I felt honored to be invited to participate in a soft opening event for Krave Asian Fusion. Although their menu is heavily invested in various Korean Fried Chicken dishes, there are also noodle, burger, fish, and vegan options available (although I didn’t find any Gluten Free items).
Executive Chef and owner Will Chen was present and was careful to explain that this isn’t his first launch, but rather an expansion of his initial footprint first planted in Orange County, California (where his fried chicken has been recognized as award winning).
Both the number of courses and portions at this event were generous. Each of the chicken dishes featured very distinctive flavors with my favorite being the “Chinese Chili” offering. It was covered in a sweet and crispy shell with a tender and flavorful chicken center that reminded me of the Lemon Chicken dishes that I’ve enjoyed elsewhere. A close second for me was the “Spicy” version. I sampled it immediately after the “Mango Habanero” (which was pretty spicy and created apprehension about the “spicy” dish that was to follow). Surprisingly I found the “spicy” dish to be less so than the “habanero” dish.
To round out the chicken dishes I also sampled the “Soy Chili” (which I found crispy, but not as sweet as the “Chinese Chili”), “Lemon Pepper” (which was a bit salty for my palette), and the “Taiwan 5 Spice” (which had a very thick and crunchy shell).
Their other offerings included “Taiwanese Garlic Noodles” (the garlic smell was wonderful and the noodles were light, but buttery, possibly because they were sautéed in olive oil) and the “Loaded Kogi Fries” (the Sriracha Cheddar Sauce was a 2/10 on the hotness scale while the Jalapeños achieved the high score of 6/10).
If you enjoy Korean Fried Chicken, Krave is worth your time.
And that’s…Henry’s Take.
Krave Asian Fusion
6021 Innovation Way
Carlsbad, California
(442) 287-8054
