
INSPIRED BY THE TRADITION OF BUTCHER SHOPS IN FRANCE: Whole chicken, deboned with sauces. Photo by Laurence Edelman.
By Laurence Edelman
Eighteen months before the city wide shut downs—pre-COVID—we launched Poulet Sans Tête, French for “chicken without a head,” in the kitchen at Left Bank. I and my partner Micheline Gaulin developed the brand of crispy and juicy rotisserie chicken, to make the most of the resources we had at Left Bank, by entering the emerging market of food delivery from online ordering, with something built specifically for it. Also as a food guy, I really wanted a rotisserie.
Poulet Sans Tête is inspired by the tradition of butcher shops in France setting rotisseries right out on the sidewalk. Passersby grab a thermal bag of juicy chicken and potatoes cooked in the drippings, on the way home.
We wanted to enhance New York’s culture of rotisserie chicken by getting our birds from small, family owned farms, and giving them a savory and crispy crust. Equally important to us are the sides we serve, including those famous potatoes, made our way, by smashing them open and sprinkling them with chopped parsley and sea salt. With vadouvan rubbed rotisserie cauliflower, mac and cheese, brussels sprouts, kale, homemade sauces and others, we offer a complete meal however you want it; with the chicken at the center, or vegetarian. To make things easier and in my opinion better, we will fully debone the chicken for you, getting every morsel from the carcass. One whole chicken with sides is good for five meals.
It’s hard to know what the near future holds for the restaurant business in NYC. But we predict a cultural renaissance at the tail end of this COVID-19 era; one that Poulet Sans Tête should be a part of. It has been instrumental in keeping our restaurant going during this pandemic. And it has shown itself as a brand worth expanding.
Laurence Edelman is the chef and co-owner of Left Bank and Poulet Sans Tête in the West Village.

EQUALLY IMPORTANT SIDES: Spiced rotisserie cauliflower. Photo by Laurence Edelman.
Laurence Edelman
Chef/Co-Owner
117 Perry st. at the corner of Greenwich St.
212-727-1170