Korean Restaurants – Page 17

Scenes from A Taste of Korea Harvest & Wine Festival

September 26, 2010 mmm-yoso Festivals & Events, Korean Restaurants

I'm sure you could tell from this post, that I was fascinated with the "Taste of Korea Harvest and Wine Festival". So yesterday, I parked in Old Town, and took the trolley down to the Gaslamp.

And got off at the Convention Center stop, which is but a few steps from the San Diego Wine & Culinary Center.

The event was combination of a wine tasting, cooking contest, and a celebration of Chuseok, the Korean Harvest Festival.

The schedule looked pretty jam packed, with the tasting of three wines, entertainment, food, and three culinary challenge matches.

Arriving early, I had a chance to chat briefly with Cathlyn Choi. Energetic, with a great sense of humor, Cathlyn managed doing several things at once, all while dressed in a formal Hanbok on one of the hottest days of the year!

There were three different wines featured during the event; first a Makkoli, a rice wine.

Which was quite refreshing. This wine is made by fermented rice and water, and looks very much like Nigori Sake. It is not quite as sweet, and the alcohol content in Makkoli is a bit lower than Nigori. In fact, I like this a bit more than Nigori Sake. It is easy to drink.

The second wine was a Bek Se Ju, made from glutinous rice flavored with ginseng and other herbs, this was quite medicinal, but ok overall. The last wine was a Bok Bun Ja, a raspberry wine that was a bit too sweet for my tastes. It was fun trying these out, and I think I'll be getting some Makkoli for the Missus one of these days.

Of course there was food……

My favorite item was the Dduk Boki which Cathlyn made, there was also food provided by some pretty familiar names……

There was also entertainment, which included a Gayaguem performance.

And a very enjoyable performance by Fairfax High School's Korean Drum Group.

Of course, I was most interested in the cooking contest. Even though the six Chefs competing aren't quite household names, by the end of the evening it was pretty obvious that they all had some cooking chops.

I snagged a seat at the table right behind the judges, the most well known to food folks might be Myung Sook Lee, who is most well known for Her appearance on the original Japanese version of Iron Chef. You can see a video of her match against Chen Kenichi in the "Liver Battle" here. Chef Lee, is also the Executive Chef of Soban Restaurant in Rancho Bernardo. She is also a force of nature, and was all over the place during the matches, often stepping behind the counter to sample and sniff sauces, give advice, and watch what the chefs were doing up close.

She also looked like one tough customer who could snap me in two over her knee should she so desire. Folks in San Diego would probably also recognize C S Keys.

My personal favorite judge was FOY (Friend of Yoso) Candice Woo.

The rules of challenge itself was fun. Each of the six chefs picked a slip from a bag. A different traditional Korean Dish or food item was on each slip. The chefs were divided into twos with thirty minutes to make the dish. A basket of ingredients was provided for each chef. What was very entertaining was that several of the chefs had never seen nor eaten the dish assigned to them!

The first two up were Jean-Michel Gottlieb who owns Bella Catering and Phillip Soriano Sous Chef at the Marine Room.

So how's this for a challenge, Chef Jean-Michel was to make Japchae, but he had never even heard of the dish! Given the ingredients, Chef Jean-Michel made what looked like deconstructed Japchae, with all the ingredients prepared seperately. The two other Judges, Sookhee Jung, Food Columnist for The Korean Times and Ena Yu, Columnist for The Korea Daily, found his dish a fascinating take on Japchae.

Chef Phillip was to make BiBimBap, and by the look of his dish, it was quite apparent that he's had his share of BiBimBap as his version looked the most like the traditional dish.

The next pair up were Lance Roll, aka The Flavor Chef, who is quite a character. He had selected KimChi…… and had to pull that off in 30 minutes! Alongside Chef Roll was Pam Schwartz, CIA Graduate and Program Coodinator for Sur La Table.

Chef Pam used a handy dandy Vacu Vin Instant Marinator to get her selection of Bulgogi ready in fifteen minutes. She got positive nods from the Judges for her addition of Sesame leaves for wrapping the bulgogi.

Chef Lance, who had the task of making KimChi, used a quick saute with garlic and oter seasonings to get his Kimchi started. He also added bell peppers, utilized the freezer to bring everything to temp, and a creative presentation to complete his dish.

His dish was most surprising, as I got a taste of it. It was quite good, and tasted like good tsukemono! Pretty amazing for something made in 30 minutes! He really got the judges attention with his effort.

Next up were Chef Maria Sparks, co-owner of Cork and Platter, and Rene Fernandez. Chef Maria had Dak Galbi, and had no idea what that was! Still she was a very good sport, and seemed to have fun with the dish.

She added a very different ingredient to her chicken stir-fry……. Curry! Which drew some ooohs from the Korean women sitting on the table behind me.

In the end, the finished product was very tasty, and I really loved her presentation.

Chef Rene had Dduk Boki on his hands……

And I enjoyed his hearty, soulful version of this dish the most of what I was able to taste.

I'm not going to tell you who won…. since this is going to be televised, I'll ask Cathlyn if I can reveal the winner.

