Bibimbap at Korea Spoon in KTown NYC, New York

If you follow this blog, you know that I love bibimbap, this Korean rice bowl that comes pipping hot! As we were out on a very cold day, we decided to look for a place in Korea Town. We noticed Korea Spoon.

It is a huge place with very high ceilings and another dining room on the second floor.

When you are inside, you immediately get a modern feeling.

So we got seated at one of the tables on the first floor and handed a menu that was full of appetizing photos of the dishes.

After we ordered, they brought us some barley tea:

And the banchan, these little side dishes:

There, we had:

Some greens:

Some pumpkin salad:

Some radish:

And again radish (different way, spicier):

Some anchovies:

Some soy:

Some kimchi:

My favorites were the radishes and kimchi. I truly appreciated the pumpkin salad as it counterbalanced the heat of some of the dishes.

For bibimbap, Jodi ordered the mushroom one:

On my side, I ordered the bulgogi one (with marinated slices of beef).

When the dishes arrived, we were a bit disappointed because there was no egg and, looking at the photo on the menu, we were expecting one. Otherwise, my bibimbap was pretty good, tasty and I definitely finished it. The one from Jodi was good too, but missing flavor, despite the abundance of mushrooms.

I liked Korea Spoon: they have a decent bibimbap, but I still prefer the one at Bann, Don Bogam or Korea Palace.

Enjoy (I did)!

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Restaurant Information

tabelog.us

	* Restaurant Name
	Korea Spoon
	* Overall
	★★☆☆☆
	* Neighborhood / Cuisine
	Flatiron / Korean
	* Street Address
	39 West 32nd St. (Between Broadway & 5th Ave.), New York, NY 10016
	* Phone
	(212) 560-9696

Korean BBQ at Madangsui in NYC, New York

When I got invited by Sang Kim, the owner of Madangsui Korean BBQ to try his restaurant, I was really excited: each time I go to a Korean restaurant, it reminds me of my trip to South Korea many year ago, when I got to try my first BBQ.

Couple of blocks from the heart of Korea Town, Madangsui is located on 35th street. Next to the entrance is a display of their dishes that I admit makes you hungry and wonder what you should order, so many dishes looking yummy.

Then is the dining room, similar to lots of Korean restaurants, if not for the distinctive sign that is present on each pillar:

I was wondering what it was until I understood what Madangsui means in Korean: man. It implies a person with strong moral fiber who rises early, works hard and helps those around him according to the restaurant who does not hesitate to associate the definition to Sang Kim, the owner, who opened this place in 2007 and explains the concept of the restaurant in his press release:

“My mission is to introduce organic Korean food – especially our BBQ – to Americans throughout the country, as well as to travelers from abroad,” says Mr. Kim. “I started working in a Korean restaurant as a waiter in college, just loved the industry and was promoted to manager. Here at Madangsui I’m always delighted when people love our food – and even more so when they come back for more!”

“We use only USDA prime meat,” says Mr. Kim. “Our beef comes from pasture- raised and grain-finished cattle that are humanely treated by American cattlemen and we use wet- and dry-aging methods with the utmost care. So what we serve is the highest quality American beef, prepared Korean style.”

With an introduction like that, I was ready to check for myself especially after looking at the menu, crafted by Chef Hyun Kim: with plenty of vegetarian choices, it proposes a large selection of BBQ, Bibimbap, soups, noodles...

So we sat at one of the tables that had a grill in the center and few minutes later, they brought us the banchan, these little side dishes served at the beginning of the meal. 

A Korean restaurant without banchan is like a French restaurant with no bread! What they served us was: mashed potatoes.

Kimchi:

Bean sprouts:

Pickled radish:

Bok Choi:

Octopus:

As a drink, I opted for a Korean wheat wine (Saeng Mak Geol Li) rather than the usual soju.

It was served in a big bowl with a large spoon and looked milky.

It was very close to unfiltered sake.

Our first appetizer was the jap-chae, Korean glass noodles fried with vegetables and beef, seasoned with soy sauce.

These noodles were fantastic! Made with sweet potatoes, they have a nice sweetness that married very well with the vegetables and beef. This is definitely an appetizer I recommend.

The second appetizer was the mandoo or dumplings.

We had the choice between fried or steamed and we chose steamed. They were stuffed with beef, pork and vegetables.

These were also very good: the shell was not too thick, not doughy and the filling very flavorful. Needless to say that we ate them all...

For the entree, we first picked the bulgogi bibimbap.

Bibimbap is a rice dish that comes in a bowl that is extremely hot, so the ingredients continue to cook in it, creating a delicious crust with the rice. The photo above shows the rice bowl before being heated, and the photo below after, once all the ingredients have been mixed together.

Unfortunately, the bibimbap was a miss for me. I found it bland with not enough beef in it.

Next was the BBQ. We chose the Yang-Nyum Galbi that is marinated short rib. They started off by turning on the grill in the center of the table.

Then, then brought us the different ingredients. First was the lettuce:

Then, the onions:

The chili paste sauce (not spicy):

And the star of the show: galbi or short ribs.

That meat looked definitively of good quality, with a nice marbling and thick cut.

They put it on the grill with the slice of onion, mushroom and pepper it came with.

There, it cooked for few minutes.

Once ready, we picked a lettuce on which we put some onions, some meat and some chili paste.

We then closed the lettuce and ate it like a sandwich. The first bite was divine, all the ingredients working well together, but letting the incredible pieces of short rib shine. I could have just eaten the meat alone: tender and juicy, it had a rich flavor. To my surprise, Jodi who is usually not a big fan of Korean BBQ loved it (I thought I would have all of it for myself...). 

I really liked my dinner at Madangsui and may have found my new spot for Korean BBQ, my favorite one having closed a couple of years ago. The meat there is definitely of higher quality and I will probably go back as they offer other selections of BBQ such as the well known Bulgogi, tongue or seafood. 

Enjoy (I did)!

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Please note that the meal was complimentary. However, the opinions expressed in my blog are 100% my own! 

