A batter slurry, for coating food pieces so as to enhance crispness hold time for extended periods in take-out food conditions, comprising, as a percentage of a dry batter used to make the slurry, 97.4 to 99.8% by weight of a batter base selected from a modified food starch batter base and a flour batter base. The batter base comprises a modified food starch of from 10 to 60% by weight of the batter. The modified food starch is acetylated, cross-linked or acetylated and cross-linked. The dry batter further comprises from 0.0 to 1.0% by weight of calcium lactate and from 0.1 to 1.6% by weight of de-oiled lecithin. Coated food pieces are par-fried and preferably frozen. The frozen pieces, once reconstituted, retain their crispness under adverse, e.g. high humidity, conditions such as those encountered under take-out conditions where such pieces are typically placed into a closed container for home delivery or take out.