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Han Kang

Han Kang
16 Hanway Street
W1T 1UE

Date of Last Visit: Saturday, April 4

The Victim: Me

The Damage: £10

It's never a good sign when I can't remember the name of the restaurant I had lunch at. I can remember the name of the restaurant I wanted to have lunch at--Kikuchi--because Q. and Nuno were giving it rave reviews the other night at dinner. So I trekked all the way over to Kikuchi on a Saturday afternoon, only to find out they were closed.

And I was starving.

So the Korean next door it was.

The Entrance: It's not a big restaurant. Two tables are full, and one table looks like they might know the owners. Service is prompt and efficient. The waitress brings me the lunch menu, I pick the bibimbap, and within five minutes, the dish is in front of me.

That always makes me the tiniest bit suspicious. Five minutes? Hey, in some ways, I'm not complaining. But really, it suggests a level of pre-preparation that I'm not sure I want.

And I'm right. The beef is stringy and gray. The rest of the dish is cold as in "I've been sitting in a refrigerator for ages, waiting for you to order me." Only the egg is fresh.

The redeeming quality is that mysteriously delicious red sauce. Packed with what I think is sesame oil. I dump that all over my dish, stir it up, and yaozah! Great stuff.

The Verdict: Serviceable. And a good deal at £10. But my review is just...eh.

KJ Restaurant

KJ Restaurant
65 High Street
New Malden
KT3 4BT

The Victims: Oonth, Limster

The Damage: £8 each-ish, again!

The Background: Our Korean restaurant crawl continues. We've been to Hamgipak--my favorite--and You Me. And I've been very impressed with our restraint. In our previous two stops, we've shared just two dishes among(st) three people.

I ordered at Hamgipak. Limster ordered at You Me. So we put Oonth in charge of ordering here, our third and final stop. (We may have done a fourth stop if anything else had been open!) He picks out some nigri and some hand rolls...just a few and just enough to fill us up.

Part of me wants another Korean pancake.

The Food: The nigri is cold. Very cold. Too cold. The unagi--eel--is great, but it feels high margin. They've cut it very thin. It looks very graceful there, across its bed of rice. But it doesn't feel fat and generous. Hmmm.

The Verdict: I thought the service at KJ was sweet and the decor is pretty clean and modern. But the fish was so very cold. Almost as if it was still defrosting when they served it to us.

You Me Restaurant

You Me Restaurant
96 Burlington Road
New Malden, Surrey
KT3 4NT

Date of Last Visit: Sunday, November 9th

The Victims: Oonth, Limster

The Damage: £8 each-ish

The Background: Well, you've got the background on my last post. We're on a Korean restaurant crawl. And I'm really ridiculously excited.

We wander down Burlington Road and peer in the windows of a few restaurants. You Me looks good, and Oonth thinks he's heard of it before. We enter and are immediately shown a table in the back.

The Loos: Yuk.

The Food: We order the jap chae--glass noodles with vegetables--and some ox tail soup. The jap chae is full of ginger which is nice. But I'm not totally enamored. I keep thinking of the pajun at Hamgipak--the spring onion and cuttlefish pancake--and this pales in comparison. It's just ok.

The ox tail soup is interesting. Full of egg. But again, not my favorite.

Oh, and the banchan? We have to pay for it!

The Verdict: Eh.

Hamgipak

 

Hamgipak
169 High Street
New Malden
KT3 4BH

Date of Last Visit: Sunday, 9 November 2008

The Victims: Oonth, Limster

The Damage: £16 for the three of us

The Background: Some people look at me like I'm crazy when I suggest a trip out to New Malden for Korean food. I've been wanting to go since my absolutely amazing trip to South Korea in 2004, where I never once had a bad meal and everything was really more than excellent. Oonth and Limster had both mentioned separately that they'd be up for the field trip, so we made plans to meet at New Malden Station at 12 for a little food crawl.

The Entrance: Hamgipak comes highly recommended by Su Lin so we made that our first stop. And it would prove to be the best stop of the day. Hamgipak is very small--we laughed when Limster asked where the toilets were and was given directions to the alley. When we arrived shortly after 12, it was already more than 1/2 full and the tables would turn twice if not three times before we departed.

The Food: We're pacing ourselves, so we go with just one Korean pancake and a bowl of spicy soft tofu soup. Both are really really fantastic. Oh, and the banchan--little dishes of kimchee and assorted vegetables--are FREE and plentiful. (I hate it when people charge me for banchan; they're normally complimentary in Korea.)

The Verdict: I wish there were a central branch. I would go here. A lot. 

