Kuljem Chicken & Beer

My roommate heard I was meeting a friend at our favourite Bonchon for lunch and persuaded me to come here instead. When she recommends food, I am never disappointed, and bonus that this is closer to work and home, too! We ordered three flavours to try, and all were fantastic. My favourite was between Saigon and Honey Jam. My friend loved the Sweet and Spicy. The chicken breading was light and crispy, inside hot and juicy, fried to perfection. Loved the cute little menu holders on each table. Welcome to the neighborhood and see you again soon!

My friend and I agree that these wings are way delicious than the chains here in SD! Kimchi spaghetti was also are favorite. Cocktail were on point and the atmosphere was very welcoming. Loved it.

My wife and I went here today around 5 PM. Right now, they seem to close between 2-5 PM. I say “right now” because they are in soft-opening mode. We ordered the Kimchi pasta and my wife loved it. We also ordered their honey jam wings and sweet and spicy wings. Their wings are really flavorful and we could have definitely ate more. I wanted to try their Saigon wings but “happy wife, happy life” kicked into overdrive so I just settled for the honey jam and sweet and spicy. They only have like five wing flavors but I think that’s a good thing. I don’t want to get lost in options. They had bulgogi fries that I want to try next time we go. Yes, we will be back for more sometime soon. The great thing about this place too is that they are right next to the Westfield UTC mall as well. Our server was really nice and sweet too. Only slightly negative thing about the experience was that it took a while for the food to come out, but they seemed understaffed and again, it’s a soft opening. Highly recommend this place if you like wings/Korean style wings. And yes, they have ranch.

First time here and we had the Honey Jam Boneless Chicken - it was excellent. Perfectly cooked and the sauce was interesting and very flavorful! The slaw that came with it was a perfect match for the chicken. We will be back!! I want to try the bulgogi dish!

The kimchi pasta brought me here and i must say. It did not disappoint, and the staff were more than friendly and accommodating. A bit pricey but it is good.

The Kimchi pasta is amazing. I would come back over and over again just for that but the chicken is also the best I’ve ever had in SoCal. Not overly oily and batter is perfect. Great service too!!

Avid Korean fried chicken fans, my Hubby and I decided to check this place out. We came at opening time Saturday, and for our entire dining period there were only 4 tables of people eating—so no need to worry about wait times. Prices are very reasonable. Decor is modern and clean. We got a 12 piece chicken wings half Saigon Style and half HoneyJam. The wings came with sides of pickled radish and cabbage slaw. The cabbage slaw had so much dressing for our liking. Next time we’ll ask for no dressing or on the side. HoneyJam wings - very crispy and good honey flavor. Personally not my favorite honey wings because they are tad too sweet forward. I prefer more balance with salty and garlic flavor. Saigon style wings - our favorite flavor of the 2. It has a nice balance of tangy, salty, with a small spicy kick. I would definitely get these again. Kimchi pasta - this was bomb!!! And so glad we shared this because it is too rich for 1 person— super cheesy, creamy, smoky bacon, and delicious flavor. I highly recommend this. It was the best kimchi pasta I’ve had in SoCal. The 2 servers were soooo kind! I watched them go above and beyond for another customer who asked that they put on a specific sports game on one of their many large TVs. They tried for 10-15 minutes to find the channel for her, in between taking care of all the other customers food orders.

We had been dreaming of Korean fried chicken today and this place did the trick—we thought we’d died and gone to heaven. Also tried Korean beer for the first time—loved it. So refreshing alongside the chicken. Also had the kimchi rice—yum. The staff is super friendly and helpful. We will be back!

New core memory unlocked. I feel sorry for the me that existed before finding this place. Best Korean fried chicken I've ever had!! The batter was so perfect and kept its crisp throughout the whole meal, and every sauce was on point. The honey jam sauce was UNREAL!!! That was by far our favorite, although all the others were delicious. My friend and I got 2 dozen wings, one dozen bone in and one dozen boneless. You can't go wrong. Just go. Service was awesome, the chicken was made to order, and we came with my friend's kid who can't eat spicy things so they gave us chipotle chili flakes on the side for the wings in case we wanted to add some spice. They were really thoughtful and put the spicier wings on one plate and the non-spicy on another. We got to talk with one of the owners and I told him how amazing we found the chicken and he said he and his business partner spent 2 years developing their recipe! The effort shows and was well worth the time! Thank you for all your hard work! Ambience was comfortable, relaxed, clean. They had a few TVs but they didn't overwhelm the place with noise or too much distraction. The music playing was fun and suited the place well. Prices were reasonable, and we also came during happy hour by chance and shared a bottle of lychee soju. Yum! Nice variety of drink options. Parking was typical strip mall parking, not super packed on a Sunday for lunch. It's been a while since I've visited a new place in San Diego and had my mind blown, but I will be thinking of this place for a while. I'm excited to go back and try some of their other dishes, but that honey jam chicken is going into my regular rotation for sure! Thanks again for such a delicious experience!

