At Trattoria Carina, a chicken cutlet makes the Friday lunch salad satisfying

I often opt for a sensible salad for lunch during the week, at least when I’m not busy digging deeper into a hot meal for work. But as the weekend approaches, so, too, does my appetite. And I’ve found the best-of-both-worlds Friday solution: the chicken cutlet chopped salad at Trattoria Carina.

This charmingly little corner room near Fitler Square, long a destination for house-extruded pastas at dinner and brunch, began Friday lunch service around the new year. That has allowed chef de cuisine Beau Neidhardt and his crew the opportunity to explore their sandwich game (we had a juicy roast pork) as well as some bountiful salads. My favorite was the hearty chopped salad, which was Carina’s prime take on an antipasto, pairing ribbons of fennel-infused salami with green Tagliasca olives, marinated chickpeas, and the delicate bitter crunch of gorgeous local chicories (Castelfranco and tardive) from Urban Roots Farm in an oregano vinaigrette, all beneath a snow of shaved Pecorino.

But here’s one hungry luncher’s rule of life to abide by: When there’s an “add chicken cutlet” option, check that box. This is especially true at a quality-minded kitchen that uses good birds and makes them fresh. And Neidhardt has his cutlet craft down, marinating his pounded Bell & Evans breasts in garlicky buttermilk, then frying them to a seasoned panko crisp in a cast-iron pan. At $6 extra for the additional 8-ounce breast, it’s a substantial boost to the dish, with a little extra salad, too, to cover the plate-sized chicken. But it’s really the sensation of hot crust and juicy bird against the cool bright tang of the well-dressed salad that does it for me. It’s like a forkful of virtue and indulgence one bite, sensible, but also satisfying.

— Craig LaBan

Chopped salad, $14, with fresh chicken cutlet ($6 extra), Trattoria Carina, 2201 Spruce St., 215-732-5818; www.trattoriacarina.com