Bite by Bite

Restaurant Review : Hansong Buffet (Korean buffet) $$ *6 out of 10*

Park your car around the back with valet and then enter through the magnificently traditional Korean gates of Hansong.  Walk through their manicured garden complete with a man-made river and over the bridge to enter the buffet. 

The buffet is large and clean and consists of a soup and salad station, a cold appetizer section, the warm meat section, the seafood section, the miscellaneous cooked section, a sushi section, and a dessert and ice cream section.  

There’s plenty to eat but it’s a bit hit and miss.  The Korean food is yummy, especially the Yuk Hae (Korean raw beef), the whole chili peppers with their awesome Sam Jang, their Kimchee, and their meats.   The sushi counter could use a lot of work and is not something that I enjoy there at all.  Their baked desserts are meager and dried-out but two thumbs up to their fresh fruit and soft serve + froyo machine!

Pricing is a bit stiff for what you get.  
-Lunch is $16.95/person.  
-Dinner is $25.95/person.  
With so many delicious dining options in Ktown, I find it hard to pay the prices at Hansong for food that’s not always so consistent.

Hansong Buffet
1925 W Olympic Blvd
Los Angeles, CA 90006
Neighborhoods: Westlake, Pico Union
(213) 386-1100
http://hansongbuffet.com

Restaurant Review : Hae Jang Chon (AYCE Korean BBQ) $$ *8 out of 10*

All you can eat Korean BBQ on a stone grill.  The stone grill is angled so that the fat and grease from the meat empties out into a tray through the hole. Every so often when the hole gets dirty and clogged the server comes by with a bowl of shredded daikon to clean out the grill.  A few moments later your grill is ready to start cooking again.

For $16.99 you get unlimited choices of your various meats ( I recommend that you try the pork belly) + your wraps (lettuce, radish, tortilla, rice cake) + your side dishes including steamed egg, doenjang (bean paste soup) and kimchee fried rice!  The kimchee fried rice is served at the end of your meal and should not be passed up so try and save some room. 

Be prepared because HaeJangChon gets crowded and there are often long waits.  But in my opinion, it’s worth it.  The meats are good, the service is usually competent, and I love the way they slap on some bean sprouts and kimchee to cook on your grill. 

Valet parking is $2.

Hae Jang Chon Korean BBQ Restaurant
3821 W 6th St
Los Angeles, CA 90020
Neighborhood: Koreatown
(213) 389-8777
http://www.haejangchon.com

Restaurant Review : Sang Kogi Nara (Korean BBQ, Sashimi) Mid-City LA *7 out of 10*

Where are we?  Where are we going again? This is not Ktown!  I came looking for this place because of a recommendation from a friend and found myself driving south with some trepidation…when we finally arrived, I didn’t feel any better.  This is a neighborhood of barred, gated doors and unmaintained streets.  I guess the rents are cheaper down here. 

No matter, I am brave and nothing can keep me away from food.  I am happy to report that it’s clean and bright inside so that I was able to concentrate on eating.  

Dinner…
Sang Kogi Nara makes up for the less than ideal location by offering all-you-can-eat Sashimi + BBQ for $24.99 per person; not a lot of variety on the fish (lots of halibut) but it was fresh and good.  
For $19.99 per person you can get AYCE BBQ & one plate of sashimi.  
For $18.99 you will get AYCE BBQ with their prime meats including Rib Eye and Galbi.  
For $16.99 you get limited amounts of Rib Eye & Galbi but AYCE on other meats.

Lunch…11AM-3PM
For $15.99 you get a plate of sashimi, limited amounts of Rib Eye & Galbi and AYCE on other meats.
For $11.99 you get AYCE BBQ minus Rib Eye and prime Galbi.

The sides are okay, the meat quality is good, the sashimi is fresh, and the value is concrete with their premium meats at non-premium prices.  I also like how they set up their doen jang…I would call it soup and not a jiggae since it was so diluted…by inserting it in the middle of the grill so that it stays hot and doesn’t take up additional space.  

With its nice and friendly service this place warrants a trip back even with all the other surrounding competition.

Restaurant Review : Dong Il Jang (Korean) Ktown LA*8 out of 10*

Dong Il Jang has been around FOREVER , probably over 25 years because I remember it as far back.  Nothing much has changed about it, except maybe the additional layers of grease that has accumulated over the years.  The fountain with the Koi  that I used to think was so fancy is still there by the entrance.  The seats are the same and the servers still wear that brown aproned dress that stands out in my memory.  The food is still good and so, Dong Il Jang’s legacy continues.

This is where we LA locals go to get Ros Gui; pan-roasted slices of rib eye Korean style.  It’s grilled with butter at your table.  And as you know, butter is the magic ingredient that makes everything better.

But to tell you the truth, the real reason I order the Roast Gui is because of the wonderful kimchee fried rice they make for you on the Gui griddle.   This is what I’ve been waiting for all night; rice mixed in with Gui drippings, some meat trimmings, more butter and Kimchee!  Paired with some Kimchee Jigae, I am one happy critic.

Restaurant Review : O Dae San (Korean BBQ) Ktown LA *6 out of 10*

It’s another Korean BBQ restaurant that offers all-you-can-eat.  Although here, you have the option of selecting a la carte items or meal options as well.  I’ve been here twice and both times I’ve had the AYCE.  For $9.99 lunch or $11.99 dinner, you can have AYCE pork and/or beef brisket.  For $16.99 you can have a choice of 12 different meats and this is the one we always opted for.