The food was yummy. We ordered the Honey Jam and Saigon Style 12 piece chicken along with the Kimchi Fried Rice. When I tell y'all our table was SILENT because we were enjoying the food so much. I highly recommend all three of the stuff that we ordered. The service was good! It wasn't really busy when we got there so our waiter was pretty attentive. The inside was nice as well.

quaint and recently opened korean fried chicken spot near ucsd/utc! the food was great but i'm knocking it down one star for the very long wait. we were sat almost immediately and the server took our order quickly, but then the food took 40 minutes to come out. there was also one server for the whole place. the service was not especially warm or welcoming but maybe it was just an off day. the ambiance is definitely very casual, there are many tvs playing different media. the food was quite good however. the kimchi pasta is basically a spicy korean version of carbonara with thick creamy sauce that's to die for, along with bacon and kimchi. the honey jam wings were very crispy, crunchy, and perfectly sweet and salty. it came with cabbage and we also asked for pickled radishes on the side. my one critique on the chicken is to have slightly less breading and more chicken meat - it seemed that each wing was more breading than actual chicken. overall, it seems that this place is still in its soft opening stage... which is strange since it's been around 8 months. however, i think i would come back if i was craving korean fried chicken. i'd recommend if you're in the area, but be prepared for long waits. next time, i might order online and get pickup.

I'm so glad I had friends introduce me to this place!! It is in a pretty busy plaza (has a lot of other businesses like Arteazen and Vietnam, even a sushi shop) so parking might be a bit tricky. But it wasn't too busy when we entered. There's tvs showing sports events but there's pretty decent seating and tables. But so worth to give their food a try! The breading was sooo good and the chicken meat is juicy-that being said, some parts of the chicken meat may have been a bit pink? Could have been the sauce but I'm not too sure. Did dock a star for that though since my friend also mentioned hers feeling a touch undercooked. Even the boneless chicken (not pictured because I was devouring everything by then lol) was like, pretty generously sized, could be described as tenders lol. PLEASSEE try the Saigon style one, the fish sauce is so prominent and the flavor is unlike any chicken I've had before. I also really enjoyed the rose tteokbokki (take this with a grain of salt since I like all tteokbokki lol), it was a good amount of tingly and the rice cakes weren't overcooked at all. Don't forget to ask for the pickled radish! There's also pretty interesting happy hour deals for drinks that I'll have to come back for.

The original wings were really tasty and crispy The service was friendly For lunch it was fairly quiet but I have heard that it gets more busy and loud for dinner

My new favorite wing place !! Ordered the large 12 pc wings with 1/2 honey jam + 1/2 sweet and spicy. Looove the honey jam flavor, it's sweet, savory & buttery. Reminds me of the Korean honey butter chips. Their wings were super crunchy and flavorful. Also ordered a side of sweet potato fries and was surprised by the portion size. Staff was helpful and patient with all the questions we had. The restaurant was modern, clean, and spacious. However the day we visited, their whole hvac system was not working and it was one of the hottest days of the year. So we opted for takeout. Definitely looking forward to dine in one day!

Everything was so good! The staff were all friendly despite us coming in a bit before closing. I loved the music as well. Wasn't too busy, and the food was genuinely so, so good. UCSD students they take triton cash!

The customer service was amazing . Delicious kimchi rice made to order so it was fresh as was the butter chicken . Amazing

Such a great chicken place! I came on a Sunday night around 9PM; I appreciate the late hours they're open. The chicken, itself, is delicious. The original was so flavorful! I also enjoyed the sweet and spicy, but my friend thought it was too sweet. The texture was perfect. The kimchi fried rice paired well with the chicken.

This was my first time in the area and at Kuljem Chicken & Beer! The restaurant shares a parking lot with multiple other businesses. We found it very easy to find parking. As we came in, we waited to be seated. A lovely waitress came by and seated us at a table for two. I think they make use of their space really well. Since they didn't seat us at a large table. It was nice to see the variety of seats available. From 2 seats, 4, to 6 seated tables. The interior was decorated with warm lighting and beautiful murals that depicted honey and soju. It was electric and cute! I didn't get a photo of the wall behind me sadly, but it was really nice. All the people that work there are welcoming and sweet. There was a delay to refill water, but after they came around once-- they ensured to come by again to see if we wanted it filled. They give each person 1 napkin, with saucy wings -- I should have asked for a few more! The menu is on a QR code. There was a little kitty holding up the code-- that was adorable. We decided to get 6 wings of the SAIGON STYLE and 6 wings of the ORIGINAL CRISPY. In total this cost $24. I ordered ROSE TTEOKBOKKI ($17). This is a dish to share!! Sadly, even though I planned to share...my brother forgot his lactaid so I was left to try to finish it myself. It was super cheesy, had loads of fish cake, and rice cakes. There were little pieces of cabbage, but the cheese just took over everything. There was even a boiled egg sliced in half. I think it was a perfect rose sauce--but in my opinion, just had way too much cheese. The ORIGINAL CRISPY wings were delightfully crunchy and hot in temperature. It's double fried and somehow the chicken is so succulent still. I've honestly never had chicken like that before! The seasoning was nice...although the salt became overwhelming for some pieces. Luckily I ordered that Rose Tteokbokki right? I dipped my chicken into that sauce and it was so lush!! Highly recommend. The SAIGON STYLE wings have a slight heat to them because of the Thai chili, there's also garlic (but not overwhelming garlic), and I believe I could taste a bit of fish sauce. The wings were juicy and crispy...while also being saucy? It was just so delicious. My brother devoured these! Highly recommend this for first timers!! - My brother really enjoyed the Saigon style and how the original crispy wings remained HOT throughout the dinner. - I liked the cabbage slaw in the middle of the wings. It was thinly sliced and not sweet compared to other chicken places. This had zing and a hint of spice. I loved that they played KPOP music, it gave us flashbacks to middle school era. A fun and lively one was Feel Special by Twice. On the TVs tonight they had sports and some sort of news/talking. And then on the other wall it was a projector. I guess that's the best of both worlds for people. Anyways, I would recommend Kuljem Chicken & Beer to people. The chicken was juicy and crispy! If I was in the mood, I'm sure it would pair soo well with the beers or soju. But don't worry, they even had soda and pink lemonade! Tonight, we just had water. On the menu, they also had different kinds of fried rice, pasta, rice cake dishes, anju aka bar food, and sides! I think I'll come back with my mom-- she's interested to try the kimchi pasta and the fried gizzards. (:

