I have been to The Chicken on Fire twice. The first time was sort of a blurr as I didn't know what to order and was just too hungry to care. The second time we sat down, studied the menu, looked around at what others had chosen and made our selections. Our appetizer choice were the pot stickers and we chose the regular wings and the spicy curry wings. The appetizers were wonderful. The potstickers were fried and crispy, yet the filling was flavorful and moist. These are served with a sweet dipping sauce. The meal is served with rice, daikon and a slaw. The dressing for the slaw was light and had fine ground pepper. So yummy. My Hubby and I shared a bottle of rice wine and the flavor was bright and smooth going down. I must say, the chicken was super spicy and the curry was strong. My mom used to cook golden curry chicken when I was a kid and I did not like the smell or taste. I can't say my tastes have changed since childhood when it comes to curry so will not be getting the curry again as it is the same smell and flavor. I look forward to trying the other flavors the next time. read more

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We love their chicken wings and rice! The couple that work there are always so kind. Food comes out fast and fresh! Wish the menu had another vegetable on it, besides that it's delicious! read more

Chicken on Fire?! You are FIREEEEEEE. My favorite thing to order here (especially with groups) are their SOY GARLIC chicken wings. They taste like a gift from the gods because not only are they super flavorful, but they're also crispy! Like thank you chicken fryers everywhere. Bless your souls. It has the right amount of flavor, sauce, and crispiness that other chicken spots can try to accomplish but pale in comparison! Our meal also came with rice and cabbage salad! This helps you become even more full and adds a nice veggie crunch to your meal! We also ordered sweet potato fries and onion rings on the side. Yummmmy! Customer service here is also pretty amazing! They were super patient and also accommodating. They refilled our waters without us having to continuously flag them over. If you need them too they also have gloves for when you eat the chicken so you don't need to get super messy. At the end of our meal they also gave us baby wipes for our hands. There is a parking lot, but the entrance is a one way in and one way out kinda deal. So you've been forewarned, but fear not it does exist (which is a lifesaver if you're like me - AKA cannot parallel park, cannot street park)! Hahaha. tldr; Delicious chicken wings. Affordable. Phenomenal service. read more

Came here with 2 friends for Sunday dinner. Parking is available in the rear area if you cannot find any space on the streets. We ordered the 3 to 4 people serving of friend chicken which came with rice and salad. Half medium spicy, half soy garlic for the chicken. We also added a side of fried sweet potato. Their chicken here is pretty good, well seasoned and crunchy on the outside. Between the 2 flavors I think I prefer soy garlic. I think this is a place that you can return whenever you crave some crunchy fried chicken. read more

My husband loved the chicken wings here, his favorite are the boneless chicken wings. Very tender and flavor. Good customer service as well.

The family and I used to go to Bon Chon in SSF which was hit and miss for being really good. We used to go to 99 Cent Chicken in Santa Clara until we found this place which is much closer and excellent Chicken and side dishes. We had the Soy Garlic Chicken Wings and the Spicy Curry Chicken Wings. The Wings were cooked perfectly, the right amount of batter, moist inside and nice crunch. If you like garlic, you got a nice garlic flavor that wasn't overpowering, just the right seasoning. The salad is just shredded cabbage with a dressing but it goes well with cutting down the richness of the fried food. We had fried onion rings, sweet potato fries and potstickers too which were all great. Kept our water glasses full, good service and food came out quickly. Also, they aren't nit-picky with giving you the exact number of Wings. In any batch you get normal size Wings and sometimes some baby Wings so the few extra Wings was appreciated and a great customer service thing to do. In you live in the Tri-valley area or the East Bay, go here to save time and have excellent Wings. read more

Believe the Reviews. This place is GOOD -- you'll know it soon as you walk in. The smell is intoxicating & the taste doesn't disappoint. Plus they ALWAYS hook it up, not stingy with the portions. My order is usually the Soy Garlic. I ordered the Spicy once -- burned my mouth off so nowadays I just stick with the Soy Garlic lol. Also, their customer service is great & when you order takeout they always leave the bag open and give u that tip to not close it so the chicken stays crispy. Something like that tells me you have pride in what you serve. I recommend this place to anyone who hasn't been here before, and I will definitely be back. read more