Though the event ran pretty long, I hope Cathlyn does this again…. and lets me know about it!

So I can let you all know about!

Royal Mandarin reopens and Honey Pig revisited.

July 20, 2010 mmm-yoso Chicken Wings, Chinese Restaurants, Korean Restaurants

Royal Mandarin reopens:

I thought it would be fun to do an ABCDE (American Born Chinese Dining Establishment) post, in the midst of my posts on China. And the reopening of Royal Mandarin would do just fine. I first posted on Royal Mandarin waaay back in 2005. Most folks who have been in San Diego for a good number of years tell me that Royal Mandarin was the first place to sell the very popular version of Salt and Pepper Chicken Wings in San Diego. These wings have become a staple at Filipino (and other) parties across the South Bay. Of course popularity breeds imitation, and now there are many imitators. By the time I held a Salt and Pepper Chicken Wing comparison in June of 2009, Royal Mandarin’s rings had seemed ot have lost some luster. Then, on December 30th, “Johari” left a comment, and a link which detailed that Royal Mandarin had burned down. I dropped by during the beginning of January, and the sign posted said that Royal Mandarin had not given up the ghost, and was to reopen in March. On April 3rd, I dropped by and found that while the place was being worked on, the sign now said the place would reopen sometime late in April. Of course I was gone from late April through the end of May, and since returning, the last thing I really wanted was ABCDE food…. Then on June 21st, FOY “Sandy” commented telling us that Royal Mandarin had reopened. So about a week later, the Missus and I decided to drive down and see how, or if things had changed at Royal Mandarin.

The front counter looks the same, and they’ve even rebuilt the divider/waiting area that blocks the view to the dining area. For some reason the interior, though it has been brightened up, with new tile, and some strange paintings of fruits and vegetables (c’mon, when you think of Royal Mandarin, do you really think about fruits and vegetables?), it still looks like Royal Mandarin. It is, without a doubt, a good example of “lipstick on a pig”.

The Missus had some concerns about the food. You see after Mandarin Canton reopened following the tragic murder of the owner. The Missus took some friends to eat there, and was disappointed. The one strong point of many of these restaurants are the fried items, and everything seemed very pale, and underflavored. After mulling theories, the Missus came up with the possible reason the food lacked color and flavor. She told me, “they must’ve changed their cooking oil!” In Her mind, there’s a vat of well seasoned cooking oil that has seen batches of shrimp and chicken wings, and like a good wok, it had become well seasoned. Actually, if you think about it…… that would be kind of scary. But since that day, we’ve called examples such as that “changed oil syndrome.” We both truly hoped that Royal Mandarin didn’t suffer from changed oil syndrome.

Frankly, there’s only one thing I really like at Royal Mandarin….. and you know what that is, right? The Salt and Pepper Chicken Wings:

I was very pleased, these were even better then the last few orders of wings I’d gotten before the fire. It’s like crack I tell ya’……… it was also crisp and fairly light. And yes, the full pleasures of salt and MSG is brought to it’s ultimate glory…..

The Missus ordered the upside down pan fried noodles which I found disappointing.

It suffered from too little “gravy”, and the noodles had a strange, almost powderiness to them. They were also too tough and chewy, and the afore mentioned lack of sauce meant that the noodles never got softer. I also can’t recommend anything with chicken that’s not fried. The Missus in total contrast to me, liked this.

One of the Missus’s favorites here, the Salt and Pepper Shrimp with Shell, was much lighter than I recalled.

The flavor of the shrimp came through, and it was cooked well, still soft and tender, and not overcooked.

So there you have it…… Royal Mandarin…. you can still get your ABCDE Fry-o-rama on here.

Royal Mandarin Restaurant
1132 E. Plaza Blvd
National City, CA 91950

Honey Pig revisited:

*** Update: Honey Pig has closed and is now Old Village ***

Recently, the Missus wanted some Korean BBQ. And She really didn’t want to spend fifty bucks, which seems to be the usual lay-out at Buga. We both thought that it would be a great time to revisit Honey Pig.

Not too much to say that I didn’t cover in my previous visit. The portions are about 1/2lb, Honey Pig serves Certified Angus Beef, prices run from $8.99 to $15.99 – which is for the bulgogi which is a double portion.

There’s a bit more in terms of panchan served, and the service has gotten better. All the items for “bossam” are delivered on time, and seconds are brought out on request.

The bulgogi here is decent, fairly tender, not overmarinated.

By San Diego standards this was pretty good…. not too sweet.

The one surprise was what FOY “YY” recommended. On the menu it is called “Natural CAB Finger Meat”, and reminds me, in flavor of Tsuruhashi’s Prime Skirt, a usually tough cut. In this case, it dies have a good chew, but has a nice beefy flavor to it.

The food is perhaps a step (or two) behind LA standards, but is a good alternative to the higher priced Korean BBQs in town. And it seems to be getting better everytime we visit.

Honey Pig
4681 Convoy St Ste B
San Diego, CA 92111

Dinners with Friends – Revisits to Mariscos Los Koras and Halmouny (Hal Mu Ni), and some well wishes for Ed from Yuma….

