Dan Kardos Opens Oar & Oak Spinoff with Takeout Only “Birdhouse”

Dan Kardos has been busy rolling with the punches this pandemic continues to dish out. Like many restaurant owners, Kardos has had to pivot, adapt, and push forward while navigating the industry’s current climate.

While running Oar & Oak as a takeout model, then to its dine-in reopening with restrictions, he spent most of his summer slinging fried chicken sandwiches, lobster rolls, and burgers on his restaurant’s namesake food truck at Knapp’s Landing, Our Lady Of Peace Church, and Tribus Beer Co.

Kardos didn’t stop there. In late May, he purchased a trailer to sell homemade soft serve cones, creative sundaes, and adults-only dairy desserts complete with nips of booze.

Easy ordering, easy pickup. And a couple FREE classic video games if you have to wait a few minutes.

And now, Kardos has expanded his footprint in town with Oar & Oak Birdhouse, a grab and go Oar & Oak offshoot where fried chicken rules the roost.

Global pandemic aside, Kardos said he’s had the idea for this for a while to fill a need in Stratford for quality fast casual food.

“I never figured fried chicken is what people would associate me with but it’s whatever!” Kardos says. Birdhouse has more in terms of a vegan burger, fries, veggie sides, and a comforting hunk of warm cornbread with bacon jam.

“We wanted this place for a year because it’s more centralized (on Main Street),” he says. “Even though Oar & Oak is in town, people see it as being far away, and this gives them a chance to try us out. And it allows me to focus on creating more refined food there, more craveable takeout stuff here.”

And some of that craveable stuff doesn’t stop at just one chicken sandwich. There are several. And a McChicken, these are clearly not.

The comfort begins with The Classic, the sandwich born at the Oar & Oak flagship, with American cheese, bacon, bread & butter pickles, jalapeños, and spicy ranch.

Surf ‘n’ turf reimagined! The “Dr. Claw” in all its glory. Kardos mentioned that he experimented with different chicken sandwiches on the food truck all year at places like Knapp’s Landing and Tribus Beer Co.

From there, the menu jumps off with an array of fried chicken creations with pop culture names. The “Dr. Claw” is piled high with chunks of fresh lobster meat tossed in spicy mayo, dill pickles, and melted pepper Jack. The “Eddie Vedder” is loaded with sweet maple bacon jam, tangy BBQ sauce, B&B pickles, and ranch.

The resurrection of the Cobra Kai inspired this namesake chicken sandwich with sweet teriyaki, yuzu-chili mayo, and kimchi pickles.

The rest of Birdhouse’s offerings include a buttery Connecticut style lobster roll, a juicy chorizo with that same lobster mayo, wings in three flavors, fried chicken or crispy fish tacos, and a double bacon cheeseburger with onion jam and black pepper mayo.

A spicy, snappy, natural casing chorizo loaded with lobster mayo on a butter griddled bun. Yes, please.

Because Birdhouse is takeout-based, your best bet is to order online or give them a call.

“In lieu of what’s going on day-to-day during the pandemic, order ahead, come pick it up, you don’t have to touch anything, you barely have to talk to us if you don’t want to,” Kardos says.

By the time you read this, Birdhouse will be live on third party delivery apps with a pretty far reach, so if you’re not specifically in Stratford, there’s hope if you’re close enough.

Follow Oar & Oak Birdhouse on Instagram for a full menu, specials, and updates.

2377 Main Street; Stratford
203.502.1101; http://oarandoakbirdhouse.com/