The Chicken On Fire - Chicken Wings Near Me - Castro Valley, California

excellent spot for korean fried chicken in the east bay! Always get the soy garlic chicken wings. The staff usually gives you more wings than you actually ordered (which is much better than Vons Chicken). Outside of their soy garlic chicken, they give you a generous serving of rice and their french fries are excellent! read more

I'm writing this review to let people know of my experience during Shelter-in-Place and take out delivery. They have reduced hours from their normal - see their hours listed. Upon arrival and parking out front, there is a sign posted on their front door stating all patrons need to wear their face masks before entry. Additionally, upon entering through their doors there is a sign requesting you to wait there if somebody is at the front register (social distancing observed). The gal who assisted me wore a face mask and when handling my credit card she wore a disposable food service glove and I observed her dispose after single use. There is hand sanitizer available at the cash register Overall I feel comfortable to take out from this establishment. Note to restaurant: keeping the door propped open will be an additional good measure to reduce contact and show passerby's that you're open. read more

What can I say? Chicken on Fire is Fire!!!! Delicious chicken. I like to have them cook it "well done" but you do you. Our faves are the Spicy Hot and the Spicy Curry but they're all good! The onion rings and the Sweet potato fries are so good sometimes we splurge and get both. I recommend dining in as it's best fresh! Enjoy! read more

This place is universally good. Clean bathroom and dining areas, friendly staff, incredible food. I've brought a few different people here and all have been really happy with their meals. We've eaten in and done takeout - the takeout stays crispy for a while. The only down side about this place is the parking, almost no street parking, you can park in the back (I think it's ok) but it's really narrow, so a fair number of times we have to walk a ways go get there. But we keep going back. In fact I'm here looking at the Yelp page because we're planning on what we'll order this time. read more

One wordto describe The Chicken on Fire...how about BOMB! As a fan of fried chicken (American style) I truely enjoyed my experience devouring Korean fried chicken. Upon arriving, I was greeted by a friendly server who seated me and the Mister. We were provided drink service quickly. The menu is basic and without many options. By this I mean, the order will be a small, medium, or large for the chicken wing entrees. There are several flavors to select as sauces on top of the chicken wings. We decided to get the large, which allotted for two flavor options. This being said, the medium and soy garlic flavors are soooooo yummy. Accompanied with the chicken is rice and a salad for 2 people. Helpful Tips: 1. This place is small and can get packed quickly 2. You can order for pick up/togo 3. Parking is on the street 4. There are onion rings too (just a side note) read more

We used to come here fairly regularly. Granted, it's overpriced fried chicken, but it was generally good. With Covid, they went to pickup only. We went once for pickup, the lady taking our order wasn't terribly friendly and seemed genuinely afraid to take our order (we had masks, etc). But the food was ok, so we let it go. Today we dropped by for lunch. We asked for a menu, at which time the same lady handed us a card with a QR code and told us we could order from our car. As I was about to ask a question; she just walked away. I was flabbergasted, not just rude and condescending, she seemed upset that we should bother her to ask what products she sells. I walked out, and away. I have no interest in giving my hard earned money to a resturant operator who is rude and can't be bothered to provide at least basic customer service. read more

I can't believe I haven't written a review to our favorite Korean Fried Chicken yet. TCOF is such an amazing place! My husband and I usually get Medium 2 - which consists of 2 salads, 2 rice, 8 wings and 4 drumsticks. If we're extra hungry, we usually order a side or onion rings. We both enjoy spicy curry and smoked onion, although some days are saucier other times we visited. Portions are more than enough for a group of two people depending on your appetite. Last night, we came across a weekend special. Kimbap, or Korean style sushi. It's really good and a must try for everyone. Quite different from the Americanized Japanese sushi we all know and love. Hihi We are crazy about TCOF and we highly recommend this place to many of our local friends and friends visiting the bay area. :) read more

The Chicken on Fire in Castro Valley has been the best Korean Fried Chicken I've had in both the Bay and LA thus far. The staff and owners are incredibly friendly and receptive. The fried chicken is savory, crispy, and high quality. I've tried both the original spicy and soy garlic and ordering them in halves is always the way to go! Awesome complementary rice and white daikon, and the workers are always down to refill the radish if you need it. Parking is a bit of a struggle since if you can't get one on blvd, then there's a slim two-way alley of a parking lot there; it kinda scares me for the space so it's a good idea to have someone get out the car to help you ensure that there are no anticipating cars that might be on the opposite side. All in all, 10/10 for this restaurant and I'll be dining here again after the shelter-in-place! read more