June 23, 2010 mmm-yoso Korean Restaurants, Mexican Restaurants, Seafood, What Howie Eats - Where the Foodie from Foodieview Eats

I don't know if you can tell, but I've been in a bit of an "eating rutt" since returning from China, where every meal, good or bad, was at the least interesting. Since returning from our trip, I've been cooking at home a lot. Whenever I get into these dips, I can always count on my friends to help lift me up. And having a monthly "eating club" consisting of Candice, Howie, and Jenne, is a sure remedy. This month, Howie was in the mood for Mariscos, so it was……

Mariscos Los Koras:

**** Mariscos Los Koras is now Mariscos Altata

I've posted on Mariscos Los Koras before, this Nayarit styled seafood restaurant lies right off the I-805 Martket Street exit, sort of standing all by its lonesome. I'm fairly certain the very nice lady working here didn't quite know what to make of us. She did find out something fairly quickly…. we like to eat, as after placing our order, she moved the four of us to a larger table.

Howie wanted to taste the Aguachile, so we started with that.

The citrus cooked shrimp came out in a large molcajete, which I could barely budge. This place tends to make some pretty bracing cocteles, and this was no exception…. it was quite sour, but wasn't very spicy.

I've always wanted to try the Sarandeado (Grilled whole fish) at Los Koras, so what better chance than on this day, with Howie on hand?

The flavor of smoky mesquite permeated the fish, which I think was a bit under-cooked. It was moist though. Unfortunately, the largest fish on hand on this day was 1 1/2 pounds, and Howie can do that solo…..

Of course it comes with all the fixins', salsa, tortillas(which were refilled a coupla times), and beans…… beans that we all found quite good, very tasty, better tasting than beans should be….

Until Candice said, "I know why….. I just bit on a piece of pork."

A couple of years…. well sheesh, now nearly five years ago, I visited Ed in Yuma. And the one item I clearly remembered were the empanadas from Mariscos El Nayarita. So of course I couldn't help but get a couple of orders of Nayarit style Shrimp Empanadas, right?

These weren't bad, but were a far cry from those empanadas. While those were light… you could eat them by the dozen, and crisp, these were almost flakey, and filling as heck. One was more then enough.

Funny thing was, the item everyone enjoyed the best was the one item I didn't take a photo of. Mainly because you can see it on my previous post. It was the Filete Los Koras, that green sauce is fantastic. The flavors emanating from that sauce…….

Sharing food, laughter, and stories amongst friends is always a great time. Of course, a couple of Micheladas, that beer-lime juice-chili concoction, sure helps as well!

Mariscos Los Koras
4297 Market St
San Diego, CA 92102

Halmouny (Hal Mu Ni) with Ed from Yuma:

A couple of weeks back, Ed from Yuma rode into town. We managed to grab a bite at Halmouny. I broke out the camera, even though I've posted on the place a couple of times already. The new shop looks pretty nice, much better than the modified fast-food look of the previous location one door down.

Funny thing, I always thought Kabul Market was pretty large, but looking at the space since Halmouny took over, it really looks pretty small. Must be all the dividers.

The panchan were all the usual suspects, but done pretty well. Our favorites (gamja jorim) were refilled…..

Knowing what a pork lover Ed is, I ordered the Gul Bossam – steamed pork to be wrapped, in this case, with cabbage leaves.

I've had this a couple of times here, and I gotta say, this was best so far. On occasion the pork has tasted flat and bland. Today, it was mildy sweet, and, can I say it? Actually tasted like fatty pork. A nice dab of bean paste and some radish and oyster, wrapped up in the napa cabbage leaf, this was pretty darn good. There were several moments when Ed was pretty close to doing the "delici-yoso dance".

The Galbi Jjim was a different story.

This was totally different from what we had before. In fact, check out the photos in my previous post and compare. On the good side, the meat on the thick beef ribs were tender, and of course that egg…. well say no more. This dish lacked the tangy-beany savory flavor of the previous versions, and wasn't nearly as spicy. Which led me to believe that either some of the cooking staff or the recipe has been changed.

The service was friendly as usual, and I think Ed even revisited after this meal, and enjoyed himself. I'm thinking of checking this place out again soon…. i'm wondering how many of the other dishes have changed?

Halmouny
4425 Convoy St.
San Diego, CA 92111

We'd like to send out get well soon wishes to Ed from Yuma:

Unfortunately, Ed from Yuma is out of action for a bit. He was working on a post for us when the accident occurred which makes me feel kinda bad…..

Rushing to finish a post, Ed's arm broke….

Damn, tripped up by a Dangling Participle…. those always get you! Seriously, Ed got tripped up in "some computer cords" and fell hard, resulting in a broken arm. Ouch! The good news is Ed is alright, and he did let me know that modern medicine is a wonderful thing. I'm also sure that Tina is taking good care of him. Lucky for Ed that it is his left, non-eating arm, otherwise he'd be sharing a bowl with Lucy.

