South Korea's fried chicken chain has finally spread its wings (literally, in this case) to Malaysia.
K-pop meets K-poultry: Some folks have nicknamed this 'Super Junior Chicken' amid expectations that the Korean boy band, who double as poster boys for KyoChon, will personally meet & greet ecstatic fans next month at this 1 Utama restaurant's official launch.
Naturally, it's the meat, not the music, that matters for this entry: KyoChon delivers fresh fowl crisply double-fried in canola oil on order.
Our best bet: Honey-coated chicken, well-measured in sweetness, satisfying in succulence, convincing in crunch. RM9.90 before taxes for a three-piece mix of drumstick, drumette & wing.
KyoChon's 'original recipe' version proves a little less distinctive than expected, but it's still enjoyably slicked up in soy-garlic glaze & notably not as greasy or salty as most fried chicken.
The hottest wings here? The spicy ones smothered in a sauce made of Korean red chili peppers.
Fiery fare, perhaps best eaten with KyoChon's firm-grained buttered rice as an accompaniment.
Bone-free strips of chicken breast, dubbed 'sal sal,' blanketed in a unique rice-flaked batter, with jalapeno dipping sauce. More moist than flavorsome, for better or worse. RM10.90 for five pieces.
Side dishes include a simple salad with blueberry sauce, somewhat overpriced for RM16 ...
... & steaming-hot chicken soup with rice cakes, clocking in at a more reasonable RM6.90.
Main courses comprise the likes of dak galbi-style chicken with kimchi fried rice & egg.
Roasted barley or corn tea make up the beverage menu (no booze, boo!). Also worth adding: service is friendly & fairly fast; all in all, a solid entry to this mall (& more malls soon, we hope).
KyoChon 1991 (near Cold Storage)
Lot 311, Lower Ground, 1 Utama, Bandar Utama, Petaling Jaya
The Oct.-Dec. inaugural edition of Eat Drink KL: 100 Favorites is now available in an eBook for free, convenient reading on computers, tablets & smartphones. It comprises reviews & information for 100 pretty nice eateries that span various locations, cuisines & budgets. Please click here: http://eatdrinkkl.publ.com/Eat-Drink-KL-100-Favorites-Oct-Dec-2013 (This link expires Dec. 31, 2013; see blog entries after that date for new link).
Hmmm.... no thank you. I'd go for our local Belacan Fried Chicken! Cheap and good :p
ReplyDeleteKen: heheh, the great thing is that there's space in the world for fans of Korean fried chicken as well as fans of belacan fried chicken! :D
DeleteWooo I want to try this! But 1-U a bit far leh for us. Maybe next time ask you to tapao! hehehe.
ReplyDeleteCK: heheh, or maybe they'll open a branch at mid valley someday! ya, the chicken's not bad :D
DeleteWe have a Korean fried chicken franchise here too... Ah well! Fried chicken is...fried chicken.
ReplyDeleteSuituapui: maybe someday KyoChon will open in your town too! :D
DeleteThe honey coated chicken looks pretty good, Sean!
ReplyDeleteLinda: i enjoyed it more than i thought i would! :D
Deletenice korea name, would love to try it~ hehe
ReplyDeleteMr Lonely: hope you get the chance very soon! :D
DeleteSaw this at this year's ChurpOut (preview also lah); can't bring myself to pay RM10 for broken down wings then. That, and I'm not that into Korean culture... does Margaret Cho count? LOL. That's about all I know and didn't mind about Koreans.
ReplyDeleteThink I'll wait to see if I can collect ONECARD points from here or not too... haha
Lifeasacynice: heheh, i'm not even K-pop or much korean stuff either, admittedly ... the language barrier keeps me resistant, and some of the cultural gaps too ... ooo, yeah, maybe try two pieces of the honey chicken wings, and if you still feel they're not worth the price, then skip 'em for life, heheh :D
DeleteHave to say that fried chicken does not interest me in the least. I bet this outlet is a whole let better than KFC though. ;-)
ReplyDeleteThe yum list: heheh I must admit to actually being a KFC fan. Every so often, the KFC craving strikes and I cannot resist :D
DeleteThe honey chicken looked yummy!! Although there's no price for guessing which chicken I'd actually pick (hint: spicy spicy) hehe!
ReplyDeleteIamthewitch: heh, I have a low tolerance for spice, so I'll stick to the sweeter chicken! :D
DeleteOhh....mouth watering Korean Fried Chicken! Ya..me too will pick spicy one.hehe....
ReplyDeleteMelissa: ya, the variety of chicken is nice, in the sense that there's a different type for every taste bud. Savory, sweet or spicy =)
DeleteThe chicken looks so mouth watering, marinated chicken is always my fav dish ^^
ReplyDeleteYa, I think chicken fans will probably enjoy checking this place out! :D
DeleteI'm sure lots of teenage K-Pop fans would flock here!
ReplyDeleteBaby Sumo: heheh, i miss being a teenager sometimes! :D
DeleteGood lord all the Super Junior fans will be flocking this place. LOL
ReplyDeleteNate: heheh, the company made a wise choice by getting the band's endorsement, i guess =)
DeleteChicken looks fairly juicy! Good to wash down the fried stuff with lots of roasted barley tea. Some soju will be better though:P
ReplyDeleteMissy: yeah, decent juice factor =) heheh, I agree with u about soju! :D
DeleteThis is just at my door step so I may pop by one of these days, just to see what the hype is all about! ;-)
ReplyDeletePureglutton: hope u enjoy the Korean fried chicken and it exceeds expectations for u
DeleteOh they are actually quite good!
ReplyDeleteThe chicken (or rather the ones I had in Seoul) was moist, succulent and smooth! Yummy!
Rebecca: yay, crossing fingers that the malaysian offshoot will be able to maintain the korean original's consistency and quality, ya! :D
DeleteHi Sean,
ReplyDeleteTried out KyoChon before watching 47 Ronin yesterday :) Your review was spot on, the fried chicken was OK but we just loved their bone-free strips of 'sal sal,' dipped in honey mustard sauce. That was really good! A better place for Korean fried chicken would be Dubu Dubu SEOUL, also at 1Utama.
Also Sean, you're not alone with KFC cravings once in a while. We get that too ;)
Jimmy: glad you discovered a dish that you enjoyed at kyochon (and hope you enjoyed the movie too, I haven't watched it yet!). I'll be sure to order the fried chicken if I'm ever at Dubu Dubu (somehow I never made it there). And yeah, KFC has managed to hook all of us for life, it seems! =)
DeleteJuz want to know is the chicken halal:-)
ReplyDeleteTira: i'm not sure if they have an official halal certification, but they've had many muslim customers eat at their 1 utama outlet =)
DeleteHi, is this halal?
ReplyDeleteAngie: no pork is served here, and they welcome muslim customers.
Delete