Chicken was the bomb! One star less for the owner who was taking orders. Was not very friendly and accommodating. My 7 ur old daughter who was listening in on the conversation said "mom, the lady keeps talking over you". Haha. Even a 7 yr old knew better. Wish they had nicer staff but the chicken is really good. read more

After our hike, we got hungry and decided to try out The Chicken On Fire. We LOVE Korean fried chicken, and I would search for different spots to try. We ordered Medium 2 (8 wings, 4 drumsticks), it comes with complimentary rice and salad. We opt for the Smokey onion and soy garlic flavor. The chicken was good, but it was a bit TOO flavorful. I mean, maybe with a bit more rice it would've been fine. We did enjoy it, but the flavoring was a bit too strong for us. We've had Bonchon and have to say, by far that is the best KFC we've had. The service was great and our server was attentive. Maybe we'll come back and try it again, who knows. read more

The Chicken On Fire - Chicken Wings Near Me - Castro Valley, California

Hands down my favorite place to order from for takeout lunch during COVID. You can call in and order is usually ready in 20 minutes. My family and I prefer this place for fried chicken over Vons next door just because we prefer saucier fried chicken (soy garlic and smokey onion are so good!). Just beware of their closing time between lunch and dinner time. read more

The wings here have an amazing crispy fry to them. I recommend the spicy flavors and getting only wings. The drumsticks are tender but they're huge and have too much meat resulting in an off ratio of crispy skin and sauce to meat. We ordered small and medium set for two people in order to try all the flavors and it was a bit too much food. read more

Better than Bonchon. Affordable. Quick bite to eat. Came here on a Saturday night for dinner. Busy but not packed. It's located in a strip of shops along Castro Valley Blvd. If you drive too fast, you might miss it. There was street parking along the curb outside. We ordered the soy garlic wings and the reg spicy wings. They actually ran out of drums while we were there and only had wings. No biggie. The soy garlic was good and sticky. The reg spicy wings were not spicy at all and actually kinda sweet. Not sure I'm a fan of the spicy wings. Wish they were hotter. We also ordered gyoza, onion rings, and sweet potato fries. I'd order everything except the gyoza again. They came out oily and barely had any filling. I'm pretty sure these sides all come from a frozen bag. Also all the meals comes with a side dish of shredded cabbage salad and some radishes. Neither adds anything to the meal. The service was quick and so was the food. After the meal, they come around with baby wipes for your hands. read more

The Chicken On Fire - Gyoza, sweet potato fries, onion rings - Chicken Wings Near Me - Castro Valley, California

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Love this place! Stumbled upon it one day while looking on yelp for some good chicken wings. Their soy garlic wings are so bomb! The place is small but it's great because it allows staff to be attentive. Would definitely recommend coming here if you want some bomb wings! It has for sure become a fave for my family and I! read more

Get the soy garlic chicken. I liked it better than the spicy one. The flavors were really good and the chicken was nice and crispy. The one we got came with cabbage salad and rice. It reminded me of an Asian slaw. I will be coming here again. Just wish there were more places to park near by. Also just be careful that they only do take out orders 30 min before they close. read more

This place was very good! We got 16 wings, half soy garlic and half medium spicy. That was enough for two people. The wings had a good amount of sauce while retaining a nice crunch. It came with two small individual salads, more like coleslaw in my opinion, which I thought was just okay. There was also a pickled daikon I believe. The amount and quality of the food makes this place a great value. Staff was friendly. Parking was not hard to find. read more

I have been wanting to try chicken on fire for a while but was never in the area. However, on Friday evening, I was in the area visit a friend and stopped by here before heading back to Berkeley. I ordered the medium 2, which was a combo of wings and drumsticks with sides of rice and salad. I also got half spicy regular level 8 and half soy garlic. I took it out as take out and first nibble before I start back to Berkeley was delicious. The chicken was crispy and not to sweet. The spicy was SPICY, and I may get it a lower heat next time. It was still good, but spicy. The wings were moist, whereas the drumsticks were a little more dry. Also, I would prefer less sauce on the soy as it made the bottom chicken a little too sweet. The rice was plain rice and the salad was a cabbage slaw, which wasn't very Asian. It was more of an after though for me and would prefer sweet and sour radish (which I had at home) much more. Overall for $20, it was A LOT of food. Maybe try the fries next time with a small order of wings read more