We wish you a speedy and successful recovery Ed! Take it easy my friend.

What's the deal with the broken arms here…. a couple of years back Cathy breaks her arm, and now Ed. Wait a minute…. that means I'm next…. I think I'll go out and prophylactically get a full body cast…..

B.H. Chung- Korean and Japanese (Icy Cold Hiyashi)

May 11, 2010 Cathy Japanese Restaurants, Korean Restaurants, What Cathy Eats!

BH Chung has closed.

mmm-yoso!!! a food blog with photos, descriptions and observations about meals, condiments and other things a few of us want to write about. Feel free to read about our adventures. Today, Cathy is writing. Kirk is on vacation. If you want to know where He and His Missus are, here's a clue: Since April 21, I have not done any post with cuisine from the country they are visiting.

Hi again. A few weeks ago, I found a parking spot in the Crab Hut /Crepe World /Shabu Shabu House / Yogurt World/Tapioca Express/Tofu House /O'Brien's parking lot and was happy. This mostly food mall area may be referred to as 'The Parking Lot From Hell' by most of you, since more than 75% of the businesses here are restaurants(8 I can think of) with seating capacities for at least 20 inside each. I had to decide what I wanted to eat.
B.H. Chung's won. A Korean BBQ and Japanese restaurant, I have found the food here always to be very well made, tasty and filling. In addition, it could fulfill two cravings at one meal.
So we ordered. Japanese items. Still, we were served panchan.
the mildest, shredded daikon in front. The bean sprouts in back had a nice red pepper kick. The bamboo on the right had jalapeño/green hot chiles. (The far left is the dipping sauce for our tempura appetizer).
Vegetable Tempura ($7.99). Lightly breaded, crispy fried and drained vegetables- onions, squash, carrots, green and red pepper and broccoli.
The Mister ordered the Katsu Fish plate ($8.99). The pieces of fish were standard cuts from frozen, again lightly breaded and fried-the fish itself was a nice flavor and flaky. The rice was good and the salad dressing was house made. The tempura dipping sauce was not sweet and may have been house made. It was not disappointing, but not a "wow". However…
I wanted cold noodles. Hiyashi. I ordered Hiyashi Soba ($8.99). This is what I got. Fresh cooked, really good soba. In broth. Cold broth. See the ice cube?

This was *really* good and nothing like I had ever had before. The broth was rich, did not taste watered down, the noodles were excellent. Just the carrots, onions and bean sprouts, as you can see. Sesame oil definitely in the broth…the half hard boiled egg, no meat. Wonderfully unexpected and really good and filling.

Everything was unexpected and good, if not great.

B.H. Chung 4646 Convoy, Suite 110 San Diego 92111 (858) 495-0059 Website

Honey Pig – A first look

April 13, 2010 mmm-yoso Korean Restaurants

*** Update: Honey Pig has closed and is now Old Village ***

So why have I posted a photo of Korean Meat Market, when my post is titled "Honey Pig?" Well, a couple of days ago, FOY "YY" informed me that the owner of KMM had taken over the Arirang House space, and opened a Korean BBQ. So of course, the Missus and I had to try it out.

It turns out that Frank, has renamed the place "Honey Pig", which I sorta recalled is the name of a Korean BBQ in Koreatown.

The interior looks pretty much the same; though the buffet area has been boarded up.

We walked in, and almost scared the daylights out of the nice young man busy waiting for food to come out of the kitchen. He regrouped quickly, and sat us at a table. As fast as lightning, even before ordering, dishes hit the table.

You could tell by what was brought out that this was a "Bossam" style Korean BBQ, as rice paper sheets and thin slices of radish, along with some really great tasting greens were quickly provided. In other words, you'll be wrapping your BBQ with rice paper and radish. Sesame Oil and Salt, along with raw garlic and sliced jalapenos were also provided.

There wasn't much panchan, only some great tasting tofu, and pretty bland radish.

A simple menu card was handed to me…….. just eleven meat items…..

Knowing that the owner runs a meat market, where I've purchased some pretty good quality beef before, I was expecting something good. And the menu clearly states that the beef here is "CAB", no not that CAB (and don't even think about Carne Asada Burrito), but Certified Angus Beef. As to whether he's able to make, or has hired someone who could do good Korean BBQ…. well that remained to be seen. The woman and two young men working the front of house were obviously a bit disorganized. After I placed my order with one of the young men, the other came over a few minutes later to take my order. After I explained to him that I'd placed my order, about two minutes later the woman came over to take our order. This made me a bit nervous….. but the young man who originally took my order assured me that my order had been placed. You can tell they were really trying hard, and need to work the kinks out.

First out was the CAB Chuck Flat Meat, something "YY" recommended ($11.99), which the woman brought out and immediately placed on the cast iron griddle.

Quite soft for chuck, just be sure not to overcook it….. rare is the way to go. On item that worked to our disadvantage was that the rice paper and daikon wrappers were placed in single bowls which meant much reaching over and passing around. Hopefully, in the future, they'll give each individual their own bowls of each. This was mildly beefy, and not bad.

