Biscuit & Branch, the new joint in the Short North, starts as a visual adventure. Darn near everything is hued in dove grey, which makes it different from dominant restaurant design styles that more typically emphasize lots of woodwork or color. Grey grey grey. It’s pretty though, and not institutional. Also, most of the seating is elevated. From the dining perspective, you sit high like a giant, and the serving team below becomes curiously petite.
The menu is southern. And while biscuits and gravy and biscuits and butter seem like lovable, traditional combos, the branch bit is intriguing. Whatever branch is, it’s got some good things going for it.
Case in point, Paul’s Nasty ($9.50). First, because it’s fun to order something “nasty.” And it doesn’t disappoint, not that it’s nasty in the literal sense of the term; it is a lovable mess. A big biscuit, achingly tender and fresh, is split and topped with a sizable portion of crunchy breaded thigh meat, plus an ocean of old-fashioned sausage gravy, and melted cheddar cheese to guild the lily. It’s a great deal of food that combines a stick-to-your-ribs style of satisfaction with serious flair.
The Nasty is part of an all-day breakfast schtick that expands into sweet offerings and eggy items too. Or, you could score something non-breakfasty such as the Tacos ($10.50). They’re filled with soft pork that’s tinged with something that adds a sweetness akin to chicken salad, the meat is teamed with mild pinto beans and nested in soft corn tortillas. The tacos are too big to neatly fold, which is to say they are excellent value.
For the salad crew, there is the Collard Green Kim Chee ($3). Again, it’s a big portion and lovely to behold, as it mixes the wilted bits of kimchi with fresh, perky greens. It’s a good option to use as a foil with other menu items, as it provides a consistently singular contribution: every leaf is infused with the intensely briny burn of kimchi.
Two other options got a mixed reception from the table: Tractor Wheel and Gumbo. The Wheel ($8) is a cabbage and sweet potato pancake. The chunks of sweet potato have more presence than the cabbage which seems to have melded into the dense, starchy background of the pancake. And it is a curiously starchy pancake. The round is frosted with swirls of Korean Barbecue and garlic cream sauce. Together, those sauces are sublime, and the pancake is at its best as a vehicle for the addictive sauce.
As for the Gumbo ($6), it’s more viscous than expected, with primary flavor and texture contributions from chunks of chicken and tasso ham. Even with okra and pecan rice, it comes across as mild and milquetoast.
But if the Gumbo is not adventurous enough, there are plenty of other culinary adventures to explore on the menu: case in point, the choose-your-own adventure mimosa tray. Surely, a self-assembled breakfast of champions.
You can find Biscuit & Branch at 685 N. High St. It’s open Tuesdays through Sundays.
For more information, visit www.biscuitandbranch.com.
All photos by Lauren Sega.