374846 Sun Feb 25 15:12:11 -0800 2007 13 1 San Francisco Bay Area 0 2328350 There has been some talk on the boards all over the country about Korean fried hhicken in response to a New York Times article about Korean-style fried chicken. Times article: http://select.nytimes.com/search/restricted/article?res=F50F10F7385B0C748CDDAB0894DF404482 Recent Merc review of 99 Chicken: http://www.mercurynews.com/mld/mercurynews/entertainment/dining/16645706.htm The articles above are a great primer for understanding what this chicken is all about, and I would say that the article perfectly describes the experience a friend and I had at 99 Chicken in Santa Clara on El Camino Real (Bowers is the cross street, it is in the same complex as Sui Tofu and Sushi-O-Sushi). Long story short, chicken is fried to order (takes about 15-20 minutes) and the pieces are exclusively drumsticks and wings. The Times article describes how these pieces cook perfectly so the fat is entirely rendered and the meat very juicy. Korean fried chicken is served relatively unseasoned in the plain style, but then there are sauced varieties which are more similar to american Buffalo wings dressed with a variety of sauces. 99 Chicken is run by a Korean family, at minimum a husband and wife and a son who were working when we went. They are incredibly friendly and desirous that people experience this style of chicken. The menu consists of chicken, plain or with various sauces, fish and chips and some other Korean dishes, which were not described really, but we weren't there for those anyway. The restaurant isn't a great atmosphere, but the family feel makes up for it in that even though the English of the staff is quite limited\, they try quite hard and seem genuinely happy to be of help. The place has not been open that long, I think, and the walls are filling up with pictures of happy customers taken by the owner. He took our picture as well, and we are excited to go back and see it on the wall. Now for the chicken- it was exactly as described in the articles/review. We happily discovered a combination option for trying all the styles of chicken with the different sauces- this option is listed on the menu as something like ("Modeum chicken- 3 plain, 3 spicy, 2 sauce, 2 sweet"). We found out what those descriptions mean: "3 pieces plain": fried chicken, relatively unseasoned. However, each table was furnished with a shaker of seasoning mix that seemed like salt and pepper, but actually tasted like salt/pepper/msg. No bother for us, a light sprinkling of this mix on the plain chicken really accented the chicken, the main attributes of which were crispiness and juiciness. The peppery/savory seasoning was perfect. "3 spicy"- 3 pieces liberally slathered in a spicy, savory, touch of sweetness, garlicky, red colored sauce. The way the chicken is sauced directly before serving means that there is still some crispness to the skin even though the chicken is covered by the sauce. This form of chicken is most similar to eating buffalo wings with a slightly different sauce and quite similar to a number of wing places I have eaten that offer many types of sauce. The sauce is advertised as homemade and was a nice touch, but be warned this chicken is quite saucy, so be prepared to be licking fingers. "2 sauce"- Same sauce as above but not spicy, still quite good, but I would skip this and get either more spicy or more plain. "2 sweet"- the sweet sauce is more of a syrup or a glaze- a clear, sticky glaze lightly covering the plain fried chicken. I personally love honey on american style fried chicken, and this was close to that, although the glaze had no honey in it. For the "sweet" chicken to really shine, it needs either seasoning in the coating or some at-the-table sprinkling of the magic mix (and happily that was provided). The chicken is also served with some pickled daikon radish that is sweet/tart and totally addictive. The Times article described that this food is kind of bar/drinking food in Korea and the savory/saucy chicken and pickled radish would be perfect for having with beer (but I don't like beer). 99 chicken has the Korean beer OG on tap as well as OG, Hite and Coors Light in cans or bottles. They might also have some Soju. The owner also brought some slightly sweetened bagged Korean popcorn over and this was a great snack too. Especially with some salt/pepper/Msg sprinkled on it. I really love the place because I felt like I was getting something a little different and I was also supporting a really enthusiastic business owner trying to add something to the community. So we'll be back for sure. Sun Feb 25 15:12:11 -0800 2007 40489 P. Punko 1 2328841 Super post! Your step-by-step guide is going to help some folks try this who wouldn't otherwise. P.S. Any ideas why it's called 99 Chicken? Sun Feb 25 18:54:32 -0800 2007 2328350 10039 Melanie Wong 2 2328930 I would have asked, but I had such a hard time understanding the proprietor, that it would have been fruitless. Just to add some more stuff, they fry in cottonseed oil and the owner takes pride in doing all the frying himself- I think he babies each piece! This place should definitely popular with chicken wing