April 22, 2015

Chir Chir Fusion Chicken Factory, 313@Somerset ~ Popular Korean Fried Chicken Is Now In Singapore!



KFC!!! Whether it's the endearing finger-licking classic which I've grown up with or the current wave of Korean Fried Chicken, chicken pieces deep-fried to sinful indulgence of crispy goodness reigns as one of the ultimate comfort food of all times, in both real life and reel life.

Don't believe? Well, it did cheer me up this evening, and just watch how Cheon Song-Yi (You Who Came From The Stars 来自星星的你 ) gorges herself with fried chicken and beer whenever she's feeling down (diet? what diet? who cares??? haha!). One of the best places in Singapore to experience this uplifting combination could very well be Chir Chir, the wildly popular fried chicken restaurant with over 100 outlets in South Korea (where it originated), China and Taiwan!


The pairing of chicken and beer is so well-received that it has its own term "chimaek" which represents the combination of chi from chicken, and maek for maekju for beer. Chir Chir is an embodiment of this chimaek culture.

Pronounced as chi-ruh chi-ruh, Chir Chir gets its name from the bubbling sound that oil makes when the chicken hits the deep-fryer. Oh no I don't want to imagine what the poor chickens has to go through to become food for us. I just want to enjoy the deliciousness of its meat, as we dine in the fun and casual eatery designed to resemble a chicken run with mesh wires, eggshell displays, cute cartoonish illustrations and K-pop music playing in the background.


I'm willingly happy to be cooped in here anytime, and be slapped left right with those deep-fried goodness of Whole Chicken Parts, Boneless Tenders and Wings prepared in Original Crispy, Spicy and Garlicky flavors.

While at it, you can also drown me with their signature Chir Cream Beer ($13.90/350ml, $18.90/650ml) crowned with freshly whipped cream or Blue Marine Tok Tok ($14.90/$18.90 per jug), a sweet blue lemonade drink that turned fizzy with an iSi soda charger (get ready for InstaVideo moment!), and can be turned into a cocktail with the addition of soju.


Haha okay let's be serious. It is important to have a more balanced meal, so we started off with some fruity salads. Both the Mango Salad ($11.90) and Honey Grape Salad ($18.90) came nicely chilled. I especially enjoyed the latter, a delightful medley of seedless green grapes, walnuts, pine nuts, almond and raisins dressed with ricotta and whipped cream. The accompanying honey and garlic baked tortillas reminded me of sugared cream crackers: Thinly crisp, simple and nice.

It was worth the short wait for our Crispy Fried Chicken ($26.90) to arrive, as each order is cooked ala minute. The fresh chicken which Chir Chir uses does make a whole load of difference (compared to frozen ones)! Its flesh was all of soft, juicy awesomeness, utterly tasty after being marinated for 6 hours in Chir Chir's house seasoning before being battered and deep-fried in soy bean oil that is changed regularly to remove any impurities and prevent rancid smell. Crunchy, succulent and flavorsome, Chir Chir has all that I want in a perfect piece of fried chicken.


Fried chicken is generally considered best enjoyed using our bare hands, but the thoughtful folks at Chir Chir provided specially designed mini tongs brought in from Korea so that we wouldn't need to dirty our fingers if we don't want to. Also imported from Seoul are the proprietary sauces and marinades to ensure consistency in flavor across Chir Chir's outlets worldwide.

So I trust what our Garlicky Wings ($28.90/7 drumlets + 7 wings) gave us was as close to the Korean experience we can get locally. Its sweet-savory sauce with subtle hint of spiciness was utterly moreish, I sucked each drip off the bones! Chunks of roasted sweet potatoes, fried toppoki (Korean rice cakes) complete this dish, I even polished off the very last clove of garlic. So so so yummilicious.

The Spicy Wings ($28.90/7 drumlets + 7 wings) level of spiciness is not for the faint-hearted, but we jumped right into this pleasurable torture of fiery shiokness. We all love challenges don't we? Haha


Call me weird, but I love sucking bones so the Nest Snow ($32.90) with boneless Cajun chicken tenders did not gave me as much gratification. It was pleasant enough, but a tad overwhelming with the cream sauce and shavings of parmesan, mozzarella and cheddar on top of the sweet potato purée. I felt jerlat (surfeit) after the first piece to move on to the second.

That's one of the creative offerings, if you're wondering where the fusion part of Chir Chir Fusion Chicken Factory comes in. Taking a twist on chimaek too would be the Spicy Roasted Chicken ($32.90) that is oven-roasted then pan-fried with a spicy BBQ sauce.

Prices may seem intimidating at initial glance, but you'd realized each portion is hearty enough for 2 to 3 persons to share. So would you come and join me at Chir Chir too? Friends who join in the queue together, share the calories together, stay together. Haha!


Chir Chir
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Chir-Chir-Singapore/1551584908411319?fref=ts

Outlets
313@Somerset
Address: 313 Orchard Road, #B3-04/05/06 313@Somerset, Singapore 238895
Contact: +65 6509 8364
Opening Hours: Sun-Thu 10am-10pm / Fri & Sat 10am-11pm

Bedok Point
Address: 799 New Upper Changi Road, #02-05/06 Bedok Point, Singapore 467351
Contact: +65 6481 2098
Opening Hours: Sun-Thu 10am-10pm / Fri & Sat 10am-11pm

No comments:

Post a Comment