2023-02-20. Hot Star Taiwanese Chicken. Tried the popcorn chicken. Was disappointed. I think they may have toned down the flavors as it's more bland than the other places I've had out in North America. The aroma of it was right, but the flavors were lacking. The portion was also very disappointing with only about 10 small pieces making out about $1/pc. Taiwanese style deep fried chicken of definitely worth trying, and if you do plan on trying it here, I recommend getting the larger chicken cutlet and not the popcorn chicken. 3 stars. If You would like to experience more, come dine-with-me.yelp.com I'd love to have your company... Bon Appétit! read more

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First time there! I know it's been here forever it seems at pacific mall and I've seen the downtown location. So I finally got to try it and it was really good!! I got the original salt and pepper and it was good! And it really just that big! Bigger than my hand!! The service was quick and fast. Not sure how busy they are on weekends. But I was there on a weekday afternoon. read more

Hot Star Large Fried Chicken - Chicken was moist and flavourful - Chicken Shop Near Me - Markham, Ontario

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I visited Hot Star fried chicken for a quick snack while shopping around Pacific Mall, but the size of the chicken is huge! It was definitely better to share, and not really snack-size. I ordered the Korean style flavor and it was a lil bit spicy but delicious. The only downside was the disorganized ordering and the lineups. It's confusing to find the order line vs the food pick-up line. I also had two people try to take my food when my number was called, despite myself saying it was my order. Food was good, but it was a little too hectic to get it. read more

Hot Star Large Fried Chicken - Korean Style Hot Fried Chicken - Chicken Shop Near Me - Markham, Ontario

Visited Hot Star on a weekday night for some delicious fried chicken. It is located on the second floor of Pacific Mall's food court. I ordered the XXL Large Fried Chicken with plum seasoning along with a Green Apple Yogurt drink. My order was ready shortly after I ordered and I could tell it was freshly made since the chicken was piping hot and needed to cool down before I could start eating. I loved the plum flavour as it tastes great with the chicken and was pretty flavourful. The chicken was juicy on the inside and crispy on the outside. The Green Apple Yogurt drink was refreshing and complemented nicely with the chicken. I know I will surely be back the next time I'm craving for some crispy fried chicken! read more

Hot Star Large Fried Chicken - Chicken Shop Near Me - Markham, Ontario

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I didn't realize that Hot Star was in the food court of Pac Mall when I needed to get something on a Friday afternoon. The line was a bit long given that it was during the lunch hour. I ordered a salt & pepper original large fried chicken and a drink. The chicken took 10 minutes to make so I knew it was fresh. Good thing there was a paper wrapping and plastic bag or else it would be messy. The chicken was nice and you know that it was real chicken instead of processed meat. The drink was just ok. In the end, it was filling. The owner / cook was very accommodating as well. read more

Hot Star Large Fried Chicken - Chicken Shop Near Me - Markham, Ontario

This was definitely a large piece of chicken. It was fried fresh so there a bit of a wait when receiving the chicken. I would say it has good flavours. The seasonings made it taste like a giant piece of popcorn chicken. Tender but super oily. This is good to share between 2 people because you get tired of the flavour after a while. Good if you're looking for protein and is craving popcorn chicken. Beware of the massive oiliness read more

Hot Star Large Fried Chicken - It's the size of a head - Chicken Shop Near Me - Markham, Ontario

My first time trying Hot Star Large Fried Chicken and I love it! The chicken was huge, I got the one stuffed with cheese, sooo good. Crispy on the outside yet the chicken was not dry at all. Will definitely visit again soon! read more

Hot Star Large Fried Chicken - the inside of a restaurant - Chicken Shop Near Me - Markham, Ontario

I ordered the spicy cheese star fried chicken (not a combo). Total wait time was about 20 minutes. My order came to around $16. The chicken was freshly fried and it was sizable, as it should be given then price tag. The breading was crunchy but over done (cardboard brown instead of golden). Chicken tasted fresh albeit it on the dry side. I did not find the chicken spicy or particularly flavourful. Most disappointing of all, the cheese did not ooze or stretch out like I saw in some of the videos. I'm giving this a two star because for the price I think the taste falls short but it was worth it to try out the hype (which is all I think this is). read more

