Wednesday, January 1, 2020

Bonchon


Located at 607 South Elm Street in Downtown Greensboro, Bonchon specializes in Korean fried chicken and also offers other Korean eats. The restaurant is open for lunch and dinner daily. Drinks (including sake specials), lunch specials, online ordering, and delivery are available.

As a chain in close proximity to a plethora of eateries on Elm, Bonchon needed to be something special to have a chance at survival. Fortunately, it is. Delicious food, friendly service, and a surprising number of options make Bonchon a must for downtown dining.

Ironically housed in a former antique shop, Bonchon is bright, clean, modern, and inviting. There is plenty of seating around the bar and no shortage of conventional tables as well. One caveat: the latter come with low chairs that are not particularly comfortable.

While Korean fried chicken is the marquee attraction here, Bonchon offers quite a bit more. Rice bowls, tacos, sliders, salads, and more can be found here too. While Korean cuisine is well-represented (bulgogi and bimimbap are just the start), the fusion/pan-Asian offerings bring a strong dumpling game including takoyaki (Japanese breaded fried octopus poppers).

For our first visit, my wife and I split an order of strips (half soy garlic, half sweet crunch) with radish and an order of pork buns (pork belly, cucumber, slaw, spicy mayo, and sauce). Given that the chicken is made to order, the food didn’t take terribly long to arrive.



Both dishes were hits. While the chicken was perhaps dryer than it would have been were it in wing form, it was nicely breaded and crunchy without any greasiness. The pork buns were tender and practically inhalable. All of the sauces delivered big flavors, but none were overpowering, and the radish provided a cool, fresh counterpoint.

Everything proved to be surprisingly affordable. Ten-piece strips ran $12, three pork buns were $10, and the quantities were filling.

Some restaurants can leave you wondering if you’ll be back. With Bonchon, the only things left to wonder are when and what to try next.

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