Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang, SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won, LG Chairman Koo Kwang-mo, and Naver Chairman Lee Hae-jin visit the BBQ Chiken Hongdae Entrance branch in Mapo-gu, Seoul, on the evening of the 5th as crowds gather to see Jensen Huang. /Courtesy of Lee Ho-jun

Jensen Huang, the Nvidia chief executive officer, who arrived in Korea on the 5th, is enjoying a "second round" at the well-known chicken chain "BBQ Chiken" after a "samso (samgyeopsal + soju) gathering" with heads of Korea's business community. Huang has repeatedly expressed his fondness for K-chicken.

Huang arrived through Gimpo International Airport at about 1 p.m. that day. For his first stop, he met pro gamer Faker (Lee Sang-hyeok) and other T1 League of Legends (LoL) players at the PC cafe "T1 Basecamp" near Hongik Univ. Station in Mapo-gu, Seoul.

Then, at about 7:10 p.m., he had dinner with Chey Tae-won, the SK chairman, Koo Kwang-mo, the LG chairman, and Lee Hae-jin, the Naver chairman, pairing samgyeopsal with soju and beer at the barbecue restaurant "Hyeongnimjeoyo" near Hongik Univ. Station.

A karaoke venue was mentioned as the second destination. A large karaoke near Hongik Univ. had cleared all rooms and was on standby that day. Meeting citizens outside the restaurant who had come to welcome Huang during the meal, Chairman Koo, asked whether the second round would be karaoke, said, "We should go with the trend."

However, the place decided for the second round was the Hongik Univ. branch of "BBQ Chiken," about 200 meters in a straight line from the barbecue restaurant. During the meal, Huang came out holding chicken and handed it out to citizens waiting for him.

On Oct. 30 last year, Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang steps outside a Kkanbu Chicken location in Gangnam-gu, Seoul, during a chicken gathering with Samsung Electronics Chairman Lee Jae-yong and Hyundai Motor Group Chairman Chung Eui-sun to hand out chicken and more to citizens. /Courtesy of Chosun DB

Earlier, while eating samgyeopsal, Huang stepped outside to hand out snacks to citizens and cited K-chicken as a purpose for coming to Korea. He said, "I wanted to enjoy Korea's culture," adding, "I want to eat barbecue, eat snacks, eat the world's best fried chicken, enjoy K-pop, and watch K-drama."

Earlier, when Huang visited Korea in Oct. last year, he had what was dubbed a "Kkanbu meeting" at "Kkanbu Chicken" in Samseong-dong, Gangnam-gu, Seoul, with Lee Jae-yong, the Samsung Electronics chairman, and Chung Eui-sun, the Hyundai Motor Group chairman.

99 Chicken, a U.S. restaurant serving Korean-style fried chicken. /Courtesy of 99 Chicken website capture

After eating chicken, Huang, Chairman Lee, and Chairman Chung moved to COEX to attend Nvidia's "GeForce Gamer Festival." At the time, Huang said, "Korean fried chicken is the best in the world," adding, "My regular spot in Silicon Valley is '99 Chicken,' which is a brand like Korea's 'Gugu Chicken.' The best-tasting chicken in California is Korean chicken."

In Feb., when Chairman Chey visited the United States, Huang and Chey went together to "99 Chicken" in Santa Clara, California.

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