Restaurant Information

tabelog.us

	* Restaurant Name
	Madangsui
	* Overall
	★★★☆☆
	* Neighborhood / Cuisine
	Midtown West / Korean
	* Street Address
	35 West 35th St., New York, NY 10001
	* Phone
	(212) 564-9333

BonChon in Midtown West, NYC, New York

I love chicken and worship fried chicken! Although it is not a dish popular in France, I tried it there, at KFC...Yes, KFC in Paris where I went a couple of times with my friends after seeing a movie. At the time, it was not as popular and widespread as it is today. I remember reading a few months ago an article in the magazine L'Express where they explained that KFC was opening its 150th restaurant in France and were planning on opening 150 more by 2017, representing a growth of 17% per year. Well, 10 years ago, they had maybe two locations! So 150? They also mentioned that the restaurants were very profitable in France, with revenue very close to Mc Donald's. I am sure that people think such a success would not be possible in a country known for its cuisine, but, each time I visit my family, I can observe the changes in the food industry, especially fast food: they are more and more popular, especially with the younger generation, but must adapt to their clientele as they can be more demanding there: think about the Mc Baguette! That is why KFC does not miss an occasion to advertise that they use only fresh poultry, real parts of the chicken and not mixed or reconstructed with leftover meat. 

But I admit that I never had KFC in the US and I am not really tempted. However, I discovered here the fried chicken and waffles as well as the wings that I enjoy from time to time, and not only during the Superbowl! So I was excited to try Bonchon. As Jodi does not like chicken, I went with my friend Benny who is a big fan of it. Bonchon is a chain with many locations in the US (the first one was in Leonia, NJ), from California to Virginia, as well as internationally in Indonesia, Philippines or Brunei. The concept though is not your regular fried chicken, but Korean fried chicken. The idea came to the founder Jinduk She who was inspired by the small fried chicken places present everywhere in Korea. He decided to call his restaurants Bonchon, that means "my hometown" in Korean.

I was not sure what to expect as I saw the location on 32nd that looked more like a bar than a restaurant. The place was quite big, with two floors: on the first floor is the bar with couple of tables in the back, perfect if you like dining in the dark... So we went upstairs to the main dining room. The decor has nothing particular besides the multiple flat screen TVs on the walls, similar to what you would find in a...bar. 

The menu is not only composed of chicken: you can also find seafood or beef in the form of traditional Korean dishes such as the bibimbap or the japchae (glass noodles), with very few vegetarian options.

We decided to go for the chicken and ordered a combo made of wings and drumsticks. For the sauce, we ordered a half & half that is half soy garlic sauce and half hot sauce.

In term of presentation, this dish looked like any chicken dish of this sort. What made the difference was the sauce: for me, the soy and garlic sauce had nothing special, the soy giving a nice saltiness to it. However, the hot sauce was very good! It is made of red chili pepper as well as a Korean spice called "gochugaru" ( litterally "pepper powder"). It is hot; not overly hot but still, and they had the good idea to serve it with pickled radicchio (no blue cheese sauce) which was perfect to counterbalance the heat. But even spicy like that, you go back to it.

The chicken, cooked to order, was very good: moist and perfectly cooked with this nice coating that was slightly crunchy.

A nice touch at the end was to give us some wet tissues to cleanup our hands.

We also tried their bulgogi made with marinated ribeye steak.

I liked it: the meat was tender and the overall dish quite tasty. It was served with white rice and the quantity was perfect for sharing.

Bonchon was good. Was it the best fried chicken I had? No. If you go for the soy sauce, you will not not see much difference with lots of restaurants that propose such dish either as their main specialty or simply as an appetizer. However, what sets them apart is their hot sauce that is delicious. The other dishes we saw passing by, such as the seafood bibimbap looked appetizing, so I would not be surprised to go back there with Jodi, but to eat something other than chicken!

Enjoy (I did)!

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Korean lunch at Don's Bogam in Murray Hill, NYC, New York

On Christmas Day, we decided to eat in the city before going to see the second installment of The Hobbit, with Jodi's cousins Jessica and Michael, their sons Alex and Brian and their friends Andrew and Manuel. As I was not sure what was open, I went to open table to try to find a good place to go. That is how we ended up at Don's Bogam, a Korean restaurant we passed by several times but never tried before. The name is interesting and I asked the waiter who was not sure how to explain it, so here is my interpretation: Don is the name of the owner; Bogam is an ancient medicine. Therefore, Don's Bogam is Don's medicine.

It is a BBQ and Wine Bar and for sure, you cannot miss the wine part when entering, with its modern L-shape bar, and the dining room sections separated by empty wine bottles.

The main dining room is big and had some warmth thanks to all the wood, from the floor to the tables.

The seating is interesting though, as it is floor level with chairs without legs to be comfortable. Going in and going out was a bit challenging, though entertaining...

They first brought the banchan, these small side dishes that are always exciting to see: you never know what you will get.

It was composed of:

Some Korean zucchini or Chosun Hobak:

Eggplant:

Seaweed:

Soy:

Potato Salad (always surprising to have that!):

Kimchi cabbage:

Kimchi radish:

Spicy squid:

My favorites were definitely the squid and two kimchi, all of them having a nice kick.

Then came our entrees: all of us ordered bibimbap, these rice dishes that come in a very hot bowl. Don's Bogam has a nice selection, either with meat or vegetarian.

Jodi ordered the Dubu-beoseot, made with tofu, mushrooms and vegetables:

On my side, I ordered the Galbi bibimbap, made with short ribs:

The galbi bibimbap had this fantastic smell coming from the meat that emanated from the bowl. The meat, although slightly overcooked, was delicious and tasty. In the bottom, the rice was already burnt, making a crust that was deliciously crunchy.

I loved the galbi bibimbap and the photo below can attest on how good it was:

The food was delicious and everybody liked Don's Bogam. The service though was just ok and I am not sure if it was because our waiter was not happy to work on Christmas Day: we ordered tea and never got it. We asked for an egg in the bibimbap and when the dishes came, he simply say "No, no egg". But, despite that, I would definitely go back! Oh, I forgot to mention that they have a gluten free menu too!

Enjoy (I did)!

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Muk Eun Ji Korean Restaurant in NYC, New York

With days being colder, there are some dishes I really enjoy to eat such as butternut squash soup, ramen or bibimbap. Although, similar to ramen, there are cold versions of bibimbap, I cannot imagine eating a very hot rice bowl on a summer day. 