I ordered the chicken cutlet. Chicken was huge and juicy. The breading was crispy. I ordered it with spicy. read more

Hot Star Large Fried Chicken - Look at the size of the chicken cutlet. - Chicken Shop Near Me - Markham, Ontario

Original XXL Fried Chicken Breast Medium Spicy ($9.99) was pretty good! Quite sizable and great to share with a friend if you choose to. The meat was surprisingly moist and juicy even though I usually prefer dark meat! We were there on a Friday afternoon and there was no line. The wait was around 10-15 minute for the food to be ready as it does takes that long for the chicken to be cooked probably! Will I be back? Not a bad value if you want some good fried chicken! Funny thing is I have been to Taipei Night Market a few times but never bother ordering one (half the price over there) since there are so many other more interesting food to eat there instead of a mega piece of friend chicken that just way too filling! read more

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I love this location. Been here numerous times. Advice: get their original chicken, not their crispy​ chicken. Their crispy​ chicken sucks! Original should be called crispy,​​ not crispy​. Taste: 5/5 It's good. It's juicy, crispy and well seasoned. They make the chicken fresh to order, which I love. I know there is a wait time and it's annoying just waiting. But, you can pay, get your receipt and come back in 5-8 mins. I prefer waiting for freshly fried chicken over chicken that has​ been sitting there. Service: I don't know how to rate service because you order and get your food. There's not much interaction with the staff. I've never had a bad service here. Price: refer to the photo I've posted for the price. Menu Selection: They have chicken, mushroom, fries, ​and drinks. As mentioned before, I've tried their crispy chicken. I've also tried their fried mushrooms... it's ok but I don't recommend it. They've recently added fried chicken wing. Haven't tried it yet but it looks really good. Location: It's on the second floor of Pacific​ Mall in the food court area. As you enter through the bridge and look left, you can see it. You need to walk past all the bubble tea places. Overall: I like this location. It's been consistently delicious and I recommend it. read more

Hot Star Large Fried Chicken - What the stall looks like - Chicken Shop Near Me - Markham, Ontario

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The batter that they use for the hot cheese fried chicken, the large fried chicken, and their original fried chicken is slightly different. The hot cheese fried chicken and there large fried chicken use a more simple batter (like the batter used in English style fish and chips) and their signature chicken had a light batter with a fine crumb coating. My favorite is the one with hot cheese inside. There is quite a lot of cheese and it is so hot that it can burn your mouth. The batter is crispy, on the burnt side. I have seen other customers had the same issue, therefore I think it's probably because the timing and temperature for cooking their original recipe is slightly different from their cheese version. The timing is not adjusted appropriately to ensure the both the cheese is melted and the batter is not burnt. Their original version seem to executed more consistently than the cheese version. I would not try spicy again as they only sprinkle chili powder on the top of the chicken (instead of using a spicy marinate). Because their chili powder is not spicy, therefore they tried to sprinkle lot of it to make it "spicer". A lot of powder on surface of the batter makes your every bite of fried chicken taste like your mouth is full of dried powder. Overall, chicken is crispy and juicy, pricing is on the high side. Cooking technique requires improvement. read more

Hot Star Large Fried Chicken - Spicy hot cheese large fried chicken Avoid spicy, as they add a lot of chili powder and still not spicy. - Chicken Shop Near Me - Markham, Ontario

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I decided to give it a try when it was trending and popular! Gigantic piece of fried chicken!? Count me in. The portion and price was good but I would say it would taste much better if it was more seasoned or come with a sauce for it. Otherwise you are eating bland, breaded fried chicken which lacks flavour. read more

Hot Star Large Fried Chicken - Large fried chicken - Chicken Shop Near Me - Markham, Ontario

This is the first time I ordered chicken wings at this Pacific Mall location. To my surprise the chicken wings they gave us has a fouled smell meat. This is not acceptable and you are not even checking what you are cooking. How do you address this if other customers happens to experience the swim thing I did. read more

