When you're craving two of the major food groups — chicken wings and bubble tea — make tracks for Chick'n Bubbly, the amusingly named tiny eatery in Oakland.
Chicken is available in its convenient snack size, as wings or drumsticks. It is prepared in KFC-style (Korean Fried Chicken): battered, deep-fried, then drenched in one of two sauces, "sweet and spicy" or soy garlic. (Sauce also available on the side.)
The night I stopped by, chicken was cooked to order, which took time — I was lucky to have one of the few seats, and watched the bubble tea-making — but it also meant my order arrived crackling hot from the fryer.
These may be the crispiest wings in town, with some pieces doubling in size from the fried batter accumulating. Both sauces were on the sweet side, and next time, I'd go with the "more spice" option. To help with the heat and the messy sauce of the wings, a dispensary of plastic finger-tip shields is available on the counter.
If you wish to add another food group, the menu has a couple of options, including French fries, sweet-potato fries, takoyaki (Japanese octopus snack) and sweet pickled radishes. And what goes better with fried food than a fruit-flavored tea, slushy or smoothie? There are a variety of flavors, including the more exotic options such as taro, lychee and passion fruit, plus add-ins of tapioca or jelly.