So, on a Saturday night, as the temperature lowered, we ended up at For bibimbap. We found this place walking through Korea Town, checking menus and ratings. 

It is a big place, with nothing particular in the decor, besides the huge ads promoting their dishes in Koran language as well as English. What I realized is that if is pretty big, with a second dining room on the first floor and a third upstairs. 

To start our meal, they brought us some banchan, these little side dishes that are always exciting to see! And eat...

Of course, they included kimchi (fermented vegetable, here cabbage, usually spicy), my favorite of all! 

It was spicy and some bits had a bite of crunch.

Soy:

Spicy radish (quite spicy):

Dried squid (deliciously crunchy, but a bit fishy):

Potatoes and carrots, apparently boiled:

Cucumber that added some freshness and had a cooling effect:

Pasta salad (what?):

It was very good to counteract the spiciness of some of the dishes!

They also brought us what I guess is their version of an egg drop soup:

Then came our bibimbap. As their selection of vegetarian bibimbap was very limited (only kimchi, so spicy), Jodi ended up with a ground beef bibimbap. 

It was made, besides of ground beef, of vegetables, seaweed, rice and a fried egg. It was just ok, missing a bit of flavor and the ground beef being very dry. Some soy sauce did the magic, but still not a knock off. 

On my side, I ordered the short ribs bibimbap:

The components were the the same as Jodi's, except for the meat. When it came in this pipping hot bowl, still sizzling, the fantastic smell of the meat emanated from the dish. Not only it smelled good, but it tasted delicious! And, contrary to the ground meat, I found that all the elements of the dish were working well together. The beef was probably marinated and the juice that came from it added a nice flavor. 

Another best part was the rice crust that formed after letting the rice cook against the hot sides if the bowl. It was very crunchy. 

Towards the end of the meal, they brought us an egg dish, that seem to be made of a battered egg cooked in a broth. 

I really liked it, especially at the beginning when the egg was creamier and smoother.

Then, surprisingly, they brought us a small bottle of Maeil Biofeel, a drink made with lacto bacillus supposed to improve digestion, boost the immune system and enhance the overall health...

It tasted like any drink similar to this, except that it was more liquid.

This was a pretty good dinner and I loved the short ribs bibimbap that I recommend! I will definitely go back to Muk Eun Ji to try some other dishes!

Enjoy (I did)!

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Korean BBQ at Kunjip in NYC, New York

As we were craving Korean BBQ, we roamed around Korea Town and picked the first restaurant we found that followed the following criteria: we've never been there, it has an A grade and it proposes BBQ. We found this place called Kunjip. It was of medium size and, as it was before noon on a Saturday, not packed. I should say not yet, as, by the time we left, it was crowded, with people waiting for a table. 

The sat us on a table of 4 and put a divider in the middle to separate us from the person who was already sitting there. 

It was tiny and I told the waitress that we were there for a BBQ, but she said it was ok...

We decided to order some green tea with our meal, not expecting to pay for it ($2.50 pp). I know, people always complain about paying for tea in an Asian restaurant, but find it normal anywhere else...Anyway, it was an interesting tea: brown rice and green tea. You could definitely get the slight taste of brown rice that was coming through. 

After few minutes, they brought us the banchan, these side dishes that you eat with your meal. 

There was:

Kimchi, that is my all time favorite. It was a tiny bit spicy. 

Fish cakes:

Turnip in a red sauce that was not spicy. 

Squid, crunchy and sweet:

As well as soy and Seaweed (sorry, I'll pass). 

For the entree, we decided to try fried tofu:

The tofu was firm and a bit if a challenge to cut...Served with seaweed and green onions, it was deliciously fried, not greasy and perfect with the scallion sauce that came with it. 

Then, they brought the device for BBQ. 

And, as I expected, it was a challenge to get everything on the table! We had to find a way, putting plates on top of the others and hoping that nobody would knock off the hit tea! They also brought the marinated ribeye for the Bulgogi:

With it, were some onions and glass noodles (love it)! Next to the plate, you will notice a pair of scissors: it is used to cut the meat in smaller pieces.

As well as lettuce:

Then, nothing. We were wondering if they would take care of putting the meat on the BBQ device or if we should do it ourselves, especially as the broth that was in it started to evaporate! After few minutes, I courageously decided to do it myself... What I did not expect was the smoke coming out and, suddenly, the staff realized we were there. 

One guy started to rearrange the meat, before being yelled at in Korean. He then rushed to the kitchen and came back with some more broth. 

The lady who yelled at him made sure everything was properly dispatched on the device, and we were back in business. 

The glass noodle that were white at the beginning, became translucent, absorbing some of the marinade and juice from the beef. That was delicious: I just wished there were more!

Then, we had to eat the beef. The way it works is that you pick a salad leaf and put the beef with whatever ingredient you like. Then, you add the red sauce Ssamjang that is a thick, sweet and not spicy. 

You wrap it and eat it. Yes, you eat with your hands! I loved it: the meat was tender and juicy, with the nice taste of the marinate coming through. Then, when biting this little wrap, you get different flavors that will combine in your mouth delightfully. 

As we were in the middle of the BBQ, they brought us an egg dish. 

It tasted like scrambled eggs cooked in a broth, but was creamier. 

Last, when we finished, was a glass of cold cinnamon tea to clean our palate. 

It was very good, refreshing, and a great palate cleanser. 

I liked the food, but it was too uncomfortable to eat, to the point where we just wanted to leave. Too bad...

Enjoy (...)!

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Desserts at Bann, a Korean restaurant in Midtown NYC, New York!

I went to Bann for dinner few months ago to try some Korean food, especially their Bibimbap, and ended up going back recently for lunch with my colleagues. I like this place that is pretty big! To go to the dinning room, you first go through the bar area:

Then a small corridor:

With wine bottles on one side (left on the photo above) and chopsticks boxes on the opposite side.

Then, the kitchen and its counter where you can dine and at the same time observe the Chef cooking!

Then we arrived in the dining room (they have two in fact: a large and a smaller one). They first brought us some kimchi, pickled cucumber and I think daikon.

