By Robert M. Sarwark
After beginning as a pop-up, operating out of a food stall, and several years in Old Fourth Ward, breakfast/brunch restaurant Bomb Biscuit Co. has once again relocated. Now at the Larkin on Memorial Avenue, head chef and owner Erika Council hopes to make Grant Park the southern-style spot’s long-term home.
“We love it over here,” Council said of the move. After many years working in software development, Council returned to the life of a restaurateur from a place of passion and heritage. Since 1976, her extended family has run a popular diner in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, Mama Dip’s Kitchen, and it was there that she learned to both cook and care for her customers.
The new location at 519 Memorial Drive, Suite B02 soft-opened on May 30 and has been at full capacity since the start of June. Hours are based on a standard breakfast and brunch schedule: 8:00am to 2:00pm (closed Mondays and Tuesdays). Occupying what had once been another American-style brunchery, Woodward and Park, Bomb Biscuit Co. complements PERC Coffee in the rear of the Larkin complex.
Bomb Biscuit’s menu offers classics like fried-chicken and pork sandwiches along with breakfast plates featuring eggs, bacon, hash browns, and sausage. And don’t forget the chicken and waffles. Vegan options are also available. But as its name implies, the focus is on the biscuit.
I sampled the Hot Honey Chicken Biscuit and it did not disappoint. Their chicken, which is always a boneless thigh (dark meat), was extremely tender and juicy. Chef Council confirmed that this is the result of pickle-brining, and in this sandwich’s case, also hot sauce. And the biscuit itself – baked and buttered to golden perfection – was both pillowy and firm, maintaining the structural integrity of the sandwich while yielding readily to each bite. I added pimento cheese, which added greatly to the already dynamic flavor profile. (Next time I’ll have to go “fully loaded” – cheese plus a folded egg on top.)
In early 2024, the Michelin Guide awarded Bomb Biscuit Co. the rank of “Bib Gourmand” for its “good quality, good value cooking.” The recognition from such a renowned organization bodes well for Bomb Biscuit Co. as it opens shop in Grant Park.
