Late-night chicken and cheese balls in Hadong: Jadam Chicken Hwagae
In short
Jadam Chicken Hadong Hwagaejangteo is a fried chicken shop in Hwagae-myeon, Hadong, Gyeongnam, directly across from Hwagae Market, and one of fewer than ten branches nationwide that fries with a chicken-cooking robot. A phone order 30 minutes ahead meant boneless half-and-half chicken (fried + seasoned) and five cheese balls were ready with no wait, and the chicken was still warm after the 30-minute drive to a guesthouse in Gurye. The fried half was neither spicy nor salty so a child ate it easily, and the seasoned half was ideal over rice — a solid late-night takeout pick.
Good to know
- What we ordered
- Boneless half-and-half chicken (fried + seasoned), cheese balls
- Cheese balls
- 5 pieces, packed separately
- Parking
- Dedicated lot in front of the shop
- Seating
- Outdoor tables beside the shop
- Shares the space with
- Dalin Kkwabaegi (twisted donuts) — takeout only, sold individually or in sets
- Takeout tip
- Call 30 minutes before arriving to pick up with no wait
as written by the visitor on Sep 17, 2026
Today I visited a Hadong fried chicken spot, Jadam Chicken Hadong Hwagaejangteo. Apparently it's one of fewer than ten branches nationwide with a chicken-frying robot — pretty unusual! They also run Dalin Kkwabaegi (twisted donut shop) inside, so you can grab all kinds of snacks together. Let me introduce it in detail below~
Where Jadam Chicken Hadong Hwagaejangteo is, and where to park
Jadam Chicken Hadong Hwagaejangteo sits right across from Hwagae Market, with a dedicated parking lot out front. We'd had dinner during our Hadong trip and didn't want to just head straight to the guesthouse, so we stopped by to grab a whole chicken to take away for a late-night snack!
I called 30 minutes before arriving to order ahead, and I was able to pick it up right away with no wait.
What we ordered: boneless half-and-half chicken and cheese balls
Boneless half-and-half chicken (fried + seasoned) / Cheese balls
There are also outdoor tables next to the store with a nice pojangmacha-style vibe, so it'd be great to sit and have chimaek (chicken and beer) right there too.
Dalin Kkwabaegi twisted donuts share the same shop
Dalin Kkwabaegi is also operating inside the same store as Jadam Chicken. I love kkwabaegi (twisted donuts) and regular donuts, and if I'd known ahead of time, I would've bought some instead of the cheese balls — a bit of a regret.
Kkwabaegi is takeout only, but you can buy them individually or as sets, just so you know~
How does the chicken-frying robot cook the chicken?
When I got to the store, there was a chicken robot! I was so curious since it's one of fewer than ten robot-equipped stores in the whole country, but my order had already been fried and packed up. When I said I was disappointed to miss it, the owner kindly showed me how it works haha.
Can you see the robot moving so smoothly? We've really entered the era of eating chicken fried by a robot!
They said the robot fries at the optimal temperature for the optimal time, so I couldn't wait to get to the guesthouse and taste it~
Still warm after 30 minutes to our Gurye guesthouse
We drove to our guesthouse in Gurye! It took about 30 minutes, but luckily the chicken was still warm. Let's dig in before it gets cold.
Crispy, well-fried boneless half-and-half chicken. The cheese balls came as 5 pieces packed separately, and we piled them on top to eat together.
The cheese balls: five pieces, packed separately
I'm really into cheese balls lately and always order them with chicken, and Jadam Chicken's cheese balls are genuinely delicious. Of course they weren't fresh out of the fryer anymore so the cheese didn't stretch, but they were still chewy and sweet and so tasty. Five pieces wasn't enough...T_T
Fried half: mild enough for a child
Jadam Chicken uses antibiotic-free Korean chicken and applies animal-welfare-certified chicken to its main menu items — a leader in eco-friendly, well-being fried chicken. True to form, even the basic fried menu is crispy and delicious. Some chicken brands actually make their fried menu spicy, which I didn't realize until I fed it to my kid. Jadam's fried chicken isn't spicy or salty, so my child ate it just fine.
Seasoned half: made for chibap (chicken over rice)
The seasoned chicken has that classic, crowd-pleasing flavor everyone likes. Being boneless makes it easy to eat, and the sauce immediately makes you crave rice, so it'd be great for chibap (chicken over rice) too.
The leftover seasoned chicken was still delicious the next day!
Is Jadam Chicken Hadong Hwagaejangteo worth the takeout trip?
Jadam Chicken uses antibiotic-free Korean chicken and applies animal-welfare-certified chicken to its main menu — a leader in eco-friendly, well-being fried chicken. The Hadong Hwagaejangteo branch is one of fewer than ten stores nationwide with a chicken-frying robot, which fries at the optimal temperature for the optimal time, reducing variation in taste so you can always enjoy consistent quality. Dalin Kkwabaegi runs inside too, so it's a great spot to pick up snacks like twisted donuts as well. Jadam's half-and-half chicken was great for a late-night snack or chibap — I'd recommend it as a can't-go-wrong fried chicken spot in Hadong~
Where it is
4 Ssanggye-ro, Hwagae-myeon, Hadong-gun, Gyeongsangnam-do, South Korea경상남도 하동군 화개면 쌍계로 4
