Tom Korean fried chicken is all the rage these days. There are so many Korean fried chicken options in Singapore that includes our absolute favourite Oven Fried Chicken (OFC) to Chiksoo, Bonchon as well as the Singaporean brand – 4Fingers. This time, we decided to try one of the favourites in the Korean Fried Chicken scene in Singapore – Chicken Up, as see if it lives up to its hype as one of the top Korean Fried Chicken outlets in Singapore.
About Chicken Up Buangkok
There are 2 Chicken Up outlets in Singapore. One in Tanjong Pagar and the other at Buangkok. This time, we visited the Buangkok Chicken Up outlet to get our fix on the fabled Korean fried chicken that they offer. However, there are a couple of things that you have to note about dining at Chicken Up’s branch in Buangkok. Firstly, it is not located within a shopping mall. This means that the restaurant is directly exposed to the elements and probably explains why the air-con does not really chill the restaurant, especially if you’re visiting during lunch hours on a hot and sunny day. Thankfully, we visited on a rather cloudy day and we had no issues with the A/C.
Secondly, there have been reviews about the service here. Don’t expect much is our advice. Look forward to great tasting Korean fried chicken and you’ll be fine. Next, it was time to browse through the menu…
There were actually so many items that we wanted to try on the menu! Originally, we wanted to try the Yangpa Bomb, which is the spicy golden crispy onion blossom served with yummy sauces. This would have helped us to compare Chicken Up’s offering against the blooming onion served at Tenderfresh. Unfortunately, it was not available during our visit. We also wanted to try the UFO Spicy Chicken Stew which looked sooooo goooood. But since there were only the two of us, it would be pretty much for the two of us to finish half a chicken, a ginseng soup plus a UFO. So we scrapped that idea. If you have tried the UFO spicy chicken stew, let us know what you think about it in our comments section below!
Chicken Up Buangkok Review: What we had
This time, we ordered the half fried chicken with Yangnyum sauce as well as the Mama’s Ginseng Chicken Soup…
First up, the Half Chicken in YangNyum sauce. Yangnyum is a popular sweet and spicy Korean sauce. The version we had was just mildly, very mildly spicy which was really quite well balanced between the sweetness and the spiciness. However, the star of the day, the Chicken Up fried chicken! With the half chicken, there were four main pieces, the drum, the thigh, the wings and a huge piece of breast meat. As for the taste of the fried chicken? We must say that they’re UPS Lah!
The skin was so crispy and enticing! Makes you want to just save it for the crunchy goodness at the end of the meal. Somehow, you don’t taste the oily fattiness but just the nice crisp part. Coupled with the Yangnyum sauce? Perfect. 😋 As for the meat, Chicken Up has fried it to perfection and was absolutely tender. What really surprised us was the breast meat, which is usually dry and powdery when not done well. Here at Chicken Up, even the breast meat was juicy! Absolutely loved the fried half chicken at Chicken Up. Yangnyum sauce would be our choice 😉
Next, Mama’s Ginseng Chicken Soup from Chicken Up. We’ve tried some really good Ginseng Soup in Korea before. Those were REALLY good with the flavours from the ginseng and sweet tasting soup. The rendition at Chicken Up is definitely not the best as compared with its Korean cousins (they’re a Fried Chicken joint afterall), but they’re still good. Here’s why…
On first look, the chicken didn’t look much. However, when you bite into the chicken wings and intend to spit out the 2 bones in it, then you realise that you actually don’t have to because the chicken has been boiled for such a long time that it sort of disintegrates in your mouth, bones and all! Needless to say, the meat was so tender as well. The soup, having absorbed all the goodness from the chicken, ginseng and dates was rather sweet. Within the chicken, were some rice that were boiled together. This gave the soup a natural “thickening” that added volume to the sweet taste. Nicely done Chicken Up!
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Although we only ordered two dishes at Chicken Up, we were sufficiently impressed to return again. Not for the service but for the good food that it offers. If you have tried Chicken Up’s offerings (especially the UFOs), let us know your thoughts in the comments section below. We’ll return and give your recommendation a try next time we visit! Enjoy awesome Korean fried chicken at Chicken Up (and Oven Fried Chicken)!
