While bulgogi and kimchi are popping up in fusion food trucks all over town, New York City's Korean restaurant scene can feel intimidating to diners not clued into the flavors—and pronunciations!—of the region's fare. Korean barbecue is great, but there are dozens of other dishes and styles equally deserving of a taste—if you know where to look. The Korean Restaurant Guide, a new, free guide commissioned by the Korean Food Foundation, highlights the city's best bets for delicious Korean cuisine, breaking them down by borough and highlighting each restaurant's best dishes.
Five experts in Korean cuisines—two Korean-American chefs, two journalists and one food writer—visited 180 restaurants anonymously, grading each restaurant on a scale of 1 to 100, eventually whittling down the list to the best 40 in the pack. For diners curious to expand their knowledge of Korean food—or anyone looking for help picking a restaurant in Manhattan's frenetic K-Town—the KRG offers a straightforward and mouth watering glimpse into the Korean food scene.
We spoke to author Matt Rodbard about Korean food's status in the popularity of Asian cuisines in New York City and his idea of the perfect Korean meal.
How did you approach eating at over 75 restaurants to put this guide together? How long did it take you to eat at all of them? It took me about four months to make all of the visits. I had a spreadsheet with all of the names and addresses and would constantly hit up friends and fellow journalists to make the visits with me, which sometimes included multiple stops in a day. I also dined alone on a number of occasions, which basically meant more banchan for me!
Why do you think Korean food—perhaps with the exception of barbecue—doesn't have the same kind of notoriety as other Asian cuisines? It's a really good question, because as you may know, Asian food is insanely popular these days. Have you seen the lines at Pok Pok Ny and Chuko and Ippudo and Yunnan Kitchen and Jing Fong and the various Momofuku locations? Non-Asian food fans flock to these restaurant, and it's really exciting. Korean, for reasons I cannot fully articulate, has not been swept up in this madness. One big issue is that for the most part, Korean restaurateurs have done a pretty bad job at marketing themselves to non-Koreans. And for the most part, they haven’t needed to. Menus lack clarity and, oftentimes, proper English translation. Dishes outside of the barbecue are not properly explained.
But I'll tell you this about Korean restaurants. Show the waitstaff that you are interested in exploring new dishes and they will be more than happy to show you a great time. Because, straight up, you need to look beyond the barbecue!
Sik Gaek
What would you suggest to diners who might be embarrassed about mispronouncing the names of dishes?
First off, if you show a little bit of effort, it will go a long way. Just be clear with the waiter that you want to try something new. Perhaps an order of gamjatang, a wonderful pork neck, potato, pepper and perilla soup. Or soondae, a blood sausage (made of pork parts and vermicelli noodles) that is dipped in salt. They were be thrilled that you are asking for these dishes. Do it!
What's a common misconception about Korean food that you hope to put to rest with this guide? As mentioned, although a barbecue feast is a wonderful thing, it's not the only game in town. Also, many people think Korean food is "stinky". This is true with many aspects, but some dishes lean more towards the spicy and sweet flavor profiles. Of course, a kimchi aged for many weeks (or months even) can have a strong and pungent quality. It's packed with umami and really quite irresistible. I now fully understand why it's a staple of the Korean kitchen.
Another misconception is that dining at a Korean restaurant is a stoic affair. That's more Japan! Korean restaurants are loud, boozy and incredibly fun places to dine. As soon as you sit down a beer or bottle of makgeolli will land on your table with the plates of bachan landing soon after. Once you place your order — be it barbecue or strips of meat for the grill — the large plates or bubbling hot pots will start to appear. It's loud and kinetic.
Is there one dish in particular you think deserves more focus? I mentioned gamjatang and soondae. Another food I love is kimbap, better known as “Korean sushi’. But instead of raw fish (as found in nori rolls), kimbap is filled with pickled vegetables, tuna salad and cooked squid.
What's your idea of the perfect Korean meal? Start with a bottle of fizzy makgeolli and a plate of dried file fish and peanuts. Order another bottle of beer or two. We’re quarter in the bag by now and it’s time to eat. The banchan spread will be epic with namul (vegetables) like bean sprouts, fiddlehead ferns and spinach and plates of radish and cabbage kimchi. Maybe there is will a small fried croaker or mini kimchi jeon (pancake). Soondae (blood sausage) and a bowl of kong biji (blended tofu stew with pork) will land next as the strips of kalbi (short rib) marinated in pear juice and glistening hunks of uncured pork belly sizzle on the grill. Those will be wrapped in crisp lettuce or pickled daikon discs. I’ll close with a bowl of naengmyeon, icy buckwheat noodles tossed with a hard boiled egg, spicy mustard and vinegar.
Be honest: how much karaoke did you do while putting the guide together? Although I’ll plug Foreigner early and often during a night of karaoke, this was all business. You can’t visit 75 restaurants when you’re busy flipping through a book of songs.
Korean Restaurant Guide is available as a free download on iTunes or in paperback at the Korea Society, the Korean Cultural Service, the Korean Consulate and Asia Society.
