By Sherman Chan,
Special to The Post

I decided to hit up one of better Fried Chicken offerings in the city at Chewie's Steam & Oyster Bar. Sean and I visited the Downtown branch located in the former space of Miku. I started with some Kusshi oysters with 4 different condiments: mignonette, cocktail sauce, spicy habanero and cucumber vinegar. They were of a decent size, fresh and buttery with a sweet brininess. I enjoyed the classic mignonette sauce the best. I loved fries as they were fresh-cut, crispy and well-seasoned.
Onto some appies, we shared the Pan-Seared Calamari that featured BC humboldt squid in a smoked paprika aioli. Texturally, the strips of squid were on point being tender with only a slight chew. As much as we enjoyed the smoky and creamy aioli, it was too salty. We tried the Dungeness Crab Cakes served atop a lemon aioli. With 3 monstrous cakes, the dish was quite filling. Fried until golden brown, the exterior was evenly crispy. Inside was a considerable amount of crab mixed with some celery and onions. They didn't skimp on the crab which was soft.
The star of the meal was the Southern Fried Chicken with buttermilk mashed potatoes, green beans and honey butter. This one sported a crunchy exterior and was drizzled in honey butter. The skin was fairly rendered while the meat was moist and tender. Our last dish was the twice-braised Beef Short Ribs with cheese grits and salsa verde. The shortrib was fork tender albeit a touch dry. It featured depth-of-flavour from the braising while the salsa verde cut into the heaviness. The grits were a bit chunky, but plenty cheesy. The two things that really stood out were the oysters and the fried chicken. Come for those and you won't be disappointed.

Sherman Chan is the #1 ranked food blogger on the Vancouver portal of Urbanspoon.com. Read more of his reviews at www.shermansfoodadventures.com.

CHEWIE’S STEAM & OYSTER BAR
1055 West Hastings Street, Vancouver, BC

The Good:
• Tasty oysters
• Good fried chicken
• Funky vibe

The Bad:
• Other items can be hit and miss