Fried chicken

Fried chicken is simple and almost always done badly: frozen pieces, a coating from a sack, an hour under a lamp. We buy whole free-range birds from one farm near Llandeilo, joint them in the kitchen every morning, and brine them for twenty-four hours in buttermilk with salt, garlic and a splash of hot sauce. When your order prints, Darren dredges each piece twice in our seasoned flour by hand and fries it in rapeseed oil.

The spice goes on after the fryer, as a dust, so the crunch is not lost under a wet sauce. Mild is our seasoning alone: pepper, garlic, paprika and celery salt. Hot adds cayenne and smoked chilli. Xtra adds a habanero dust and a brush of chilli-honey glaze, 60p, and it is hot enough that we ask once if you are sure.

Pieces are mixed (breast, thigh, drumstick, wing) unless you ask for all thigh, 40p a piece more, or all breast fillet tenders. Every line on the menu carries its allergen codes; the coating contains gluten, milk, mustard and celery.

What you get

• Welsh free-range birds, jointed here daily
• 24-hour buttermilk brine
• Double-dredged by hand, fried to order
• Mild, hot or xtra, dusted after the fryer
• All-thigh on request
• Allergen codes on every line

What it costs

Two pieces £4.20, three £5.90, five £9.20, eight £13.90. All thigh 40p a piece more. Xtra spice 60p. The menu has every price with its allergen codes; the box builder prices pieces, spice and sides before you ring.