Baden Baden

This place is closed now – guess the competition from Kyochon and Bonchon a block away proved to be too much. It’s a new restaurant called Dduk Ddak, which is fantabulous. Awesome korean «pub food» and good alcohol list, esp. w/​mak gul lee.

Wasn’t a fan of the chicken. I’ve been to Bonchon, Mad for Chicken, and a few other Korean fried chicken spots, and this was nothing like it. More like a whole rotisserie chicken.

Great late night place to get good, Korean bar food.
Their fried chicken was good (large, crispy chicken pieces in a decent sauce), we also ordered their dduk bbuk ggee which was super spicy, thick and saucey (not very good).

3.5 Stars.
Good for Groups.
If you’re a drinker, come to this spot!, Plenty of space for you to Sit and drink and mingle. Mix music.
Must Order The Fried chicken with Fries if you’re hungry
Wings are not bad. A bit dry.
Prices are ok in Ktown.
Expect noise. You’re just partying but sitting down.

My short impression:
After a dizzy Friday night of happy hours, then karaoking at Ding Dong Dan (upstairs), we decided to go here. Since we were on the hunt for some dumplin’s, this totally random, unmarked eatery looked really good! At 10pm on a Friday night, this places is buzzing. We had banchan (of course) and had several orders of kim chi dumplings. These monsters (really big) were absolutely yummy. The dipping sauce was the bomb and we were all fighting for the last dumpling!
HOWEVER, the after effect is kind of bad… Let’s just say you should not go on a date or speak to any one up close after that unless you/​they are fond kim-​chi-​licious breath!
Good stuff.

Met up with one of my boys here before we went to the Knicks game. (Why doesn’t my man like sports? WHY?!)
Chicken was a little bit drier than on previous occasions but we had a good time. Beer + chicken + fries + onion rings + sports talk = good times.

Great Sports Bar! They have über-​cool bartenders that hook you up! I’ve gotten a free shot of whiskey every time I’ve sat at the bar!
The chicken is delicious. It’s juicier than you would imagine for bar food! The fries are also a really good surprise! I’d probably put it as a top 5 french fry I’ve had in NYC! Pretty legit…
They only problem, is the place is kind of small, and they don’t play audio of the games, but really… I’m just nitpicking.

Enter a random door and climb up some sketchy looking stairs. Open another door and you’re in a dim restaurant with a bar on the side. Oh how I love K-​Town spots.
The chicken here is better than the Baden in Jersey. The difference is that they fry their chicken, but its a light batter, not completely deep fried like KFC. The fries that came with the small chicken was good. Washed it down with a pitcher of Blue Moon. A little on the pricey side ($ 45 for all that), but I guess that’s the price you pay for a Korean K-​Town spot.

Korlee-​in fwied shickin, ships n bir!
Sorry I know it’s rude to talk with my mouth full I just got so excited!
Late night munch-​comforts in this great Asian sports bar.
So step one, stuff face.
THEN… you must go and spend the rest of night belting out Kelly Clarkson pop hits to an Asian mock tragedy music video whilst slapping a tambourine on your butt at the Korean karaōke upstairs until the wee hours of the morning, soju all round…

I come here with hot American babe. We eat Dukbokki, Tong-​Dak, French Fry, Beer, and Soju. She give me kiss on cheek after date.
I want to marry her and make ½ American babies.