Korean: Asadal

Asadal
227 High Holborn
WC1V 7DA
020 7430 9006

Date of Last Visit: Saturday, January 5, 2007

The Victim: Me

The Damage: £10, exactly. 

The Background: Why do we make the decisions (or take the decisions, as you say here) that we do? I really don't know what prompted me to get up on a Saturday morning and go out for Korean food. I was going to Selfridge's to get my eyebrows done and buy some facial cleanser, if you must know. And I had this idea about hitting Polo for lunch at some point during the afternoon.

But then...as it does tend to happen...I ended up getting on the 243 bus instead of the 55. (No coffee. Not thinking.) And the 243 lets you out at Holborn instead of heading west to Oxford Circus. So I was really mad at myself and I was standing on High Holborn, thinking. Thinking thinking. I'm sure people thought I was crazy. Crazy American tourist blocking their way. (There is something about my teeth that betrays my nationality.) And then I saw Asadal and I thought...hmmm...not Polo...but it's Korean...

The Entrance: It's empty. I'm empty. And I want some tofu soup. I explain this to my very kind waitress who looks at me funny and tells me that I can't possibly want the tofu soup because it has a very strong taste and I won't like it.

At which point I look at HER funny and tell her that I am sure I WILL like it and that I LIKE strong tastes. I also challenge her to further define "strong" (and to provide a specific example) but we seem to have hit a language barrier. I sit and wait and contemplate the obviousness of my dislike of being told what I will and will not like. I need to confirm for myself. (Apparently my two favorite sentences as a child were "Are you sure?" and "How do you know?")

Now I know that Korean restaurants in London are challenged by their traditional notions of providing "little dishes" complimentary at the start of the meal. They are challenged because Londoners are cheap and will gladly eat all the free food, swizzle a beer, and leave. So many a Korean restaurant in central London will charge for the free stuff, although apparently if I go to New Malden, I won't have this problem.

The Food: So I am pleased and delighted when the little dishes arrive...there's kimchee, of course, plus some spinachy looking substance that looks better than it tastes, and some sprouts, which are just okay. But hey, I wasn't expecting anything and life is good when your expections are exceeded.

I pay a quid for tea and it is hot and so it the cup it's served in--so hot that I can't hold the cup. So I have to wait about 10 minutes before I can quench my thirst. Why would they serve tea in a cup that conducts heat? I don't understand.

Here comes the tofu soup and it is just tofu soup. There is nothing "strong tasting" about it, except for a few green chillies that I am wise enough not to eat. Perhaps others have eaten the chillies and complained. I can not guess at the eating habits of those that have come before me. The soup is nice. It's a good, warming lunch.

The Service: Sweet. Low scores on the TOEFL though. No automatic service charge is added to the tab. Even sweeter. But I leave £1.25 anyhow.

The Verdict: It was good. But I still like Polo better.

Korean: Woo Jung

Woo Jung
59 St Giles High Street
WC2H 8LH
020 7836 3103

Date of Last Visit: Saturday, October 20th

The Victim: Me

The Damage: £8.50

The Background: It's Saturday, so I'm on Oxford Street shopping, getting my eyebrows done, looking at shoes, etc. And now I'm hungry. I really feel like sushi, but after racking my brain for quite some time, the only sushi options I can come up with are Yo! and Itsu. I vaguely remember that there are some Japanese restaurants north of Oxford Street on Wigmore or something, but after wandering for a while, I can't find them. So I head to Centre Point.

I forget now if I told the story about Team China from the office who used Centre Point as their landmark for everything. And now it's mine too!

Polo looks closed, but that's okay because I've been there before. (I am not, unlike some people, a creature of habit. K&A, for example, can go to the same restaurants all the time. Not me.) Woo Jung is open and has a decent crowd, so I step inside.

The decor, to be honest, is nothing to look at. And the service, also to be honest, doesn't seem to speak much English. Asking where the toilet was took forever. And toilet shouldn't be a hard word. (The toilets, by the way, were not the best.) But the crowd--in the maybe six tables--is mainly Korean, which I suppose says something.

They come and take my order and I go for the recommended Korean pancake (there are two on the menu and they recommend the first one).

The Food: It arrives and it's sorta red. It's served with a side of soy sauce with scallions and maybe even some chillies in there. I take a bite and it's GREAT. Nice and crispy on the outside, a little spicy, a little doughy, a little vegetable-y. I like it.

Until I get to the middle, and it's a bit undercooked. It's like eating raw dough. Delicious raw dough, but dough nonetheless. Hmmm.

