Our second destination for our “food hunt” is Bonchon, a South Korean-based fried chicken franchise located at the second level front veranda of SM City Baguio. According to Wikipedia, "the first BonChon Chicken restaurant opened in 2002 in Busan, Korea. TheUSA currently has the second most locations with 18 BonChon restaurants. The first location in the USA was in Leonia, New Jersey. It later spread to California, New York, and Virginia.There are 12 locations in South Korea, 20 in the Philippines, 2 in Thailand, and 4 in Indonesia. There are also many new locations pending in different countries..."
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| Bonchon SM City Baguio opened March 27th of this year. |
I’m not “into” Korean food but because we want to try one of the “newest” food establishments here in Baguio City , I didn’t have any option but to go there. Fortunately, and to my great surprise, I enjoyed my stay and the food completely satisfied my taste buds! Haha!
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| Yours truly at Bonchon SM City Baguio. |
Unlike our previous food hunt, Leah and Aaron weren't able to join us. Arjay, on the other hand, wasn't aware that yesterday was our hunt.
Obviously, I liked the place even though it's a bit crowded. The waiters are also friendly and our orders "just" arrived on time. I also enjoyed my Crispy Squid. Same thing for mouth-watering Mini Ko-yo.
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| For Dinner: Oriental Crsipy Chicken Salad (Php125), Crispy Chicken Bulgogi meal (Php145), Crispy Squid (Php145), Blueberry Torte (Php75) and Mini Ko-yo (Php35) |
All I can say is I will recommend Bonchon SM City Baguio to my friends and relatives. By the way, because Leah, Aaron, Ces and Arjay weren't able to join us, Theresa is my "food reviewer/commentator" for today. Here's how she described her overall Bonchon "eatscapade" experience:
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| That's Theresa. I owe her some of the photos here. Unfortunately, I couldn't upload photos from my iPhone so watch out for the additional photos anytime soon. |
"The first time I tried to eat in Chicken Bonchon was with my sister last March. Since it is new in Baguio , curiosity strikes. I learned that it is a Korean fast food so the more I got excited – getting the hang on watching Koreanovelas. Since the name of the establishment is Chicken Bonchon I say don’t you dare miss to taste the chicken? Almost everyone loves chicken, who wouldn’t agree? That being said I tried the drumstick/thigh rice box meal. The taste is different compared to other fast food whose main dish is chicken however the serving is not that huge. You can choose either hot & spicy or soy garlic. The lady at the counter was nice that she advised that I can order combination. I like the way they cooked the chicken but it’s not that really “wow!” What satisfied my taste buds was the Ko-yo yogurt ice cream. I tried the Bannoffe pie! It is rich with caramel sauce topped with fresh bananas. The sweetness blends well with the somewhat sour taste of the yogurt. Wait there is more; I love the graham pie crust that is well matched with the yogurt. I told myself if the 2nd food hunt will push through then definitely the yogurt ice cream would not be missed.
"Regarding the place, it is always packed and the area is just small. The ambience is not that really good. It is just plain red and white. You can see a lot of chairs at the side but no tables. You need to wait at least 15 minutes for your food to be served. Not good for people who are always on the go. For the 2nd food hunt, I opted to try the Chicken Bulgogi. The chicken is flavourful, I think because of the ginger but still serving is tiny. The Oriental Chicken Salad lacks the dressing but I like the fried noodles in it. Well of course the most anticipated is the yogurt ice cream. I tried the Blueberry Torte and this never failed me! Since you will order and pay at the counter, you can ask them to serve the ice cream once you are done with your meal.
"Overall, this place is a must try. I would rate it as B," Theresa further added.
Bonchon Baguio is located at second floor Breezeway Terrace at SM City Baguio. Visit them now and experience a South Korean dish in the City of Pines.
Unfortunately, I couldn't upload photos from my iPhone for some reasons that I can't figure out so watch out for the additional photos anytime soon
