KIMCHI RED - ALPHARETTA — Restaurant in Alpharetta

Apparently, they have the "best fried chicken in the nation" according to Yelp so had to go check it out.

I think I went to their original location in Alpharetta. It's a small counter service type place. Seating is first come first serve unless you have reservations.

Got the chef's special which is the boneless fried chicken for 2 with the jeonju sauce, fries, and rice.

Rice was just normal. Fries were good and crispy but could have used more seasoning and salt. The main dish of the chicken was good also but I have no idea if it's the "best fried chicken in the nation"?

As a 1st timer, here is what I would ask mgmt:

If most of your chicken dishes are for 2 people, you should definitely allow to get 2 flavors/sauces 50/50 instead of having to choose one (having the fried chicken mixed in with the sauce). You technically have something like this on the menu but the fried chicken doesn't come mixed in with the sauce but rather gets served as plain fried chicken and then you get a small container of sauce. That option is just not good enough. I would like to try multiple flavors but because of your restrictions on the menu and not being able to be flexible (by allowing me to get the fried chicken 50/50 mixed in with 2 different sauces, I just had to settle for the jeonju.

You should really offer to let us try the different sauces so we know which one we would like. You can do this by offering little samples in a small plastic container or something.

I really think if you found a way to be more flexible and developed a way to really work on what I mentioned in points 1 and 2 above, you would actually increase sales because people would probably order multiple chicken dishes instead of just one.

Also, I understand that Korean fried chicken is usually done with dark meat but is it possible to use white breast meat instead?

I'm not trying to be critical but just wanted you to hear from a first time guest and some of the things I think would really help going forward especially being able to order "half orders mixed in with different sauces"

With that said, it was good and I definitely want to come back and try some of the other...

Hidden Gem in the heart of Alpharetta! I SEE WHY THIS PLACE HAS HIGH RATINGS AND GREAT REVIEWS! My girlfriend and I were searching for the best authentic food nearby and ended up coming across KIMCHI RED! She told me to take a look and see what I thought about going to get dinner at this restaurant, so I decided to do what I always do first, check the ratings as well as the reviews! First thing that came to mind was….WOW…4.9 stars with over 300 Reviews ! 😱 Started to dig deeper into the reviews and filtered for the most recent comments ! As I was conducting my review, I saw most of the comments were consistent with 4.5 to 5 star ratings as well as saying the best food they had !

As you can see in the pictutes, we decided to get the Honey Butter Pepper (Crispy Fried Chicken exploding with buttery, peppered flavor). This was one of the top recommendations by the restaurant and oh boy, THEY DID NOT DISAPPOINT! Side note, the employees have a great personality and make you feel very welcomed right off the back! Second, it seems like they bought a whole pack of chicken from the store, seasoned it, cooked and it gave it to their customers! Truly phenomenal! The sauce and seasoning on the chicken was the best! Not too much and not too little ! It didn’t feel like I was eating just sauce ! Once I took a bite, the flavors of the seasoning and the tender white chicken filled my mouth with excitement! If my taste buds could talk, it would say, Where has this chicken been and why haven’t I tasted this before?” Also, all of the chicken in the box barely had any bones on them ! It was phenomenal to eat chicken leg, breasts etc without thinking about having more bone than meat!

Also, the side japche noodles was amazing! I repeat, this place will not disappoint you at all! Put this on your list of food places when you visit Alpharetta !

update: The only reason I gave this restaurant a 4/5 for atmosphere is due to the space! The place is becoming so popular that it needs to expand! But other than that, phenomenal! As of July 2023, Kimich Red has been open for 9 months and I can definitely say they have been crushing it in a short...

I never write reviews but I’ve eaten here more times than I can count over the past year—after eating at Kimchi Red again for the umpteenth time recently, I finally felt compelled to write about why I keep coming back to this place.

The first and most obvious reason is Kimchi Red’s signature fried chicken. I’ve tried Korean fried chicken in several spots all around Georgia over the years and I’m still convinced that Kimchi Red makes it best. I’m not sure how these guys came up with their recipe and frying technique, but every time I’ve had a batch of their chicken it came out perfectly breaded, seasoned, and fried. Crispy outside, juicy and tender inside. 맛있어요

The second reason is definitely the service and hospitality. I usually just go to restaurants expecting to sit down, eat then leave, but here I feel treated more like a family friend than an ordinary customer. The managers and staff are always very lively, friendly, and fun to talk to—they greet everyone with smiles and care deeply about providing the most authentic experience of Korean cuisine you can find in Georgia.

This brings me to my final reason why I keep coming back: if you’re not sure what to eat, it’s going to be quite good anyway. I could tell that every traditional Korean dish here, from BBQ jeyuk pork to kimchi jjigae stew to tteokbokki, is freshly made in-house. Intense flavors, wholesome ingredients. Strong complementary tastes seem integral to the Korean approach to food too. Whether it’s sweet and spicy or tangy and umami, this place nails that satisfying balance and contrast every time. If you want a taste of this experience through their chicken, I highly recommend the Spicy Jeonju and Rose Chon sauces. These recipes will make you wish you can taste them for the first time more than once.

To anyone who does decide to visit Kimchi Red upon reading my review, you will most likely end up coming back month after month just like me. Family businesses fueled by passion and genuine love for people and food are hard to come across these days, and the crew at Kimchi Red deserves...