Despite living near convoy (aka near a ton of Korean fried chicken joints), I've already come to Kuljem 4 times since I discovered it 2 months ago! The last time I went, there was big projection for music videos and fun music playing the whole time. My friends and I were drinking soju, singing to the 2000s hits and kpop, the owner came up to us and joked about bringing out the karaoke mic LOL. Good vibes all around! Food: Saigon style - seems to be the most popular wings flavor and I can definitely see why! My first couple of visits I actually didn't like it too much and found the flavor too fishy. But now it's a must get when I come in! Sweet & Spicy - this one ties with Saigon style for me. I love perfect balance of that Korean sweetness and slight kick. I also love that even though it's a bit saucier than the others, it's still super crispy! Honey Jam - I think this might also be a popular flavor but I personally really don't like it just because I'm not a fan of smoky flavors. It came off just tasting burnt to me but I know my friends like it! Kimchi pasta - another dish that I feel has changed over the different times I had it so maybe recipes are still being perfected or it depends on chef? One time I had it very kimchi forward and another time was very cheese and bacon forward. Honestly, they both tasted good to me though! Rosé tteokbokki - I enjoyed this dish! Tasted how you'd expect, cheesy and creamy, slightly spicy. Overall, love this place and the workers! One of the owners we've had was extremely friendly, funny and cared about making sure we enjoyed our dinner experience!

I really hope they do well because their Korean fried chicken (KFC) is so good! It's a little hidden in a plaza most people probably wouldn't be familiar with unless they live in the area. But it's very accessible to UCSD students so here's to hoping they get the attention they deserve! We dined in during their soft opening and the food came out really quick, which could be attributed to the fact that we were one of the few groups inside. The staff were efficient and friendly and would check-in on us often. We also met one of the co-owners and he was very receptive to our suggestions...overall, a really nice guy! French Fries: The thickness is very similar to McDonald's fries but I wish they were a little saltier. I guess it's better to add less in case other guests are more averse to salt. Other than that, a good appetizer/snack to share amongst the group. Corn Cheese: Their style of corn cheese wasn't what our group expected. There were bell peppers mixed in and it was a lot sweeter than other restaurants. The co-owner explained that the recipe was inspired by what you could find in Korea. Not really my preference but it's great that they draw ideas from traditional recipes. Kimchi Pasta: A group favorite! Creamy kimchi sauce with bacon and onion slices. Has a slight kick but if you're sensitive to spicy, you might feel it more. Rose Tteokbokki: I actually liked the creamy sauce from the Tteokbokki more than the Kimchi Pasta but this was definitely spicy. I had to take a couple of breaks but it's more manageable because of the sweetness of the sauce. Dip your chicken wings or add some of the sauce to the kimchi pasta for some flavor enhancements! Korean Fried Chicken Wings: If you purchase the 12 piece, you can split it into two flavors! I really like their KFC because of the batter. It's light but crunchy and the sauce isn't smothering. We tried Original Crispy, HoneyJam, Sweet Soy, and Saigon Style. And out of these flavors, Saigon Style was the winner. Sweet from the fish sauce but also slightly spicy. The spicy isn't very consistent though because I had a couple wings that weren't at all and one that left my tongue burning. Kuljem has become one of my favorite KFC spots in San Diego and I'll definitely be back to try everything else!

I came here on a Tuesday night at around 9 PM, be aware that they do have soft opening hours! Once we came in, we were immediately greeted by a server that had us take a seat and we looked over the menu, they have beer on draft and Korean beer, bottled and bottled Soju flavored and non-flavored, I love that they had so much variety. Our server was very helpful. Explain the levels of dishes and recommendations for the chicken wings. We got the honey chicken wings, sautéed spicy sausage and cheese corn. Everything was absolutely delicious. The chicken wings were full of flavor the spicy sausage definitely had a little kick but so good! Looking around the place kept extremely clean, friendly staff and simple tables with TVs showing gaming videos and kpop in the background. Will be coming back for sure!

