A week or so ago I was contacted by veteran foodie Brisvegustation, who had organised a foodie meetup at the recently opened KaiKai Chicken at St Lucia, along Hawken drive. Taking a refreshing stroll through memory lane at my beloved Alma Mater, I arrived at 11.45am in the unusually hot spring heatwave.
The shopfront was deceivingly small, but the thought of All-You-Can-Eat chicken, pizza and ribs beckoned us downstairs into the cool air-conditioned restaurant.
Downstairs, the venue was surprisingly large and spacious. I was seated on a large table together with foodies The Meatball Family, Brisvegustation, Just Island, Rebecca, Fizzyyuen, AteTooMuch, and BrisbaneFoodShots.
There was an a la carte menu, but we were all there for one thing and one thing only, buffet! Whilst some of the side dishes could be obtained yourself, the main event, chicken, chips and ribs were made to order.
For an extra $1.50, patrons are given plastic cups for bottomless home made iced tea.
There were three flavours to choose from, Lychee and Lemon, Peach and Lemon and straight Lemon. I tried both Peach and Lemon and Straight Lemon, and found them to be slightly on the sweet side, but refreshing and delicious nonetheless, though the lemon did overpower the peach a little.
The DIY food bar included some pizza (they seem to only serve two at a time),
Hot foods of the day included miscellaneous fried things, stir fried glass noodles, and some cheesy pasta.
Cold salad was also available for those who wanted to make their own or have some premade coleslaw or potato salad,
Desserts consisted largely of dessert cups of fruity and milk based variations.
There was also a self saucing chocolate pudding.
Trying little bits of everything from the self serve bar, I really enjoyed the creamy egg and potato salad, as well as the rich cheesy pasta (which I couldn't overindulge on). The pizza was nice, but I've had better at more specialised pizzerias.
Food soon started arriving from the kitchens. First up was the cheesy toast, which reminded me very strongly of Sizzler's famous cheesy toast. Whilst a little thin for my tastes (am definitely a thick cut fan), it was super crispy on the outside with a fluffy delicious interior.
Our meat then started to arrive. The ribs were coated in a savoury sauce as opposed to the usual sweet honey basting, and topped with green onions. Each rib was deliciously tender, with an a charred exterior and a moist juicy interior. The meat was super tender to the point of falling off the bone. It was definitely a highlight of the meal and well received by all.
The chicken started coming out right after. We had all the flavours that day, including: Original, Yangnyum, Nacho Cheese, Buffalo, Goroumaru, Black Dragon, Pink Panther, Soy Wasabi Mayo, Cajun with Spiced Mayo, Honey Soy, Sweet and Sour and Honey Butter. Overall, I found all the wings to have an exceptionally crispy exterior and a moist juicy interior. As for the specific flavours, Original was particularly good as it didn't distract from the fresh chicken flavours, Goromaru which was seasoned like takoyaki was particularly yummy with its complementary flavours of Japanese Mayo, green onion, takoyaki sauce and bonito flakes. My favourite of the day though was the Nacho Cheese, because I loved the melty cheese and bacon bits. This would definitely fall within my top five picks for Korean Fried Chicken in Brisbane.
We also had each of the four options of freshly fried fries: Honey Butter Fries, Takoyaki Fries, Tomato Chilli Fries, Nacho Cheese and Bacon Fries. As my readers would know, I consider shoestring fries to be far superior to thick cut chips. The fries were extremely crispy, and the toppings were wonderful. Whilst Cheese and Bacon gets a special mention, my favourite chips would be the Takoyaki option with its complex flavours of green onion and bonito flakes made the dish stand out heaps.
Desserts we tried included the coffee and strawberry custard cups, which were bursting with flavour and also rich and smooth. I ended up having two just because I liked it so much. I also tried some of their self saucing chocolate pudding with some custard. Despite the super cracked top, it was surprisingly moist in the centre, and not overly sweet.
Rounding off the meal, we were served with home brewed iced coffees, whilst the kid had iced strawberry. The drinks leaned toward the sweet side, but I loved the fragrance of the brewed coffee which was cooling and refreshing, making a good way to finish off an epic meal.
Espresso & Matcha were invited guests of Kai Kai Chicken, but as always our opinions are solely our own.
Price Range: $25 - $35pp
Taste: 8.5/10
Value: 8/10
Service: 9/10
Environment: 8/10
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