Kuljem Chicken & Beer

In a plaza kind of hard to miss you'll find Kuljem Chicken and Beer. When you enter you instantly get a feel of the ambiance. It has a moddy social feeling. A place where you could go to hang out with friends. They have a projector displaying kpop of course. They also have TVs displaying sp I ordered takeout so I had very limited interaction with the service. Their staff are very friendly and willing to provide recommendations. They serve a selection of alcohol and various Korean dishes. I got their 6 piece bone in Honey Jam Chicken wings. It was the crunchiest chicken I have ever had. The wings were flavorful with a buttery sweet taste. The also gave me Cole slaw which had spicy mayonnaise on top. The slaw balances out the intense flavor of the chicken very well. Once I finished I was full as their wings were a good size.

I absolutely love Korean fried chicken, and this place is one of the best Korean fried chicken restaurants in San Diego! Definitely try this place out. The chicken has the perfect crunch and great amount of sauce/flavor. I got the 6 pc Saigon Style and 6 pc HoneyJam wings and I would absolutely get it again and try out all the other flavors. The store is nicely decorated and has tv screens of K-Pop performances and even Valorant streams. The service was quick and everyone working was nice!

I really hope they do well because their Korean fried chicken (KFC) is so good! It's a little hidden in a plaza most people probably wouldn't be familiar with unless they live in the area. But it's very accessible to UCSD students so here's to hoping they get the attention they deserve! We dined in during their soft opening and the food came out really quick, which could be attributed to the fact that we were one of the few groups inside. The staff were efficient and friendly and would check-in on us often. We also met one of the co-owners and he was very receptive to our suggestions...overall, a really nice guy! French Fries: The thickness is very similar to McDonald's fries but I wish they were a little saltier. I guess it's better to add less in case other guests are more averse to salt. Other than that, a good appetizer/snack to share amongst the group. Corn Cheese: Their style of corn cheese wasn't what our group expected. There were bell peppers mixed in and it was a lot sweeter than other restaurants. The co-owner explained that the recipe was inspired by what you could find in Korea. Not really my preference but it's great that they draw ideas from traditional recipes. Kimchi Pasta: A group favorite! Creamy kimchi sauce with bacon and onion slices. Has a slight kick but if you're sensitive to spicy, you might feel it more. Rose Tteokbokki: I actually liked the creamy sauce from the Tteokbokki more than the Kimchi Pasta but this was definitely spicy. I had to take a couple of breaks but it's more manageable because of the sweetness of the sauce. Dip your chicken wings or add some of the sauce to the kimchi pasta for some flavor enhancements! Korean Fried Chicken Wings: If you purchase the 12 piece, you can split it into two flavors! I really like their KFC because of the batter. It's light but crunchy and the sauce isn't smothering. We tried Original Crispy, HoneyJam, Sweet Soy, and Saigon Style. And out of these flavors, Saigon Style was the winner. Sweet from the fish sauce but also slightly spicy. The spicy isn't very consistent though because I had a couple wings that weren't at all and one that left my tongue burning. Kuljem has become one of my favorite KFC spots in San Diego and I'll definitely be back to try everything else!

I first stumbled across this new place on ig reels and was super curious (esp about the kimchi pasta)!! My friends and I ordered the kimchi pasta, spicy rice cake, kimchi fried rice, and some wings. The food was solid and the portions were generous.I would say the kimchi pasta was pretty good, but it would've been even better it was a bit more flavorful and creamier (maybe some cheese?)! The spicy rice cake's sauce was yummy but I think the rice cake texture could've been softer! I would also love to see this place add some stews/soup to the menu~Overall I had a really good time here! The workers were super friendly and one even offered free soju to us. That was super sweet and made my night!! I can see this place being a fun and convenient late night spot for nearby students.

Overall: I was worried about my experience about this place at first, given San Diego has some good Korean food already. However, I was shocked to now say that this probably has to one of my FAVORITE Korean BAR food places. No additional stressors from parking to services. +1 starFOOD: +1 starSpicy Tteokbokki: It was spicy but you kept wanting more of itFried Gizzards: It was lightly breaded and the gizzards weren't too chewy. One of my pet peeves is when things are overly breaded and it gets hard to chew and this was NOT that. I loved dipping it in the Tteokbokki sauce!Wings: Fried outside and SUPER moist inside. CHECK! This one was salty. If you prefer something more sweet, get the Honey Jam onesBeer: It was refreshing and they gave us cold glasses. So refreshing to have with our bar food.LOCATION/AMBIENCE: It sits in a plaza with a lot of the other food options as well so you might miss it. However, there were a good amount of parking, even on Friday night at 6pm. I like that it's also a 3 minute drive to UTC which was a great walk afterwards! It felt like a family friendly bar restaurant. +1 starSERVICE: Although there was only one girl in the beginning and things were moving slow, by the middle of our meal there were two girls and our needs were def better met. +1 starPRICE: It's PRICY! I was worried that it would be expensive and not taste good but I was wrong. It is pricy but I think totally worth it for the vibe we were going for. +1 star