We contemplated ordering the pork belly, but the Missus was just not in the mood for pork. So we went with the Bulgogi (portion for 2 – $15.99). All items on the menu are portioned to about .45 lbs. So three orders for two sound about right. Since the Bulgogi is a double portion things worked out right.

I think the marinade needs some tweaking as it is way too mild, but the meat was very tender.

As you can see, these aren't AYCE meatfests, but along with the greens, eating Bossam(wrapped in the rice paper and daikon) style, and the bowl of rice, we were pretty full. Total bill came out to about $30 for two.

Overall, I'd say a notch below Buga, but above places like Seoul BBQ, so it'll be interesting to see what happens. As we were eating, Frank happened by, and recognized me because I've shopped in his store a few times. I was told that they won't be doing a grand opening quite yet, since they are still working things out. He has minimized the panchan to keep prices low, though we were given refills, and were even offered more.

The meal was good enough that we'll return to see how things are progressing. Plus, since it's named Honey Pig, I'll have to try the pork…..

Honey Pig
4681 Convoy St Ste B
San Diego, CA 92111

Hal Mu Ni (Hal Mo Ni or Halmouny) – More dishes

February 9, 2010 mmm-yoso Korean Restaurants

Over the last month or so, with all the rain and wind, Korean food just seemed so warm and comforting. So far this year it seems that we've been hitting up Hal Mu Ni (Grandma's) quite often. I thought I'd do another post to go with my first post, showing a few other dishes.

Of course there's panchan. Nothing fancy here, but most of it is fairly solid.

There are usually five to six items, and the portion size is decent. On the last two visits, we've had our panchan refilled without request…. very nice!

The young ladies working here are sometimes not the most efficient in terms of motion and service, but they are very nice, and do handle some of the details…. such as providing little containers of Cho Kochujang, or other sauces when we have leftovers to take home without having to request them. Perhaps that's what keep us coming back.

The Bulgogi ($11.99) here is served sizzling on a hot cast iron plate.

The meat was just tender enough, and thought the marinade for the Bulgogi ran on the sweet side, I enjoyed the dish. Enough so, that I've had it a couple of times so far. By itself or in combination with a soondofu dish. We also found this to be a little less oily then the typical Korean BBQ served on a sizzling plate. As comparisons are concerned, this has head and shoulder better, in quality and flavor then the Bulgogi at Chon Ju Jip.

Speaking of Chon Ju Jip……. one of my favorite local food blogs is Kirbie Cravings. One of Kirbie's posts included the Dolsot Bi Bim Bap from Chon Ju Jip. Frankly, the Dolsot Bi Bim Bap at Chon Ju Jip is terrible, mainly due to the fact that it is served on a metal plate instead of the usual stone bowl. This means that you never get the great crust provided by a stone bowl. It doesn't help that dolsot is literally the name of the stone bowl/pot. In Kirbie's post it became apparent that the recommendation had come from a list of "50 things to eat in San Diego before you die." Well, here at Hal Mu Ni the Dolsot Bi Bim Bap ($9.99), like most other Korean Restaurants in San Diego, is actually served in a dolsot:

Lest you think that a stone bowl isn't very important…. check out the crust that develops after a short time.

After eating stuff like sannakji and dduk, I've become convinced that textures are of supreme importance in Korean Cuisine… from that creamy oyster combined with the firm mu kimchi you bite into when having bossam, to the varied crunchiness of different panchan… finally to the crisp texture of the rice crust combined with the rest of the Bi Bim Bap. As Bi Bim Bap goes, this is not bad…. the Bulgogi has flavor, there's a raw egg hiding below the nori providing richness to the dish. The only negative item that really stood out, was how weak the Cho Kochujang (the sauce) tasted.

One evening we sampled the Kimchi Chigae ($7.99):

Like just about everything here, it arrived bubbling so wildly that expect it to overflow. If you order this, be prepared….. this was pretty sour, salty, and there's some fatty pieces of pork floating around. As Kimchi Chigae goes, this is ok, though the Missus loved how sour it was.

When this arrives at your table, you know what's coming next, right?

It was for the Soontofu, part of the Soontofu/Bulgogi combination ($12.99):

I never got a taste, but the Missus told me it was on the fishy side flavorwise.

During one of our meals, the young lady working brought us small bowls of bone soup:

I really enjoyed the richness. The broth had that nice collagen-ny, mildly coating my tongue, without being too rich and oily.

Which led me to order the Seolleongtang(Sullungtang – $7.99).

Lest you think this boiling cauldron is not very hot, see the photo to the right. I just couldn't get a photo without steaming up my lens. At first I thought the scum floating on the top of the bubbling broth would be a problem, but it was not. The soup was full of slices of beef, and had the usual mild beefy flavor. The appropriate addition of sea salt brought the dish up, and made it into comfort food for the Missus, who ended up eating a good amount of it.

The Missus has often told me about Her Parents or Grandmother making bone soup to provide calcium for the family, or as a tonic when She was ill. So it goes without saying that once a spoon of this made its' way into Her mouth, She'd want more….. comfort food….