I've been to the old location in Hayward several times which I also rated 5 stars. Does the new location in Castro Valley hold up? OH MOST DEFINITELY. First off if you can't find parking on the street, there's a decent sized parking lot BEHIND the restaurant. This new Chicken On Fire is also about three to four times LARGER than the old location. The staff was great and would always come by to refill drinks. In my humble opinion I'd rather go here than Wingstop or crappy Buffalo Wild Wings. You get a better deal and the food tastes MUCH better. You have your choice of Soy Garlic, Spicy Curry (my favorite), or Smokey BBQ. Folks, the crispiness of these wings will keep you coming back for more...they're THAT F'N GOOD. You also get a side of coleslaw and white rice. I left satisfied, full, and it only cost $10. Another thing I've always liked about this place. If you're lucky they USUALLY throw in an extra "bonus" wing. That's win-win. read more

The Chicken On Fire - Soy garlic (L) and Spicy Curry (R) - Chicken Wings Near Me - Castro Valley, California

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The food was good but the chicken flavor choices were limited. I would eat here again if I was in the mood for Korean fried chicken.

They love pepper! Sauce to too wet and thin, you can barely taste the flavors. Excellently fried and crunchy chicken.

Chicken wings done right. I've been to this place about 5 times and each time I've been very satisfied. I haven't yet had the luxury to dine-in, but take out has been great. The people who work here are super friendly and this is our go-to place to take friends who visit. Tip: they have parking at the back of the restaurant. If you drive past the restaurant, make a right at the stoplight, and you'll see a blue sign with an arrow for chicken on fire parking. Try it if you haven't already, delicious go-to anytime we're craving wings We ordered soy garlic, curry, and medium spicy. Medium spicy was the perfect amount of kick, but if you don't like spice, both curry and soy garlic flavors are good! read more

Excellent service, great slaw, good chicken and ambiance that seemed lacking. Service was excellent. The server was incredible: very polite, intuitive and prompt. I would say she was the highlight of the whole restaurant. Great slaw. Simple, crisp and fresh. Appeared to be of very few ingredients. Good garlic chicken. I think I've had better though. Tasted good as anything with lots of salt, sugar and fat would appeal. Spoiled from the San Francisco and Oakland food scene. I suppose if the chicken were advertised as free range I would feel better about eating it. For now Nasim Aghdam and her animal rights videos still haunt me. Ambiance seemed lacking. Might be because the restaurant is so new still. Walls seemed bare. No art or personality/charm. Everything was very clean and clutter free. Its possible the place itself is just so small with few windows or possibly the tables were too close together for my liking. A few big mirrors on the one large wall to mimic the appearance of windows might do wonders for this place. Mirrors can even trick the mind that the place is larger than it really is. read more

Love their soy wings and rice! Simple but hits the spot every time! Great customer service!

I very much enjoyed lunch here! We ordered a medium of both wings and drumsticks for the two of us, but we should have just gotten the small as portions are very large. The salad it came with was very tasty. The chicken itself was certainly the star. Amazing crunch! I really enjoyed the Soy Garlic flavor, and we tried the Medium Curry flavor, too. It was fine, but Soy Garlic was my fave. It did take a little long waiting on our order, but it wasn't too bad of a wait. I'd say it's worth a try! read more

To start, let me say I appreciate the Yelp community for bringing me here. The extensive reviews brought me here. So BOOM!!! The food is like a flavor bomb in your mouth. Pure explosion of flavor baby. Some reviewer had the audacity to say the food had too much flavor! Are you freaking serious! I odered the small 8 wing for $11 Flavor 1: Smokey onion. Had a sweet Finnish with a mild smokey taste. Super bomb so far my fav. Flavor 2: spicy curry omg the heat was subtle and the smell was enough to fill me up. I would recommend this flavor combo. The small came with rice and a tasty coleslaw salad. The portions were huge. The cutomer service was great. The establishment was cute and hip. Great for dates or work meeting. I will be back for sure with friends. Tip: if you order take out be sure to ask for the pickled radish. They will give you one complementary. read more