The Bill: £8.50 for free cold tea (barley tea), a pancake, and a beer (Hite). Not so bad!

The Verdict: Maybe I'll go back. I don't know. I wouldn't send people here. They would think I was weird. Maybe I am a little.

Korean: Polo

56 St. Giles High Street
WC2H 8LH
020 7379 3781 

Date of Last Visit: Wednesday, September 5, 2007

The Damage: £10

The Victim: Me, myself, and I

The Background: Tube strike. Hair appointment in Central London. Bus not moving. Too many people on street. Keep. Bumping. Into. People. Arrrggh. Must get away from madness. Must get out of the way until city calms down.

Well...now it is 7 p.m....I could have dinner somewhere...

And well...Team China did tell me about Centre Point and the restaurants around there.

Hmmm...Korean. I love Korean. Did I mention that I love Korean? This place looks fun...

The Entrance: Hello! Hello! Welcome! Welcome. Where would you like to sit?

I take the bar. I ask for tea and they bring me COLD tea in a 1/2 pint glass. This wasn't what I was expecting but it is PERFECT. Because I am all hot and worked up from the madness on the street. And they keep bringing me refills. It's fantastic.

I like my seat at the little bar. There are about 8 seats that wrap around. I can't really see what's going on behind the bar, but I can talk to the server and otherwise observe. The place is packed with a student crowd. (All two other tables, that is. Maybe three tables. I forget.) I hear lots of Korean. (Or well, I hear lots of "chuseyo"s and "gamsamnedas." Maybe they too, like me, just like to throw around the random "chuseyo" and "gamsamneda.")

The Food: I debate the pancake. I love love love Korean pancakes. But I sorta want some spicy tofu soup. The guy behind the bar tells me both would be too much, so I stick with the soup. It arrives in a cool eartheware type of bowl. And it is indeed spicy. It's got a good amount of tofu in it and a great amount of seafood. There's a whole little crab in there. And two shrimp. And 5 clams. I am somewhat regretful because it's a bit hot out and this hot and spicy soup is just making me hotter, and plus I learn later that I've got the flu so I'm even hotter than normal. (And hence all the extra crankiness.) But that doesn't prevent me from enjoying the deliciousness.

The Verdict: My new post-Oxford Street hangout. Love it. Love them. Gamsamneda.

Korean: New Seoul

164 Clerkenwell Road
EC1R 5DU
Tel: 020 7278 8674

A Note about This Photo: This is purely a photo of association. In August of 2004, I visited Korea with my friends Shin and Ryan. (Shin emigrated to the US when she was 16. She was dating Ryan--a gringo--back in 2004. I was the decoy. Now that was funny.) Anyhow, this photo is from a cool little place on Jeju Island. (At least, that's where I think I was when I took this. I unfortunately did not keep notes. And although I did have the blog at the time, I didn't blog the trip! Idiot!)

Date of Last Visit: Wednesday, August 1, 2007

The Damage: £12

The Victim: Me

The Background: So I went to bed at midnight last night. But guess what time I woke up? 11:30 a.m.  I would feel pretty good about this (jetlag) except that my friend Kellie says that anyone who sleeps more than eight hours a night is depressed. This makes me slightly obsessive...am I depressed? Am I? (No, but I am just the tiniest bit obsessive compulsive. But not about washing my hands or anything. Just about leaving irons and ovens on. I finally have an iron that turns itself off, which is very helpful. Thank you for your concern.)

Then again, the entire time I was in Cabo, I seemed to be sleeping EXACTLY 7.5 hours a night. It was almost spooky.

By the time I got out of the house on Wednesday, it was around 1:30. Man, the best laid plans! I am very angry with myself as I write this. I had all these ideas...I was going to check out the Antony Gormley exhibit, I was going to look at Danish furniture in Camden. I was going to go to the gym.

Instead I had a Korean pancake and some spicy tofu soup. And I got asked out by my waiter. And I eavesdropped on some people who just happened to work for one of my company's competitors! Too funny.

The Food: I get the spring onion pancake and it is perfect. It is presented on a bamboo mat on a pretty piece of Korean pottery. And it is delicious and satisfying. The people from the competitor at the table next to me were very jealous.

I also order some spicy tofu soup. (Note that if your Korean soup comes with a bowl of white rice, you should put the white rice in the soup.) It's really nice and light and it's just the right amount of spiciness. The pancake and the soup go perfectly together...although there is no meat to be had, the pancake has a thickness and doughy-ness to it that meshes well with the spicy soup and the light tofu. All that being said, I don't think I would have been happy with the tofu soup on it's own. I would have needed something else.