If you have never been to a Korean restaurant, know that a meal always starts with banchan or small dishes. Similar to last time, I was a bit disappointed that there were only three different dishes, being used to close to 6 in other restaurants. But I was pleased to see that they served kimchi!

They then brought us some salad with sesame seeds and a vinaigrette sauce.

We ordered our dishes that looked very good, such as the bibimbap that, in the lunch menu was a colder version, meaning not served in a very hot bowl!

Or the Un Dae Gu Jo Rim individual box:

The individual box contained a spinach miso soup, salad, rice, some side dishes (kimchi, broccoli and daikon), as well as some sort of pancakes. Then, the main dish was blackened cod simmered in a spicy garlic soy reduction.

Then I tried some fantastic fried rice with shrimp:

It was very tasty and not greasy, that can sometimes be the problem with fried rice. It was in fact my favorite dish!

On my side, I went for the Kimchi Chi Ge, a stew made with spicy pickled kimchi, tofu, onions, scallions and pork belly.

It came in a very hot bowl and between the temperature and the spiciness of the dish, I admit it was a challenge! But overall, it was good, spicy, but good and I tried to counteract the spiciness with rice...

It worked a bit but my mouth was on fire!

I also thought that there was too much kimchi compared to the rest: there was a lot of firm tofu, but not enough of the delicious pork belly. So it was good but not the type of dish I would surely recommend (the fried rice however...).

Then was time for dessert. I admit that I was not expecting anything as, in the past, I was not that thrilled with the dessert menus proposed in Korean restaurants. Well, Bann is different! They have a fantastic dessert menu and the desserts presentation is phenomenal!

Here is what we tried:

Hot Chocolate cake served with vanilla ice cream.

It was a chocolate molten cake that was very light, not too sweet and perfectly...uncooked, so the center was flowing like lava!

Asian pear crumble:

This was my favorite dessert! There were two components worth describing: the sorbet and the crumble itself.

The crumble first: it was very buttery with the sweetness coming mainly from the pear that had a fantastic taste, the juice soaking the cake in the bottom.

Then the pear sorbet that was also very good and was probably homemade, with some small bits of pear in it, to add some fruity taste. On top was a rose petal coated in sugar that was delicious and crispy (my assumption at the time was that it was meant to be eaten and not just for decoration...).

The most spectacular in term of presentation was the tropical snow:

It was shaved coconut ice with jellied fruits, sweet beans, coconut ice cream and creme anglaise. Imagine a big bowl of ice with all these elements on top. It was pretty good, especially the coconut ice cream that was very creamy.

Yellow mungbean cups:

The mung bean can have various colors, one of them being yellow, and is cultivated in Asia; it has some sweetness to it making it perfect for both savory and sweet dishes. It was the central element to this dessert where they made a custard with it added toasted pistachios and baked everything in a small phyllo cup. It was good and creamy, a bit too sweet.

The last dessert was macha green tea ice cream.

The ice cream was laid out on ice that looked like a little boat, keeping it cold. I am usually not a big fan of green tea ice cream because it can be bitter, but this one was very good and creamy. Surprisingly, after they brought the dish to the table, we started to hear some noise coming from the ice, like a whistle! Probably created purposely by the ice melting.

So, these desserts were definitely the big surprise of this lunch: the creativity and the presentation were phenomenal and I surely did not expect it. I am wondering now if one should go to Bann for the dishes or for dessert...Let say for both!

Enjoy (I did)!

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BCD Tofu House in Korea Town NYC, New York

If you follow this blog, you may remember this wonderful moment I had at BCD Tofu House for their Grand Opening back in April (check out the post here!). I had the honor and privilege to be part of the ribbon cutting ceremony, standing next to the President and Founder of BCD Tofu House, Mrs Hee Sook Lee! 

Courtesy of AD Group Communique

So we decided to go back as regular customers. We went on a Saturday, for an early dinner and showed up there around 6:15pm. Believe me or not, but the place was packed! We waited 10 minutes and got our table, excited to try their food.

While looking at the menu, we noticed the table sets that had some sentences in Korean translated in English and with some help for the pronunciation. Reading it, I clearly realized that the couple of words I know in Korean might not be pronounced properly! Hopefully, I never offended anybody!!!

After we ordered, they brought to us some side dishes, called banchan, ritual that is typical of a Korean restaurant.

As we were looking, trying to figure out what was what, they gracefully explained each dish, although I admit that I do not remember the details for all of them.

Kimchi (fermented cabbage):

Squid:

Fried fish (first time ever I get that)!

Fish cakes:

Soy:

Seaweed (I do not like like it, but Jodi does):

Some dish made with veggies and gelatin:

The best for me was the kimchi (quite spicy) and the squid. 

As an appetizer, we ordered fried pork dumplings:

They were very good and the shell was crispy, but extremely hot! 

Then, this time, we wanted to try their bibimbap. Bibimbap is a rice bowl dish served in a piping hot bowl, so the rice gets this fantastic crust if you let it sit for some time!

Jodi ordered a vegetarian one, served with Tofu and a raw egg that cooked after being mixed in the bowl.

I ordered the regular one, with bulgogi beef. I asked or an egg and got a fried one:

Mine had tofu also and in term of ingredients, they were very close: mixed rice with vegetables, sauteed spinach, shitake mushrooms, carrot, zucchini, radish, served a red pepper paste that was not spicy. We also added some soy sauce to give some flavor. This was good, but it might not be the best bibimbap I ever had. In fact, when leaving, we noticed that most of the customers ordered the Soon Tofu Soup that we tried last time and that I really liked. So maybe we should have stuck with it! Well, I am sure I will go back anyway!!!

Enjoy (I did)!

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Opening Ceremony at BCD Tofu House in Korea town, NYC - New York

Before reading this post, please note that, in accordance with the FTC guidelines, I must disclose that I was contacted directly by the restaurant or a PR and that the meal was complimentary. However, the opinions expressed in my blog are 100% my own!

April 25th was an exciting day for me: I was invited to the Opening Ceremony of BCD Tofu House, located in Korea Town. For sure, I did not expect what happened once there! Let me narrate the evening and you will see how it turned out!