Hot Star Large Fried Chicken - Fried Chicken Wings with bad smell. Look at that darkened part, looks rotten meat. - Chicken Shop Near Me - Markham, Ontario

Staff here got hired to stand around, wear the uniform and sadly misinformed about customer service etiquette and trained to address complaints in the poorest form of a monotonous tone whispering "whatever" under their breath. Chicken was burnt and had tiny bone pieces that I can probably let slide but after a few more pieces getting stuck in between and no possible remorse from these young workers when informed iced the cake with bitterness and a drum roll finale of "why choose the most non asian place at Pacific Mall anyways??!!!" It said the best in Taiwan!!!!! Maybe it was an off day, but even the fries were cold and soggy I wanted to literally head to the nearest grocery store, chop and fry and then showcase the real expectation of fries!!!!!!! What can go wrong with frying fries??! So lesson learned, adventurous eats within asia central should be limited to asian eats, unless approved by others to be exceptionally outstanding, then and only should I stray. read more

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Ordered the "hot cheese fried chicken" 20 minute wait for one order. After receiving the order, I cut into the chicken and the middle part was raw. I brought it back to the counter, they made me another one. Second time around, it was even more raw in the center and the cheese was not melted at all. The guy at the counter explained that he "usually leaves the chicken on top rack above the stove to keep it warm after being cooked, but this time he didn't"; therefore it was more "fresh". One star for good customer service at the least... and Got refund back... too bad didn't get my appetite back. The hot cheese chicken is a fail because the chicken isn't really same thickness throughout.. which is why it probably isn't cooked thoroughly. They should invest in a meat thermometer to ensure the meat is cooked thoroughly read more

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Hot Star Large Fried Chicken prides itself on serving you big ass pieces of Taiwanese style large fried chicken and refuses to cut them for you or give you utensils! Heard a lot about this Taiwanese franchise and noticed this location open up at Pacific Mall and gave it a try. They had several choices but ended up just getting the original chicken in extra spicy. To be honest the piece is freaking huge! Many chickens must have sacrificed there lives for our enjoyment here! Made to order, its a whole chicken breast lightly battered, deep fried and then sprinkled with chili powder mix. Its basically like some one was making Taiwanese popcorn chicken but was too lazy to cut it up and decided to fry it whole. The chicken itself was very tender and the outside was crisp but I found the middle to be a little too oily for me and couldn't finish it after awhile. The chicken comes straight out of the fryer so let it cool a bit. The extra spicy wasn't really that spicy for me but then again I'm a serious chili head so my taste buds are pretty numb to heat. At $9.99 plus tax its on the high side but considering the size its actually reasonable. Overall it's okay but I don't see myself ordering this often. Hot Star Large Fried Chicken, I give you 2.5 Stars! read more

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Decided to try here because I'd seen the long queues at their Downtown location. There wasn't a queue here but it was a Monday afternoon. We went for the original XXL fried chicken breast. I asked the lady what the difference was between original and crispy. She said that crispy had no panko. We also ordered it medium spicy.(spice level is determined by how much they shake on, after it's fried). The chicken itself is ok(for white meat). But I'm a dark meat fan and it's impossible to eat this by yourself. I ate it with 2 of my kids. The chicken breast is huge, I wonder if the chickens are on steroids?! I'm glad that I got to try it but it's not something i'd crave very often. After a few bites you don't really want to eat much more. read more

Hot Star Large Fried Chicken - Counter - Chicken Shop Near Me - Markham, Ontario

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Loved the large fried chicken! Only got to try the original because we weren't sure what flavor to go with. Ended up tasting so good. Taiwanese fried chicken never disappoints. The blue curacao yogurt drink was a great pair as well! read more