New Seoul is not the world's most atmospheric place, but that's okay. You don't need atmosphere when you're a walking jetlag zombie.

The Service: Very sweet. He was impressed with my very basic Korean ("hello how are you" and "can i have a beer please" and "hurry, hurry") and that I like the Yankees better than the Mets. Plus, he asked if he could see me again, which made me feel very alluring--for a walking jetlag zombie.

The Verdict: I'd go again. And I'd have multiple pancakes.

Korean: Arang

9 Golden Square
London
W1F 9HZ
020 7434 2073

Date of Last Visit: Sunday, May 13, 2007

The Victim: Dad

The Damage: About £50 with drinks

The Background: My Korean restaurant experience at Wonjo in NY was so fantastic that I was eager to have more Korean BBQ. My father looked a me like I was crazy. He needs to expand his culinary horizons. I had done my research ahead of time, and I had honed in on Arang, which had outstanding reviews on London-eating.

The Service: We were a tag on the early side, and the staff couldn't have been sweeter. My father announced loudly, many times, that his next girlfriend would be Korean. I tried not to run away and hide.

The Food:I totally got suckered into the £17-per-person set menu, and that was a big mistake because there was way too much food. We started with the pan chen (kimchee and radishes and other little bits), and then came along a tray of glass noodles and an assortment of Korean pancakes. And then came the BBQ and it was a HUGE plate of meat. My father chooses this point to tell me that he doesn't really eat red meat anymore.

This didn't stop him from helping himself to a couple of delicious beef tacos and scraping the bowl of bean paste clean, of course.

The Loos: Gross. I am giving more and more thought to that power-washing business.

The Verdict: Sweet service and good barbecue (although it's gas-fired, not charcoal). I think the pancake assortment could have been fresher, and I'd warn folks away from the loos. I also thought the interior was a little austere. But all in all, not so bad. 

NYC: Wonjo

23 W. 32nd St.
New York, NY 10001
+1-212-695-5815

Date of Last Visit: Thursday, May 3, 2007

The Victims: Shinny, Monica, Kim

The Damage: $50 USD per person.

The Background: Oh my God but did I get up at 4 a.m. on Thursday or what? I did. And it sucked, big big time. But see, I am always convinced that I am not fully packed, so extra time in the a.m. is key. And I was on the 9 a.m. flight out of Heathrow to NYC. Well, Newark actually. Same difference.

More Background: I was flying to NY specifically for Feathers' bachelorette (aka hen) party. (More on that to come!!!) But like I said to the guy at Immigration in Newark when he asked me, an American citizen, for the purpose of my visit to the U.S. of A., "Dude, I'm from here." (In NY-ese, I believe a more proper phrasing would be something like "Because I was born here, Jackass. Now let me in.)

I forget about New York sometimes. I forget about the peculiar way we have of talking to (at?) each other. I forget about the bizarre combination of friendliness-nosiness-rudeness. I forget about Yonkers and the Van Wyck and the Belt Parkway and Starrett City and the F train and the Babylon Branch of the LIRR. I don't recognize the area codes anymore. I have trouble remembering what comes before Wantagh-Seaford-Massapequa-Massapequa Park-Amityville-Copaigue-Lindenhurst-and-Babylon. And I don't know how to to describe where Breezy Point is anymore.

But it'll come back to me. I have hope.

The Restaurant: I make plans to meet up with Shinny and Monica at a Korean BBQ place in mid-town. Shin and I went to Korea together in 2004, and speaking very honestly, we ate very well. Very very well. She was a fantastic host. As Shin knows, I've been talking about the tofu soup I had somewhere in Korea for the last three years. So I was excited to relive the Korean experience with her at Wonjo, one of the few places left in the city where they still do charcoal-fired BBQ (as opposed to gas-fired).

The Food: Shinny is in charge and she loads us up with bolgogi--raw marinated beef that you barbecue at the table--Korean pancakes (rice flour and scallions and all sorts of good things made into an omelette), little dishes of kimchee and radishes (I will butcher the spelling but I think the collective little dish experience is known as pan chan) and lots and lots of bean paste. Love bean paste. We make Korean lettuce "tacos" and we are very happy. But we have terrible garlic breath.

The Drink: We wash this all down with OB beer (how unforunate for their Western marketing) and Kim goes for the Soju. 

The Verdict: Really enjoyable, although eating so much raw and cooked garlic was a bad idea...on the treadmill the next day, I could totally smell my own garlic sweat and so could the dude next to me. Yuk!