lovers, even if some southern fried chicken junkies miss some of either the buttermilk crunch of that variety or the strong/savory flavor of the Maryland/Original Recipe variety. I forgot to add that it is just down the street from Real Ice Cream and that was an amazing top to the evening- I had never been there and the Cardamom was out of this world. Sun Feb 25 19:37:01 -0800 2007 2328841 40489 P. Punko 3 2328951 Oh yes, Real Ice Cream/Olety's Chaat is ideally situated for putting out the fires from flaming hot Indian or fiery Korean dinners nearby. Saffron ice cream to the rescue! Sun Feb 25 19:46:14 -0800 2007 2328930 10039 Melanie Wong 3 2328955 Are you sure the beer on tap and bottle wasn't OB, not OG? OB is probably the most popular Korean brand of beer (neck and neck with Hite). I've never had or heard of OG beer (and figure some enterprising soul would have marketed such a beer in the US by now). Sun Feb 25 19:48:59 -0800 2007 2328930 11011 Eugene Park 4 2329046 Oh yeah, will fix- for sure it was OB! I forgot to add the picture of the chicken- http://farm1.static.flickr.com/163/403028946_30f5b9d5b6.jpg Sun Feb 25 20:57:49 -0800 2007 2328955 40489 P. Punko 1 2331149 Tried it and was frustrated by the poor service. The plain friedchicken was just OK, somewhat flavorless. I really wonder what a breat or thigh would taste like and wonder why it is limited to wings and legs, truly the bird's worst parts. The kimchee was truly great and the fried rice different enough to warrent mention. Mon Feb 26 13:39:49 -0800 2007 2328350 10323 Ken Hoffman 2 2331244 Ken, the Times article suggests that they don't use the larger pieces because the fat doesn't get rendered completely before the meat dries out (at least on the large breasts), but also probably because it is bar food, they use the other parts, and since thighs are the prized portion for other things, they don't use them here. I think the best way to view it in terms of our usual view of fried chicken is to think of them as glorified buffalo wings. The key for the flavor of the plain chicken is adding the seasoning shake, as the initial seasoning is almost nothing. I guess there are other versions such as "fire chicken" that get marinated and seasoned before frying, but someone mentioned that that was off the menu because it is a time consuming process and they have been busier since the Merc review. I kind of got the feel that this really is a family operation and not necessarily a totally pro deal on service. We decided to view it as quaint, but I can see your view. Mon Feb 26 14:00:46 -0800 2007 2331149 40489 P. Punko 1 2331382 Do they have flavored soju? I really miss the addictive chicken and daikon at Koko's (gone now) on Telegraph, although the chicken there was rotisserie. We used to do just that, drink "yogurt" soju & share a whole chicken back in my college days. They even had the popcorn as well. Mon Feb 26 14:35:19 -0800 2007 2328350 11940 DezzerSF 2 2331945 I'm not sure, but I don't think so. Mon Feb 26 16:58:01 -0800 2007 2331382 40489 P. Punko 3 2418416 They had cucumber flavored soju and one other, but I forget now. I thought the plain chicken was a bit bland as Ken mentioned. I really think the chicken would benefit from adding some seasoning to the breading. The seasoning shake at the table did help but I found it bothersome to season it while eating. My favorite version was the "spicy", the sauce had good flavor and a nice heat to it. The others, "sauce" and "sweet", I did not care for at all. They have a free self serve salad bar with greens, plain broccoli, corn, coleslaw, jalapenos, rice, & pickled daikon cubes. The pickled daikon was more sweet than tart, but it still made the meal for me. It's what defines a Korean fried chicken meal, I would say. Combo 10-piece chicken plate with a small OB was $22 with tip, plenty enough for 2. Still, I wouldn't rush back and I have to say I prefer Korean rotisserie chicken over fried. Sat Mar 24 23:23:33 -0700 2007 2331945 11940 DezzerSF 4 2418479 Dezzer- it just seems like the tradition is to have minimal seasoning in the coating. I really think the key for the "sweet" even more than plain is to give it a shake of seasoning. Where do you think has good Korean rotisserie chicken? Sun Mar 25 01:49:22 -0700 2007 2418416 40489 P. Punko 5 2419153 Ever since Koko's closed, I have yet to find a similar place that does the whole chicken + daikon + flavored soju thing well, or at all really. 99 Chicken does come close though. Like you, I do appreciate their effort in recreating this Korean tradition. Sun Mar 25 11:26:46 -0700 2007 2418479 11940 DezzerSF 1 2339115 Just had 99 Chicken for lunch with a buddy.. I have to say -- it's pretty darn good! We ordered the combo plate so we could sample all the different flavors and it was enough for the two of us. All the side dishes (salad, vegetables, rice) were included as well. Overall nice experience! Will be back soon! BTW, they cook their chicken in cottonseed oil, which they claim to be 'healthy!' I'm not sure I believe this, but it was not oily at all! We actually had a picture taken of us to put up on the wall! Wed Feb 28 15:33:09 -0800 2007 2328350 78060 jrmstr33