Skin Care

Chicken skin flocks to local restaurants

Fried Chicken Skin | Aziza's Radish Salad

To put it mildly: Pork fat has had its 15 minutes. And while we know belly and lard have their place, now is chicken skin's time to shine. The potato chip of the poultry world, crisped bits have crept onto menus around town.

Aziza--which has never served pork--garnishes the spectacularly beautiful radish salad ($11) with golden-brown strips of chicken skin that lend richness and depth to the garden-fresh creation. (5800 Geary Blvd.; 415-752-2222 or aziza-sf.com)

At Nombe in the Mission, skewers of skin--the izakaya stalwart--are grilled and swabbed with a sticky-sweet teriyaki glaze ($4); the resulting nuggets are at once crispy and chewy. (2491 Mission St.; 415-681-7150 or myizakaya.com)

And at Coi, Daniel Patterson unites chicken skin with its progenitor, garnishing a slow-poached farm egg with the fowl equivalent of Bacos. (373 Broadway; 415-393-9000 or coirestaurant.com)

It may be a few months yet before we see the arrival of the CSLT sandwich. But let it be known that skin is most definitely in.

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