One of my favourite guilty pleasures is hot star fried chicken. I've only been to the Pacific Mall location so I can't speak on other locations as of yet- but I've never had issues with customer service or food quality at this location. Yes you usually have to wait 5-10 minutes because they make each chicken to order. It's fresh and worth the wait ! I always always get spicy , perfect amount of spice and the chicken remains crispy everywhere. I completely think it's worth 10$. I haven't tried any other menu item yet but I truly think this is the only thing you need to try. The only negative thing I have to say (not so much about the location but the company itself) and why it's getting a 4 star, is that they give plastic bags out with every order. Super unnecessary as you already get a smaller paper bag with chicken! I believe the company should only give plastic bags per request or switch to bigger paper bags! Plastic bags also make the chicken soggy if you don't eat it right away because of all the steam. It's a huge and unnecessary use of plastic, so tell them you don't want one if you're gonna eat it right awaY! read more

I ordered the xxl chicken to share with my bf. The chicken is very moist and perfectly seasoned. Each order is made fresh so every order is HOT. Like others have said, it's a little bit hard to eat because of how big the chicken is and that it's bone in. While the chicken did taste good, I didn't like that we were standing there for 20mins waiting for our order and the workers there just put our order into a bag and left it on the side with other orders. They didn't call out any number to let us know the order was ready. It wasn't until my bf went up to the counter and asked if our order was ready and showed the receipt that the guy looked through the chicken orders and handed him our order. read more

Hot Star Large Fried Chicken - Chicken Shop Near Me - Markham, Ontario

I only give this place a two star. I ordered the large fried chicken with a little spicy. The chicken costed ($9.99) before taxes. The wait for the chicken was about 10 minutes or more because it was freshly fried. I have to say, the price of chicken is huge. But when I bit into it, the meat was really thin, like extremely thin and most of it was dough. This was a little disappointing. As I ate further into the chicken. I ended up eating some bone... it was stated that the chicken is supposed to be chicken breast. I didn't expect bone to be in it. Overall comments: probably will not purchase again. It's difficult to eat because it's such a big piece. Next time I might try the chicken bites instead. read more

Hot Star Large Fried Chicken - Chicken Shop Near Me - Markham, Ontario

XXL for sure!! Probably the most fast food chain themed food stand found in Pacific Mall food court upstairs. With large baby blue and white signs- it is hard to miss compared to the more authentic noodle booths surrounding it. If anybody know's that food court is extremely packed and hard to find seating- so it is convenient that these GINORMOUS fried chicken come in a bag that you could just walk and munch along. It was $9.99 and i guess the price is justified for what basically is almost a whole chicken. I read some reviews beforehand and knew to ask for the "hot" spices on both sides. It was really good- my only qualm was I wish there was some garnish or hot sauce or ketchup that I could compliment my chicken with. As it was delicious to eat at first but after going thru half of it- mouth was getting a bit dry. Also it was a bit of a surprise to find out that when you get to the end - that there is still bone in. Found out the hard way- didnt mind. Marinated very well- crispy and lots of meat. It was nice. It was definitely worth the try and everyone on my snap chat was going crazy about it. However- it is a once in a while kind of item (list of novelty trends to try). I will be back at popeye's for my regular dosage of fried chicken and be back at Hot Star in maybe 6 months or so. read more

Hot Star Large Fried Chicken - wowowo - Chicken Shop Near Me - Markham, Ontario

I always pass by the hot star large fried chicken in downtown Toronto, but I never felt too hungry to try it out. I'm glad this hot star large fried chicken opened up in non other than the very famous Pacific Mall. My friend really wanted to try out their popcorn chicken, which was $7.90. Their options were pepper salt and spicy. It was ready in about 2 minutes and there were about 20 pieces that came in a paper bag placed in a bag. I was able to tap visa with this, which was nice and convenient. We got the salt and spicy one, it wasn't super oily, but I must say, it was more soggy than most popcorn chicken I've had. So, Kristy, it was sort of soggy, why still four stars? Cause this popcorn chicken ACTUALLY had a large piece of chicken in it. It was lightly coated with the outside shell, but there was actually a solid, large piece of chicken in there. The taste was slightly salty for me, but it was really tasty and delicious. read more

