Kulpi Chicken

Closter is now the latest town to have its very own Korean Fried Chicken franchise. Kulpi Chicken is a chain from Korea (according to staff, the first one in the US), where all the standard practices of Korean Fried Chicken apply: fresh chicken cooked to order (times can take up to 20 minutes), unique soy and hot sauces uncommon to traditional American cuisine and daikon radish as a cooling device (similar to the celery or carrot sticks provided with Buffalo wings).

As Peter Genovese from the Star-Ledger mentioned in his Korean Fried chicken showdown in January, while there are similar places around NJ, the Korean Fried Chicken phenomenon is fairly contained to Bergen County (and parts of NYC of course). It might be the larger influx of Koreans living in the area, but whatever it is no one here is complaining.

Menu Board

The main chicken menu is separated into two sections of Wings Drums and Chicken Balls. Wings – Drums is traditional bone-in pieces of the bird fried with the choice of four sauces: Soy Garlic, Soy Hot, Honey Spicy and Hot Barbeque. The Chicken Balls option are more chunks than balls and come with three sauce choices: Honey Sweet, Honey Spicy and Hot Barbeque.

2 lbs of Chicken Balls (Left: Hot Barbeque/ Right: Honey Sweet)

Closeup of Honey Sweet Balls

While there are boneless chicken options at other Korean Chicken restaurants, this is the first that anyone at Boozy Burbs has seen them not be like traditional chicken tenders or nuggets. All of the pieces did have skin, but were in completely different non-uniform shapes. Mixed in with each set of chicken were rice cake that were in tube form that had been fried and mixed with sauce as well.

Closeup of Hot Barbeque (notice rice cake in middle)

Kulpi Chicken 211 Closter Dock Road, Closter, NJ (201) 767-4359