So, I had this date with Eugene B.
Someone had to pay someone money for me to go on this date. I mean, I’m not easy. I don’t go on dates with just anyone.
Whatever.
So, I was like, «Hey, Geezy. We’d better get this date over with. I’m doing this for (unnamed patron). We gotta make him happy. I guess I’ll meet you in K-​town for that food and a drink… If I have to.»
He told me to meet him at the Red Mango. If you want me to be real, like, really real, this pissed me off. Who tells a lady to stand in a yogurt shop waiting for their date? Please. Where’s my limo? Then, when I got there, the place was boarded up. Great. Now I have to stand outside? I have to lean against a boarded up building, trying not to look so cool while waiting for some punk? I think I smoked 2 cigarettes. I didn’t want to intimidate anyone with my pleather and my chain smoking.
He FINALLY showed up and dragged me into this sketchy doorway. You know what I was thinking. Rape. I mean, this place was dirty. He said that is how it always is in K-​Town. Sure. Anyway, after walking up the stairs (Have you ever heard of an ELEVATOR? Or, maybe CARRYING ME? I’m a lady) we entered this «Baden Baden» place. Which you know, sounds like a concentration camp. I should have been skeptical when I heard the name, but I try to keep an open mind. It was your average looking sports bar, except everyone was Korean. Yeah. Everyone. Including me. I might not look it, but I swear to god I am Korean.
So we sit down and he asks what I want. I don’t play that. Man always orders. I judge you. Fortunately for Geezy, he knows what I like. Booze. Fried shit. And ddukbokki. This was the Ultimate Test. We got some beer, plum soju, and those «DELICIOUS» spicy rice cakes. Oh, and some of that «FAMOUS» Korean fried chicken.
I don’t want to embarrass Geezy, but when you are trying to impress someone, you don’t start sweating and turning red from ddukbokki. It wasn’t that spicy. I think I saw tears in his eyes. Wimp. I could eat that for breakfast lunch and dinner and my taste buds would feel nothing. This also happened to be the 100% best ddukbokki I’ve ever had. But he can’t take credit for that. What? No, I don’t think he can be on a date and working in the kitchen at the same time. The chicken was good. And Geezy was right. A little hot sauce will work miracles on this crispy, greasy goodness.
After some «Good» conversation and some «tasty» booze, I was feeling kind of drunk. I wasn’t sure if it was the soju we were knocking back, or some rohypnol. Geezy might act like a gentleman but you never know. I am suspicious. Who is so «nice»? Who is so «funny»? Not possible. When I say these things he says «Please believe it.» Does he really expect me to fall for that?
Whatever. I guess the date was «Excellent». I guess Baden Baden was «Awesome». I guess Geezy is «Pretty Cool».
Oh, and… Happy Birthday, Eugene B. Try harder next time.

Maybe you don’t feel like dressing up to go to Third Floor.
Maybe you don’t feel like getting stared down at Players.
Maybe you don’t want to wait outside to get seated at Kunjip.
Maybe you’ll like Baden Baden :)

«Baden Baden is one of New York City’s few hofs, Korean restaurants where beer is the drink of choice, instead of soju or sake, and fried chicken is a specialty of the house. The provenance of the term hof seems uncertain; an acquaintance said it was derived from a Korean mispronunciation of hops, the ingredient that adds bitterness to beer.» (Peter Meehan, Korean Fried Chicken with a Beer and a Beat, NY Times, September 20, 2006)
The truth is since a friend brought us here several years back, my husband has fallen in love with the fried chicken. In fact, he looks at the fried chicken with more love than he looks at me. For crying out loud, I never thought I’d be competing with a fried chicken. ~_​– Not that I mind for I also fell in love with BBNY’s fried chicken. Moist and crispy chicken perfect with your favorite beer should be on everyone’s bucket list. :-)

This has been, and still is, my favorite place in K-​town. If I had a choice, I’d probably not go anywhere else. I don’t like the throngs of Korean yuppies in 3^rd floor with the pseudo models hanging (or pretending to hang) on their every word, or the mixed crowd of yuppies in Players who think they’re being cultured by being in a Korean «sports» bar.
Don’t get me wrong, Baden isn’t without its flaws. The random signage hanging on the walls is reminiscent of an Applebees but to throw this feeling off, they dress their waitstaff in black dress clothes and black vests– like they’re catering at a gothic wedding.
Regardless, it’s unpretentious and most days you can actually hear what the people you’re with have to say. Their nakji bokkeum (octopus stir-​fry) is what I come back for every so often. It’s delicious and spicy (not for those who have low spiciness threshold) and chewy and filled with noodles. I will warn you that the kind of noodles you will get aren’t consistent– sometimes they’re udon and sometimes its the angel hair noodles. If you have a preference, ask for it. Nonetheless, when it’s drenched in the red sauce, it’s all delicious!
I would like to take a little more time to address some of the previous chicken comments. This place does not serve Korean Fried Chicken (KFC) nor does it claim to. It claims to serve «tong dak» which means whole chicken. I think they just meant rotisserie chicken. And before Bonchon came and started frying the critters, this was the golden standard of Korean chicken.
Random nostalgic moment: before I had to worry about weight gain, my girlfriend and I used to come to drink a pitcher of beer (each) and eat a whole chicken and nakji bokkeum. And we cleaned house, yo.

