Bonchon, the global restaurant brand famous for its crunchy, hand-battered, double-fried Korean chicken, posted record numbers for 2022 that included increased average unit volume (AUV) and unit count growth.

In the US, the increased AUV was driven by positive same store sales (SSS) of 5%, which is a strong follow-up to Bonchon’s positive 15% SSS in 2021.­ The company also added 12 domestic units and 30 international locations, ending the year with a total of 122 units in the U.S. and 409 total units worldwide.

“Our success in 2022 – the same year we celebrated our milestone 20th anniversary – comes from driving operational efficiencies, improving unit level economics and increasing top line sales,” says Bonchon CEO Flynn Dekker. “As we look to 2023, our focus is on improving back-of-house efficiencies with reduced ticket times, further improvement to the labor model and increasing development of Bonchon across the country and globally.”

The brand plans to open 30 new units in the U.S. in 2023, with 19 new units planned outside the U.S. including opening their first restaurant in France in March. In addition, Bonchon has more than 100 units in its development pipeline just in the U.S.

Dekker said Bonchon will continue to invest in technology in 2023, with plans that include a strategic partnership with Future Kitchen to deploy proprietary kitchen robotics for more efficient production. The company hopes to become the first restaurant brand in the U.S. to use the new technology.

Other brand initiatives this year will include a new online ordering platform and app, a loyalty program and a new, fully integrated product-driven calendar.