NaruOne Korean Restaurant - Sydney CBD - Sydney, Australia.

NaruOne Korean Restaurant 

NaruOne Korean Restaurant has been said by many to be the place that serves one of the best Korean fried chicken in Sydney. That only meant one thing, I had to try  it.

Located in what is known as Korea town in Sydney, this restaurant is hidden away on the lowest floor of a building on busy Pitt Street. Though visible to the eye on street level, a blink and you might miss it.

Down the set of stairs and there is the restaurant.

The pictures outside the restaurant just looked mouthwatering and from that, I wanted to try everything.

The restaurant feels cosy and lively with minimal decor and bright lighting.

This place has always been on my list of eats but we never found the right time to come here. That dragged on for a year or so and eventually we made it last month. I was able to try out their famous fried chicken not once but twice within a span of a few weeks.

We came on a Friday night on both occasions for dinner. One thing that differed greatly between visits was the waiting time. The first time we were here we came at 6pm and didn't have to wait, as there were many vacant tables at that time. The second time at 6:30pm and it was a full house with a queue to follow. We had to get a ticket and wait for around 30 minutes or so. So do get in early as they don't take bookings and tables fill up fast.

These colder months are making me crave for this delectable fried chicken which won't be too good for the waistline but as one might say, oh wells.

On our first visit, we had boneless chicken and on the second visit we had chicken with bones. The latter being my personal preference as things tend to taste better with bones.

The original 'Fried Chicken ($33.00)' has bones and eating it can be a messy experience but hey, everyone else there is using their fingers to eat the chicken. A whole plate of crunchy, crispy and golden fried chicken.

The coating they use is very similar to the KFC hot and spicy chicken with the exception of the spiciness. It's thin and lightly seasoned but packed with a whole lot of crunch. The chicken is juicy and isn't too greasy on the fingers. You can't stop at one as it's that tasty.

The 'Half and Half Boneless Fried Chicken Gangjung and Boneless Fried Chicken Gangjung with Sweet and Spicy Sauce ($35.00)' is for those who don't want to get their hands messy. There is a whole lot more flour to chicken ratio compared to the regular fried chicken but it's still very much the same.

The sweet and spicy sauce isn't very spicy and scales more towards sweet. I do, however prefer the original as the over load of sauce makes the chicken go soft if you leave it sitting for too long.

It's best eaten with the picked radish, cucumber and carrot.

I've found that the Korean fried chicken in Sydney is different to what I've had in Korea. In Korea, the chicken is coated in a different batter and fried using a process called 'double frying' as mentioned in my previous posts. I'm not sure whether they use this process here but the chicken though different tasting, is still amazing.

The best part about dining at a Korean restaurant is the Banchan. The side dishes that are served here are the best I've tried so far. I really liked the fish cake pieces and the spicy kimchi.

The 'Seafood and Leek Pancake' was huge. Placed on an extra large plate, this thin and slightly crispy pancake was pretty flavoursome. It's filled with a lot of leeks and assorted seafood. It did get soft and chewy very quickly though.

'Bimimbap ($14.00)' is a signature Korean dish and is basically mixed rice, vegetables and meat of some sort in a hot stone bowl. The version here consists of rice, mushroom, bean sprouts, cucumber, carrots and an raw egg. This is all mixed together over a sizzling stone pot and the end result is yummy mixed rice. I didn't like the big heads on the bean sprouts as it gave it a weird taste, so I didn't have much of this but the others enjoyed it.

The chilli pepper paste is served on the side if you prefer it not to be mixed in.

The 'Ginseng Chicken Soup ($13.00)' was unfortunately a let down. We chose the half chicken and thankfully we did as it was not like the one I had in Korea. The one here used the regular sized chicken. It didn't look like the picture and didn't have the taste of ginseng. It tasted more like a normal chicken soup. It's usually served with rice stuffed in the chicken but we requested for it to be served separately.

The 'Korean Tap Beer 300cc ($5.00)' is a local beer made in Korea. All beer tastes the same to me...

Although many reviews have stated that the food here is mediocre, menu over priced and  service is bad, we didn't experience any of this both times we were here. As we were sharing, we found the prices to be quite reasonable. Service wise, it isn't the best but they weren't rude and food was brought to us quickly and anything that we requested for was attended to immediately. Most of the items we had were delicious and I would definitely come back again when craving for authentic Korean dishes, specially the fried chicken.

Korean fried chicken restaurants have started to pop up around Sydney as it becomes more popular with the locals such as the neighbouring Sparrow's Mill and the upcoming Mad Fo'Chicks in Chinatown. The question of which fried chicken reigns supreme is debatable.

Where?
375 Pitt St
Sydney NSW 2000
Australia

Phone no: 02 9261 2680

Opening Hours
Open 7 Days a Week
Sunday to Monday: 11:00am - 10:00pm
Tuesday to Saturday: 11:00am - 3:00am

Website
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Naruone-Korean-Restaurant