This is a great place for lunch, staff is super friendly and there is ample parking but can be crowded during lunch time We went for lunch and we ordered Sweet and Spicy (Yangnyeom) Korean fried chicken wing, Kimchi fired rich, and Saigon style chicken wings. The wait for the food was not too bad and we got order nice and hot and fresh. How can you go wrong with wings and you can ask for side order of the sauce. The kimchi fried rice was perfect for any type of wings you desire. Great go to place for lunch and will back for more

This place doesn't know what it wants to be. Loud annoying music so you can't relax while eating. Torturous. They have 3 different things playing on large tvs. They have cute honey paintings Nothing is cohesive. And here is the kicker...they ask you to wait to be seated... like some fancy sit down restaurant. Bet they don't take reservations. In any case, it's truly a kid's hangout bar, not good for singles or date night when you want a relaxing atmosphere... due to incessant pumping music. And it attracts loud college kids who like to laugh loud, talk loud and sing along loud... imagine being in a k drama on steroids... ... they have high prices and try to be bougie about you not picking your own seat but they don't know how to seat properly with the customer in mind. If they have elevated prices, they should elevate a little... i mean just across the parking lot, you can get a burger, beer and fries for $10... so if the pasta and chicken actually all arrived at my table I'd be paying $40+ for just me. Bring on the nice stuff and don't cheap out on your high paying customers...but I digress. Im irritated at my nice, but hard of hearing... and lacking in discernment waitress. When I got there, I asked for her recommendation and she said kimchi pasta and the honey jam chicken... so I ordered that...but I guess she only heard my chicken order because my pasta never came... and instead of just apologizing and firing that puppy up so I can eat...she came to my table and started recounting the situation like it was my fault (aka arguing with me)... so I canceled my order of pasta and im still hungry so after this im going elsewhere. Ugh. First world problems. I know... But that's not all ... surely I have to tell it all. Im alone .. just me... ... and in their infinite seating wisdom, they put me next to a loud huge table full of people, and I get a view of a yucky bathroom hallway to boot! ...all while 10 other other beautiful spacious tables are open around us. I asked to be moved telling my waitress/ cashier Julie it's because it's loud with an ugly view where I was sat and she moves me to the second worst table...in a corner ... right ... under... a speaker... so freaking loud. Mind you, the restaurant is half empty. Why do this to me? Isn't my money as deserving as a 6 person table? So, knowing this waitress doesn't give a crap about me... I just get up and move to another table...i mean what... do they expect 10 large parties to walk in before I can finish my meal? Give me a break. So anyway... the chicken takes awhile, but I admit that it's actually worth it. Only one piece seemed slightly undercooked, but it was very tasty and good texture. I do recommend it and might be back for take out, but this place is terrible in ambiance and service. Im suffering the music to write this because Im so annoyed. The thing is, they're nice... but clueless on customer service. Oh and...i ordered the messiest chicken wings... and I'm given one paper napkin... come on... with these prices, get some wetnaps and throw in a couple napkins. Ya know? At least they brought me more napkins when I asked for it. I wish I could tell you about the kimchi noodles but Im going somewhere else to eat. Sorry for my grumpy review, but it's all sadly true.

What a great place in the UTC area. It's clean and roomy inside and the service is friendly and attentive. A variety of all the Korean staples like bulgogi and corn cheese. I love the chicken here. Very crispy and not overly battered. Flavors are really good too. They offer cocktails and Asian beers and have Happy Hour. Love that they are open late too. It can get busy later in the evenings so have patience for the poor staff. Great addition to the area.

I first stumbled across this new place on ig reels and was super curious (esp about the kimchi pasta)!! My friends and I ordered the kimchi pasta, spicy rice cake, kimchi fried rice, and some wings. The food was solid and the portions were generous. I would say the kimchi pasta was pretty good, but it would've been even better it was a bit more flavorful and creamier (maybe some cheese?)! The spicy rice cake's sauce was yummy but I think the rice cake texture could've been softer! I would also love to see this place add some stews/soup to the menu~ Overall I had a really good time here! The workers were super friendly and one even offered free soju to us. That was super sweet and made my night!! I can see this place being a fun and convenient late night spot for nearby students.

