Big Taiwanese Fried Chicken Chain Opens First NYC Outpost Next Week

A Taiwanese fried chicken chain — akin to a KFC of the country — is opening its first NYC location next week, a fast food spot that will also serve bubble tea from popular chain Kung Fu Tea.

TKK Fried Chicken is opening in Gramercy at 115 East 23rd St., east of Park Avenue South, next Friday, November 30th. The company has been in Taiwan for about 44 years and has more than 60 locations there, plus two in Shanghai. This first NYC location is a partnership with Kung Fu Tea, which already has some two dozen locations in the five boroughs.

This location will have options including fried chicken, chicken tenders, wings, and a fried chicken sandwich — available in original, mild, or spicy. Fries here are curly, and biscuits, cheese curds, and shishito peppers also come as sides. This concoction called kwa kwa bao, which is sticky rice with mushrooms and pork that’s then deep fried in chicken skin, is available here as well. Because it’s a Kung Fu collab, that chain’s bubble tea selection will be on deck, too. See the full menu here.

The variety of fried chicken in New York continues to proliferate, with the recent opening of Filipino chain Jollibee’s first Manhattan outpost and more and more Korean fried chicken restaurants, not to mention the existing soul food renditions across the city.

And the company comes as Taiwanese food bursts across New York. Besides the growing number of bubble tea chain outposts serving Taiwanese snacks like popcorn chicken, everything from homey traditional noodle shops to chic Taiwanese restaurants with playful twists on the cuisine have been popping up in the last few years.

TKK Fried Chicken opens on Friday, November 30th. For the first three days, people who buy a combo meal will get a free drink, and on Saturday, the first 50 people in line will get free combo meals once a month for a year.