Yardbird Southern Table & Bar
Fried Green Tomato BLT – Pork Belly, Greens, Tomato Jam, Pimento Cheese
Deviled Eggs with Redneck Caviar, Fresh Dill, Smoked Trout Roe
Mama’s Ham n’ Cheese Biscuits – Virginia Country Ham, Vermont Sharp Cheddar, House Pickles
Mama’s Brisket Biscuits – House Smoked Brisket, BBQ Sauce
Wedge Salad – House Cured Bacon, Avocado, Corn, Yogurt Dressing
Shrimp n’ Grits – Florida shrimp, crisp Virginia ham, Nora Mill Granary grits
Chicken n’ Watermelon n’ Waffles – Fried Chicken, Hot Sauce Honey, Spiced Watermelon, Cheddar Cheese Chow Chow Waffle, Bourbon Maple Syrup
Short Rib n’ Grits – 18oz Bone-In Short Rib, Nora Mill Granary Corn Grits, Charred Corn, Haricot Vert, Sweet Garlic Bordelaise
Buttermilk Biscuits – Honey Butter, Apple Butter
Charred Green Beans – Hickory Smoked Yogurt and Almond Vinaigrette
Heirloom Tomatoes – House Made Ricotta
Carrots – Brown Butter and Cumin
Maple Glazed Bacon Brioche Donuts – Bacon Bits, Butterscotch Sauce
Bacon-Butterscotch Cake with Bacon Frosting, Pecan Pie Filling, and Bourbon Bacon Ice Cream
Crunch n’ Munch Bread Pudding, Popcorn Ice Cream
Cornmeal Chess Pie – Sorghum Chantilly, Caramel Sauce, Caramel Pretzel, Popcorn
Deep Fried Oreos – Rice Crispy Doughnut Dough Fried Oreos, Oreo Ice Cream, Chocolate Sauce
Yardbird Banana Split – Caramel Popcorn Ice Cream, Vanilla Ice Cream, Banana Brulee, Banana Curd, Chocolate Sauce
Chocolate Chess Pie – Chocolate Chips, Orange Blossom Ice Cream, Citrus Marmalade, Chocolate Sauce
Hummingbird Cake – Cream Cheese Icing, Caramelized Pineapple, Banana Pecan Ice Cream
Strawberry Shortcake – Vanilla Cake, Strawberry Ice Cream, Vanilla Ice Cream, Sorgum Chantilly, Orange Strawberry Sauce
S’mores brownie – Charred Marshmallow, Graham Cracker Ice Cream, Hot Chocolate Sauce
At this point averaging a meal a month since Yardbird opened up, it was with five friends in town from Los Angeles plus a trio of locals that I sat down in the private room once again for brunch, and treated to a Chef’s tasting including several items from the upcoming menu update the results once again spoke to a passionate team utilizing the very best proteins and produce to turn out Southern staples amongst the country’s very best.
Having already detailed much about the scene, décor, along with service in past reviews, and undeniably a known entity to the staff even with Chef Melvin Johnson looking after us as Todd Harrington enjoyed some well deserved time off, the decision to defer entirely to the team came at the admittedly low cost of $50 per person and starting off with a few signature bites before a duo of biscuits arrived the menu’s first new bites were both quite excellent, the former featuring paper thin ham laced with aged cheddar and a housemade pickle while the later trended a touch sweet from the housemade sauce, the brisket itself epitomizing the effect of slow smoking on beef lightly rimmed in fat.
Attempting to graze lightly on a wedge salad that sees house-cured lardons mellowed by avocado, sweet corn, and tangy yogurt dressing, the follow-ups of Shrimp and Grits, Chicken and Waffles, plus Las Vegas’ best Shortribs would present a similar trio to the meal in March, and joined by three new sides plus eight more biscuits the seasonal influences were readily apparent, each bursting tomato nicely accented with light acid beneath house-made ricotta while smoked yogurt proved absolutely brilliant atop snappy green beans, the cumin scented carrots a favorite of most as light spices highlighted the natural sweetness of the produce, though bites were admittedly limited considering the promise of several desserts to come.
At this point convinced that Vivian Lee and her pastry team are the hardest working crew in all of the 702, it was to a thorough degustation of items old and new that the table was treated to end the day, and with three new items joining seven experienced prior the only real questions were where to start and how full one wanted to end up, the Chess Pie still absolutely dazzling while the Hummingbird Cake was a perfect update on the pineapple laced favorite, a shortcake riffing on an ice cream sandwich wowing the palates of many while the dark chocolate brownie topped in house-smoked marshmallows was entirely indulgent even before being gilded with molten hot chocolate.
Unable to Fairly Rate, though Five Stars Sounds Right: Unabashedly a fan of almost everything tasted at Yardbird to date, and excited to see what is to come when the new menu is finally hatched, there is little doubt that a ninth meal is just around the corner…and likely a tenth, eleventh, and twelfth after that.
RECOMMENDED: Mama’s Ham n’ Cheese Biscuits, Fried Green Tomato BLT, Chicken n’ Watermelon n’ Waffles, Short Rib n’ Grits, Carrots, Cornmeal Chess Pie, Hummingbird Cake, Strawberry Shortcake.
AVOID: If one were to nitpick, I guess the tomatoes may have benefitted from a bit of finishing salt while the brisket biscuits could have a touch less sweet to let natural smokiness shine.
TIP: As yet awaiting print, new lunch, brunch, dinner, and dessert menus are due any day.
