“Chicken like you’ve never had before!”

Manhattan Sojourn

Eats: Kyochon Chicken, 319 5th Avenue, New York, NY

That is the tagline of Kyochon Chicken, a restaurant that serves Korean fried chicken (available in wings and drumsticks only) known for its secret signature sauces of soy garlic and hot & sweet created by its founder, Mr Won-Kang Kwon.

The restaurant I visited in Manhattan boasted a very hip interior with the blinding red as its dominant theme color even on its restrooms. The interior design has touches of cool Japanese contemporary design and 70s retro.

Manhattan Branch

Even the design of the condiment dispensers are impressive.

The red toilet.

Signature Drumsticks of soy garlic and hot & sweet sauces.

Signature Wings of soy garlic and hot & sweet sauces.

A side dish of Brocoli Salad makes a perfect combination for the Signature Wings.

The Signature Wings with soy garlic sauce were really crunchy to the bite but tender and juicy in taste. Their claim to fame is that they only use young chickens and never frozen. I can imagine how difficult it is to maintain the quality chain from their processing plant to the restaurants but somehow it worked. However, do not expect a fast service because all items are made-to-order. The price is even an attraction, a small size of 5 pieces is only $5.99.

Scorecard:

Food – Very Good

Ambience – Excellent

Service – Fair

Price – Affordable

Overall Dining Experience – Very Good

www.kyochon.com

Hola Cuba!

Eats: Cuba Libre Restaurant & Rum Bar (Old City), 10 S. 2^nd St., Philadelphia, PA

We accidentally stumbled on this restaurant when my friends and I were desperately looking for a restaurant in Philly. Located in the old section of the city, the restaurant’s exterior is unobtrusive but arouses your curiosity as Zagat Rated decals are on the window so we assumed that the food must be very good.

Plantains Galore (Maduros)!

15 Tastes of Cuba Appetizers including the heavenly Guava BBQ Ribs

Skirt Steak (Churrasco a la Cubana)

15 Tastes of Cuba yummy desserts

The restaurant’s interior resembles an Old Havana courtyard complete with flora (without the fauna) and bright-colored murals. I have never been to Cuba but I guess this is as close as I can get with the sounds of the Latin beat reverberating ever so lively but not too loud nor too soft just enough to complete the Cuban ambience.

The staff was very efficient and seemed to be very knowledgeable about the entire menu as they confidently make their recommendations. As we were dying of hunger, we requested for some appetizers to bridge our appetite. The most amazing discovery of the night was the mango butter. We continued to eat spread after spread of the mango butter on our bread that we have to stop ourselves because of the main course to come. The mango with just the right amount of sweetness did the trick for the butter.

15 Tastes of Cuba is a parade of Chef Guillermo Pernot’s culinary favorites served in small tasting plates. Aside from our now-favorite Pressed Cuban Bread & Mango Butter, the special tasting menu included Empanada, Guava BBQ Ribs (the meat falls so easily from the bone with a delightfully tangy flavor because of the guava BBQ sauce. The Churrasco a la Cubana is a tender grilled steak on a bed of garlic roasted mashed potato perfectly complemented by the watercress and rosemary mushroom escabeche salad. In between meals, we nibbled on those crispy fried ripened plantains as if it were potato chips. The night was capped by three wonderful desserts of Cuban flan, rice pudding and chocolate soufflé tart layered with dulce de leche.

We went home happy and still delightfully talking how great the food was. Cuban food suddenly became one of my favorite cuisines. Cuban cuisine has both Spanish and African influences but most importantly, the dishes are generally not spicy which I love.

Score Card:

Food – Excellent

Ambience – Very Good

Service – Very Good

Price – Reasonable

Overall Dining Experience – Heaven

www.cubalibrerestaurant.com