I think I went only once to a restaurant opening ceremony, many years ago and I do not even remember which restaurant it was. So I was excited when I received the invitation from BCD Tofu House to attend their event! If you follow this blog, you know that I love Korean food and discovered this cuisine when traveling to Korea many years ago. I still discover new dishes though from time to time...

BCD Tofu House gets its name from Buk-Chang-Dong, a city in Korea where Mrs Hee Sook Lee, the Founder and CEO of the company received her first cooking training. 

So, the place is spacious with two floors and a earthy atmosphere thanks to the decor made of wood, dark for the most part. It got crowded pretty quickly with an audience representing the press, the blogger community, but also the Korean community, such as Seung Ki Min, President of The Korean-American Association of Greater New York or Young Hyun Kwun, President of The New York Society of Korean Businessman. The President and Founder of BCD Tofu House, Mrs Hee Sook Lee, was also present to welcome the guests and cut the ribbon.

Courtesy of AD Group Communique

The Master of Ceremony was Michelle Park, food and fashion reporter at NY1.

Yes, it was a full ceremony and not just let's cut the ribbon and have some food! The program was the following:

• Opening Remarks by Michelle Park.
• BCD Introduction.
• Congratulatory remarks from Seung Ki Min, President of The Korean-American Association of Greater New York or Young Hyun Kwun, President of The New York Society of Korean Businessman.
• Welcoming Remarks from Mrs Hee Sook Lee.
• Special Guests acknowledgment.
• Prayer.
• Ribbon Cutting Ceremony.
• Vision statement and closing remarks.

Well, what happened is that at some point they asked me to come to the ribbon cutting ceremony to represent foodies. I was a bit surprised and accepted as it was a great honor, but thought that they wanted me in the background. Once the prayer was completed, they called few people and asked the others to step outside the restaurant, in the street. They then asked me to wait a bit and made me line up after the people that were just called. Suddenly, they handed me over some white gloves and a pair of scissors! Holy Cow! I realized that what they asked me was not to be in the background, but rather to be part of the ribbon cutting!!! As I walked out, people spread out across the ribbon and I ended up in the middle, on the left of Mrs Hee Sook Lee!!! My main thought was: "Do not screw up! Do not cut the ribbon before everybody!!!" Once a person shouted "BCD", we cut the ribbon and shook hands, happy and honored at the same time! That was fantastic to be part of this! 

Courtesy of AD Group Communique

Note: I am the fourth person from the right on the photo!

Now, let's talk about food! Prior to the dinner, they served us some hors d'oeuvres:

Shrimp Potato Rolls:

It was delicious! First the shrimp was big and well cooked. Then, the potato crust reminded me of hash brown and paired perfectly with the shrimp.

Grilled Tofu Skewer:

The tofu, that was firm, was sandwiched between a piece of pineapple and a tomato. It was interesting because one was giving the sweetness and the other one the acidity that enhanced the flavor of the overall skewer. Pretty good!

The Third Hors d'Oeuvre was a Fried Pork Dumpling:

This one was my least favorite: too crispy and greasy for me.

I decided to order soju, a distilled alcohol very popular in Korea.

This one was made with sweet potatoes!

Then, they started the dinner with the traditional banchan or small dishes. There served my favorite: Kimchi!

It was very good and a bit spicy! I have to say that Kimchi is the dish I always expect when I go to a Korean restaurant! You can also find some at Whole Foods...

Spicy Raw Crab:

It was a fresh crab marinated in a spicy and garlicky red pepper sauce. Well, for sure the sauce was spicy. As for the crab, I cannot say because it was a bit difficult to eat the meat. Not the best dish for a press event!

Pickles:

And zucchini:

These two were good and balanced well with the spiciness of the other dishes.

There was also  a dish made with gelatin that I tried:

It had no taste and I confess that I only had a bite...

They also served us Jabchae that are glass noodles:

One of my bosses who is Korean used to say that French people are always fond of this dish and...he was right! It was the first time I tried them at room temperature and I admit that it was perfect. In Korean cuisine, they are usually made from sweet potato starch. 

Then came the LA Galbi or BBQ Pork Rib:

I think this was a phenomenal dish! The meat might not have been as tender as I expected, but it had so much flavor, similar to the flavor you would get with a bulgogi, thanks to its marinade. Eating it with the chop sticks was a bit of a challenge, but I had enough motivation to overcome it...

Then came the long awaited soon tofu or tofu soup:

The tofu in it was soft (soon in Korean) and therefore absorbed the delicious flavor of the broth made with beef and seafood. Mrs Hee Sook Lee told me that it was 100% organic. It came piping hot and we broke a fresh egg in it so it could cook in the soup!

And it was served with white rice:

This soup was delicious: very comforting, it was perfect because slightly spicy and very tasty. The mix of seafood and meat was really good and the only negative was that the shrimp had its shell, but I guess it is to render more flavor to the dish. If you do not like tofu like I use to, it might be the dish that will change your mind!

After we ate the soup, they brought us some rice in a broth that was supposed to clean our palate:

It was made with the white rice that was cooked in a stone bowl and then a broth was added to it. I had a bit of it and the taste was particular for sure.

Last was dessert:

Apparently, it is typical for celebration and Holidays. I confess that I do not know the name of this dessert that was made with red beans. I did not like the taste of it.

So we definitely had a good time at BCD Tofu House. For sure, it was the Inauguration of the restaurant so the service was perfect and we could expect some good food. I will go back another time as a regular customer to try other dishes, especially the bibimbap and the bulgogi! If you go, I suggest the LA Galbi, Jabchae and Soon Tofu soup that were excellent.

Enjoy (I did)!

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And Remember: I Just Want To Eat!

Bibimbap at Bann in NYC, New York

You know, sometimes you taste a dish and it becomes The Dish you would like to try in many restaurants, to find out which one serves the best, if the flavors can be different from one restaurant to another or simply because you like it! For me, it is all of that for Bibimbap! What is strange is that I do not have the same reaction with fried rice, although Bibimbap could be compared to it in a certain way (I hope I am not offending anybody...).

One of my colleagues, Hamid, suggested to try Bann, a Korean restaurant that also has bar and lounge at the entrance, making it look fancy.

