First Glance: Chicken Suutak's, Gulou
Korean chicken joint Chicken Sutaak's had people queuing up traveling especially to Wangjing, but now us snobbish Second-Ring-Road hungry chicken-fans don't have to travel beyond the Fourth Ring Road anymore: Chicken Sutaak's has opened up on Gulou Dongdajie taking over Furnace's spot (but leaving the drinks menu the same) in close proximity to the likes of Dada and Temple, aka, some of Beijing's hungriest late-night crowds.
The entrance is confusing if not somewhat intimidating: with 15 people walking around doing things but nobody acknowleding the fact that somebody just entered, it's hard to tell who works here and who is just a friend of a friend chilling eating some crawfish (not even chicken).
Upstairs seating is adequate and reminiscent of the Furnace days: we were seated next to some Christmas-style angels and a shisha pipe, and the walls are filled with faux-vintage items. There's a tiny Foosball table, and some other board games if your dining companion's chat is sub-par.
To the chicken: we tried the soy sauce fried boneless chicken (RMB 45 for the small portion) and the original flavor fried boneless chicken (RMB 45 for the small portion). Both came quickly and were gone quickly: the chicken here really is awesome. The original chicken was tender and came with Korean-style mayonnaise and an unidentifiable powder that even the waiter wasn't able to identify. We think it was MSG, either way, it was great. The soy sauce chicken was covered in plenty of slightly-sweet soy sauce, but wasn't too sickly. This was our favorite chicken.
As for other dishes, don't get the bibimbap (RMB 30). The sizzling pot wasn't sizzling, nor was it hot in the slightest, and there was not enough sauce. The rice was either overcooked or the wrong type of rice, making for a sad bowl of sticky rice with sliced carrots and a fried egg. The hand-pulled noodles with fried new year cake (RMB 45) was only average – the noodles were definitely not hand-pulled and the niangao was lacking in taste.
However, the chicken itself makes this a good spot: goodbye trips to Wangjing to satisfy chicken pangs. Pop by with a friend for some great chicken and light chat, or come in a larger group either before or after a visit to any bar and/or club along Gulou Dongdajie, and get the larger portions of chicken (RMB 80).
Chicken Suutak's
Daily 10.30am-4am. 98 Gulou Dongdajie, Dongcheng District (no phone)
东城区鼓楼东大街98号
More stories by this author here.
Email: margauxschreurs@truerun.com
Instagram: s.xuagram
Photos: Margaux Schreurs