One evening I order the Spicy Galbi Jjim ($14.99).

I have mixed feeling about this dish…. I had hopes of getting the same wonderfully tangy-spicy sauce that I had with the Galchi Jorim. And that was delivered, with the addition of some beefiness. The thick cut ribs were much too tough, and very hard to eat though. I'll probably order this again in the future to reassess.

The only dish I've had here that I haven't enjoyed was the Haemul Pajun (Seafood Pancake – $12.99):

There wasn't much seafood in this, and it was on the greasy side. The batter was gummy and tasted like raw flour, and indeed the middle of this wasn't cooked.

As you can tell, Hal Mu Ni has become a regular stop…… the prices are in line with other similar restaurants in the area (i.e. Chon Ju Jip), and we think the dishes are prepared adequately. The young women working here have always been nice. The interior may still look like a steam table Chinese fast-food joint, but the food is definitely not.

Hal Mu Ni Soon Dubu
4425 Convoy St. #217
San Diego, CA 92111

Hal Mu Ni (Hal Mo Ni or Halmouny) Soon Dubu aka Grandma’s Soon Tofu aka Korean BBQ & Tofu – A first (short) look.

January 11, 2010 mmm-yoso Korean Restaurants

Geez quite a mouthful, huh? Well, the reason for the multiple names is that all the sign says in English is "Korean BBQ & Tofu". In Korean, the name of the place is Hal Mu Ni Soon Tofu….. which leads to the translation…. "할머니" is Grandma in Korean, thus Grandma's Soon Tofu. At least that's what my dining companion MrS told me……

One thing is for certain….. this used to be the Rice King on Convoy. A couple of weeks ago I noticed that it had changed ownership, and identity. Mentioning this to MrS, I was told that the former Owner of Arirang, the one who is well known for her panchan, son runs the place. My first response was "doesn't he own Jeong Won?" MrS replied, "no it's her other son…. oh, and by the way, the son who used to run Jeong Won doesn't any longer. He got divorced and his wife got the restaurant." Which kinda explains why my last visit to the place was pretty bad overall. All of which led us to the place last evening…….

Man was the restaurant packed! It sure seemed like everyone was checking the new place out. The interior still shows it's former fast-food bones, as the tables and seats have been kept the same. And the former steam table is still displayed prominently.

The next interesting item; even though the place has Soon Tofu and Korean BBQ in it's name, neither is really the specialty of the house. The soondae guk is tempting at 2 for $9.99. MrS told me that Soondae, Korean blood sausage is made inhouse, and that we should order that. Let me be very clear that my experiences with Soondae in San Diego have been, well, terrible. The worst Soondae I attempted to eat was so bad, that I brought it home, and tried to give it to Sammy & Frankie, and they wouldn't even touch it! You know it's bad sausage when your mutts reject it……

There were a bunch of items that interested me, and we eventually came to a compromise. After placing our order, the panchan arrived.

A variety of five arrived, good, but not great……

The portions were generous, but I was disappointed in the Baechu Kimchi…. the basic Napa Cabbage Kimchi which was missing the level of savory flavor hidden below the spice that I enjoy.

As you can see with the slices of jalapeno and garlic….. I wanted the Gul or Jokbal Bossam….. Mr S found a way to get both, along with Soondae as a "combination bossam" ($21.99):

My goodness, this was a lot of food…. there seemed to be half a head of napa cabbage, along with the soondae, gul (steamed pork), and jokbal (pork hock).

The steamed pork was not as tender as the version at Chon Ju Jip, but had better flavor. Here the raw oysters and radish kimchi garnish was mixed, and served in a pretty large bowl:

This was excellent, spicy and savory, but still refreshing. Good heat level, the radish and oysters together made for a wonderful "Ying-Yang" in textures, and when combined in a cabbage leaf with soy bean paste, garlic, some chili sauce, along with the pork of your choice, it was heavenly. Heck, I could have possibly even done without the pork…. possibly.

The pork hock was a nice combination of skin and gelatin, chewy and substantial. The bones made for some good gelatin gnawing……

What about the Soondae? Well, it was better than I've had in a while. Perhaps still a bit too mushy, and I'd prefer a more firm casing, but the sausage had a nice nuttiness to it. A dip in salt added a bit to the flavor.

Mr S wasn't through, he had also ordered the Galchi Jorim (갈치조림 – basically simmered Beltfish).

I may not have been a big fan of the overly bony Beltfish, but I thought the sauce was fantastic. Tangy, spicy, with a nice "umami" flavor hanging around in the background…. I loved just having the sauce on rice! I later found out that the Missus grew up eating Beltfish, and loves the stuff, so I may be having this again soon.

Overall, Mr S, our dining companion "U Lee", and I had a very satisfying meal….. made more enjoyable for U Lee and I was the fact the MrS doesn't eat pork hock…..