The layout of the restaurant is quite interesting in fact: when you enter, you pass the bar, then the kitchen with its counter, and then you see this big dining room that was very dark.

After we ordered, they brought us the usual Banchan, these small dishes they serve you in Korean restaurants.

I have to say that I was a bit disappointed because usually, they bring you 6 to 8 different small dishes. Here it was only three and only the kimchi was great!

We got ourselves the Dol Sol Bibimbap. Jodi picked the vegetarian one and I got the chicken one.

In fact, mine was similar to the one Jodi got, except that it had chicken. This chicken was moist and tasty and overall, the dish was very good and flavorful. The stone bowl was extremely hot and did its job by burning the rice and creating a crust that was fantastic! 

Outside of Koreatown, Bann is definitely a place to recommend for bibimbap!

Enjoy (I did)!

And Remember: I Just Want To Eat!
 

Bibimbap at Miss Korea BBQ in NYC, New York

In our quest for the best Bibimbap, this fantastic Korean rice bowl dish, we decided to go to Miss Korea BBQ in Korea Town.

When we arrived in the restaurant, we were asked if we would consume alcohol. As we said no, we were sent upstairs, on the third floor (probably because their second location did not have a liquor license and they wanted to preserve the main one to their customers who would order some). They told us that this was the same menu and same cuisine. As the elevator was out of order and we proceeded to take the stairs. This was like going to a hidden and secret place, in these dark staircases (ok, maybe I saw too many James Bond). 

So here we are in the restaurant on the third floor! I do not know if the one downstairs has the same decor, but this one was modern.

Once we ordered our food, they brought us the banchan, these little plates that usually start a Korean meal. These dishes were not that great I have to say! The only thing I liked was the turnip and the fish skin. Otherwise, they had some fish that had a very strong taste and the kimchi was replaced by a bok choy salad that I did not really like.

They also brought us a soup made with a beef stock base (it was the special soup of the day apparently). The soup was just fine. Anyway, we were there for the bibimbap, so I did not mind not loving it!

For Bibimbap, they have a vegetarian one that is cold or a selection of hot ones, made with tofu & mushroom, beef, chicken, pork or seafood.

Jodi went for the tofu & Mushrooms. She asked for a raw egg also.

On my side, I asked for the kimchi and Bulgogi (marinated beef).

Although I appreciated the taste of the beef, the main problem was that they added seaweed to the bibimbap, giving a fishy taste to the dish. Without it, it would have been decent...
The mushroom and tofu bibimbap was a bit bland and definitely, after having tried some homemade tofu at Cho Dang Gol in NYC, it is difficult to appreciate store bought tofu!

So, definitely, Miss Korea BBQ is not the best bibimbap place we were looking for...I guess the quest continues!

Enjoy (no comment)!

Bibimbap at Wonjo in Koreatown - NYC, New York

After going to Cho Dang Gol (review posted 2 days ago), we wanted to go to another Korean restaurant, in our search for the best Bibimbap (rice bowl). So we ended up to Wonjo, in the heart of Korea Town. This place is definitely known considering the line in front of the restaurant when we left (we went early fearing the crowd). This restaurant has 2 floors and serves some Korean BBQ also.

So we started with the traditional Banchan (small plates).

I always enjoy them! This time, I especially liked the tofu:

It was fried and dipped in soy sauce with some jalapeno on top. Delish! They also gave us the usual and acclaimed (by me) Kimchi (fermented cabbage):

With the Bibimbap, they served us a miso soup.

It was a nice touch, but I was just waiting for my bibimbap!

Jodi ordered the Tofu bibimbap:

And I ordered the chicken teriyaki bibimbap:

Both came extremely hot and both were...bland...We had to add some soy sauce and I added some spicy sauce to get some flavors. This was very disappointing!

So, definitely, Wonjo is not the place for me for Bibimbap...I will have to try somewhere else or go back to Korea Palace!

Enjoy (the post)!

And remember: I Just Want To Eat!

Korean Food at Cho Dang Gol in NYC, New York

After I went to Korea Palace (check the review of Korea Palace here) with my colleagues few weeks ago, I promised Jodi that we would go to a Korean restaurant to try a Bibimbap, a rice bowl dish that can be declined in many ways. So I searched on the internet for the best Bibimbap in NYC and that is how we ended up at Cho Dang Gol.

We went twice in fact...So, first time for the Bibimbap and second time to try a Jjigae (stew).

Both times, we got the small appetizer plates (banchan) that any Korean restaurant would serve you. 

Each time I went, it was different, at the exception of two sides: the tofu and eggplant pancakes (bottom left) and the Kimchi (fermented cabbage).

Kimchi is and will always be a favorite, although it can be spicy. And these pancakes were exquisite! Especially the tofu ones that were melting in my mouth! I just wish they were proposing them as appetizers too!

Jodi ordered the dol sot bibimbap.

They provided a scallion sauce with it to add some flavor to the dish. As you can see on the photo, there is a raw egg. But it will not be raw for long as the bowl where the dish is served is extremely hot and will continue to cook the ingredients for a while!

On my side, I ordered the squid bibimbap.

As you can see on the video, the food was sizzling and there was a lot of squid! The secret is not to mix too often the ingredients, so the rice will burn a bit in the bowl and create this heavenly delicious rice crust! This dish was good, but necessitated some soy sauce to boost the flavors. 

The second time, we decided to try Jjigae that is a Korean style stew. Jodi ordered the Juk Suk Cham Dubu that was simply homemade tofu with scallion sauce.

The dish came also in a very hot bowl and was served with scallion sauce and rice. Looking at it, you would think that there is nothing particular about it. In fact, what is special is the fact that the tofu is homemade! And you can taste it! It is soft and silky with a delicious soy taste. I had some in the bulgogi  Jjigae I ordered and some were big chunks of it!

This was very, very hot, but so good! It had an egg in it, beef and some amazing tofu! I surely finished the bowl!

I liked the food at Cho Dang Gol, although I preferred the Jjigae over the pricey Bibimbap! I think that the Bibimbap at Korea Palace was much better and more flavorful! But for sure, their tofu is fantastic and would make people change their mind about it!

Enjoy (I did)!

And remember: I Just Want To Eat!

