Doran Chicken at Somerset: Newest Korean fried chicken brand in town, with Daegu-style dishes

Korean fried chicken brands are aplenty in Singapore, but a Korean fried chicken brand from the city of Daegu, with Daegu-inspired dishes, too? That’s probably a first on our sunny shores.

The shop in question, Doran Chicken, first began as Daegu Chicken in Gumi city (a city near Daegu), started by Korean native Shin Jae-wook in 2010. 

In 2012, Jae-wook later moved to Osan city, near Seoul, and renamed the brand to Doran Chicken, operating from the city up until he moved to Singapore this year.

That’s more than a decade serving up fried chicken, so you best believe Jae-wook knows what he’s doing when it comes to fried chicken. 

The name “Doran” is adapted from the Korean phrase “doran doran”, which refers to friendly conversation.

It appears that Doran Chicken’s new outlet at Orchard Gateway is encouraging just that, with its spacious layout, good mix of seating and even private rooms. 

Introducing Daegu cuisine

Jae-wook tells HungryGoWhere that he first visited our sunny shores 10 years ago with his wife, Jang Harin. Impressed by the clean streets, friendly people and strong business environment, he says: “It made me hope to live in Singapore one day.”

And moved to Singapore he did — this time bringing a slice of Daegu with him.

He explains: “Daegu food is not well-known in Singapore, so I wanted to introduce my favourite dishes to Singaporeans.”

If you haven’t had the chance to try Daegu cuisine, Jae-wook says that it is actually very similar to Sichuan fare, where the flavours are generally spicy and strong.

Trying Doran Chicken Singapore’s menu

From the time we arrived at Doran Chicken’s space, it was clear that the duo — Jae-wook and Harin — were very meticulous.

I later realised that, not only do they fry everything upon order, but they also hand-brush every piece of chicken that leaves their kitchen — except the plain ones, of course — ensuring each piece of chicken is well and evenly coated with its signature sauces.

There are four types of chicken flavours you can get at Doran Chicken Singapore: Dalcom spicy (sweet-spicy), Volcano spicy, 1978 soy sauce, and original. You can get them in boneless form (from S$24.80 for half a chicken), or as wings and drumlettes (from S$27.80 for 10 pieces). 

The level of care extends to its sauces, too. The duo use sauces that are aged in Korean clay pots (or “onggi”) for seven days, giving a deeper flavour to each of the sauces.

This was particularly evident when it came to the soy sauce and the Volcano spicy flavours — the savoury and spicy flavours, respectively, were more pronounced, yet not overpowering. 

While I didn’t particularly find the Volcano spicy too hot — Harin says it’s comparable to Nongshim ramyeon, those who don’t take too well to heat might prefer to get the Dalcom spicy flavour.

The original is also good enough to have on its own. The chicken is adequately moist, tender and marinated. Its batter isn’t too thick, either — so you still get that delicate crunch when you sink your teeth in. In fact, everything stayed very crispy even though we spent some time taking photos and videos, before we dug in. 

Jae-wook says that while Volcano spicy is the most popular flavour in Korea, they’ve noticed the 1978 soy sauce and Dalcom spicy ones sell best in Singapore. 

Clearly they weren’t kidding that Koreans like some heat — its Daegu-style dishes, the flat dumplings with sweet & spicy salad (S$22.80), and the Sincheon tteokbokki (S$14.80) are SPICY. 

Flat dumplings (“napjak mandu” in Korean), are a popular street food in Daegu, and are known for being, well, flat. It comes with very little filling —- this is by design, though.

These dumplings can be eaten as is, or used as wraps. But we think you should definitely eat the sweet and spicy salad with the dumplings, because the fiery-red salad, with bits of cuttlefish, is downright spicy.

The Sincheon tteokbokki was an interesting rendition. The rice cake sauce was less viscous than what we were used to, more peppery and even somewhat smoky, perhaps owing to the use of the aged sauces. Meanwhile, the tteokbokki was cooked well — soft and lightly chewy — with some fish cake and quail eggs added to the mix. 

For us, the unsung stars of the table though, were the tuna rice balls (S$9.80) and the garlic cheese Sriracha corn fritters (S$11.80).

The first dish is a fun addition because you get to roll your own rice balls at the table. Harin tells us they used to serve it already pre-rolled, but changed it after receiving requests from diners who wanted to do it themselves.

Those who follow Korea and its food trends will know that honey butter flavour was all the rage a couple of years back and the corn dish was reminiscent of that — buttery, sweet and savoury all in one dish, and great as an accompaniment to the spicier dishes in the fray. 

Doran Chicken also has beer on tap, along with highballs and a smattering of non-alcoholic drinks, so there’s something for everyone, though the fact that it’s in a mall means the merrymaking will only last till as long as the mall is open.

If you happen to be looking for somewhere affordable in town, with unique dishes to boot, to “doran doran” with your friends next, you may want to swing by Doran Chicken for its mix of specialty fried chicken and fiery dishes. 

This was an invited tasting. 

For more places to explore at Orchard, check out this new bubble tea brand from Hong Kong at Orchard Gateway, as well as Chamoon Hot Pot, a clear hotpot soup chain from China that’s also new in town. 

Enjoy up to 50% off when you dine with GrabFood Dine Out.

You can also book a ride to Doran Chicken at Somerset.