Southern Comfort...

The Fat Ham

3131 Walnut Street

Philadelphia, PA 19104

www.sbragadining.com/fatham/ 

My fiancé and I had recently discovered the magic that is Kevin Sbraga's cooking while we were deciding where to dine one evening. The Fat Ham had recently opened and to some rave reviews, so we snagged a reservation and were super excited to go. 

First off the concept is great. Small plate style southern food, whom would have ever thought that up? Its amazing to watch a master at work. Seeing fine dining's take on classic southern fare is pretty fun. We started with a few cocktails which were pretty delicious; a blackberry mint julep for me and I cant remember what she ordered but I do remember it was even better than mine.

We decided to order a bunch of different things, starting with the Southern Hummus and fried green tomatoes. I really enjoyed the fried green tomatoes. They came out piping hot, with a nice creamy aioli, and an awesome exterior crunch. The peanut hummus was just ok. It came served in a really cool wood bowl, but the flavor just didn’t match up for me. It sounded way more interesting than it tasted. I loved the bread it came with, but the hummus didnt have much pop to it. If i didnt know it was made from peanuts, I never could have guessed.

Next up were the Shrimp & Grits and mac and cheese. The shrimp and grits fell flat for me. Again the plating was really beautiful, with head on shrimp and fluffy pile of grits, but the taste just wasn’t there. The grits were good, but the shrimp lacked seasoning. I think the shrimp definitely needed more flavor to not be lost in the richness of the grits. I thought the Mac and cheese was awesome. The barbeque potato chip crust on top was super original and it worked really well. The textural contrast of the crunch on top to the ooey, gooey mac and cheese was phenomenal.

We couldn’t go to the Fat Ham and not try the vaunted hot chicken. We also decided to order the collard greens and it was a very good decision on our part. Booyah that chicken is freaking tasty. It was spicy, but not overly so, with just enough to leave the edges of my mouth tingling with joy. The juicy, tender chicken came with a hell of a crunch. The white bread and ranch really brought it up another level though. The ranch was incredible. Clearly homemade ranch is the way to go. I had no idea that collard greens could taste so good. It was my first time having them and all I have to say is wow. The flavor of the cooked down greens and the nice chunks of ham hocks dispersed throughout were an awesome combination.

It was dessert time and although they didnt have espresso which normally makes me mad, their coffee is delicious. Our server told us how good it was and he was right. The cookie skillet is simply banging. Only thing I wish is that the scoop of ice cream on top was a touch bigger. It was hard to spread it out enough to get some with every bite. The cookie is incredibly rich and decadent. I loved the banana pudding too. It was a really fun take on it. It came with a crispy nilla waferesque cookie and creamy banana pudding. Homerun. 

Four pints for the Fat Ham. I really loved our meal here. I went to college in the South, so this place made me very nostalgic for that time of my life. Most of the dishes were outstanding, but there are a few that need some little tweaks in my opinion. It is always nice to see Ben Fileccia taking care of people too. Whether at Sbraga or the Fat Ham, the man knows his stuff! We can’t wait to be back. Give it a try because it’s an amazing place! Cheers!