Pecking House

3.5 STARSOne time, a guy sent me a comp, saying I need to go to the doctor to get my tastebuds checked because I'm "whacked". This was before the pandemic hit so can't blame it on that. Everyone has different palates but I was starting to feel like I was going crazy when I tasted Pecking House's chicken for the second time.What happened to the flavor?! The spice? The heat?Sadly, the flavors seemed to have been toned down for the masses but I waited for other reviews to come through to see if I was whacked. Guess others feel the same...not just on Yelp but on other platforms too. If you haven't heard of Pecking House...they're kinda a big deal. The owner-chef, Eric Huang (Eleven Madison Park and Gramercy Tavern alum) launched his Sichuan spin on Nashville Hot Chicken during the pandemic in NYC and there was a 2-3 month waitlist with many proclaiming "the best fried chicken in my life".They're back in SF again at Lord Stanley for a limited pop-up and this time dine-in is available so can enjoy it while it's still hot and juicy....on a proper table. Rezzies on Tock. They're open all day which is big plus for those who eat at off-peak times. Takeout and delivery is still available. M E N UChili fried chicken, fried chicken sando, fried oyster po'boy, salted egg chicken tenders, salad, mashed potatoes, biscuits, and coconut pudding. Low abv cocktails, wine, and beer available. HH specials: 50% off cocktails - everyday from 3:30 pm - 5:30 pm. 20% service charge and 5% SF mandate added to all bills. Additional gratuity is optional. F O O D* Sichuan+Tianjin Chili Fried Chicken ($19) // 3.5 Stars: https://tinyurl.com/2jd38uemThe cookery was on-point - shatteringly crunchy exterior and juicy meat...even the breast (you get one thigh, drumstick, and half a breast). My disappointment came with the flavor. It was once deeply complex with an addicting málà numbing spice and kiss of sweetness. It wasn't burn your bunghole spicy but a balanced spicy. One of those indescribable flavor bombs that you have to try for yourself. Now, it's underseasoned and underspiced with a dominating sweetness and a baby kick of málà. Barely any heat. =(I ordered two orders to go for friends. One who can't take spicy tried it and said, it was fine for them. * Salted Egg Chicken: Chicken Tenders w/ salted egg sauce, 4g tsar nicoulai caviar (2 pc - $29) // 3 Stars: https://tinyurl.com/24xjt53fFried chicken and caviar...this hood bougie combo was popularized by Wylie Dufresne of WD50. And, Chef Huang takes it step further with salted egg, I'm assuming a spin on Singaporean salted egg prawns.Juicy chicken tenders but the salted egg flavor was very muted. The caviar added a pop of umami but I was expecting a lot more flavor in the salted egg sauce itself. There was no grit to it (IFYKYK). * Heirloom Butter Bean Salad w/ shitake mushrooms, black vinegar dressing ($8) // 3.5 Stars A refreshing side of soft butter beans and slippery, tender mushrooms but could have used more acid to help offset the richness of the fried chicken. * Mashed Potatoes w/ chicken heart gravy // 4 Stars:Deliciously creamy, buttery mashed potatoes with a savory gravy. The chicken hearts added a pleasant gamey flavor. Simple and done right. S E R V I C EFriendly, prompt, and attentive. A M B I A N C EMod-casual with 7-8 tables and a communal table in the mezzanine. P A R K I N GVery challenging metered and residential parking. Overall, I was glad I was able to try Chef Huang's fried chicken again...this time without making a mess in the car but I was sorely disappointed in the toned down flavors. Next time Pecking House returns to SF, I hope they at least offer their original recipe (or "spicy" option) for those who enjoy *actually* spicy chili fried chicken.

