Midtown Lunch

If given the choice between “authenticity” (whatever the hell that means) and “fusion” I will choose the former every time.  Ethnic food that’s been watered down, or muddled, by the inclusion of some other cuisine is not my idea of a good time, and yet every once in awhile something “fusion-y” comes along that is too perfect to be mad at (and for some reason it seems to often involve Korean food.)  Korean fried chicken is possibly the greatest invention of all time, Kogi started a food truck revolution, and now there is this: the newly opened Kalbi Burger, in Koreatown (which I first read about on LA Taco.)

Korean burgers are not exactly a new idea.  Kogi serves Korean sliders on their truck, there’s a Bulgogi Whopper available overseas, and hell- even this fat white guy thought to throw some bulgogi marinade into his burgers for a Superbowl Party in 2001 (a no-brainer combo that was probably tried long before, and has been tried many times since.)  But there’s something about Kalbi Burger that got me all excited.  Maybe it was the Umami Burger looking orange and black sign.  Or the fact that it’s not from a truck (there is something to be said about the permanence of a brick and mortar restaurant.)  But either way, I was intrigued enough to head over there yesterday and eat my through most of the menu.

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Last month Josh Lurie, the blogger behind the website Food GPS, penned a tasty looking review of Mapo Restaurant (3611 West 6th Street) in Koreatown.  The dishes he tried looked delicious enough, but what really popped out at me was the line at the very end of the review:  “[During lunch] you can score bi bim bap, hand made knife-cut noodle soup or beef soup, plus an array of bottomless panchan, for only $5.99.”   $6 for a quality K-Town lunch sounds like a must try… throw in a massive amount of banchan (the little dishes of stuff they bring you for free just before the meal) and it seems too good to be true!

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The proof that I love Korean food can be traced back to day one of Midtown Lunch.  When I launched the site four years ago in NYC, I extended the boundaries of “Midtown” a few extra blocks specifically so I would have an excuse to stuff my face in Manhattan’s Koreatown (on 32nd btw. B’way+5th).  I love it all- from Korean BBQ to Korean fried chicken (natch), bi bim bap to kal gook soo (knife cut noodles), jjajangmyeon (Korean/Chinese food) to kimbap (Korean sushi).  But the one thing I haven’t come around to is the modern Korean fast food chain.

If you’ve ever eaten in Kyochon, you know what I’m talking about.  I love the chicken- but the cheesy music, spotless decor, and shiny white walls with inspirational sayings I could do without. With crappy frozen yogurt I suppose it makes sense, but when it comes to Korean lunch I’d choose the atmosphere of Myung Dong Kyoja over Isaac Toast every time. But Midtown Lunch isn’t about decor. It’s about food. So when I heard that School Food, a popular Korean chain that specializes in kimbap and topokki, opened a location in Koreatown- I couldn’t help myself.

And after trying their giant combination roll platter for 3, I’m kind of glad I did. Bad decor and all.

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There are friends in New York who would kill me for saying this (we abandoned them for the West coast in the dead of winter) but the past few days have been soup weather here in L.A., don’t you think? (Uh, it was cloudy the other day. That’s as a bad as it gets, here right?)  I’m usually partial to the ramen (hello Daikokuya and Santouka!) but I’m always looking to branch out.  So when a good friend offered to take me to his favorite spot for Kal Guk Soo, Korean knife cut noodle soup with ground beef and dumplings, I was all over it.

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I still remember the very first time I had Korean food.  I was 18 years old, and visiting my dad at work. He suggested Korean, I said sure (?), and we headed down the street to what I’m assuming was the only Korean restaurant in Downtown Miami.  I remember them bringing out the little plates of what I now know are called banchan, and my dad telling me I had to try this stuff called kimchee. “It’s the worst tasting thing you’ll ever eat. And really spicy.” “Well, if it tastes so terrible why would I want to eat it?” “That’s the thing, son.  It’s so bad, that eventually you’ll start to like it.” I took one bite, and as promised it was pretty bad… but sure enough, 10 minutes later I was like “hmmm, maybe I’ll try another bite of that weird cabbage stuff”.  I was hooked.

The other thing I remember about that meal is what my Dad ate for lunch that day- and this is truly amazing because I have the worst memory of all time (although it’s not suprising that this is the shit I remember.)  It was a large bowl of noodles topped with this thick brown sauce, with onions and little cubes of meat.  It was delicious.  And for almost 10 years I never saw the dish again, and pretty much forgot about it entirely.

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Speakin of Asian Food Courts… Midtown Lunch is always open to new suggestions, tips, and reports from readers. This one was sent in earlier today by Lunch’er “Lee” (aka Flatrock).

I happened to be in LA last week and while driving through Koreatown decided to stop in to the Koreatown Plaza on S. Western and 9th Street in the hopes that I could find some mandoo. I walked into this Plaza and it was a full fledged mall, but all Korean! I wandered through the mall towards the aroma of food, and eventually walked into what I believe is “Zach’s Personal Nirvana,” a mall food court that serves nothing but Asian food!!! There were dumplings, a pho shop, a weird Korean sandwich stall, a curry spot, mostly it was Korean food with the Pho thrown in there for good measure. As I wandered around from stall to stall in a state of bewilderment and amazement, I discovered the pinnacle of this Nirvana like mall food court, a stall serving dol sat bibimbap (it was called Gamja Bawi). I’m thinking, mall food court, all asian food, real hot stone pot! How could this be bad.

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Oh man, do I love Korean fried chicken.  I mean, how could I not?  (How could anybody not for that matter?)  I love fried chicken.  I love Korean food.  Dip one into the other, and voila.  Food magic!  And while there are plenty of versions to sample these days, there are still two major chains that can’t be ignored:  Bon Chon & Kyochon.  Midtown NYC got a Bon Chon a few weeks before I moved to L.A., but I never got to try Kyochon (their Midtown location is still under construction.)  Contrary to what some back East might think, I didn’t move to L.A. specifically so I could eat at Kyochon, but it sure is a nice bonus!

Hello Koreatown lunch…

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