Some notes: The place was quite busy, probably since the Owner's Mother is pretty well known inthe Korean community in San Diego. Seating is pretty limited, ambiance can appropriately be called "remade fast-food". On our visit, I was the only person not of Korean heritage in the place. Service was efficient and businesslike, and we were offered refills of our panchan. The "grand opening" banner says Soondubu 2 for $9.99. My first impression is that the food is a notch above Chon Ju Jip.

Hal Mu Ni Soon Dubu
4425 Convoy St. #217
San Diego, CA 92111

*** You can find a post with even more dishes here.

Monterey Peninsula: Shin La Korean Restaurant

January 3, 2010 ed fromyuma Korean Restaurants, Monterey/Carmel/Santa Cruz - Monterey Bay/Peninsula, Road Trip, What Ed Eats -You too can be like Ed!

Welcome to mmm-yoso – a little foodblog hosted by Kirk, who sometimes lets his friends post here. Like today, for example, when ed (from Yuma) writes about some things he ate on his summer vacation.

Although I have not lived in the Monterey area since 1997, I am fortunate to still have friends on the peninsula. And fortunately for me, many of those friends are almost as food obsessed as I am. With their help, I am able to eat in restaurants far from the beaten paths, places with no tourists in sight (well, except for me, I guess).

Last summer, Jack, Sarah, Lance, Tina, and I descended upon one such place, Shin La Korean restaurant.:
This small restaurant is located in a little strip mall on Carmel Ave, a few blocks east of Del Monte Blvd in Marina, California. In fact, if one wanted to hide a restaurant in a location where almost nobody could possibly find it — this'd be the place. The neighborhood is mostly residential and Carmel Ave is such a secondary street that there is no stoplight for it on Del Monte Blvd.

Previously, this space and been occupied by Shinra Korean restaurant, which served me a couple excellent meals before it went downhill. I have no idea when the new owner took it over.

In some respects, this incarnation is not as good as its predecessor. In particular, the ban chan currently lacks tremendous variety and outstanding quality. At Shin La, the ban chan were pretty ordinary – though properly prepared:

On the other hand, our first dish, fried mandu ($10.99), was first rate:
Each of these giant ravioli was stuffed with lightly spiced ground beef and had been nicely grilled like a good potsticker. The spicy dipping sauce was a nice complement.

We also loved the gal bi ($17.99):
Although the short ribs were cross cut, they were tender and pleasantly marinated.

We also were impressed by the cold noodles ($9.99):
Although the basic ingredients were just typical, the noodles had a nice pull to them and the broth (does anyone know what is in the broth for Korean cold noodles??) was very good. We were also impressed by the accompanying stoneground mustard seed:
The highlight of the meal was probably the Black goat soup ($29.99), which was served in a metal bowl placed on a heating element to keep the soup warm:
All of us were impressed by the soup itself. As you can see by this picture, numerous slices of goat meat were combined with a lot of cabbage in a rich and spicy miso broth:
The five of us ate until we were stuffed like dumplings and agreed that the food overall was pretty darned good. The next time you're in the Monterey Peninsula area, stop at Shin La for a meal and say some friends recommended the place.

Shin La Korean Restaurant, 265 Carmel Ave, Marina CA (831) 384-8956

Chon Ju Jip

September 24, 2009 mmm-yoso Korean Restaurants

I was pleasantly surprised when FOY, Vicky emailed me and said she had a post ready! It was sorta like an old friend popping in for a surprise visit. It also seems that Vicky has a few posts in the pipeline, so I'm sure we're all looking forward to that! So I thought it would be appropriate to do a post on a restaurant Vicky first posted on back in February of 2007, Chon Ju Jip.

We used to grab a meal here when the restaurant was named Ko Hayang Jip, it then became Go Ba Woo, and now Chon Ju Jip. I've been told that even though the name(s) and menus have changed, the main cooks have remained the same. I'm not certain, but I can say that this place does some major bang up business later in the evenings. Go a bit early on, and the tiny place is usually pretty empty.

There are several dishes we enjoy, and though you won't see the hot pot, because it's been too darn hot for it, there is a decent variety represented on the menu. For us the dishes run from good to some fairly mediocre items. So I think we'll start with a few of our favorites, and work backwards.

But of course, no proper meal at a Korean restaurant can start without some panchan!

The panchan varies on each visit, so I won't go into each item. I will say that you'll probably find something you enjoy. We did notice that the panchan is on the salty side. One of our favorites is the Sesame Leaf (Kaennip – Perilla) panchan:

In a salty bean paste, this is really good with rice.

As I mentioned before, there's always a good variety, usually eight items, and we've been offered refills on each visit.

So let's start with the good. The Missus really enjoys the Kimchi Chigae.

Spicy and salty, with a good amount of pork belly lining the bottom, what's not to like?

It's a well put together version of this comfort Korean Dish, with a nice savory component you can taste beyond the spice.

I was surprised at the tenderness of the Daeji Bulgogi (Spicy Pork):

Melt in the mouth soft without being mushy, this was a pleasant dish. It was perhaps a bit short on the spicy end of the spectrum, but with a nice slightly sweet and fruity finish, I really couldn't complain.