I am genuinely puzzled and shocked at the bad reviews. I don't understand. While it lasts, this place is 100% worth a visit. As far as I'm concerned, you give the Bay Area a bad name if you don't at least try to eat at this place. if this place can takeoff in New York and fizzle in San Francisco, it tells me that the transplants who partake in the food scene of San Francisco are conservative and mainstream.I'm writing this review 10 minutes after finishing the chicken. My mouth is still tingling with the sensation of the Szechuan peppercorns. I can still taste the sweet spice of the dressing the chicken was covered in. Yes, it was greasy. Nashville chicken often is! The chicken itself was tender, juicy, and flavorful to the bone. While it was drenched in sauce, it was absolutely still crunchy. Even the pieces that were at the bottom of the box, soaked in grease were still crunchy.I have never tasted fried chicken at this level. I'm a fried chicken connoisseur; I have visited almost all of the places in the city. If this place stayed in San Francisco, it would be a contender for the best fried chicken in the city. It's unique and succeeds at what it's trying to do.This was my first visit to Lord Stanley, and I mostly chuckle to myself at the name. I ordered online and picked it up, people were friendly and it made me curious to visit again soon.But you, you need to go check this place out NOW!

So we brought my dad to Lord Stanley to try Pecking House and we LOVED it. I'm so happy to finally try their chili fried chicken!! We did family style. And I had to try to explain to my dad the concept of turntable residency so he understood Pecking House was only there for the rest of this month! :) As he wanted to see if he could come back with my sister! LOLLet me start by saying I love the concept and I love the location. I was worried about parking so I reserved a spot at a lot off Sacramento and Polk - so it was easy peasy. Got to have a nice leisurely walk on Polk from Sacramento to Broadway - I haven't been in this area for YEARS, no DECADES and was impressed. Anyway - got to the restaurant - got seated right away.We knew what we wanted - family style so we could all try a little of everything. It was more than enough food and unfortunately we were so stuffed we didn't order the coconut rice pudding... sadness...We first got the most AMAZING Gem Salad with Buttermilk! MY OH MY.... I know think we should have gotten TWO. They actually will put a bit of that delicious flavorful buttermilk dressing within each of the GEM lettuce leaves!! It's not just poured on top... We cut it up and DEVOURED it... It was fresh, light and crisp! That dressing though - if they had a bottle of that I would definitely get it! Even my dad was going for 2nds on that one!! (Note - Dad is a pretty light eater and even he raved about the salad).We then got the STAR of the meal - the chili fried chicken! At first glance you panic a bit - it's so RED - will it be too spicy?? Heck NO! It has just the right amount of heat - where it's in the back of your throat, lingers a bit but had a hint of sweetness. AND the skin was CRISPY and crunchy with TONS of flavor with the super tender chicken. It was tender for both the white and the dark! Hubby loves white and he commented on the tenderness of the white meat! But that SAUCE! Where I just had the meat - I'd swipe it on the plate for the sauce!! PERFECT amount of heat and sweet!! Again - Dad even went for seconds!! Great sign!We then got the salted egg chicken that came with a topping of tsar nicoulai caviar. I don't know if it's good to have this AFTER the chili fried chicken cause it felt a bit underwhelming compared - and this particular caviar was a bit on the small and salty side which the chicken needed. I could barely taste the salted egg - but again - I think it's cause we had the chili fried chicken first. Still tasty but definitely not a go to for us.We also got the mashed potatoes which comes with a chicken heart gravy!! It was creamy and delicious. Could've used more gravy. Saw another table ask for extra gravy - we should've done that - it was SO GOOD. Perfect accompaniment for our meal. And Dad loved it so much he finished up the bowl! :)We then got the Pecking House Classic Sando. It was delicious especially when you eat it with the pickle. Crunchy and tender with lots of flavor. I'd actually like it without the bread so I could enjoy the chicken, sauce and pickles! :)THE OTHER STAR of the meal was that AMAZING Chives and Cheddar Biscuits. If we weren't stuffed I would have ordered a 2nd order. One order comes with two - and we cut both in half to share among 3 of us so there was one half left. Even though he was stuffed it was easy to convince my dad to finish up the last half! LOL... it had LAYERS of soft flavor AND the outside had the perfect crunch! EXCELLENT and HIGHLY recommend - but everyone should get their own biscuit! :)Oh and service was great! Though all the food came out pretty fast and it did take time to cut up the chicken and split everything. They kept the water flowing and overall it was great service, atmosphere and DELICIOUS FOOD! When we go to NY - we're heading over to Pecking House for their Chili Fried Chicken, mashed potatoes, biscuits and gem salad FOR SURE and hopefully I'll get to try their coconut rice pudding!!What fun and a GREAT experience!!

