Joe and Alex Tripp ready to dish Korean fried chicken from their third Des Moines restaurant

What started as a response to the pandemic closing restaurants in Des Moines has turned into a full-fledged eatery serving Korean fried chicken six days a week for lunch and dinner.

Next year starts with a bang with Basic Bird from chef Joe Tripp, a five-time James Beard semifinalist for Best Chef Midwest, and his wife Alexandra. The couple operates Harbinger, the vegetable-forward small plates restaurant on Ingersoll Avenue, as well as Little Brother, the Windsor Heights restaurant that focuses on breakfast now.

The Tripps already played with the idea of opening a Korean fried chicken place before the pandemic closed down restaurants in March 2020. Before that, as they walked into the Iowa State Fair, they pondered how much Iowans loved fried chicken. The name Basic Bird followed.

“We were kind of already out of commission from the restaurant and it seemed like just a good way to keep people employed and try to keep things moving as everything was so chaotic back then,” Joe said.

What's on the menu at Basic Bird?

“The concept isn't much different than where it was for the last couple years,” Joe said from inside the fast-casual restaurant with counter service that takes over the former Rice Bowl space in Beaverdale. In April 2022, the Rice Bowl permanently closed after 47 years after its matriarch Mee Jane Lee died.

For nearly 18 months, Basic Bird replaced Harbinger during the pandemic. Diners could order in advance for takeout of dine inside the Ingersoll Avenue restaurant. Then Basic Bird became a Sundays-only menu up until about four months ago.

Korean fried chicken has a thin, crispy crust that can be sweet or spicy. Aside from that crispy Korean fried chicken — served with optional sauces such as sweet honey butter, spicy gochujang, or a combination of both — Joe said that he has a couple new dishes on his menu, such as bone-in chicken, a sandwich and two kinds of dumplings — boiled chicken and kimchi or crispy chicken and chives.

At Harbinger, everything was fried old school in a pan. Now Basic Bird has Henny Penny fryers for creating that crisp crust.

The Tripps expanded the menu with bites and bowls as well, bringing honey butter French fries that Joe predicted, “are gonna fly off the shelves” and bubbly cheese corn as well as instant ramen salad and a bap bowl with fresh veggies on top of Korean rice with a fried egg.

“We really are a fried chicken restaurant,” Joe said, although he does believe cauliflower prepared the same way will continue to be a big hit for the vegetarian crowd.

Diners start by ordering the number of pieces of boneless chicken, wings or cauliflower, then choosing a sauce or rub, and three sides, including options such as pickled daikon, cucumber kimchi, and soy garlic shishito peppers. Vegetarian-friendly dishes are marked on the menu.

More: How to spend the perfect day in Beaverdale with restaurants, bars and shopping

Look for a ‘poundable’ beer

Customers can order beer, soju, or sake, and the Tripps are working on their own beer with Lua Brewing in Sherman Hill since sourcing a Korean beer has been difficult.

“We spent a little time in Korea trying to get an idea of the big brands like Kloud and Hite,” Joe said. “We told Lua we wanted to kind of approach it with that same ‘poundable’ beer. I mean, Korean fried chicken and beer go hand in hand.”

For soda drinkers, Basic Bird offers Coke products, but also plans to have carbonated yogurts and banana milk, popular beverages in Korea.

More: Chef Joe Tripp’s Korean fried chicken restaurant finds a permanent home in Beaverdale

The interior is bright yellow and white

Alexandra did all the interior design, dividing the 40-seat restaurant into a bright yellow and stark white. At the front, a counter with stools gives diners a view outside, while another counter splits the restaurant in half. Look for a snake of yellow lights that turn to white at the front where the colors meet.

“Our main focus was takeout,” Joe said. “I mean, we obviously built a space where people will be comfortable to dine in. Yes. But I think the neighborhood needs that fast-casual.”

The mural is photo worthy

A jaunty mural from Des Moines-based artist and illustrator Nic Roth decorates the outer northern wall as well as a garage, and inside at the entrance and in the hallway to the bathrooms. Roth calls his bubbly cartoonish characters Lumpkins and has a book with the gang called “Coco Wants a Burger.”

“We knew right away. It was like love at first email sight,” Alex said as Roth painted in the entryway.

Roth was the first of about 100 artists who responded to the Tripps' call for artists.

Who is Joe Tripp?

Joe got his culinary start in Des Moines as the executive chef at Alba, the new American restaurant in the East Village, before he opened Harbinger in 2018 on Ingersoll Avenue. Both Alba and Harbinger are on the Des Moines Register's essential restaurant list that came out in September 2022. He opened Little Brother with Alex Tripp with breakfast forward favorites on the menu in early 2022. Tripp earned an astounding five semifinalist nods from the James Beard Foundation for Best Chef Midwest — two for his work at Alba in 2016 and 2017 and three for Harbinger in 2018, 2019 and 2020.

More: A comprehensive guide to finding James Beard Foundation-nominated chefs, restaurants in Iowa

When does Basic Bird open?

The Tripps plan to open in December for limited service, then completely debuting around Jan. 3, 2024. The restaurant plans to be open Tuesday through Sunday from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m.

Where is Basic Bird?

Location: 2607 Beaver Ave., Des Moines

Contact: basicbird.com

Hours: Open Tuesday through Sunday from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. starting in late December.

Susan Stapleton is the entertainment editor and dining reporter at The Des Moines Register. Follow her on Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram, or drop her a line at [email protected].

This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: Basic Bird opens in December with Korean fried chicken in Des Moines