Avid Korean fried chicken fans, my Hubby and I decided to check this place out. We came at opening time Saturday, and for our entire dining period there were only 4 tables of people eating--so no need to worry about wait times. Prices are very reasonable. Decor is modern and clean. We got a 12 piece chicken wings half Saigon Style and half HoneyJam. The wings came with sides of pickled radish and cabbage slaw. The cabbage slaw had so much dressing for our liking. Next time we'll ask for no dressing or on the side. HoneyJam wings - very crispy and good honey flavor. Personally not my favorite honey wings because they are tad too sweet forward. I prefer more balance with salty and garlic flavor. Saigon style wings - our favorite flavor of the 2. It has a nice balance of tangy, salty, with a small spicy kick. I would definitely get these again. Kimchi pasta - this was bomb!!! And so glad we shared this because it is too rich for 1 person-- super cheesy, creamy, smoky bacon, and delicious flavor. I highly recommend this. It was the best kimchi pasta I've had in SoCal. The 2 servers were soooo kind! I watched them go above and beyond for another customer who asked that they put on a specific sports game on one of their many large TVs. They tried for 10-15 minutes to find the channel for her, in between taking care of all the other customers food orders. Parking is easy and free in large spacious parking lot.

Korean pub food is what HoneyJam Chicken & Beer serves from a suite in the Renaissance Town Center of La Jolla. They have the same ownership as the boba tea shop across the plaza, Arteazen. After a hiccup from the soft opening weekend on May 11th and 12th, the business closed for a week before restarting its operations on May 20th. The dining area could hold about 60 customers and was decorated like a modern gastropub. Beer, soju (regular and flavored), and cocktails were the featured alcoholic beverages. Anju (bar food) and sides made up one page of the food menu. The other page listed Korean Fried Chicken (KFC) Wings, Pasta and Rice Cakes, and Rice Dishes. Everything was sold a la carte as I did not see any combination deals. The place was less than half full when I arrived for a weeknight meal. Any hint of chaos from the initial opening period was long gone. My choices were the Bulgogi and a six piece order of the signature HoneyJam Wings. The first item was listed in the Anju category which I thought was interesting as I normally see it as an entree at full service Korean restaurants. This version was sweet soy based marinated beef topped with green onions and sesame seeds on a platter. That was it as no rice or banchan were included. While the flavor was good, I couldn't help but think that $22 was pricey for a beef plate. The KFC was seasoned with a house special honey butter sauce. A complimentary dish of chicken-mu (pickled radishes) was provided to cut through the flavors as a palate cleanser. A side of slaw was added to the order. The wings were freshly fried and steaming hot when they arrived at my table. The crispiness was very good when biting into them. The UTC area has few Korean cuisine options so over time, HoneyJam should be able to flourish. For now, I gave a 3.5 star rating for my dining experience.

Came here during their soft opening. Menu is limited. Lots of tables! Limited staff so far but they do their best to be attentive. Parking lot is shared with other businesses and easy to find parking. We ordered the stir fried chicken gizzards, chicken wings and kimchi pasta. For wings we got half Saigon style and half sweet soy. Saigon style flavor was on point, would definitely order these again!! I personally wasn't a fan of the sweet soy. Batter on the wings was great and had a nice crunch. We've been on the hunt for a Korean spot that serves legit stir fried chicken gizzards like we've had in the Bay and sadly this spot ain't it. Portion isn't very big, gizzards were missing flavor, the garlic they used had no garlic flavor, and bell peppers were just filler. They also served a hot sauce for the gizzards (they said it was tapatio) and it was terrible with it. Would not order these again. :( Everyone in our group liked the kimchi pasta. If you like creamy pasta then you'll like this dish. Overall would come back for the chicken wings and would try a few other dishes.

Love this spot. Such a fun gem. Great atmosphere, friendly staff. Fresh food! You can tell the food is made with love. Did I mention the honey jam wings are delicious??!

I saw the good reviews on Kimchi pasta and gave it a try today. OMGGGGGG sooooooooo gooooooood! Very unique creation of pasta with Kimchi. Kimchi was not too strong to spoil the whole pasta vibe and the crispiness of pickled Kimchi was great and the pasta wasn't salty like some other Italian restaurants, the noodle was cooked nicely. I enjoyed the pasta very much! Definitely coming back for this Kimchi pasta and love to try some other dishes as well.

A new Korean Fried Chicken spot is in town! Located in the Renaissance Town Center, this restaurant looks like it could be the next new hot spot for students to enjoy late night bites and drinks! - PARKING - Shares a parking lot with all other businesses in the center - the spots can be tight, and sometimes the lot is busy, but we were able to find a spot on a Wednesday evening. - SERVICE/ENVIRONMENT - Very inviting space, with a variety of table sizes ranging from 2-8 people. There are fun wall decorations that add to the suljip/pocha vibe that I believe they're going for. Welcomed and seated quickly, and once we put in our order, our food didn't take longer than 10 minutes to come out. Staff continuously checked in on us, making sure our waters were always refilled! - FOOD - French Fries ($6.00): Think McDonald's thickness cut of fries, and in a large portion size. We shared this amongst 5 of us and it was plenty! Could have been crispier, but still yummy to eat! Corn Cheese ($12.00): They tried to make their Corn Cheese as similar to what you would get in Korea, so this is a bit sweeter than other restaurants make. They also include Bell Peppers, which is not common here! Just be prepared to have a different experience when ordering Corn Cheese! Original Crispy (6pc - $10.00): As with all of the other flavors, the skin was super light and crispy! I liked how the chicken meat itself was also juicy still. Definitely not oily on the outside at all, and you would be able to tell since there was no sauce on this. HoneyJam (6pc - $10.00): Definitely sweet and savory - I only wished I could taste more of the Butter. Still a yummy flavor, and again, the skin was super light and crispy! Saigon Style (6pc - $10.00): This was the majority of the table's favorite! A perfect balance of spice and savory - the flavors definitely come out and it was delicious. Kimchi Pasta ($15.00): Creamy and super flavorful! Everyone loved this dish as well, and I thought it was a nice accompaniment to the crunchy chicken. Rose Tteokbokki ($15.00): Another great option if you're not feeling pasta, and want some rice cakes instead. Super creamy, and I liked dipping the Original Crispy chicken in this too! - OVERALL - A great new Korean Fried Chicken spot with unique flavors! Would definitely come back to try the rest of their chicken options as well as their rice dishes!

