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The Big Apple comes stacked with fried chicken, blue cheese, apple slaw and apple barbecue sauce. (Photo by: Stephanie Breijo)
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(Photo by: Stephanie Breijo)
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From left: Fancy Biscuit partners Nicole Jessee, Bryon Jessee, William Thompson, Jesse Jarvis and Josh Whaley (Photo by: Stephanie Breijo)
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The Freshy-Fresh, complete with buttermilk biscuit, collard greens, tomatoes, cheese and a poached egg (Photo by: Stephanie Breijo)
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(Photo by: Stephanie Breijo)
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Tomato pie, slathered with cheese, served with salad and fresh fruit. (Photo by: Stephanie Breijo)
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(Photo by: Stephanie Breijo)
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The Fancy Biscuit's owners and fans alike glued roughly $600 of pennies to this bench over the course of two days. (Photo by: Stephanie Breijo)
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Guests can find additional seating in Shyndigz 2go's adjoining dining area. (Photo by: Stephanie Breijo)
Yesterday morning, Nicole Jessee set her alarm for 4:49 a.m.
"It's all about those extra minutes," she says with a laugh. Each one counts for the co-owner of The Fancy Biscuit who is, at least for now, the restaurant's sole biscuit roller. "We've always been accustomed to the later nights, so it's been a big switch."
As a former caterer and an owner of Shyndigz and Shyndigz 2go — the dessert concepts sitting adjacent to the new biscuit-centric spot at 1831 W. Cary St. — she's no stranger to time in the kitchen. But these early hours are altogether new for her, especially given her previous shifts, which often extended beyond midnight on weekends at Shyndigz. Fortunately, The Fancy Biscuit is a team effort. Jessee and her husband and business partner, Bryon Jessee, found partnerships in Shyndigz managers William Thompson, Jesse Jarvis, Josh Whaley and Britt Altizer, who all help bring piled-high buttermilk biscuits to the table.
In a city that seems to run on biscuits, those of the Fancy variety separate from the herd by coming stacked with piles of slaw, fried chicken and collards, and swimming in ladles of tasso ham gravy. They're colossal towers and so impressive, in fact, that when my Big Apple biscuit arrives at the table, a stranger leans over from the bar and asks if he can take a photo before I dig into it. Guests can deviate from the "Fork & Knife" section of the menu, where biscuits come decked out with fried chicken, goat cheese, pepper jelly and more, and build their own creations using toppings such as egg, sausage and Agriberry Farm jam. For now, the restaurant is only open for breakfast and lunch Wednesdays through Fridays, but as soon as next month, the spot will open on weekends and offer more brunch fare including mimosas and sake, and maybe even a Bloody Mary bar. And there's more than biscuits; tried-and-true recipes from the Jessees' catering days make appearances in the form of tomato pies and daily quiches, plus a few sauces here and there. You'll also find beer and a full espresso bar, and sides such as cheese grit tots, house-made pickles and pimento cheese. Within the next year, the team hopes to plant a garden in the green space next door so that The Fancy Biscuit and Shyndigz concepts can all feature fresh fruits and vegetables that are grown onsite.
The biscuit space sat vacant for years while the Jessees debated its use. Would it become a Shyndigz prep kitchen? What if they made their own ice cream there? They waffled, but a visit to Norfolk's Handsome Biscuit sealed the deal about two and a half years ago, with the restaurant's owners offering advice and business insight to the Jessees' new venture. The couple then decided to bring biscuits and Southern staples to the Fan, "and not just because we loved [Handsome Biscuit]," she says. "Bryon and I are both from Southwest Virginia, and I grew up on biscuits and gravy almost every day of my life, so I felt really tied to it."
A biscuit tour of roughly 20 restaurants — many of which were in North Carolina — helped inform Nicole Jessee's practices, which currently include rolling 12 biscuits in each batch and utilizing shortening. Last Friday, the second day in business, she estimates she made 150 biscuits, but knows she's ramping up to a production of 300 or 400 daily. As they've already seen from higher-than-expected turnout, there's a demand for more biscuits in the city, and there's room for everyone.
"We love Early Bird," she says. "We were customers there! They're just so different than what we are. We want to be like more of a brunch, lunch and breakfast spot, and ours are more fork-and-knife. And we'll roll more things out — soups and salads — even on a biscuit! I think that would be fun. We're just gettin' started."
The Fancy Biscuit is located at 1831 W. Cary St. and is open from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. Wednesday through Friday.
