In Doylestown and Bryn Mawr, gluten-free fried chicken that delivers

Lovebird, 19 E. Oakland Ave., Doylestown, and 1086 E. Lancaster Ave., Bryn Mawr

From time immemorial, fried chicken has been judged primarily on its breading. (The Colonel touts his 11 herbs and spices and not the poultry encased within, right?)

We savor crunch, and that's what Lovebird in Doylestown, which Jules Thin Crust pizza founder John Ordway just brought to Bryn Mawr for his second chicken shop, delivers solidly.

But with a twist:

All of Lovebird's proteins — including buckets of chicken as well as the fried chicken breast, miso-garlic grilled chicken breast, and miso-garlic tofu built into sandwiches or topping the salads and bowls — are breaded in rice flour, and so are gluten-free. There's also gluten-free mac and cheese, which friends consider a godsend in feeding their sensitive kids. Same for the popcorn chicken, gluten-free down to the sauces.

The Lovebird sandwich shown ($8.50) benefits from a serious build: a layer of creamy, sweetish coleslaw, followed by pickles, the Amish-raised chicken, and a topper of Bibb lettuce, so you get all the flavors and textures.

The brioche bun and the croutons in the salads are the only items with gluten in the house.