Came here during their soft opening. Menu is limited. Lots of tables! Limited staff so far but they do their best to be attentive. Parking lot is shared with other businesses and easy to find parking. We ordered the stir fried chicken gizzards, chicken wings and kimchi pasta. For wings we got half Saigon style and half sweet soy. Saigon style flavor was on point, would definitely order these again!! I personally wasn't a fan of the sweet soy. Batter on the wings was great and had a nice crunch. We've been on the hunt for a Korean spot that serves legit stir fried chicken gizzards like we've had in the Bay and sadly this spot ain't it. Portion isn't very big, gizzards were missing flavor, the garlic they used had no garlic flavor, and bell peppers were just filler. They also served a hot sauce for the gizzards (they said it was tapatio) and it was terrible with it. Would not order these again. :(Everyone in our group liked the kimchi pasta. If you like creamy pasta then you'll like this dish. Overall would come back for the chicken wings and would try a few other dishes.

Avid Korean fried chicken fans, my Hubby and I decided to check this place out.We came at opening time Saturday, and for our entire dining period there were only 4 tables of people eating--so no need to worry about wait times. Prices are very reasonable. Decor is modern and clean.We got a 12 piece chicken wings half Saigon Style and half HoneyJam. The wings came with sides of pickled radish and cabbage slaw. The cabbage slaw had so much dressing for our liking. Next time we'll ask for no dressing or on the side.HoneyJam wings - very crispy and good honey flavor. Personally not my favorite honey wings because they are tad too sweet forward. I prefer more balance with salty and garlic flavor.Saigon style wings - our favorite flavor of the 2. It has a nice balance of tangy, salty, with a small spicy kick. I would definitely get these again.Kimchi pasta - this was bomb!!! And so glad we shared this because it is too rich for 1 person-- super cheesy, creamy, smoky bacon, and delicious flavor. I highly recommend this. It was the best kimchi pasta I've had in SoCal.The 2 servers were soooo kind!I watched them go above and beyond for another customer who asked that they put on a specific sports game on one of their many large TVs. They tried for 10-15 minutes to find the channel for her, in between taking care of all the other customers food orders.Parking is easy and free in large spacious parking lot.

I'm always a sucker for some Korean Fried Chicken so had to come check this place out when I heard about them! Their soft opening ended up getting delayed so we had to wait a bit longer, but it was worth it! ORIGINAL CRISPY WINGS: I usually like my KFC with lots of sauces, but my friends always like to order original to better judge the quality of their batter and chicken. After trying their original, I'd have to say their batter is probably one of the best I've tried. Super light and airy while still being extra crispy! And they managed to achieve this while still keeping the chicken juicy and moist. SAIGON STYLE WINGS: My favorite of all the chicken flavors we tried! It's not as spicy as I would have expected, seeing as there's a chili symbol next to it on the menu, but it still has a slight kick. Everyone in our party of 5 agreed this was their favorite out of the flavors we had! HONEYJAM WINGS: Mostly sweet and slightly savory. I'm more of a savory person (over sweet) but I still enjoyed this one! KIMCHI PASTA: If you like creamy pastas you'll be sure to love this! Super creamy and delicious, and the kimchi pieces were well-fermented for a strong flavor. ROSE TTEOKBOKKI: A slightly creamier version of your usual tteokbokki. Loved the flavor! Super saucy so you can also dip your wings in it if you want. Comes with a boiled egg too! FRENCH FRIES: Not much to say, just your standard French fries which are hard to mess up. Decently large portion size and came with ketchup and ranch for dipping. CORN CHEESE: Always fun when they torch the cheese in front of you! Personally, I like my corn cheese a little less sweet and without bell peppers, but I understand it's a different style of making the dish. Overall though it was still tasty with just the right ratio of corn to cheese!Overall, the perfect spot for some fried chicken and drinks! Open late too so it's a great spot to chill with friends. There's not too many KFC spots in La Jolla, so glad there's another option now with Kuljem!

Food was really good. We got the 6pc Saigon and 6pc Honey Jam wings. Absolutely fire. They weren't too sauced and were still juicy and flavorful on the inside. It was amazing paired with some Cass. We also got spicy tteokbokki and that complimented the spread really well. Ambiance was perfect and the music was great. Service was also good as well!! 10/10 would come bac

Checked out this new spot near La Jolla and was pleasantly delighted. Quality food, good music, and great service We ordered the 12 piece of Saigon Style & the original with a side of rice and sweet potato fries They're soft open right now, but there was a buzz of people already so I anticipate this place will get busy Saigon style was super crisp and perfectly glaze. There was a good amount of garlic and tinge of spice and the glaze wasn't overwhelming or overly salty. Perfect! 10/10Their classic was super crisp, but needed a touch of salt or seasoning but again, the crisp factor was great! Loved that both of the chickens weren't oily at all! Super yummy!