
[UPDATE: This story was updated at 5:24 p.m. on May 10 after Nosh received a correction from The Bird. A representative from the restaurant said there was an “internal miscommunication” about the restaurant’s first week of service. The Bird will not be giving away sandwiches, rather selling 200 sandwiches per day to the first 200 people in line, until they sell out.]
Nosh just got new details about The Bird, the fried chicken sandwich spot that we reported was opening its second location in the former The Melt location on Telegraph Avenue in Berkeley.
The new Berkeley shop will open next week on May 15 with a limited menu and limited hours. Starting at 11 a.m., it will sell 200 of its fried chicken sandwiches per day to the first 200 people in line on Tuesday, May 15 through Friday, May 18, until they sell out. In addition, those who buy a sandwich will be entered to win two free tickets to Outside Lands.
The following week, starting on May 21, The Bird will be open during normal hours with its full menu, for breakfast, lunch and dinner: 7:30 a.m. to 9 p.m., Monday through Wednesday; 7:30 a.m. to 10 p.m., Thursday through Friday; 9-11 a.m. and 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. Saturday (closed on Sunday).
The Berkeley menu mirrors the San Francisco menu, except for now, the Telegraph Ave. location does not yet offer beer (but will soon, as well as wine). Aside from its signature chicken sandwich — made with free-range chicken in a berbere spice blend and topped with a celery apple slaw, mayo and pickles — The Bird also offers a chicken biscuit and housemade apple fritters (for breakfast), a salad you can get with or without fried chicken, hot wings, curly and loaded fries and its own homemade version of the Choco Taco.
The Bird is run by Back of the House restaurant group, founded by Adriano Paganini, which also is responsible for Super Duper, Delarosa, Beretta, Uno Dos Tacos and several other San Francisco restaurants. Chef Blair Warsham (who once worked at The Restaurant at Meadowood) developed the menu for The Bird when it opened its original SOMA location in San Francisco in 2016.
The Bird will be at 2400 Telegraph Ave. (at Channing), Berkeley