Chicken Up
48 Tanjong Pagar Road 1 Jurong West Central 2
#03-42 Jurong Point
2 Tampines Central 5
#01-44 Century Square
10 Jurong East Street 12
#01-01 Westgate
277C Compassvale Link #01-13
80 Marine Parade Road
#01-10 Parkway Parade
60 Queen Street
176 Orchard Road
#01-33H The Centrepoint
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Chicken-Up/114303878646395
http://www.chicken-up.com/
Good Korean Style Chicken, Best For Group Dining Of At Least 4
(Ratings: On a scale of 1 to 10, with 1 = Worst and 10 = Best)
Overall: 5
Ambience & Setting: 4
Food & Beverage: 7
Service: 5
Value for Money: 6
Spent about SGD $35 per person.
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Chicken Up is a restaurant that specializes in Korean style chicken, prepared in a variety of different ways. The most popular chicken dishes at Chicken Up include the Korean style fried chicken, spicy chicken, and soy sauce chicken.
Chicken Up also does pretty good bar / pub grub, which makes it a great place for chilling out and relaxing. However, ambience is a little lacking, as the primarily red interior and dim lighting make Chicken Up seem dark throughout the day. In keeping with the Korean theme, the walls are adorned with posters of K-Pop singers and other Korean celebrities.
Service at Chicken Up is friendly, however, food can take slightly long to prepare, and even with a few tables, the staff seemed to struggle to perform. It's probably worse during peak periods. Thumbs up to the staff though, for actually being Korean!
It's heartening to see Korean diners at Chicken Up. While their menu is slightly limited, the food is pretty good. However, it's best to visit Chicken Up with groups of at least 4 or more people. Portion sizes and prices at Chicken Up are designed for communal dining and sharing, meaning you'll get better value for money in larger groups. Which also means Chicken Up is a terrible restaurant for couple dining.
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| Chicken Up Exterior |
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| Ginger And Honey Tea |
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| Bong Bong Grape Juice |
A popular bar / street snack in Korea, Juipo Dried File Fish Jerky has a slightly chewy texture, with a slight sweetness and smokiness from grilling.
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| Juipo Dried File Fish Jerky |
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| Juipo Dried File Fish Jerky And Peanuts |
Their Soya Chicken is a house speciality, made using only chicken wings, which are marinated in a soya sauce. It has a savoury, salty and slightly sweet taste, and is quite delicious.
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| Soya Chicken 01 |
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| Soya Chicken 02 |
Their Spicy Up Fried Chicken is the most popular dish on the menu. Tender, juicy pieces of fried chicken with a crisp batter, and best of all, isn't oily! However, it isn't as spicy as the name will lead you to believe... And even staff admit that it's actually not very spicy at all.
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| Spicy Up Fried Chicken 01 |
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| Spicy Up Fried Chicken 02 |
Their Chicken Sausage And Vegetables Hot Plate is a decent dish. The sauce is similar to a Chinese style sweet and sour sauce. Not an original or uniquely Korean dish, this is more a type of fushion cuisine dish.
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| Chicken Sausage And Vegetables Hot Plate |
A complimentary Salad is served as long as you're dining in.
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| Salad |
The Suicide Spicy Chicken is so named because the heat from the sauce slowly builds in your mouth, till you feel like you're eating fire. Towards the end of this dish, my mouth was numb from the heat. Recommended for those who can stomach spicy foods.
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| Suicide Spicy Chicken |
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Update Oct-2015: Chicken Up has vastly improved since I last ate here 3 years ago. They've improved upon all aspects of their business, including ambience, service, and food, and opened up several more outlets across the island. I would say their new ratings are as follows.
(Ratings: On a scale of 1 to 10, with 1 = Worst and 10 = Best)
Overall: 8
Ambience & Setting: 8
Food & Beverage: 8
Service: 7
Value for Money: 7
Spent about SGD $32 per person.
Ambience at Chicken Up is now much brighter and cleaner, with a distinctly open, countryside theme, evident from the rustic, sturdy wooden furniture. Restaurants are brightly lit by white light, and the atmosphere is more spacious. Service at Chicken Up is now more attentive, staff are quick to respond to guests, take orders, and clear away empty / dirty tables. Also, they now have more staff that can speak English! Food at Chicken Up has improved as well, they've expanded their regular menu, removed less popular items, and improved upon their Korean fried chicken recipes. Portions are still large and suitable for communal dining, but bulk purchasing has actually brought their down overall prices, so diners pay less for food now!
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| Chicken Up Signage |
A large flask of complimentary water is available on request, though it does take up space on the table. Alcohol, such as Beer Hite (SGD $15), is still available as well, but they now have more varieties of soju.
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| Water |
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| Beer Hite |
The Bulgogi Fries (SGD $18) are a new item on the menu, and among the best things I've eaten here! Actual strips of tender soy sauce marinated beef bulgogi strips, are loaded generously along with red onions, spring onions, and mayonnaise on top of piping hot, straight cut, medium sized fries. The combination is incredibly tasty, savoury, salty, sweet, and sharp; with textures of chewy, crunchy, creamy, and fluffy. Highly recommended!
