No deep analysis tonight, just a brief report on my visit today to BonChon in Ellicott City to try out their fried chicken. The place still hasn’t officially opened, but prompted by Howchow’s report we decided to stop by and try it out during their “soft opening.”

The verdict: We really enjoyed it, and will definitely be back from time to time (as often as prudence allows). The run-down:

  • We went in the late afternoon, and it wasn’t crowded at all (one other party of four guys). We got our food in less than 15 minutes. I can see where it might be quite busy at other times though.
  • It’s a fried chicken place, so we ate fried chicken, We didn’t try any other main dishes, and frankly I don’t see any point in doing so. (Specialization for the win!)
  • We tried both the wings and chicken strips (which I’m not sure are all breast meat or mixed breast and thigh), the wings with the hot sauce and the strips with soy garlic sauce. Personally I preferred the wings with hot sauce: I liked the hot sauce much better, and I thought the strips, though nicely crunchy, seemed a bit on the dry side. I’m biased though, as I am a big fan of chicken wings in any form, especially fried; the strips with soy garlic sauce are certainly much more child-friendly.
  • I got white rice as a side dish, both to cut the spiciness of the wings and to stay more in the “I could be eating this in Seoul” mood. We also got some fries, which were OK but pretty generic. We also were brought radish chunks with the chicken; these were nicely refreshing though again most children will likely spurn them.
  • Service was attentive (not surprising, since at that time of day the staff outnumbered the customers). We talked with the waiter, the general manager, and one of the owners (presumably John Kim of Tutti Frutti fame, though we didn’t ask his name).
  • Total cost was under $50 for three people, which I consider quite reasonable for what we got.

In summary, I’m really happy to see BonChon in Ellicott City, and wish them luck with their grand opening whenever it is (September, most likely, based on our conversations).

John Kim (bonchonmd@gmail.com) - 2012-08-29 00:30

Thanks for coming in, I will make sure the strips will be on point at your next visit! The grand opening is a week ahead now, which is the first week of September! :) Thanks again!

hecker - 2012-08-29 23:14

Thanks for stopping by to comment, and good luck on the grand opening. (I’ve been in once since my initial visit, and may stop in at least once before the formal opening.)