Fraidoon Jamshed first fell in love with fried chicken while working at a fried chicken shop in New York City in the 1980s.

The Alamo resident went on to launch a grocery store — International Foods — in Concord, which has kept him busy for the past 35 years. But he still kept thinking about that crispy poultry.

So he began recipe-testing. “I tried maybe 1,000 different recipes,” he says.

After two years of perfecting his recipe — which is MSG-free and dye-free, he notes — he came up with the perfect all-natural, easy-on-the-stomach recipe. In addition, all of the meat is halal.

“For fried food, you want it as healthy as possible, because the frying doesn’t help,” he says.

The menu offers an array of $10 meals, including a chicken tender sandwich, chicken and waffle combo, crispy wings, a tender wrap or chicken nuggets, to name a few options.

True to its name, Chicken Thyme also has a signature thyme sauce, plus customizable levels of heat for each meal — classic, mild, hot and “blazin’.”

Details >> Open from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. daily at 1114 Meadow Lane, Concord; chickenthyme.net.Hatch chile season at Mollie Stone’s

Hatch chiles, the signature crop of Hatch, New Mexico, are ready for roasting.

Again this year, the family-owned Mollie Stone’s markets in the Bay Area are partnering with Southwestern farmers to roast these famous chiles for their customers, and they have several tons’ worth. Some folks take them home to use in recipes (they freeze well, the produce managers say); others scarf them down right there.

Customers may pick up roasted chiles on Wednesday or at weekend chile-roasting sessions, which run from 9:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. Upcoming dates for this 11th season are Saturday, Sept. 7, in Palo Alto.

Want to Hatch out without cooking? Mollie Stone’s cooks are making a huge array of dishes, all available at the store delis through Sept. 7. Among the dishes are Hatch chiles rellenos, enchiladas, quesadillas, cornbread, corn salad, stuffed potatoes and tri-tip sandwiches with roasted chiles. The meat departments of all stores are featuring housemade Hatch chile sausages and chile-stuffed chicken breasts.

Details, recipes, preorders >> www.molliestones.com

Jo’s Modern Thai plans an all-day brunch eatery

The team behind Jo’s Modern Thai in Oakland, which has garnered Michelin recognition, is planning to debut an all-day brunch spot called The Peach this month.

The restaurant will be located at 3257 Lakeshore Ave. a couple of blocks from Lake Merritt. It will serve classic American breakfast and lunch dishes with an Asian twist, designed by Jo’s chef Intu-on Kornnawong, who formerly cooked at San Francisco’s one-starred Michelin eatery, Kin Khao.

The Peach will have four dining areas each with its own unique decor, including an outdoor patio. Details about the menu are still to come.

And the Michelin Guide awarded Jo’s a Bib Gourmand, stating that the food has “bold, balanced flavors typical of Thai cuisine, but isn’t overly concerned with hewing to tradition.”

Boichik Bagels coming soon to Los Gatos

Boichik Bagels, hailed by the New York Times as some of the finest New York-style bagels in the nation, will soon be available in Los Gatos.

Eight months after expanding to the South Bay for the first time, founder Emily Winston is getting ready to open a shop on busy Los Gatos Boulevard.

A late September debut is forecast in the Village Square / Trader Joe’s shopping center. The shop will be located near the UPS Store and See’s Candies.

Details >> Most shops open daily at 6:30 or 7 a.m.; https://boichikbagels.com

Send restaurant news tips to Linda Zavoral at lzavoral@bayareanewsgroup.com, Kate Bradshaw at kbradshaw@bayareanewsgroup.com or John Metcalfe at jmetcalfe@bayareanewsgroup.com.