But of all the dishes, our favorite is the Bossam:

Though I would rather have had lettuce as my wrapping tool instead of the hard slices of Napa, you won't have too many more complaints from me. After all, tender, well flavored pork belly, on a leaf with daikon kimchi, a smear of bean paste, chilies, and a slice of raw garlic, what's not to like?

Whether its Buta Kakuni, Dong Po Rou, or whatever, I have a special place in my heart for velvety pork belly dishes.

The dish also came with some pretty low quality oysters, which were pretty much an afterthought in my opinion.

We ordered the combination Bossam and Den Jang Chigae ($19.95).

The Soybean Paste Stew was quite salty, and had a fishiness to it that caught you by surprise. After a few sips it seemed that our tastebuds adjusted. This was ok.

And here we start on some other dishes that were ok, but nothing special, like the Hamul Pajun (Seafood Pancake):

Fairly gummy in texture, and not very much seafood, this was fairly mediocre.

The Kimchi Jun suffered from the same gumminess:

This was also strangely bland and suffered from not enough kimchi. The center was not fully cooked as well.

Unlike the Daeji Bulgogi, the Bulgogi tasted under-marinaded, and the quality of meat used was very low, as it was rather tough.

Much like it's predecessor, the Dolsot Bi Bim Bap is served on a metal plate rather than a stone bowl. Dolsot means stone bowl………

For some reason, the crust that forms on these metal plates is not nearly as good as what is formed in a stone bowl. Overall, other than the egg, there was nothing of interest about this version of Dolsot Bi Bim Bap which was topped with a skimpy amount of namul, shredded daikon, and what seemed to be a tablespoon of Bulgogi.

Our overall least favorite dish we've had a Chon Ju Jip was the Dduk Bokki (rice cakes in spicy sauce – $7.95):

To be fair the Dduk (rice cakes) were cooked perfectly, and the sauce was spicy, but sorely lacking in salt, or any other savory flavor. The boiled egg was a nice touch, but what's up with the mushy, overcooked, packaged ramen noodles? There were hardly any pieces of Dduk in this dish, and we were less than satisfied with this.

Like many of these places, YMMV – your mileage may vary, it's mostly a matter of watching what other folks are eating, and just trying various dishes to see what works out for you. I would encourage you to check out the Bossam though. And the various hot pot casseroles look really good, so I'm sure we'll be back for those.

Chon Ju Jip
4373 Convoy Street
San Diego, CA 92111
(858) 368-0835

House of Orchid- Korean and Japanese Restaurant

August 6, 2009 Cathy Korean Restaurants, What Cathy Eats!

mmm-yoso!!! is this. The Blog that you are reading. Kirk and ed (from Yuma) are busy today, so Cathy is writing.

Hi. A new place opened just behind China Max about three weeks ago and The Mister and I decided to go there for dinner the other night.

It has only been open for about three weeks now and the staff is very enthusiastic and helpful. Pretty much at all times, at least two, and sometimes three people were at our table asking if we needed anything. The owner also came over to ask us how we liked everything. Twice. The interior is neat and clean, as is the fish tank, which housed a very large, flat, monkfish when we came in. (Whole fish prices range from $75-$150).

We were first served some iced barley (or maybe it was brown rice) tea, placed our orders.

Soon, we each were given these bowls of slightly spicy vegetables and "noodles" made of acorn powder mixed with agar. See those crinkle cut things at the bottom of the bowl? It was chilled and refreshing. A nice interlude.

Soon, The Mister's 8 plates of panchan arrived.

As did my bowl of miso soup (which had a good amount of excellent tasting tofu at the bottom of the bowl).

The Mister's beef bul go ki ($11.50) was tender, well flavored, plentiful and had many onions cooked with it (which all became my onions. Yay!)(I still think someday he will change and like onions, but am getting less hopeful as the decades of marriage roll by).

My Hwe Dup Bop (Korean Chirashi) ($15 at dinner, $11 at lunch) arrived at the same time.

Five types of raw fish and fish eggs on top of some fancy lettuces, on top of some iceberg, on top of warm rice, topped with some sliced seaweed. In a VERY large bowl.

After a while, tasting all of the seafood and lettuces with the sesame oil based dressing it came with, I added the spicy hot red sauce that was placed on the table and mixed up the ingredients for a variation on thesecond half of this bowl of goodness.

We each were given small bowls of warm sweet something which had pine nuts floating in the mix. It was very refreshing and a perfect, light ending to our meals.

Service was more than attentive, with at least two (young) waitpeople coming by to ask us how we were doing and the owner coming out from the kitchen twice always asking if they could help us with anything.

The "Japanese" part of the menu seems to be sushi and rolls are 50% off. There are daily lunch box specials to go for $5.99 and daily roll specials for $4.99.

It is nice and clean, the food is fresh and good. I would not hesitate to go back to try the rest of the menu which includes many stews of kim chee, soy bean, steamed black cod,monk fish and kalbi as well as flat noodles and ox bone soup and the whole fish.

House of Orchid 4698 Convoy, San Diego 92111 (858)776-9205 (858) 277-8949 Same parking lot as China Max, behind that building.