Chef Sean Brock Reveals the 5 Fats That Flavor the Essential Fried Chicken at Darling Restaurant, Why He’s Obsessed With Vinyl and His Scary Dolly Parton Story

Sean Brock’s latest venture in West Hollywood, Darling, is a culinary and auditory experience where his passion for vintage Southern vinyl rivals his dedication to reviving heirloom ingredients. The one-year-old restaurant features a prominent listening bar at its center, with plywood shelves stocked with rare records from artists like Dolly Parton and Merle Haggard, occasionally punctuated by a Madonna track. This space reflects Brock’s evolving curiosity, as he explains, moving from understanding how food lands on a plate to exploring why music sounds the way it does in a specific place. The James Beard Award-winning chef, known for his appearances on Netflix’s “Chef’s Table” and PBS’ “Mind of a Chef,” gained fame for resurrecting heritage varieties of corn, rice, and pork at his Charleston restaurant Husk. Now splitting his time between Los Angeles and Nashville—where he operates Sho Pizza Bar and several Joyland locations—Brock has responded to popular demand by adding soulful dishes to Darling’s menu. “You can’t come out here and not cook grits,” he says, describing the experience as a rebirth with a new audience eager to taste his cornbread, Kentucky country ham, and fish and grits.

Brock’s listening bar has become a magnet for music-loving celebrities, with Bill Murray spinning records one night and Mumford and Sons or Dan Auerbach of the Black Keys stopping by to test the premium sound system. This concept was inspired by his travels to Japan, where he discovered listening bars and dreamed of weaving his love for music into the restaurant experience. “The way that I gather and seek old varieties of corn or rice, I’m doing the same thing with old seven-inch 45-rpm records from the South,” he says. Growing up in bluegrass country near the Carter family fold, Brock was surrounded by fiddle and mandolin players, and bringing that music to Los Angeles feels natural to him. His obsessive quest for original vinyl pressings mirrors the intense focus that made him a pioneer in sourcing flavorful country ham and heirloom corn. For context, the Carter family, a legendary American musical group, helped popularize country music in the early 20th century, and their influence is deeply rooted in Brock’s upbringing. On a recent night at Darling, he played Dolly Parton’s entire catalog from her 1967 debut to 1987, describing it as a study of country music’s evolution over two decades, from guitar tones to the introduction of synthesizers and drum machines.

Brock’s musical fixations include Waylon Jennings, Merle Haggard, and anything featuring a pedal steel guitar. He owns thousands of rare honky-tonk 45s and a collection dedicated solely to pedal steel, alongside soul, funk, and jazz from the 1960s and 1970s South. However, his deep love for Dolly Parton’s music nearly led to a mishap earlier in his career. During his experimental phase inspired by Ferran Adrià’s liquid nitrogen techniques, Brock created a dessert with milk sorbet and flash-frozen fruit. A server left a metal spoon in the dish touching the liquid nitrogen, which could have frozen Parton’s fingers or mouth if she had touched it. Brock rushed from the kitchen and grabbed the dish just in time, recalling the incident with horror: “That would have frozen her mouth together, and who knows what would have happened.” This anecdote highlights Brock’s adventurous spirit, which now manifests in Darling’s menu offerings like the limited-edition dry-aged steak burger, BBQ pork chops, and smoky succotash.

Despite these choices, Brock believes the cornbread tells the best story. “Cornbread made by a die-hard southerner…made by somebody who’s obsessed with what is the perfect skillet of cornbread,” he says. He pairs the cast-iron plate of crusty bread with French butter and Ojai pixie tangerine jam, adding a California twist. Another standout is the five-fat fried chicken, cooked in a mixture of smoked butter, chicken fat, country ham, smoked bacon, and lard, served with house hot sauce. “When you go to somebody’s house and you see a coffee can on the back of the stove full of drippings, that started to really inspire me,” Brock explains. His menu highlights the best California produce, from housemade pickles with fried chicken to country ham with melon and sorrel, layered with Southern traditions. Having completed a full year of exploring local farmers’ markets, Brock now has a deeper understanding of the region’s offerings. “The stories of Southern food run so deep,” he says. “There’s so much to share with L.A. I just get giddy about it every time I think about it.” Darling restaurant is located at 631 N. Robertson in West Hollywood.