Checked out this new spot near La Jolla and was pleasantly delighted. Quality food, good music, and great service We ordered the 12 piece of Saigon Style & the original with a side of rice and sweet potato fries They're soft open right now, but there was a buzz of people already so I anticipate this place will get busy Saigon style was super crisp and perfectly glaze. There was a good amount of garlic and tinge of spice and the glaze wasn't overwhelming or overly salty. Perfect! 10/10 Their classic was super crisp, but needed a touch of salt or seasoning but again, the crisp factor was great! Loved that both of the chickens weren't oily at all! Super yummy!

Place just opened 2 months ago --(6/19/24) visit) Great chicken!! Reasonable prices and friendly, quick service. 6 piece, $12 for chicken wings--tried beef bulgogi, kimchi fried rice, corn cheese. A Terra beer$9 for 16 oz. In a strip mall, a bit unexpected but great ambiance, great Asian cooking show runs while we were there! I would rank the chicken best, then kimchi fried rice, beef bulgogi and corn . But corn is side dish that is great mixed with rice and bites of bulgogi!! Definitely check it out.

I'm always a sucker for some Korean Fried Chicken so had to come check this place out when I heard about them! Their soft opening ended up getting delayed so we had to wait a bit longer, but it was worth it! ORIGINAL CRISPY WINGS: I usually like my KFC with lots of sauces, but my friends always like to order original to better judge the quality of their batter and chicken. After trying their original, I'd have to say their batter is probably one of the best I've tried. Super light and airy while still being extra crispy! And they managed to achieve this while still keeping the chicken juicy and moist. SAIGON STYLE WINGS: My favorite of all the chicken flavors we tried! It's not as spicy as I would have expected, seeing as there's a chili symbol next to it on the menu, but it still has a slight kick. Everyone in our party of 5 agreed this was their favorite out of the flavors we had! HONEYJAM WINGS: Mostly sweet and slightly savory. I'm more of a savory person (over sweet) but I still enjoyed this one! KIMCHI PASTA: If you like creamy pastas you'll be sure to love this! Super creamy and delicious, and the kimchi pieces were well-fermented for a strong flavor. ROSE TTEOKBOKKI: A slightly creamier version of your usual tteokbokki. Loved the flavor! Super saucy so you can also dip your wings in it if you want. Comes with a boiled egg too! FRENCH FRIES: Not much to say, just your standard French fries which are hard to mess up. Decently large portion size and came with ketchup and ranch for dipping. CORN CHEESE: Always fun when they torch the cheese in front of you! Personally, I like my corn cheese a little less sweet and without bell peppers, but I understand it's a different style of making the dish. Overall though it was still tasty with just the right ratio of corn to cheese! Overall, the perfect spot for some fried chicken and drinks! Open late too so it's a great spot to chill with friends. There's not too many KFC spots in La Jolla, so glad there's another option now with Kuljem!

Happy that this place is now open! Lots of seating available. There are 3 TVs on the left side, and a projector screen on the right side. The music playlist in the background (kpop and pop) is spot on to what I'd listen to at home so I was enjoying the vibe. Our server was very friendly and attentive. One of the cooks came by to ask us how the food was as well. The kimchi fried rice was delicious. The best I've had in comparison to kimchi fried rice served at Korean restaurants I've eaten at on Convoy. Although it is a fried dish, their kimchi still had crunch and flavor which made the dish even more enjoyable. We ordered 12 pieces of wings and split the flavors between Honeyjam and Saigon. For both sets of wings, the breading on the wings was not overbearing. The breading was still crispy and crunchy underneath all of the glaze. Of the two the Honeyjam was my favorite. The honey was sweet but not overpowering, and also had garlic notes. Near the end I was swirling the cabbage salad in the Honeyjam sauce. The Saigon sauce was a savory fish sauce glaze. Although the Saigon sauce is marked as spicy I would rank its spiciness level as a 1 out of 5. We ordered a Cass beer as our beverage. The next time I visit I'm looking forward to trying their Soju cocktails and bulgogi offerings.

