SEOUL'S FAVORITE CHICKEN AND BEER PLACE IS NOW IN MANILA

“We wanted to bring the authentic chimaek experience to the Philippines,” Kirkland Whang, chairman of Opulence Prime Ventures Inc. (OPV), told The Philippine STAR at the opening of Daily Beer at Arcovia City in Pasig on Nov. 29.

- PAM PASTOR

Kimchi Fried Rice Gimbap Get your beer in a frozen glass.

Chimaek means chicken (chikin) and beer (maekju) — a beloved food pairing in Korea and a combo familiar to K-drama fans across the world.

"In Korea, chicken is soul food, and Koreans love beer so much. That's why we have this culture of chimaek — chicken and beer make such a great pairing," said Sang Jin Lim.

And what better way to bring the concept here than with DailyBeer, Korea's no. 1 chicken-and-beer restaurant?

Lim, who is the CEO of Daily Beer Co. LTD Korea, said, "Daily Beer began in 2014 with the clear idea to marry Korea’s beloved chicken culture with high quality craft beer. Our beer experts and chicken specialists built a fresh take on chimaek, and we've been beloved by customers for more than 10 years now.”

Daily Beer has been so successful that it has over 300 stores in Korea alone.

ONLY FRESH CHICKEN

What's the secret? We asked Lim. "We only use fresh chicken, never frozen. And we really focused on the pairing of chicken and beer. We didn't just create delicious chicken, it's chicken specifically designed to go with a glass of beer.'

Daily Beer has also brought chimaek to different parts of the world including the United States, Thailand, and Singapore.

In fact, it was in Singapore that Whang had his first taste of Daily Beer. "I tried the chicken and of course the beer. After just one bite, I noticed that the juiciness and the taste of the chicken is something different from what we have here. The beer, it's the same thing. Daily Beer has different kinds of beer and each one has its own special taste."