This place was so simple and on point!! I was originally going to try another place in SF with a similar concept, but decided to try this place due to convenience and I plan to make this my official chicken spot. If you know the difference between regular fried wings and Asian wok fried wings (trust me there's a difference) then understand this isn't a comparison to Wing Stop. I tried the soy garlic and spicy curry, they were both very good and of course CRISPY!! I pick the large order which came with the cabbage salad and it went perfect with the chicken. Need less to say go try this place and tell me if you agree!! read more

The Chicken On Fire - Chicken Wings Near Me - Castro Valley, California

Staff friendly and always helpful. Have been there so much that they know our order and do not have to even ask. Very good food and great service. We travel to the area frequently and always go there to eat or order to go. read more

Let's be clear here: I'm a wingnut. I love wings. One of my favorite meals of all time. I eat wings at any and every place I get an opportunity to. So when I say that Chicken on Fire is on my Bay Area Mount Rushmore for wings, it means something. I'm also a spicy food lover and an ardent fan of the Hot Ones Youtube channel. Give me that spice. Give me all of the spice in my face right meow. But that's probably not being fair to Chicken on Fire. They aren't just on my Mount Rushmore -- they're my Washington. This place is THE go-to for delicious wings in the Bay Area. Their homemade recipe is phenomenal, and you get a generous portion of wings to consume. What's more -- the spicy wings might not even be my favorite thing here. Their smoked onion wings are among the best I've ever had in my life, anywhere, regardless of spice level. The spicy wings (referred to as "regular" on the menu) pack a punch. We aren't talking ghost chili levels of heat, but for the average person these will wake you up -- if you aren't a fan of spicy, stick to the soy garlic and the smoked onion wings. But they're balanced by being action-packed with flavor in addition to the heat. Seasoned spice lovers will find they have a kick but are nothing overpowering. Absurdly DYNAMITE wings. I wish this place was open for lunch every day -- but it would probably be at a cost of my waistline. Come here. See, smell, and taste the crackle and fire-scorched perfection that are the best wings the Bay Area has to offer. read more

It was my first time here and i have no complaints. Diane served my family and I, where she automatically made us feel at home. She sat us in a cool area (we're currently in a crazy heatwave lol), and provided us with recommendations without us having to ask. The food was just as great as the service and I will definitely be coming back! read more

Came here after bowling with my family and was pleasantly surprised. Huge parking lot out back. They sat us quickly and accommodated our baby. They even brought him a cute water cup. Menu was simple and we went with 24 wing combo. It came with salad, radish, and rice. We did half spicy and half soy garlic. Both were good but spicy was defs a little too spicy for me. There was a good crunch and perfect amount of sauce. Next time for a group of 4, I would double my wing order. They were so good that they disappeared fast! read more

Came in during a lunch and got seated RIGHT AWAY!! Their soy garlic and medium spicy (medium size) plate was perfect for my co-worker and I! And we still had about 3 chicken pieces left over at the end. I'm coming back and bringing more Chicken on Fire virgins with me! The tip here is to DIP your rice in their soy garlic or sauces of the chicken! Don't waste all that goodness!!!! The cabbage slaws and rice served as perfect accompaniment to the saucy chicken! I'm not into rice but their rice is perfectly cooked and soft! We also ordered a side of fries that were so perfectly crunchy! There is plenty of parking spaces in the lot that you can drive through a small alley-type of way to get to. I hear this place gets packed evening hours - line out the door. So if you're looking to try it without the wait, lunch time on a weekday seems to be perfect! read more

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I haven't had COF in quite a while and whenever I had a hankering for KFC, I'd go to the other one in town (that since moved to Hayward), so, tonight, I decided to give COF a try. Wow! Loved the crunchiness and flavor of the soy garlic and sweet & sour was on point. This, not to mention, very meaty wings/drumette's. I forgotten that the meals came with steamed rice and salad! Well done COF for keeping your quality top notch! read more

Delicious food and outstanding service. The chicken is always crunchy and flavored well. I've been here several times and they never disappoint! Highly recommend trying. read more