Social media really hyped up the pecking house's pop up with lord stanley...came in thinking that I was going to have a unique culinary experience, but was extremely disappointed by the food and service.Their take on the chicken sandwich is not for me. The pickled cucumber that they put inside the sandwich tasted like those canned cucumber you get from the Asian supermarket to eat it with congee or something. Totally ruined the flavor of the sandwich.We also ordered the chili fried chicken expecting a kick and the mala flavor..got 2 pieces of dry/over grease chicken mild in flavor. Don't know what exactly the hype is about but wouldn't come back for it again..Really like the cheddar chive biscuits tho. Flakey and cheesy, pairs really well with the fried chicken!Overall the quality of the food and the service just doesn't really justify the price point. Wondering if I just order takeout the experience would have been better

A tad underwhelmed and let down :( I was so excited to come try this pop-up because of all the buzz that was generated about their fried chicken and dishes, but left disappointed and confused about where the hype came from.It's not hard at all to get a reservation and it didn't seem to be super busy when I was there - you could definitely do a walk-in. Inside is nice and service is great, but I honestly felt like the menu was a bit limited and there weren't that many dishes I was dying to try (besides their famous Chili Fried Chicken of course).Dishes we ordered:- Butter Bean Salad with Sesame (3/5)- Chili Fried Chicken (4/5)- Pecking House Classic Sando (3/5)The Butter Bean Salad and Sando were both good, but didn't wow me or leave me wanting to eat more or finish the plate off. The Chili Fried Chicken was good as well, not too spicy which was nice, and definitely the dish that stood out the most... but I wouldn't say it was amazing to be coined the "best fried chicken". Overall, I wouldn't really recommend my friends to come try this spot if they've never been. I think it's hyped up way more than it deserves and while not bad, it's also not mindblowing :( Sad.

Not like the first pop up two years agoChicken is bone dry and no flavor inside Egg yolk caviar is of poor quantity high anticipation but may not come back

Fried chicken - Sichuan "flavor" without the any of the sichuan kick. Not enough spice or mala. As someone who really loves the spicyness and boldness of sichuan cuisine, I was really excited to try this. Perhaps it's novel for folks who don't regularly get sichuan food, but it really fell flat for me. Crispiness was alright. Tenders - They ran out of caviar, which I was totally fine to eat without. Unfortunately the tenders by themselves were incredibly bland, and still came out to $20. Classic Sando - nothing special about their "PH special sauce". The brioche was alright , but the whole sandwich tasted so bland. I would rather have a Popeyes chicken sandwich. Chive and cheddar biscuits - Hard to get wrong, but i liked them. Service - The Lord Stanley front of the house felt severely understaffed. I felt bad asking for service. Add to that an automatic 20% gratuity for a fried chicken meal..... yikes

Their fried chicken only the skin has taste, the rest is plane, like eating Costco chicken but different flavour, but cost a fortune.Coconut rice pudding is the best so it earns another a star, service is great so they earn a second start.

My girlfriend and I ordered almost everything on the menu, and it was all fantastic. The gem salad was surprisingly good (we got it more as a nod to healthiness than because we love salad). The chicken strips were great (though ho early the caviar was kind of lost). The chicken sandwich was well done and I enjoyed the twist of the Japanese pickle. The signature fried chicken was great, and not too spicy- don't come here expecting Nashville fried chicken, but it was flavorful, crispy, and moist and juicy inside.Wr had the mashed potatoes and cheddar biscuits as sides, and loved both. The biscuits were some of the best I've had in SF. We took dessert to go, the coconut and cinnamon rice pudding, and it was really delightful. Sweet and mild and well balanced.The service was quick and friendly. We never had an empty glass, and our order came out quickly. Even though they normally bring everything at once, our server coursed our order out for us.Lord Stanley is a lovely space, and we enjoyed eating there so much we made a reservation for when they resume their normal French service.

The fried chicken sandwich is the best. Crispy, flavorful and moist. I went back for seconds the next day. The heavy calories are worth it.