KOREA'S BB.Q Chicken | Honest Review: Is it better than the U.S?

BB.Q Chicken is one of Korea's largest Korean Fried Chicken chains. With numerous locations spread across the world including in the U.S., it is undoubtedly a very popular chain. I love the BB.Q Chicken in Texas, so I was keen to see if it was just as good or even better in Korea (the original country of KFC)!

Similarities:

The menu items were fairly similar except that I found that there were less options in Korea than in America. The flavors were more limited. Korea did have different side options like cheese balls and their variations (apple cheese ball, double cheese, chocolate ball, etc.)

MY ORDER:

PRICE:

Salted Egg Cheese Ball: 7000 KRW

BBQ Chicken (양념): 22,000 KRW

REVIEW:

Honestly, the American franchises I visited were a lot better than the one in Korea. Unfortunately, the chicken, crispiness, and flavor all lacked in comparison to it's American counterparts. The flavor that I love and usually get, honey butter, is not offered in Korea. They had less flavor options. I ended up getting the BBQ flavor (양념) which is like a sweet and spicy flavor. However this one was just like the 'special flavor' in the U.S. the one that is their special sauce. It has a cinnamon or nutmeg flavor profile that I did not enjoy. Too spice heavy. Not spicy. It is a sticky sweet, spicy (spices not hot spicy) flavor. The chicken was juicy, so that was good, but the batter was also different. It is not as crispy or crunchy.

The salted egg cheese balls were fun and ..interesting. I liked it, but I wouldn't get it again. I think I would opt for the regular cheese balls. The salted egg flavor was strong and rich; it had that salted egg grittiness and sweetness.

Overall: I would skip on the KOREA BB.Q Chicken chain. BHC was better and BBQ USA was better as well. For reference, I visited the Hongdae location.