I was at pmall today and I had to eat at their food court. For some reason, I JUST noticed this place today. I was actually here on Saturday so yeah I have no idea why I didn't see this place. There was even a giant picture of fried chicken behind the counter (hard to miss but surprisingly I did LOOOL) Anyways I was a little skeptical to try this place because one, I was worried their fried chicken was gonna be dry (i ain't up for that) and two, it's only one big piece of fried chicken for like what $10 which to me is hubba hubba....no rice? no drink? That's pretty fucking expensive. (in my non-existent book) I didn't end up getting the chicken. However, I did get their fries which were $2.99 (some boys next to me were eating them and it looked glorious) and this green apple yogurt drink (L for around $5). The fries were actually pretty good. They ALMOST taste like the fries at Costco. NICE AND CRISPY OUTSIDE. MMM Definitely freshly fried and made to almost perfection. I just wished the inside was more umm..fleshy? IS THT THE RIGHT WORD IDK BUT IDC. The drink was meh. Personally a lil too sweet for me BUT YEAH Generally an okay place for some good fries. Fried chicken? I have no idea. LOL read more

Hot Star Large Fried Chicken - Chicken Shop Near Me - Markham, Ontario

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3.5 star. Probably one of my favourite places for fried chicken. It's quite expensive at first if you haven't tried it... but that piece of original XXL chicken breast ($10) coated with pepper salt is to die for. its very crispy on the outside but the meat is super tender, juicy and moist. You can definitely taste the chicken and not frozen meat. The seasoning is just the right amount and not over done to the point where it's super salty. You usually have to wait around 5-10 minutes for your chicken even if there's no line because they dip the chicken into the batter and fry it for you on the spot so it's hot and fresh. Probably my go to place at pacific mall if i'm craving for some junk food. read more

Hot Star Large Fried Chicken - Original XXL chicken with pepper salt - Chicken Shop Near Me - Markham, Ontario

First review of 2019 and starting it off with a burning hot slab of protein. I had some errands to run in pmall and we came across this place. They were promising large fried chicken so we pulled the trigger. For starters, it's about a 15 minute wait. On top of that, a single piece is about $10. Combos can go up to $16. These facts alone already have me a bit dubious. So we get the chicken. Hennnnnnyyyy, they ain't lying. Fuck. They're huge lol But that's about it. The first few bites are great: crispy, fatty, steaming hot goodness. Then you realize that your entire meal is pretty much this piece of chicken. I hate to say it but it's TOO MUCH of a good thing. Like, I'm sad to say I was bored after about halfway through it. And the seasonings definitely have TOO MUCH MSG action going on. Like it's all TOO MUCH. It's definitely a cornstarch-based breading because it starts getting gummy on the inside as it sits. Also, it's bone-in so watch the fuck out. TLDR The chicken was large and the grease was hot but all in all, a solid meh. read more

Ordered delivery from here and was pleasantly surprised. The extra spicy wings were on the smaller side and tasted odd at first due to the slightly sweet note at the first bite, but it's packed with flavor. I expected both the sesame and custard buns to be sweeter, but what can ya do. A stand out was the Rose Lychee soda that I had chosen to get with the wing combo. Not typically a soda person, but I would go back literally just for the drink. read more

Got the spicy cheese fried chicken + combo which came with fries and a specialty soda drink for $16.99. we also got the Korean fried chicken with a speciality soda drink think that one was $13-14. The fried chickens were made fresh, so took about 15 minutes before order was ready. It was piping hot when we got it. The fried chickens were very large, the cheesy one had a lot of cheese and was seasoned with spicy powder on top. The Korean fried chicken was covered in sauce all over (for those who like saucy get this one instead). The fries were crispy and reminded me of Costco fries lol which I love. For drinks we got the strawberry soda and green apple yogurt soda - the strawberry one was definitely better. Overall everything was okay, no complaints but it wasn't anything special. read more

Loved coming here for a Hot-Star Fried Chicken fix. I think the original flavour and the spicy flavours taste the best, but not so much the seaweed which is a little bland. There are inconsistency issues. First time it was great (Chicken was juicy), second time it was too dry, but the seasoning and the fried batter was still excellent! read more

