For part of the holidays, I decided to fly with the GF back to her hometown of Saginaw, Michigan to spend time with her family. Also - she swore that she wouldn't leave Philly unless I dropped her off. To sweeten the pot, I was promised holiday delights and unlimited fried chicken - so how could I say no?
And where, pray tell, do you get those two? Why in Frankenmuth, of course!
And where, pray tell, do you get those two? Why in Frankenmuth, of course!
Frankenmuth houses Bronner's, which is the World's Largest Christmas Store - if you couldn't read the print above. If you can imagine Santa's vomit - you'd have Bronner's. A Christmas wonderland indeed. You've got ornaments, statues, hats, dolls, stockings - everything priced from a few bucks all the way up to thousands of dollars.
Even former First Lady Laura Bush signed off on this place!
After picking up a few knick knacks and kitschy items, it was off to what I was most looking forward to - Zehnder's - which offers quite the meal. But lest you think this is the only chicken place in town - apparently there is quite the rivalry with the Bavarian Inn, which is an off-shoot of Zehnder's and is even run by some of the Zehnder family. Without going into too much of the family history/tension/turmoil, I'll just say that if I lived around here - I would definitely be doing a yearly taste test and fried chicken battle against the two establishments!
But this year, I had the chance to try Zehnder's family style chicken dinner. And let me tell you - it was quite the onslaught of dishes.
To start we had some cottage cheese ...
... and buttery garlic toast points with cheese spread and smooth, mineraly chicken liver pate ...
... we can't forget the tangy cranberry relish, which offered a nice
counterpoint to many of the heavier dishes ...
... the cabbage salad (cole slaw) was indeed creamy ...
... I opted to substitute the chicken noodle soup for what was essentially a French
onion soup, redolent with sweet Vidalia onions, croutons, and a
thick layer of Gruyere cheese atop a nice stock of soup ...
... sweet and salty ... this really hit the mark ...
... an added portion of Bavarian sausages and sauerkraut ... yes please! The cardomam and ginger shined through the heaviness of the veal and pork ...
... the critically acclaimed (per the GF and her cousins) buttered egg noodles? A fine dish, but a bit bland to the taste of this East Coaster. The bread crumbs were a nice textural contrast however ...
... while the butter squash was quite smooth ... I'll definitely have a bite or four of that ...
... but what are we really here for? The fried chicken - the outer layer so crisp and light, with the white meat as juicy as can be. A fine iteration of this southern dish, to be sure ...
... and to top things off? Some vanilla ice cream, with a plastic monkey (or giraffe) on top!
Overall, Frankenmuth is quite the town - open 361 days out of the year to celebrate Christmas and spread cheer throughout the mitten. And the food? For what is a pittance of a fixed price, you and your family can stuff yourself silly with a slew of dishes, including what is indeed, some of the best fried chicken I have ever tasted.
Zehnder's
730 South Main Street
Frankenmuth, MI 48734
(989) 652-0400
http://www.zehnders.com/dining/
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