Up a dirty stairwell off 32^nd Street lies Baden Baden, a wood paneled second floor joint that feels more Irish pub than Korean restaurant. We were seated promptly and immediately placed an order for chicken — the reason we were here.
In the past few years Korean fried chicken has possibly usurped the banh mi as the latest Asian-​American fad. Before that it was froyo; although the explosion of the soft serve treat is credited to Pinkberry, the store was actually a fashioned replica of Red Mango, a chain that originated in South Korea.
After checking out the rest of the menu we also placed an order for seafood ramen, which came out in minutes, piping hot and stinking like a fish market. The dried seaweed used in the soup was overwhelming and lacked flavor, it’s crunchiness jarring and in grave opposition to the noodles and seafood that lie below. The thin angel hair noodles and tiny shrimp did not save the fishy broth, overall this soup was an utter fail.
The large plate of chicken arrived soon after we finished the soup, with a heaping side of onion rings — how authentic! Baden Baden calls this «rotisserie fried chicken» and while it did have a crunchy exterior and succulent inside, it was completely flavorless. For less than half the price I could have roasted a whole bird at home and seasoned it to my preference. The tiny drumsticks and wings that accompanied the butterflied chicken breast had little to no meat, and the skin was so crunchy to the bite, I nearly broke a tooth. The hot sauce set on the table tasted like watered down Frank’s Red Hot.
My recommendation: Stay away from Baden Baden if you’re looking for tasty, flavorful and well seasoned chicken. This place really has no saving merits, and I have no reason to ever step foot in there again.

My friend and I were hungry one day. We were near Koreatown at 32^nd st and couldn’t decide what to it. He suddenly remembered a place his Korean friends took him to two years back. He Unilocaled it (thanks Unilocal) and figured out where it was.
It was on the second floor of a building and there was no sign, posters, menu, or advertisement indicating that it was even in the building. Guess it’s all word of mouth. Secret handshakes and all that jazz to figure out where it is. We walked into a non-​Discript hallway, got on a small elevator and pressed second floor and the next thing we know, we were in a bar /​restaurant. Felt a little like we were avoiding the cops to get some drugs.
We sat down and since it was my first time here I asked for their signature dish which was the «Tong-​Dak,» a rotisserie-​fried chicken. It comes as a half chicken or full chicken. Not knowing how big it was, assuming that it was a small chicken like most places serving whole chickens (I’m especially looking at you Boston Market), being very hungry, we ordered the whole chicken with the onion rings instead of fries. As a side dish we ordered the hot wings.
When the chicken came, we realized how big it was and that even for two starving people, a half chicken should be enough. I know. I could have simply asked but being a hungry idiot, and being a guy, I didn’t bother. At least I know I was getting my money’s worth.
The chicken have a very nice crispy skin and the meat is juicy and tender. It was well seasoned. The only condiment it comes with was ketchup and hot sauce. If this was the only thing I ate I might have given the place 4 stars.
The accompanying onion rings was good. Passable but not outstanding. It has a nicely fried crust that I like.
The hot wings. It was on the spicy side which to me was a good thing but that is the best thing about it. Sadly, I didn’t think that their version was up to par with the likes of dedicated Korean friend chicken places like Bön Chon and Kyochon. The version here is more dry. Don’t get me wrong, it’s good but I know how great Korean fried chicken could be. I like mine more moist with sticky sauce like the other versions.
By the end we were all chickened out and I had to take home a quarter of the rotisserie chicken. I think next time we should ask for some Korean noodles or soups on the side instead of a chicken dish accompanied by another chicken dish. Heard some good things about them, especially how spicy some of them could be. Maybe then I might re review and up it a star. For now it’s more of a 3.5.
The service is great here. We just got water and the waiter constantly pass by to refill our glasses. My friend asked for a refill of the free accompanying pickled radish and they quickly obliged.
This place seems very popular with the non Korean crowd. There was a few Koreans there but throughout our dinner at night, more and more people that are obviously not Koreans start coming in. The staff politely served everybody no matter how loud the groups got (and some of them became pretty loud, but in a fun happy way). No one would feel out of place here even though it’s in the middle of Korean town.