I'm so glad a delicious and close KFC restaurant opened near by! These are honestly a lot of options for KFC thankfully around San Diego but this place is really good!! I love their honey jam flavor wings. I also tried their Saigon flavor which was also good. I had the soy garlic but I think this one was too salty and heavy on the soy for me. I also tried their corn cheese which was ok, nothing special. Their kimchi pasta was super good though! I throughly enjoyed it. The service is good and fast! Seating available inside and it's clean since it's new! Parking available in the lot.

Hi guys, just went here and this is the best chicken place i've been to, i love the owner, so kind and generous if anyone is in sd please come and try

We visited this place after hearing about it from several friends who went during its soft opening about a month ago, and it was definitely worth the trip. The chicken was fried to perfection, with a wonderfully crispy skin. I loved the honey jam flavor, which reminded me of my favorite honey butter chips, and the sweet and spicy wings had a great kick. The spicy tteokbokki was hot enough to make me sweat, which was a plus. The beef bulgogi fried rice was also delicious, with the beef marinade's flavor being spot on. The service was excellent; the servers were very sweet and personable. The food arrived quickly and was piping hot! It's great to have a spot like this in the neighborhood, and I'll definitely be returning.

Best food, service, and the owner is very nice. So glad they opened this in this little lot in UTC!

Finally got a chance to try this place out and it did not disappoint. The service was so good and our server gave us great recommendations. We got the honeyjam and sweet soy bone in chicken wings and they were so good. The chicken was so tender and juicy and the perfect amount of crunch. We also got their rose tteok-bokki and it was delicious, not too spicy. Lastly we got their corn cheese I love how they had bell peppers in them. Will definitely be coming back. Don't forgot to order some soju to go along with your meal.

Food was really good. We got the 6pc Saigon and 6pc Honey Jam wings. Absolutely fire. They weren't too sauced and were still juicy and flavorful on the inside. It was amazing paired with some Cass. We also got spicy tteokbokki and that complimented the spread really well. Ambiance was perfect and the music was great. Service was also good as well!! 10/10 would come bac

My daughter and I found a new Korean spot near UTC. The place was very spacious. Plenty of parking in the little shopping center. We had gone during there soft opening. We were only supposed to get a quick bite. But found this place. Glad we did cause it was so good. Tteokbokki and Korean fried chicken. Both had a lot of flavor. It was a good amount of food. The price wasn't too bad either.

Overall: I was worried about my experience about this place at first, given San Diego has some good Korean food already. However, I was shocked to now say that this probably has to one of my FAVORITE Korean BAR food places. No additional stressors from parking to services. +1 star FOOD: +1 star Spicy Tteokbokki: It was spicy but you kept wanting more of it Fried Gizzards: It was lightly breaded and the gizzards weren't too chewy. One of my pet peeves is when things are overly breaded and it gets hard to chew and this was NOT that. I loved dipping it in the Tteokbokki sauce! Wings: Fried outside and SUPER moist inside. CHECK! This one was salty. If you prefer something more sweet, get the Honey Jam ones Beer: It was refreshing and they gave us cold glasses. So refreshing to have with our bar food. LOCATION/AMBIENCE: It sits in a plaza with a lot of the other food options as well so you might miss it. However, there were a good amount of parking, even on Friday night at 6pm. I like that it's also a 3 minute drive to UTC which was a great walk afterwards! It felt like a family friendly bar restaurant. +1 star SERVICE: Although there was only one girl in the beginning and things were moving slow, by the middle of our meal there were two girls and our needs were def better met. +1 star PRICE: It's PRICY! I was worried that it would be expensive and not taste good but I was wrong. It is pricy but I think totally worth it for the vibe we were going for. +1 star

Came here during their soft opening. They just opened when we arrived. We got seated right away. Chicken wings were crispy and piping hot. Very delicious. Kimchi fried rice was pretty decent.

What a great spot. It has a really excellent vibe. TVs for sports, video game streams, KPop projected on a wall and nice comfortable seating. The food was great, happy hour beers are 8 bucks for a large and they have super friendly service. It's a new spot so people saying hello and helping out when you first walk in is super appreciated. Nice addition to the area and it stays open a little later which is sorely needed around here. Some of us boring UTC folks actually enjoy a beer after 9pm. Walking distance, good feel and lively...will be back for sure.

I was here on their soft opening day and let me tell you. This place is AMAZING. The chicken is marinated perfectly, skin is so thin and crispy, chicken meat is so juicy. Pretty sure this chicken is better than the fried chicken I've had in Korea. I had it with a Soju bomb and it was an amazing combo. Ambiance is so clean and cute, servers were so sweet and attentive, and food was so so good. I will say the chicken is the best thing to get here but everything else was very good too. Definitely will be coming back with more people soon. Love love love Honeyjam!

Came here during soft opening i think, we were one of the first people seated for the day. The interior is clean and feels spacey, we weren't squished next to another party. They played some kpop bangers and at a reasonable volume. For food we got the kimchi pasta, kimchi friend rice, stir fried gizzards, and the honeyjam wings. Kimchi pasta: 10/10, can't really taste the kimchi but I feel like the flavor balanced out well with the cream sauce. The cheese really pulled it together as well. I also liked the texture difference between the cabbage and pasta. Kimchi fried rice: 7/10, not bad but theres better out there. Couldn't really taste the kimchi. Stir fried gizzards: 7/10, not really my favorite but my family enjoyed it. Honeyjam wings: 8/10, the flavor was pretty good and the breading was crispy and not too thick. Would definitely go back for the kimchi pasta!

