Fork and Hen On Main — Restaurant in Sarasota

Style over Substance?

Fork & Hen is a popular little café with pretty good food. The atmosphere is closer to diner than fine food and the place could use some sprucing up. Service is casual.

We started with the Aguachile Tuna appetizer. It was delicious and the serving was large. It was accompanied by delicious homemade crackers. I also asked for an unsweetened iced tea. I asked for any artificial sweetener and was told that they only have sugar. So much for serving the customer.

For mains I had the Blue Plate Southern Fried Chicken. I love fried chicken and this was pretty good. There might have been more seasoning in the crust. I prefer my fried chicken on the bone and this was various parts of meat only. Under the chicken was a huge, ungainly and rather flavorless corn cake the size of the entire plate. This makes cutting the chicken difficult. The honey lavender butter mentioned on the menu must have melted into the corn cake making it a little soggy. On top of the corn cake were some nice collard greens. The dish would have been better with a smaller corn cake on the side and more collards.

We also had the Pressed Chicken Parm sandwich—at least it’s listed under the “Hands” portion of the menu. A bulbous piece of chicken is set between two thick pieces of focaccia making it near impossible to be picked up and eaten. The flavors were all good—once it was deconstructed.

The mains were quite large and good value, providing lots of leftovers. Overall, the food is very good and good value. But the style gets in the way of...

The culinary prowess displayed at Fork and Hen in Sarasota, Florida, puts it squarely in the spotlight, casting a shadow over some Michelin-starred counterparts and sparking a spirited dialogue about the Michelin Guide's current scope and selections. The restaurant's innovative dishes not only delight the palate but also boldly challenge the conventions upheld by renowned establishments such as Streetlight Taco in Tampa, Los Felix, and even the two Michelin-starred Joel Robuchon in Miami.

Each visit to Fork and Hen reveals layers of culinary excellence that are both rare and exhilarating, prompting one to question why the Michelin inspectors haven't yet graced this gem with their presence. The vibrant and meticulously crafted dishes serve not only as a testament to the chef's ingenuity but also raise the bar for what is considered exceptional in the culinary world.

In this context, Fork and Hen doesn’t just deserve a Michelin star; it demands a reevaluation of how such accolades are awarded. The omission of such a standout venue from the Michelin Guide not only deprives Fork and Hen of deserved recognition but also calls into question the criteria and geographic inclusiveness of Michelin's inspections. As it stands, Fork and Hen is not just a must-visit restaurant; it's a culinary revolution in the making, poised to redefine the standards of...

I had eaten here once before but a Cobb salad wasn’t that exciting, so I decided to try the modest establishment again with my young son. He initially upon arrival said he didn’t like the look and it was dirty where we had chosen to sit but I was still laser beam focused to try a dish. There was only one table inside that was occupied and unserved as it was just a few minutes after 12. We looked outside between a couple of tables where to sit outside with a bit of shade and sat down. A gentleman had walked in shortly after so I went inside to see what was transpiring to find out that the waitress felt that since we hadn’t come in and gotten a menu that meant in her world that-we were invisible thou she could clearly see outside as that is where she is facing . Her disposition is all wrong to work in a customer service role in a town where there are soooo many restaurants to choose from. Great customer service can make the difference, I had driven just under 20 minutes to get there but I don’t feel this restaurant is worth it trying out again. It is unfortunate as with just about 5 bench style camp tables outside and limited seating inside you would think more effort would be put into their...