Fried chicken warrants return
If you are looking for Korean style fried chicken, Kokio Chicken, with locations in Koreatown and downtown Los Angeles, offers quality chicken and sauces in the Diamond Hills Plaza Shopping Center.
With a clean and modern interior, the restaurant has a pub-like design and aesthetic with LED beer signs. There are enough tables for about 10 parties. The shop was relatively empty, as I entered during the early hours and it remained closed for in-store dining.
Kokio Chicken offers a large variety of chicken dishes including wings, drumsticks, tenders, bowls and whole chickens. To go with the chicken, there are 10 signature sauces to choose from, including the original sauce with no spice, the cajun sauce with mild spice and the hot crispy. The side dish options include fries, onion rings, cheese sticks, rice cakes, kimchi and radish. My order took about 15 minutes to be ready after ordering in-person. The food was packed neatly, with the sauces and napkins wrapped with a rubber band.
I ordered the combination plate of wings ($11), which consisted of five wings with a side of salad and French fries. The signature sauce for the wings that I chose was the honey bee flavor that had a mild spice flavor to it. A thick, sweet dressing was also paired with the salad to make the bland side more tasteful.
The honey bee wings impressed me as the sweet and spicy taste of the sauce was pungent with flavor, while not being overwhelmingly spicy. I was also pleased that the chicken was juicy, while being perfectly crisp to my liking. Every bite was a satisfying experience.
The side salad was nothing special. The sauce had an odd consistency and was too sweet for a salad. The side of French fries was also average, with no special seasoning that took it to the next level. Although there were a few soggy pieces, the fries were mostly crunchy on the outside and soft in the inside, which complemented the Honey Bee wings.
Along with the plate, I ordered a raspberry iced tea ($2.50). I was disappointed with the lack of beverage options as they only served soft drinks and alcoholic beverages.
For its fairly high-quality chicken, the price of the wings is reasonable. On the other hand, the beverage was overpriced since it was just a Brisk raspberry iced tea, which costs less than a dollar a can. Overall, Kokio Chicken lived up to my expectations with its flavorful food. I will most likely be returning to give other signature sauces a try.
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