I can distinctly remember stumbling into the Kyochon in Koreatown in 2008, a little drunk and very hungry. I was with friends from graduate school and we’d just finished losing our voices at a nearby karaoke lounge.
When I placed an order for 35 wings, our group of six guffawed loudly. Who was going to finish all that chicken?
It was the first time I’d dined at a restaurant specializing in Korean chicken wings. We were instantly addicted to the delicate, ultra-crunchy coating and the sweet and salty soy glaze. We finished the 35 chicken wings with speed and fervor. Then we ordered 16 more.
It was around this time that the fried chicken craze in Koreatown started. The boom was partially fueled by chains like the new Kyochon, which had arrived a year prior from Gumi, Korea. I like to think that depictions of chimeak (the specific pairing of fried chicken and beer) in Korean TV shows, like the soap opera “My Love From the Star,” also had something to do with the collective obsession. The beautiful protagonist in the series has an affinity for chimeak and an alien love interest from another planet.
Now, nearly every shopping center in the area has at least one business devoted to fried chicken and a handful of others serving fried chicken in one form or another. Here’s a short list of favorites.
