Annie Jung takes fried chicken one step further than the American colonel known for his secret blend of 11 herbs and spices. She uses 12 herbs and spices to prepare her KFC, only, Jung’s “K” doesn’t come from Kentucky, it comes from Korea.

In June, Jung opened Honey Monster Gourmet Crispy Chicken, serving hand-battered fried chicken at the beach.

“In Korea, fried chicken is very popular,” Jung said. While Korean-style fried chicken has gained popularity in Canada over the last few years, it’s been popular in Korea for decades.

Jung’s style combines Korean-style fried chicken with American-style, creating a fried chicken that’s made for the beach.

Each piece of boneless chicken is hand-battered with fresh ingredients and fried to just the right level of crispiness without greasiness. Served on its own, the chicken is complemented by the store’s namesake, honey, in a variety of sauces from Canadian honey to honey mustard to hot sauce and honey.

Diners can also enjoy chicken and waffles, a southern delicacy with a Korean twist, instead of syrup, the waffle is drizzled in honey and sprinkled with Parmesan cheese to balance sweet with savoury.

The menu also includes a chicken sandwich and a chicken Caesar salad, along with handcrafted Italian sodas.

While diners can take their meal to-go, there is seating on Instagram-worthy robin’s egg blue picnic tables nearby.

Each order is made-to-order, so diners won’t find the swiftness of fast-food dining here. Instead, good things take time, and each piece of deliciously crunchy chicken is worth the wait.

Diners also won’t find a price point similar to fast food fried chicken, meals are $16 but are handmade including the Italian soda.