While attending Howard University as an anthropology major, Chad Williams took a job in an Afro-Carribean café to support himself. After tasting a dish made by the chef–a medium rare loin of lamb over a mango puree–Williams says a lightbulb went off. He immediately left school in pursuit of a culinary career.Traveling the country, and the world, Williams cooked with some of the best chefs in the top kitchens including Saison, Manresa, Mugaritz,and Eleven Madison Park. He came home to Philadelphia to cook with ChefDouglas Rodriguez at Alma de Cuba.In 2014, Chad’s partner Hanna came home and told him a beloved 42-year-old restaurant was for sale in theRittenhouse neighborhood of the city. Sheconvinced him they should buy it, and they did. After two years of renovations and remodeling, they kept the name and Friday Saturday Sunday opened on December 8, 2016. Two months before opening, the couple was married in the kitchen by their late friend and contractor.The restaurant quickly won over loyal guests of the former restaurant and attracted a new crowd to the corner of 21st and Rittenhouse Square Street as well. Lauded by critics, Friday Saturday Sunday quickly rose to the top tier of restaurants in Philadelphia. In 2020, the pandemic cut things short, and the Williamses shut the restaurant down. During the pause, they took care of employees best they could, providing food and other provisions. They lent their kitchen to team members and friends for their cooking side projects and pop-ups. As the world slowly restituted, they chose to open again and welcomed back many original staff and ecstatic guests. Upon opening, Williams and his kitchen crew decided to serve a tasting menu, something they’d always toyed with, but never acted on. They felt the time was right. It was a palpable departure and extremely well-received.The eight-course menu is playfully intriguing with incredible depth. For inspiration, the team draws from any dish or cuisine that has left a mark and they work hard to honor those flavors, taking the essence of a classic dish–the special piece that allowed it to live so long–and taking it further.Williams is grateful to experience and be inspired by so many different cuisines so close to home, right herein Philadelphia. His food is straight-forward yet immersive; unadorned yet intricate. His sauces and dish components are toiled over for days and weeks to build depth and character. Flavors are strong, powerful, and all roads lead back to the classics. To root himself, he is always learning, whether taking four-day intensive cooking classes or reading cookbooks late into the night.His restaurant Friday Saturday Sunday is his first solo project, along with his wife Hanna who runs front of house and is largely responsible for the design and vibe. In 2022, the couple received the final “Four Bell” review from Philadelphia Inquirer’sCraig Laban, something they long-strived to achieve. Even more humbling, they garnered a nomination for “Outstanding Restaurant” from the James Beard Foundation and were named finalists in the spring of 2023.
