Gastrolust

Yesterday, Serious Eats posted my roundup of “10 Terrific Tofu Dishes in Seattle.” An excerpt: I probably wouldn’t have connected the words “tofu” and “terrific” twenty or thirty years ago. Before I’d been exposed to the wide array of Asian cuisine, tofu was merely a meat substitute that I considered bland and boring. Now I [...]

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Dish: Ttukbaegi Bulgogi Place: Ka Won Korean Restaurant, Lynnwood Price: $7.99 lunch, $8.99 dinner In the bowl: Per the menu: “Marinated beef tenderloin, sliced rice cake, vegetables, and clear noodles are cooked in beef rib broth. It is served in earthenware pot.” Supporting cast/What to do: The order comes with a selection of banchan and [...]

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Dish: Mul Nengmyun Place: Sam Oh Jung, Lynnwood Price: $9.99 In the bowl: Per the menu: “Cold noodle in beef broth soup with sliced beef and pickled vegetables.” Those vegetables are cucumbers and daikon. There’s also Asian pear, half of a boiled egg, and–check this out–ice. Supporting cast/What to do: The noodles come with hot [...]

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Dish: Buckwheat Noodle Salad Place: Chan, Downtown Price: $9.00 In the bowl: From the menu: “buck wheat noodle salad with mixed vegetables, hardboiled egg and spicy vinaigrette.” Those vegetables include shredded cabbage, red onion, cucumber, bean sprouts, kaiware (daikon sprouts), and maybe some microgreens. Supporting cast/What to do: Some of the dishes at Chan, like [...]

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In Bellevue, Oma Bap is a new Korean restaurant in the midst of a grand opening celebration through tomorrow. “Inspired” is a word they tout, but I’m not quite feeling the inspiration. Part of the problem is in the honesty that the food is “Korean inspired.” My bibimbap (and the other food I sampled) wasn’t [...]

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Dish: Job chae Place: Kimchi Bistro, Capitol Hill Price: $10.00 On the plate: Per the menu: “stir-fried potato noodles w/assorted veg and beef.” Supporting cast: Banchan (including cabbage kimchi, bean sprouts, and daikon) and a small portion of rice. What to do: Dig in, eating the banchan between bites of the job chae. Noodling around: [...]

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Dish: Ja-Jang Noodles Place: Red Lantern, International District, Seattle Price: $11.95 In the bowl: Fresh, Korean wheat noodles (thick spaghetti size) with a julienne cucumber garnish Supporting cast: A second bowl contains fermented black bean paste, beef, shrimp, squid, onions, and zucchini. And a side dish with pickled daikon slices, raw onion pieces, and plum [...]

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Dish: Bee Bim Naeng Myun Place: Hae-Nam Kalbi & Calamari in Shoreline Price: $8.95 In the Bowl: A fiery red mass of buckwheat noodles with daikon kimchi, cucumber, beef slices, Asian pear, and half of a boiled egg. Supporting Cast: Scissors, and a small bowl of clear beef broth. Also a nice selection of banchan [...]

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When Jonathan Kauffman, Seattle Weekly‘s former food guru, recommended a restaurant, I always went without hesitation. His reviews resonated with me, as we have similar food preferences. But when a recent shopping trip to H Mart in Lynnwood enabled a visit to Original Sul Lung Tang, I had a rare episode of betrayal. Kauffman had [...]

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Go to Tai Ho (despite repeated recommendations, it took me 11 years), and if you’re observant, you’ll notice two different-colored take-out menus at the front counter. If you’re staying, that’s your clue to ask your server for both menus, as they’ll otherwise just give you one–the Chinese one. The other is also Chinese, but Korean-style. [...]

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