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| Bulgogi Fries 01 |
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| Bulgogi Fries 02 |
The Gochujang Chicken Dup Bap Set (SGD $13) is good value for money. This set meal for dine in or takeaway includes 1 main (chicken, beef, or pork) rice bowl, 2 salads, 1 soup, 1 dessert or drink, and 1 fruit ball. The Seaweed Soup is nicely light and savoury, without that ugly salty flavour, so it's pretty good. The Fresh Salad features fresh and crunchy lettuce leaves, but is rather small. The Caramelised Kimchi Pickled Cabbage is sharp and sour in taste, but doesn't annoy the palate, with a nicely crunchy texture. The Gochujang Chicken Dup Bap features a basic white rice bowl, topped with cabbage, cellophane noodles, and strips of tender chicken stir-fried with onions in a savoury, sweet and spicy Korean gochujang / red pepper paste sauce. Very tasty, heart, and filling!
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| Gochujang Chicken Dup Bap Set |
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| Seaweed Soup |
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| Fresh Salad |
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| Caramelised Kimchi Pickled Cabbage |
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| Gochujang Chicken Dup Bap 01 |
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| Gochujang Chicken Dup Bap 02 |
The Mini Pat Bing Su (SGD $7) has a decent amount of red beans, condensed milk, shaved ice, and vanilla ice cream, garnished with a melon fruit ball and a stick of Glico Pocky Almond Crush Milk Chocolate biscuit. Refreshing with an earthy sweet taste, rather palate cleansing as well. Good!
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| Mini Pat Bing Su 01 |
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| Mini Pat Bing Su 02 |
I think it's a great idea, rather than just having Ddukbokki / Tteokbokki / Sweet & Spicy Rice Cakes on its own, the Tteokbokki With Cheese & Seafood (SGD $20) turns it into a side dish, with the addition of seafood. The bouncy, chewy rice cakes are served along with 2 mussels, 5 - 6 squid rings, 2 scallops, 4 prawns, fish cakes, and glass sweet potato vermicelli noodles in a spicy, savoury stew of Korean gochujang / red pepper paste sauce, gooey cheese, and chili. The result is a flavourful mouthful, you get the freshness of the seafood and texture of the starch, then the burning heat kicks in, and continues to build with each bite. Fiery towards the end! Good side dish, worth ordering!
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| Tteokbokki With Cheese & Seafood 01 |
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| Tteokbokki With Cheese & Seafood 02 |
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| Tteokbokki With Cheese & Seafood 03 |
The Corn Salad (SGD $8) is a large bowl of fresh, crunchy arugula / rocket leaves, purple cabbage, corn kernels, kidney beans, onions, cherry tomatoes, leeks, and a savoury, salty, sweet and light vinaigrette. Refreshing and healthy, it's light enough that it can be finished quickly and easily before the meal, opening the appetite. Good!
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| Corn Salad 01 |
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| Corn Salad 02 |
The Yangnyum Up (SGD $20) is a half chicken, divided into 4 parts, coated in gochujang, a mildy spicy, sweet and sticky sauce. Love the tender, juicy texture of the chicken meat, which comes clean off the bone, and the chicken skin which still remains crispy despite being coated in sauce. The sweet sauce enhances the overall flavour, making each bite a delightful experience... left me wanting more! Excellent, highly recommended!
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| Yangnyum Up 01 |
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| Yangnyum Up 02 |
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| Yangnyum Up 03 |
The Ganjang Up (SGD $20) is a half chicken, divided into 4 parts, coated in a light soy sauce, resulting in a savoury, salty marinade for the chicken. Love the tender, juicy texture of the chicken meat, which comes clean off the bone, and the chicken skin which still remains crispy despite being coated in sauce. The salty sauce enhances the overall flavour, but isn't overly salty or overpowering, being well balanced. In comparison to when I ate this 3 years ago, the chicken texture is a lot more juicy and tender, but the marinade is less sweet now, as it should be. Good, worth ordering!
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| Ganjang Up 01 |
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| Ganjang Up 02 |
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| Ganjang Up 03 |
The Ginseng Chicken Soup (SGD $30) is a perfect dish for sharing on a cold or rainy day! A whole chicken, stuffed with a chestnut, red date, Korean white rice, and ginseng herb root, served in a light, savoury sweet soup / broth that is fragrant and fresh. Garnished with spring onions, the chicken is incredibly tender, so tender that even the bones have become soft, and fall apart easily. Thus, you'll have to watch carefully as you eat this, as there are bone fragments floating around! The chicken looks like the hormone-free kind, with yellowish skin, and is also suitably smaller in size. Chicken meat is tender and soft, the rice is almost like porridge. Very good dish!
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| Ginseng Chicken Soup 01 |
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| Ginseng Chicken Soup 02 |
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| Ginseng Chicken Soup 03 |
The Spicy Up Chicken Wings (SGD $12) are aptly named, for the predominant taste on these crisp, juicy chicken wings is spicy, followed by sweet, then savoury. Not too hot for comfort, there is a lingering burn, but the heat should be manageable for most people. Good!
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| Spicy Up Chicken Wings 01 |
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| Spicy Up Chicken Wings 02 |
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