Korean food at Korea Palace in NYC, New York

When you think about Korean food in New York, you immediately think about Korea town and its BBQ joints! But, there is a great place Midtown that serves some mouth watering Korean food that can satisfy the meat eaters as well as the vegetarians. This place is called Korea Palace.

Here is my history with Korean food: I went to Seoul more than 10 years ago, on a Business trip. I stayed few weeks and tried many of their specialties, some that I would probably not even mention on this blog! Of course, the most popular is the Korean BBQ (Bulgogi) where you will cook some marinated meat and eat it in a piece of salad with some red sauce on it. A variation of that dish is made with eel that is very good, but I remember that they were serving it not with lettuce, but with a leaf that had a thicker texture and a more pronounced taste.

I also remember eating a chicken ginger soup that Korea Palace has on its menu. It was a very hot day and we ended up in a restaurant where, after removing our shoes, we sat on the floor. There was no A/C and it was already uncomfortable. They brought this extremely hot soup that we ate and we were sweating like crazy because of the soup. Our Korean host told us that it was normal and very good for health as it allows the body to get accustomed to the heat. Well, it did not work for me...But the soup was delicious!

So, back to Korea Palace. I went to this restaurant in 2010, when my boss retired and although I liked the food, I never came back. This time I came with a bunch of co-workers for a nice celebration. Of course, when you enter into the restaurant, you cannot miss the golden crown that is displayed. It is a Chonma-Chong Gold Crown dated 5th to 6th Century A.D. 

Then, the restaurant has plenty of rooms and what I appreciate is the fact that they have separate private rooms, some for up to 8 people and some bigger, like the one where we were.

In term of food, we decided to order some appetizers to share. Of course, like most Korean restaurants, there were already some side dishes (banchan) that had various veggies such as potatoes or pea pods.

My all time favorite and present most of the time is Kimchi, a fermented dish made of vegetables, the most popular being cabbag,e and some seasoning that can make it spicy.

This kimchi was perfect, spicy but not too much. By the way, you can find kimchi is grocery stores like Whole Foods in case you want to try!

The soup was very good with some tofu on the bottom.

Then, we got the scallion pancakes (Pa Jun).

That was interesting because I always associated scallion pancakes to Chinese food! At Korea Palace, you can have them with either seafood or kimchi. We picked seafood. This was very good, although a bit greasy. The crust was crunchy and the seafood was a nice surprise inside the pancake.

The second appetizer was the vegetable dumplings (Man Doo).

These were fried. I loved it! The thin shell was deliciously crispy and the filling packed with flavor. This was perfect with some soy sauce as well as chili sauce.

The third appetizer was glass noodles (Jab Chae).

Glass noodles are fantastic. They are typically made with starch from mung bean, yam, potato or cassava. 

Then, came the entree: I picked the bibimbop with chicken (you can choose tofu or beef also).

Bibimbop is a rice bowl served with vegetables and a raw egg. The egg will not be raw for long as the bowl is extremely hot and the food continues to cook in it (you can hear it sizzle). It is so hot that it creates a crust with the rice that is fantastic!

Having this crust was great because it added some crispiness and taste to the dish. Anyway, to enhance further the taste, I also added some soy sauce and chili sauce. This rice bowl was really good and I really liked the different texture had between the burnt rice and the veggies that were crunchy. 

After all that delicious food, we skipped dessert! But definitely, Korea Palace is a great place outside Korea Town for some amazing Korean food.

Enjoy (I sure did)!

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And Remember: I Just Want To Eat!

Delicious food at The Food Truck Festival in South Street Seaport - NYC, New York

Yesterday, Jodi and I went to The Food Truck Festival in South Street Seaport. This festival takes place couple of times a year, always at the same place, and features close to 30 food trucks from all over the city!

We decided to go in the morning, at around 11:30am as last year we went later and it was packed! This year, we picked the correct time! Not that many people, so limited wait! Our plan was to go to different trucks and try one of their dish on the menu.

We started with Chinese Mirch.

Mirch means chili in Hindi. This truck is a fusion between chinese food and indian food. We decided to try the Tibetan Momos, that are hand-rolled pan fried dumplings. We picked the vegetarian ones, made with cabbage, potatoes, carrots and some "secret" spices. 

The dumplings are served with a hot or sweet sauce. We chose the sweet as it was hot outside. The dumplings were pretty good: the shell was light and well cooked (I was surprised to see it steamed as they advertised pan fried!). The stuffing was delicious and flavorful. The only negative was that there was not enough sauce. Besides that, I really enjoyed it! The 5 dumplings costed $4.

The second truck was The Kimchi Taco Truck.

I love Korean food and was eager to try a fusion taco! What was great is that they proposed a tasting of 3 tacos for $7. Our pick was (top to bottom on the photo):

• Tofu edamame falafel: tofu, edamame and chickpea blended with Asian spices with kimchi infused refried beans, cucumber kimchi, pickled daikon and pico de gallo.
• BBQ beef short ribs served with their signature marinade, topped with red cabbage, apple, pear kimchi slaw.
• Fried chicken, battered in sweet rice flour tossed in organic blue agave nectar and ginger, garlic Korean pepper sauce and served with pickled diakon, queso blanco and sesame seeds.

They put the tacos next to each other and the shells were too small for the quantity of stuffing, so it was a bit messy to eat! The tofu edamame falafel was a bit mushy: I did not like it. The BBQ short rib was pretty good: it was tender and not dry thanks to the marinade. The last one I tried was the chicken one: I would have never thought it was fried chicken! Last, the taco shell was a bit hard on some parts of the tacos.

I was a bit disappointed: I think they put too many things on the taco and you lose the main flavors.

The next truck was Nuchas truck that serves empanadas.

They offer different types of empanadas: meat, veggie or sweet. We ordered the Argentine empanada ($3): ground beef, onions, pepper, scallions, potatoes and olives.

When the empanada came, it looked like the cocas that my family cooks with sheshoukah! It really liked it although it was a bit greasy. It had nice flavors and was just a bit spicy, but not too much. 

Then was the long awaited Valducci's pizza truck!

We were looking forward to get a slice from that truck since we tried it last year! It was so good! So we reordered the same slice: thin crust, pizza sauce, just a bit of cheese and olive oil.