Aside from the most attentive service I’ve ever had at a Korean BBQ restaurant from our server Mimi on our last visit, I have to say that our meal was very average.  The sides are okay and the meat quality is just so-so.  The restaurant itself is big with 2 floors but the aroma of Korean BBQ smoke fills the space from corner to corner.  I felt like I was still wearing my dinner after I left!

Restaurant Review : Ham Ji Bak (Korean) in Ktown LA *8 out of 10*

THE place to go in Ktown for porky Pork pork!  The spicy pork ribs and Gamja Tang(potato & pork spine stew) are the best in town.   They really got these two items down perfectly.  

The side dishes are decent; nothing exciting but complements well with the pork.  I like the marinated chili peppers and the white kimchee.

Street parking is limited but there’s valet parking around the back.

Restaurant Review : MooDaePo II (Korean BBQ) in Kotown LA *7 out of 10*

Big open space, dance lights, loud music, Kpop music videos playing all around you, and Korean BBQ.  Huh? Yup, that’s the combo here at Moodaepo2.   Party, party, and eat meat.  

This place is a fun place to bring your guests.  It’s big, it doesn’t stink too much and it’s relatively cheap for what you get.  $17.99 for all you can eat meat? How can you beat that?  

This place gets super busy and they sometimes treat you downright like a second class citizen.  You have to sometimes fight back with some aggressiveness on your own; just wave servers down, call out loudly to ask for something, and if your server doesn’t get you something right away, don’t just sit around and wait, ask another server.  Btw, this is all acceptable behavior. 

The meat quality is okay.  The first round of meat that comes out usually has the best pieces.  As you continue to ask for more, I feel as if the cuts of meat gradually gets worse and worse.  Or maybe I’m just getting more and more full.   Either way, the meat can get a little inconsistent even during one sitting.  

And try to leave some room at the end of the meal for some Kal GukSu which literally translates to “Knife Noodles”.  This refers back to the days when the noodles were all hand-cut with a knife.

Restaurant Review : Park’s BBQ in Koreatown *9 out of 10*

Park’s is one of the best places to get quality Korean BBQ in Ktown.  The meat is top notch and the food is tasty.  What ultimately wins me over are a few of their side dishes.  The raw marinated crab has always been one of my favorites and it is pretty yummy here.  They also give you napa cabbage wraps with marinated oysters and radish as a side dish - Love it!  Lettuce wraps are also served for no extra charge.  And very importantly, their Kimchee is consistently good.  

Their stews are NOT so tasty.  I’ve tried their Kimchee Jigae, Daen-Jang, as well as their Gochu-Jang stews and unfortunately they’ve all fallen short.  

Some say that getting stinky is part of the authentic Korean BBQ experience.  Park’s BBQ stays true to that experience and gets you stinky, not as bad as some other places (Sut Bull Jeep), but definitely fragrant.  

Restaurant Review : Genwa *8 out of 10*

Korean BBQ without ~~ STINKING~~ like Korean BBQ afterwards - how absolutely wonderful!  Genwa has these grills that suck the air from the bottom so it doesn’t get on you.  I wonder why they don’t have these everywhere…?

I love this place.  It’s clean, modern, and has good attentive service.   The number of “ban-chan” or side dishes is ridiculous (in a good way).  Side dishes include steamed egg (everybody seems to like this, even the kids), marinated perilla leaves, raw squid in chili paste (my personal favorite), potato salad (my husband’s favorite), bean sprouts, marinated cucumber,  garlic stems, fish cake, steamed broccoli, chili paste chili, acorn jelly, marinated seaweed, the list goes on and on.  I feel like I’m having a palace meal with all the tiny little side plates and the metal spoon and chopsticks.  

The food is a bit Americanized.  It’s toned down a bit on some parts and definitely sweeter than what is authentic.  It’s also more expensive than in the heart of Ktown but the meat quality definitely makes up for it.  I love the “Seng Galbi” which is the un-marinated rib meat, the “Cha-dol” (the brisket) and the tongue.  Yes, the tongue.  I know it sounds gross but it’s soooo good.  Genwa’s tongue is super-good.  Just make sure not to overcook it because it will get chewy.  

It’s tradition to finished a Korean BBQ meal with a carb, usually either a stew with rice or NaengMyung(cold noodles in meat broth). I usually opt for the Den Jang which is the fermented bean stew, kinda’ like a Korean miso but with a lot more kick and stuff in it.  To my happy surprise I found that Genwa’s Den Jang was tasty and a bit spicy.   They served the Den Jang with some burnt rice soup which is totally rustic and induces nostalgia about the motherland.

For dessert we had some black sesame ice cream.  I split this with my husband and wished there were more.  We also ordered the tofu cheesecake but this was no good.  I’d definitely rather have the non-tofu versions.

As “service” AKA “free,” they give you a glass of Dan Sul which is a non-alcoholic fermented sweet rice drink.  This is a real treat because you don’t usually get to drink this unless it’s a special occasion.

Then, yes there is a then…it just keeps coming and coming, they give you these magical expanding napkins to wipe your hands.

‘Tis the season, they gave us Christmas lollipops, to take home.

The end.