, the sides menu boasts fries with jerk salt, sweetcorn hush puppies, house salad and broccoli with chimichurri butter. To wash it down there's ice cream thickshakes and a selection of home made iced teas. There will be one tap beer once the liquor licence kicks into gear.
The Coop is now open at 90 Hurstmere Road, Takapuna. It's open from 11am til late, seven days.