This pizza is the proof that less is more! The crust was incredibly crispy and the sauce amazing! I think it is one of my favorite pizza in New York! I would not have liked to try other trucks, I would have gone for another slice! The slice costed $5.

Next to Valducci's was the Gorilla Cheese truck, specialized in grilled cheese.

They have standard grilled cheese as well as more elaborated ones. I decided to try a standard one and picked the Cheddar grilled cheese with white bread.

For sure there was a lot of cheese.

But, for $6, you can expect a better cheese and a better bread! I can make a better grilled cheese home for cheaper! Disappointing!

Then, we were on our way to leave when we saw the Red Hook Lobster Pound! Last year, I ate a fantastic lobster roll there! With all the food we ate, I was not sure I could have one. But Jodi knew how to find the good words to convince me: "If you do not get one, you will regret and keep talking about it!". I did not need more to order the $16 Connecticut lobster roll:

It is pricey, but there is a lot of lobster in it (I got 2 claws for sure as you can see on the photo), making it a bit challenging to eat! I love the Connecticut one: it is poached in butter! Better than with tons of mayo that could overpower the lobster taste!
The bread was deliciously buttered and toasted. If you do not like butter, it is not for you! I love this place!

After that, I was full and could not even try any of the desserts trucks. This is a great festival and I am looking forward for the next one!
On a side note, it was funny to see people eating at the terrace of the restaurants next to the festival: why would you pay overpriced food when you have an incredible event like this next to you?

If you went to the Food Truck Festival, let me know what you think!

Enjoy (I did)!

Gobuki Korean BBQ Food Cart in NYC, New York

In the past few years, New York has seen Food Trucks and carts popping up all around. The beauty of it is that it is not just the hot dogs cooked in dirty water, but different types of cuisine, from all around the world. Some used it as a way to start a business and opened later a brick and mortar restaurant, like the Taco Truck in Hoboken. Others just opened food carts / trucks in different locations like The Hallal Guys or Yogo (Frozen yoghurt).

Of course, some people might still be worried of the sanitary conditions and when the restaurants grades were introduced in New York, some people advocated to have a similar concept for food carts and trucks. I am not really scared of trying food cart and so decided to try Gobuki.


It is a Korean BBQ Food Cart, that popped up approximately 6 months ago on the corner of 52nd and 6 avenue in New York. Their food is a typical Korean food, so do not expect any twist like Korean Tacos! Their traditional menu offers:

• Kalbi plate or sandwich: marinated beef short ribs.
• Bulgogi plate or sandwich: marinated beef rib eye.
• Spicy chicken: marinated chicken with spicy sauce.
• Stir fried noodles and vegetables.
• Udon soup: Japanese noodle soup.
• Vegetable fried dumplings.

Prices are pretty reasonable, going as low as $4 for the dumplings and as high as $8 for the Kalbi plate.

I decided to go with the bulgogi sandwich.

When I ordered it, they first steamed the bread that was kind of an amoroso bread, similar to a cheesesteak. At the same time, they heat the meat, the onion and some sauce for few minutes. Then place all of it on the bread and added a delicious sauce. When ordering, they ask if you want to have it spicy or not. I decided not. 

I really liked it: the bread was very good, although at some point the sandwich broke down because of the juiciness of the meat and onions mix. The meat was delicious, tender and there was no fat. 

My friend Bill chose to go with the bulgogi plate.

It is equivalent to the sandwich but without the bread and with some slaw and rice. He liked the meat, but said that there was not enough sauce for the rice. I guess you can ask for more sauce!

Overall, I like Gobuki Korean BBQ: the sandwich was tasty and delicious! Definitely a food cart to go back to or to try!

Enjoy (I did)!

 

Koryodang: Korean pastries???

One time, we were walking in Koreatown in New York City, looking for Red Mango and noticed this big (very high ceiling), modern and bright pastry shop with a calm atmosphere (probably the water fountain and stones). We right away saw the different pastries and decided to go for a lemon tart and a chocolate tart: this was delicious and reminded me the tarts I used to have in France. Who would have thought that I would find some delicious pastries in a Korean patisserie? We went back another time and tried their hot cocoa, that is pretty decent: they, at least, use milk and not water, and you can ask for some whipped cream.

So, after we got this memorable dinner at Il Bastardo few weeks ago, we kind of needed to end the evening with something sweet. And guess what: we ended up at Koryodang, again. They had a whole bunch of cakes, but, unfortunately, they did not indicate what was what. So we asked the waiter what it was and his answer was quite amusing: "it is cakes" he said, slightly annoyed! You know what? I would not have guessed!!! Of course it is cake! So we gently asked him to describe them; this would not happen if they put a description for each pastry (duh!). Finally, we came home with two cakes: a white tiramisu and a chocolate truffle cake. Both cakes were delicious, not too sweet and very light.

Koryodang is definitely a good address to know if you need a dessert! By the way, Koryodang is apparently a term used by a group of friends to call upon the only korean friend that they have.

Enjoy (I did)!

Food Gallery 32: a Korean food court in the heart of New York

The first time we noticed Food Gallery 32 (on 32nd street in Koreatown), we were in fact looking for Red Mango to have a frozen yoghurt! So we decided to go back and check it out. The place is really bright and modern and the majority of the crowd is young. There are three floors where you can comfortably sit. In term of food, you have a large choice: from sushi to bulgogi (Korean bbq), to ramen. All of this at a very reasonable price. The food is cooked on the spot and they give you a small buzzer so you can pick up your order as it takes few minutes to cook.

So we went for Noodle 32, specialized in ramen. There are more than 20 sorts: chicken, pork, seafood, vegetarian. All dishes are coming with Kimchi that is a fermented vegetable, usually cabbage. It can be spicy, but not there! They put a film on the soup so you can find a spot to eat without dropping some of it on your tray (or yourself)! The soups are extremely hot! I already spoke in a prior post about the Korean seafood miso ramen. The Tofu ramen was good but very spicy! We would have known, I am sure they would have done a mild version.

Walking around the gallery, any foodie will find something to eat! All the food they serve looked so good! I will definitely go back there and try other stands!!!

Enjoy (I did)!