To be quite frank, this place needs serious work. We went during the soft opening and stood at the door for a good 10 minutes before I had to go up to one of the staff members at the counter and inquire about a wait time (since none of them felt obligated to approach us to inform us about their waitlist situation). As a former host, I fully understand how overwhelming it is to have a backed up kitchen and full house, but please ensure your staff is properly trained on basic greeting skills before opening your restaurant for business. It should not take awkward eye contact with half the staff and confused customers to finally get any assistance. Now onto the food! The most notable dish was the kimchi pasta. It was a little too saucy for my taste but my friends seemed to enjoy it. It was very rich, both in flavor and texture. The corn cheese was disappointing, as it came to us undercooked with the cheese unmelted. We were later informed that the kitchen was missing the torch needed to melt the cheese. The honeyjam chicken was very airy and didn't have enough seasoning, and it felt like I was eating fried batter at times. The meat itself was really greasy and was dripping with oil. Aside from the initial seating situation, the servers were really kind and made sure we were taken care of. I'm anticipating the growth of this business upon its official opening.

In a plaza kind of hard to miss you'll find Kuljem Chicken and Beer. When you enter you instantly get a feel of the ambiance. It has a moddy social feeling. A place where you could go to hang out with friends. They have a projector displaying kpop of course. They also have TVs displaying sp I ordered takeout so I had very limited interaction with the service. Their staff are very friendly and willing to provide recommendations. They serve a selection of alcohol and various Korean dishes. I got their 6 piece bone in Honey Jam Chicken wings. It was the crunchiest chicken I have ever had. The wings were flavorful with a buttery sweet taste. The also gave me Cole slaw which had spicy mayonnaise on top. The slaw balances out the intense flavor of the chicken very well. Once I finished I was full as their wings were a good size.

Always great food, the honey-flavoured chicken is excellent here, as is the kimchi fried rice. Staff are hard-working, and keep the orders coming and the spacious restaurant clean and comfortable. One of our go-to places close to us. Thank you especially to owner John for his continued kindness and great food!

A Flavorful Fusion Feast! I had the pleasure of attending the soft opening and it was an absolute delight! From the moment I stepped in, I was greeted with warm smiles and attentive service. The ambiance of the restaurant is inviting and cozy, perfect for a casual hangout with friends or a relaxed date night. Now, let's talk about the star of the show - the food! Oh, where do I begin? The Saigon Style chicken was a delightful fusion of flavors, with each bite bursting with deliciousness. The HoneyJam chicken was a sweet and savory treat that left me craving for more. And don't even get me started on the Crispy Fried chicken - it was perfectly crispy on the outside and juicy on the inside, everything you could ever want in fried chicken. But the surprises didn't stop there! The Spicy Rice cake (Tteokbokki) was a revelation, with just the right amount of kick to tantalize my taste buds without overwhelming them. Each dish was expertly prepared, showcasing the chef's dedication to quality and authenticity. Overall, my experience here tonight was nothing short of exceptional. Great service, mouthwatering dishes, and a charming ambiance - what more could you ask for? I'll definitely be coming back for more, and I highly recommend you do too! (Wifey loves it and we will definitely be back soon even though it is 2 hours away ;)

We really enjoyed our service and food over happy hour. I'd give 5 stars, but the ambience was really nothing to write home about. 4 experience over all and will be returning.

Yummy new place with Korean fried chicken as well as rosé rice cakes. Would say that the breading was falling off of the chicken a bit and I do overall prefer cross street chicken and beer, for chicken, but would certainly go back.

I have to bump this up to 5 stars. Nothing but great experiences here and arguably the best Korean fried chicken in SD! Service is always on point, and the K-Pop sets a nice, fun ambiance.

Everything was top-notch. Lots of pride of ownership going on here. Each of the different chickens we had was delicious. Definitely recommend it.

Came in here before 2 PM for a late lunch. Was not disappointed. The fried chicken in their signature honey/jam flavor was delicious, crispy, and satisfying. Also got the spicy tteokboki. Both super tasty. It was made pretty quickly. Store was clean, and service was friendly. There are a lot of good Korean fried chicken places around, but I would definitely recommend giving this place a try.Moreover, apparently this is their soft opening, so I can only imagine how great this place will be with a few more options. Excited to try some other Chicken flavors as well as fried rice next time.

Been here twice. The rose tteokbokki is my favorite non-chicken item. They're fast with orders, and the quality of the chicken is still rlly good. I'd recommend the Saigon style. It's got a good amount of heat. The batter here is thick and crunchy, but not too thick. The chicken also comes with a small bit of salad in addition to the pickled radish which is nice. On my second try I got the kimchi fried rice and 6 wings, which was enough for 2. The fried rice was a nice size and heated up rlly well the next day :)