A Kimchee Dinner

A few months ago, a new Korean restaurant called Kimchee opened up by my office but I never paid it much attention until a couple of different people from work mentioned that they enjoyed the food there. First off, I should've taken their reviews with a very large helping of salt since these are people who had never had Korean food before. Ever.



Some of the girls and I decided to have dinner there last night, and it was a reminder why I don't eat Korean food in London if I can help it. It was about 6 of us - me, a Brit, two Kiwis, an Aussie and a Spaniard. The British girl was a bit reluctant to give it a go because she thought it would be a lot like Chinese food. *Sigh*

Anyway, I should've known something wasn't right when I noticed that there were pretty much no Korean people in the open kitchen. I think I may have spotted one, but that was pretty much it for actual Koreans in the entire place. And I know I've complained about this before, but it's positively criminal to charge for rice and banchan (side dishes) in a Korean restaurant.

After looking through their confused menu, I decided to order bulgogi (seasoned grilled beef) and rice. The others ordered dolsot bibimbap (hot rice pot with veggies), bulgalbi (seasoned grilled beef), and chicken udon katsu (is this even korean?) I got to supervise the people who ordered the bibimbap to make sure their rice crispened up on the bottom and that they didn't overdose on the spicy sauce.

In terms of taste and flavour, the food could be considered Korean but was heavily Anglicized to appeal to the British palate. And the portion sizes would've made my mother cry - they were teeny! My meal was also not served properly. My bulgogi came with a side of iceberg lettuce and a fermented soy/miso paste sauce. That is not how you eat bulgogi. And don't even get me started on the iceberg lettuce.

All complaints aside, everyone had a good time and really enjoyed their food (me excepted). I'm tempted to invite them over to my flat and cook them some real Korean food so they know what it really is all about. But I'm lazy, so maybe I'll just suggest that we go across the street to Asadal, where the food is a bit more authentic, the next time they get a craving for Korean food.

Korean Food at Asadal

Instead of going for a run in the park, I met my friends for lunch today at Asadal, a Korean restaurant located right by Holborn station. Wait, does this make me a lady that lunches? Very cool, I've always aspired to be one of those!

Anyway, I was a little wary since my last Korean food expedition in London was a bit disappointing, and I had written off having any Korean food until another visit back to LA. Turns out, my fears were unfounded - I've finally found some good Korean food in London!

First off, the decor is pretty nice and on par with a nice restaurant as opposed to just being a place to eat. Second, you can tell it's an authentic Korean restaurant because it has grills built into the table and a bell you ring to call your waitress over. Third, they don't charge extra for the sides - free banchan all around, woohoo! And last, they serve you a bit of fruit at the end of your meal. Just like how Mom does it. =)

I ordered the meat bibimbap, and it was exactly what it was supposed to be. Except for the fact that they brought the tiniest amount of spicy sauce to mix in with it, but no points off for that since I always have to ask for extra spicy sauce, even at restaurants in K-town back in LA.

My friends ordered the jap chae, which came with a side of salad and white rice and a small serving of spiced daikon radish. I don't think they had tried the dish before, but they got the brilliant idea of mixing everything on their plate together and then eating it. I couldn't help smiling as I watched them swirl it all together, but they pronounced it to be delicious, so we were all smiling at the end. I was responsible for identifying all the bits that came out like the lotus root and the daikon radish, and it was fun to be the Korean expert since I so rarely get to be one.

It was definitely nice to be eating good Korean food again, and I think I'll be bringing J around the next time he starts craving Korean food. What a great find!

Oh, and I found out that the food stand outside of the Louvre in Paris - Paul - is actually a chain, and they have locations in London! I can't wait to visit it again for some hot molten chocolate - yum!