Boka

Cuisine: Korean
Location(s): 9 St Marks Pl b/w 2nd & 3rd Ave, 104 John St & 207 w 38th St b/w 7th & 8th Ave
Phone #: (212) 228 2887
Method(s): Delivery
Price Range: $$
Food: B+
Value: B+
Service/Atmosphere: N/A
Overall Rating: B+

From the geniuses that brought you Bonchon Chicken comes their first downtown location, Boka Chicken. Korean Fried Chicken is another big fad in the past year, progressing from being a little known snack to a midtown lunchtime food for the masses (with the long waits that come along with that). For this reason, I opted to get delivery from the St. Marks Boka location to avoid any of the hassle associated with waiting in a stressful line with a bunch of people in suits.

What I liked
As an appetizer my roommate and I had the Emperor Rice Cakes ($14), with korean rice cakes, skirt beef, vegetables and their special house golden sauce. These rice cakes are good, but not in the least bit comparable to the Momofuku rice cakes, so I was definitely spoiled by Mr. Chang in that regard. Either way, this is a tasty appetizer that is definitely recommended.

What Could Use Work
They surprisingly have a pretty extensive sushi menu, but the 2 rolls we ordered left something to be desired. The dumplings were nothing special either.

Killed It!
It is obvious that the legendary Korean Fried Chicken is going to end up in this section. If you are not familiar with this dish in general, it is basically regular fried chicken, but with a delicate crust, addictive seasoning and moist meat. From what I've heard, Bonchon serves relatively authentic chicken (comparable to what they have in Korea) and if this is true then the Koreans truly know what they are doing. This stuff is absolutely delicious. Every bite you take you hope it never ends (yes it's that good). The two choices of flavors are soy garlic or spicy, and both are excellent. Beware of the spicy as it truly packs an intense heat that will stick with you long after you've finished your last bite.