Joy Is Chippendale's Affordable New Takeaway Joint Serving Up Perfectly Crunchy Korean Fried Chicken

A new Korean fried chicken shop has arrived at a corner terrace in Chippendale, offering a range of flavoursome fried chook as well as affordable loaded burgers and special one-off chicken flavours on Abercrombie Street.

Owner Kay Hwang is a Sydney hospitality stalwart, moving to Australia from South Korea 19 years ago before being professionally trained and opening Sergeant Lok in The Rocks in 2020. During the pandemic, Hwang stepped away from Sergeant Lok and shifted focus to a life-long love: fried chicken.

According to Hwang, Joy Korean Fired Chicken was born from a love of snacking. The idea for the shop was based on a longing for a fried chicken spot where customers could order just one or two pieces instead of a whole or half chicken. That's exactly what you can get here at the new Chippendale opening — crispy fried chicken pieces for $4.50–5.90 a pop, plus boneless pieces in 180-gram serving sizes, both accompanied by coleslaw and pickles.

Your hardest decision at Joy is deciding what flavour to get. The regulars on the menu include sweet and spicy, honey soy, lemon and parsley, and bulgogi. Plus, Hwang is always concocting exciting new limited-time flavours, adding a cranberry flavour for Christmas, and with a jalapeño green goddess flavour in the works.

Hungrier patrons can place their chicken on a bun, with all of the flavours available in burger form, or combine it all into a joy box which includes fried chicken, a burger, coleslaw, pickles, chips and a drink for under $20.

Plus, if you're having some fellow fried chicken lovers over, you can opt for the Party Meal, a packaged deal featuring 12 fried chicken pieces, four chips, six drinks and sides for just over $70.

Hwang promises that Joy has more exciting flavours coming soon, so make sure to keep your eyes on the shop's Instagram so you don't miss out.

Joy Korean Fried Chicken is located at 67 Abercrombie Street, Chippendale — open from 11.30am–2pm and 5.30–9pm Monday–Friday.