With the closing up earlier this year of Azit, we lost what I considered to be the best Korean fried chicken place in town. As best I know, we still just have three other spots dedicated to “KFC”. There are certainly other Korean restaurants that offer it on their menu, but it’s not their prime focus. I thought it would be worthwhile to give them each a revisit.
My first visit to Dagi & Myeoni, Campana 687, Floresta, was seven years ago (photo of the chicken above). At the time, Korean food was still not “discovered” in Buenos Aires, and the idea of a non-Korean in Korean restaurants was still very suspect. I can’t count the number of times I was either refused service or offered something limited like a fried cutlet, or told they wouldn’t serve me spicy food or put hot sauce on the table. These days, at most Korean spots, it can be surprising if half the customers are Korean. That doesn’t hold true everywhere, yet, even in this more open time, the owner or manager here at this spot challenged my entry – “Korean food, too spicy for you.”. But unlike those days, when challenged back, he immediately backed down and welcomed me in.
We got a bowl of sujebi, one of my favorite Korean soups – packed with hand-torn, not cut, noodles. Lots of mixed seafood, and just loaded with thick, chewy, ragged, yam-based noodles. One of the better versions I’ve had of this, and we drained it to the bottom. 9000 pesos, a little under $7.
And, no arguments were made when we ordered the spicy fried chicken, nor was their any skimping on the spice. You get a dozen wing drumettes for 20,000 pesos, around $15. And absolutely delicious. Great crunchy batter, gloopy, sweet and spicy sauce, pickled daikon to cut through it all. Oh, and available plain, spicy, green onion, or garlic sauces. Next time, going to give the garlic a try, it’s another favorite. And maybe try some of the other dishes on the menu – my recollection is that the first time I went there (I have been back, though not for about five years), there was little if anything on the menu other than the fried chicken offerings, and at the time, it might have been just plain or spicy (albeit they left the spicy part of the sauce out of mine).
Bringing back the original photos from our first visit to Chicken the Pub, Balbastro 2105, Flores, just because I didn’t take a new photo of the space on this visit. It’s a bit cafeteria-ish, with an open kitchen along one wall. They have removed that brick divider wall – they closed up back in April for about a month and did some remodeling, and modernizing the kitchen to some extent.
This was the spicy fried chicken back then, and on every visit since. An entire chicken, cut into about ten pieces. A light, almost breadcrumb style breading, lightly tossed in sauce, almost more like a glaze, nice and fiery, and a good sprinkling of peanuts for added crunch. It was “quite good” as I said then, and has, over time, become a regular spot for Korean fried chicken on our Sunday outings – the only one of what were the big four for KFC that was open on el domingo.
But, they’ve done more than just remodel the kitchen and dining area. They’ve completely changed the fried chicken recipe. It’s now got a thick batter, and it’s just drowned in a rather sweet, almost barbecue style sauce, with only a hint of heat to it. And then they apparently just drop a whole bunch of extra batter into the fryer, because this is just covered with “crunchy bits” that range from the size of a peanut to the size of a brazil nut. It’s not remotely as good as it used to be. What a shame. A little more expensive at 22000 pesos ($16), but it’s a whole chicken, not just a dozen wing pieces.
Maniko has moved around a bit. The first time we tried it was in Floresta, where they had a small, almost fast food style operation where they were serving up two-pound platters of boneless white meat fried chicken tossed in your choice of around a dozen different sauces. They later popped up in Palermo, where service and kitchen seemed inordinately slow – over a trio of visits – and then they closed up again. There, they offered a choice of the same boneless white meat, or wings, both in more individual portions. And, they cut the number of sauces down to five – barbecue, spicy, garlic, green onion, or soy (plus the option to get them sauceless). Now they’re back in Floresta, taking over the space that was Azit, Ruperto Godoy 733.
They’ve stuck with the menu from Palermo. This time I decided to try the wings instead of the boneless. But, they’ve done the same thing as The Pub above – they’re drowning the pieces in sauce. Compare to the photo from Palermo…
… with the “same” spicy chicken on the left. Nicely coated, nicely spicy, and a generous amount of salad to accompany. Not so much anymore, and just a sloppy mess. The only one of the three places that doesn’t offer those disposable plastic gloves to pick up and eat the chicken with, nor any kind of wet-wipes to clean up afterwards. Certainly not a great replacement for Azit. It’s also only 8 wing pieces for 12600 pesos (about $9.50).
I’m going to pass on re-reviewing Kikiriki, which offers up what amount to platters of chicken nuggets with dipping sauces, only some of which are Korean, and with the exception of a Monday through Friday lunch only special, doesn’t offer them in individual portions – 0nly platters for two to six people.