Ordered the Hot Star hot chicken with meidum spiciness for around $11 + tax ~= $12.42. It is very big fried piece of chicken cutlet with Taiwanese pepper & salt seasoning on top,, very tasty and large (ate it over 2 days), but very expensive compared to other fried fast food takeouts; as other fast foods chains offer combos for around half price of this about $5. Takes about 15 minutes wait after ordering until it is ready , lots of crowd on a weekend at the top floor of Pacific mall food court. read more

The chicken is huge and delicious! I had the original chicken and ordered a drink. The food portion is perfect for two for lunch or dinner. It is located inside pacific mall inside the food court. The overall experience was great! read more

Got their regular spiced chicken and the crispy fried chicken and it was really good up until the point you take a bite and discover all the bones were still in it. It would've been much better if they made some effort to remove the bones as it got difficult to enjoy when we had to remove the bones off the HOT piece of chicken.. Both crispy and regular chicken was well seasoned. I preferred the regular fried chicken- the crispy chicken was quite greasy. read more

Chicken was hot and fresh and the size of a persons face. Definitely easier to eat than the chicken pieces at like Popeyes for example because its boneless and easy to handle while walking around. A great treat for yourself when you want some protein goodness. read more

I came across this place while I was hungry looking for anything to eat really. I hadn't had fried chicken in a while so my craving kicked in. I ordered the original fried chicken with no spices. The food did take longer to prepare compared to other fast food places like McDonalds, but that was understandable because they're preparing the food on the spot instead of letting it sit in the air. However, when I finally took a bite into the fried chicken, I slowly began to lose my appetite. I found that I was eating more fried batter than chicken and that overall, it was far too seasoned for me to enjoy. For future improvements, I would definitely suggest having different options for the intensity of their seasoning as I typically prefer my food lightly seasoned. read more

In the busy food court of Pacific Mall is a Hot Star Fried Chicken restaurant offering its specialty of huge cutlets of deep fried chicken goodness. This is my second time having it at this location and my overall experiences have been great. At my first visit, I went with the original chicken cutlet which was great and reminded me exactly of how it tasted in Taiwan. This time I went with the Korean style chicken cutlet which has a sweet and savoury taste because of the sauce added to the cutlet. Very delicious. I didn't wait long for my order as the server did mention that it would be a 10 minute wait. If you like deep fried chicken, I recommend you try Hot Star Fried Chicken. read more

I'm from Taiwan so typically is very picky on Taiwanese snacks. This fried chicken taste just like back home! (Those ones that you can get from night market), perfect for night cravings read more

This place is the living embodiment of a failed franchise store that is so far from the original brand, you KNOW they aren't remotely trying. (If you've had any of the original ones in Asia, you feel me) White meat chicken cutlet that is the size of a persons face done in Taiwanese seasoning, sounds awesome...how can you muck this up? First, chicken is thin and not particularly juicy. It wasn't extremely dry, but you can definitely tell it's white meat at first bite. The batter completely came off of the meat on both sides and you are left with this part crunchy, part soggy hot mess. Flavouring was lacking so it tasted bland compared to traditional Taiwanese popcorn chicken. Another thing I found so odd is their lack of boneless option (if there was, this was not clearly advertised). Every time I had it in Asia, it either came boneless or had a boneless option. This location served up boney parts that made up 1/3 of the actual chicken. It was hard to eat and took out any leftover satisfaction you got out of it. And the price, damn it was expensive for something this underwhelming... read more

I came early and it didn't take too long. Juicy and tasty but it did have bones in it so that was a bit of a pain. We put ours on an order of ball waffles and made our own chicken and waffles and it was super yummy. The sweet potatoes were interesting, not in a bad way. Sweet and savoury in a unique way. read more

Hot Star Large Fried Chicken - Chicken and waffles DIY - Chicken Shop Near Me - Markham, Ontario

Bones bones and more bones. Definitely not chicken breast they used despite their huge ad/poster clearly says "use only chicken breast". We ordered one mild spicy and one original. Guess what both tastes exactly same. Kinda sweet and salty and I taste no other flavours. Will not likely going back. read more