| Frybaby | |
|---|---|
 | |
 | |
| Restaurant information | |
| Established | 2023 (2023) |
| Owner(s) | Sunny Hatch |
| Chef | Sunny Hatch |
| Food type |
|
| City | Portland |
| County | Multnomah |
| State | Oregon |
| Country | United States |
| Coordinates | 45°31′10″N122°39′19″W / 45.5195°N 122.6552°W /45.5195; -122.6552 |
Frybaby is a restaurant inPortland, Oregon, United States. Chef and owner Sunny Hatch operates the business from afood cart in theLil' America pod insoutheast Portland'sBuckman neighborhood. The restaurant specializes inKorean fried chicken and the menu also hasSouthern-inspired sides such asmacaroni and cheese withkimchi,mashed potatoes withcurry gravy, andcoleslaw. The restaurant has garnered a positive reception and was named Food Cart of the Year byThe Oregonian in 2023.
Frybaby operates from afood cart at theLil' America pod, which hostsBIPOC- andLGBTQ-owned businesses, insoutheast Portland'sBuckman neighborhood.[1][2] Michael Russell ofThe Oregonian described Frybaby as the owner's "ode to the fantastic fried chicken he first tried during a tipsy night hanging with new hostel friends on a trip to South Korea".[3]
Frybaby specializes inKorean fried chicken and otherKorean (or "Korean American") foods,[4][5][6] as well as "Southern-inspired" sides.[7][8] Wings, drumsticks, and thighs[9] are mixed with potato, rice, and tapioca flour, with vodka in the batter.[10] Sauces for wings includegochujang and soy garlic snow cheese. The menu also includes garlic butter rice,[11]macaroni and cheese withkimchi, smashed cucumbers,[3] sesame limecoleslaw,[7] bo ssam collard greens andmashed potatoes withcurry gravy as sides.[12]
Frybaby opened with the Lil' America pod in 2023.[13][14] Sunny Hatch is the chef and owner.[12] For thePortland Mercury's "Weiner Week" event in 2025, Frybaby served a Korean Corn Cheese Dog, or a hot dog with mozzarella Korean corn cheese, kimchi-gochujang sauce, sesame seeds, and green onions.[15]
In 2023, Frybaby was named Food Cart of the Year byThe Oregonian.[3][16] The business was a runner-up in the Best Wings category ofWillamette Week's annual 'Best of Portland' readers' poll in 2024.[17] Alex Frane included Frybaby inPortland Monthly's 2025 guide to the city's best fried chicken.[9]
Frybaby won in the Best New Food Cart category ofEater Portland's annual Eater Awards in 2023.[18] Ron Scott and Thom Hilton included the business in the website's 2024 overview of Portland's "best real-deal" fried chicken. The duo recommended the mashed potatoes with curry gravy and the kimchi mac and cheese.[10] In 2025, the website's Rebecca Roland included Frybaby in a list of Portland's best Korean food[7] and Katrina Yentch included the business in an overview of the best restaurants in Buckman.[19]