I often walk on 32^nd street between Broadway and Fifth avenue on my way to work or on my way back home. I don’t think there is any other block in Midtown that will make your mouth water, this block is full of great restaurants; mainly Korean BBQ places but also some restaurants showing hints of flavors from Japan and China.
Last time when I was getting my frozen yogurt from Red Mango, I overheard few people talking about this amazing chicken they had at the Baden Baden or BBNY for short. When I looked across the street I noticed a restaurant on the second floor with the BBNY writing. That was few months ago, somehow didn’t get the chance to go try this place up until this week. When you work late you really don’t want to deal with cooking, cleaning, etc. You just want to sit down with a cold beer and wait until your food is brought front of you, ready to enjoy. I thought why not try the BBNY.
BBNY is on the second floor of the 28 West 32^nd street. You can see the BBNY writing on the face of the building when you look up. Take the stairs to the second floor and you’ll be welcomed into a decent size seating area and long bar. When we got there around 8 pm, most of the tables were already taken but there were still three tables available. Believe me if I tell you that the drink menu was way longer than the food menu. There are pages of pages of beer, wine, cocktails, martinis, soju, etc. We sat down, ordered two OB Lagers, a large Baden Baden Chicken which is their special ity and the Buffalo Hot Wings (They are“Über-Hot” so be warned!).
I think this write up from NYMag describes their chicken the best:
«Korean-​style fried chicken is cooked in a rotisserie to an exquisite tenderness, let to cool slightly, and then deep-​fried, giving it a perfect combination of yielding moistness and crisp, garlicky exterior. «
For two people large chicken was more than enough. It is served with option of fries or onion rings. We went with the fried but next time we’ll definitely try the onion rings. Also it comes with a small bowl of pickled daikon and a whole roasted garlic (watch out for this one…). We already decided what to order next; of course we would want that delicious BB chicken again but here are some other dishes worth a try: Spicy Octopus or Squid, Chopped Steak and Spicy Clams. There are also other tasty dishes on the menu so I suggest you should take a look at the menu and make up your mind.
Great place to enjoy a variety of domestic or import beer and an amazing chicken special.

A friend of mine used to come here a lot and passively google at the cashier, getting inebriated all the time on beer and soju. He’s such a beligerent drunk that he doesn’t notice me eating all the food. =D
Food’s great, but watch out for the spicy seafood — it’s pretty darn spicy! Great drinks, the bartenders are the best.

Not the typical korean fried chicken, you know the saucy, spicy goodness like Kyochon or BonChon. But it taste good nevertheless. Seaoned well and crispy. On the chicken dish, there are some garlic sauted veggies that are lick smackin’ good (mushroom, rapa, potatoes, onions, and carrots). Must buddy up the chiken with fries, although the onion rings are a pretty darn good runner up. As all korean fc places, the chicken always comes with diced pickled radish and korean slaw. The rice cakes are also a scrump-​diddly-​umptious dish as well. The boiled egg served w/​the dish is the right cooked texture.
The place looks like a typical wooden bar, but w/​more emphasis on the eating (although a beer is always great with freid food). Spacious, but get packed quickly after work for obvious reasons.

If I would ever go to a korean bar, this would be the only place I would ever go to. They have the best korean-​style chicken and nak-​ji-​bok-​keum (octopus) are absolutely amazing. And ice-​cold beer with them, oh boy. I would so forego 1 month of sex. jk
I highly recommend it.