Restaurant experiment: Mono+Mono

Mono+Mono

314 Fifth Avenue at West 32nd Street

Second Floor

New York, NY 10001

212-221-2222

Liz was having a major fried chicken craving, so the four of us make the trek over to K-town for lunch.  She guided us to Mono+Mono which occupies a floor in a small office building.  You feel like you’ve only left the office to go to another office.  The place kind of looks like a sleek lounge, and the eating area occupies the window part of the floor, overlooking the avenue.

Guided by Liz, we ended up sharing the scallion pancake and the calamari, along with a large order of the fried chicken.  Since I am not fervent about calamari, I don’t have thoughts either way.  The scallion pancake was fine, just your average pancake.  It was supposed to have seafood, but it was either lacking or in microscopic portions.  The food took a long time to emerge.  At least the beers and waters showed up faster.

From the website:

Our chicken is never like ordinary fried chicken.  Taste our fried chicken.  Super crispy outside & juicy inside, yet less greasy!  Deep fried twice to burn off the fat making the skin papery thin then it’s brushed with rich & delicious soy garlic or hot spicy sauce for the best taste & freshness.  Our chicken is made to order & it may take up to 30 minutes.  Its taste is worth the wait!

I guess that explains it.  And why do I keep typing “friend” instead of “fried?”  Does anyone else do that?

We ordered the soy garlic since Kathy and I weren’t down with the hot spicy.  True to the description, the chicken was super juicy inside.   I’m not sure if I could concur with less greasy.  I suppose so, since the oil wasn’t dribbling down my fingers and hands.  The skin was indeed super crispy outside.  The skin was very bubbly.

Post-chow, our waitress brought out complimentary lychee soju shots for the beer drinkers, and a teensy serving of Pinkberry-imitator for myself.  Yum!  Wish it were a little cheaper ($20 with no alcohol), but Mono+Mono just might have hooked me on the other KFC [Korean Fried Chicken] since I’m already thinking about trying the vendor down the street from my house…danger!

Restaurant experiment: BCD Tofu House

BCD Tofu House

17 West 32nd Street between Fifth Avenue and Broadway

New York, NY 10001

212-967-1900

http://www.bcdtofu.com/bcd_eng.php

Leslie invited me out to lunch at this Korean place in K-town.  She’d been a couple of times before and knew it to be a solid choice.  Since it was igloo weather outside (snowflakes were falling as I walked to and from the subway), tofu soup sounded like it would hit the spot.

The NYC branch of this chain was busy when I stepped in around 2pm on a Saturday.  But luckily Leslie and I didn’t have to wait that long to be seated, and at least it wasn’t 9pm on a Saturday.

The little dishes appeared promptly, as well as cups of tea.  I was surprised that one of the dishes was a fish for each one of us.  A whole little fish.  That was tasty, as well as the baby bok choy, bean sprouts, and pickles.  Oh yeah, the pasta salad too.  Pasta salad doesn’t seem very Korean to me, but I ate and liked it nevertheless.  I let the kim chee be.  Too spicy.  A new item to me was old prepared rice, scrubbed off the sides of a bowl, sitting in tea.  While I found it positive, there was too much other food to deal with, and there was already regular rice.  Another time.

Leslie recommended the tofu soup with beef and assorted seafood.  The bowl was presented bubbling like some witch’s concoction.  I cracked a raw egg into the broth and nibbled on the other treats so the soup could cool down some.  We also ordered the soups mild because Leslie gave me insider scoop that the plain level was boring and bland, and mild was just right.  I think the waitress gave us medium instead which sort of detracted from the overall effect.  The assorted seafood consisted of shrimp and mussels for the most part.  Warning: the picture below is not for those wary of raw eggs and shrimp heads.

We grumbled about the hardly vigilant service.  I mentioned that there were lots of employees but no one was paying attention to us.  Leslie commented that they were not waiters, but standers.  Indeed.  To my astonishment, Leslie stated that the little dishes, once empty, were supposed to be promptly refilled.  You could have fooled me.  And it seems like most other Korean places do not do that.  Leslie had to flag down a serviceperson to request a refill.  Later I had to wave down someone else for more tea.

At around $11 a pop at lunch with all those edible extras, you can’t go wrong here at BCD Tofu House.  Unless they give you medium when you wanted mild.  As an added laugh, the paper towel dispenser in the bathroom is helpfully labelled “paper towels.”

Restaurant experiment: Han Bat

Han Bat

53 West 35th Street between 5th and 6th Avenues

New York, NY 10001

212-629-5588

After shopping at Macy’s, Lily and I ended up with Korean for dinner because hey, K-town is right there.  Avoiding the madness of the Korean restaurants on 32nd Street, we ambled up to 35th Street (Lily’s idea).  Han Bat was next to a couple of other places.  Folks were waiting around for tables, but we were seated right away.  Sometimes it pays to be a party of two!

I was actually focused on what I wanted and not overwhelmed by the multitude of choices, so I suggested to Lily that we get the scallion pancake and some meat.  Han Bat only had a scallion pancake with shellfish (pajun), and I would have preferred no squid, but whatever.  Meat-wise, we got the bul go ki.

I always forget about the free appetizers.  Too much spicy stuff.  I stuck to the non-red items and foisted the red items onto Lily.  Good veggies: zucchini and bean sprouts.  The squares in the middle, we couldn’t figure out.

The pajun was tasty, and its inside was 90% scallions and squid versus the bready part.  We had to share one small bowl of rice though which wasn’t the best thing.  What can you do?  It’s NYC after all. 

 

The bill was about $40 per person.  If only Korean food were slightly cheaper!

Restaurant experiment: HanGawi

HanGawi

12 East 12th Street between Fifth and Madison Avenues

New York, NY 10016

212-213-0077

http://www.hangawirestaurant.com/

I am not a vegetarian and don’t often frequent veggie eateries in the city, but I keep my food mind open.  This carnivore can roll with the vegetarians, no problem.

The night was started at ilili, partaking in their steal of a happy hour.  It’s slinky but not pretentious.  Gorgeous atmosphere.  Must try their eats sometime.

So it was Stacy, Rachel, Christopher, Rebecca, Eric, and myself at HanGawi, on the fringes of the K-town bustle.  Even though we had a reservation, we had to wait in the entryway with a giant drum for a couple of minutes.  You are asked to remove your shoes before stepping into the dining room.  Diners sit on the floor, and there’s a sunken space to plop your feet in.  This was my first shoeless meal experience in NYC.

Rebecca commented that the environment is like a yoga studio.  And I wholeheartedly agreed.  Very zen: dim lighting, candles on the table, patrons speaking in low tones, mellow background music on the sound system.  You are not rushed.  Since several of us ordered the tasting menu, there were dishes coming out after each other, but never too quickly.  Hmm, it was nearly a three hour meal?  I like not being rushed.

Ah, the Chef Special Emperor’s Meal withSteamboat ($40).  At least two people in your party have to order it.  My fellow prix fixe fan Stacy and I decided to go for it.  The steamboat is a light consomme served in a tin hourglass shaped device with a light for warming purposes.  Ours went out.  The skewers of vegetables, fruits, and nuts were fine, but I was enchanted by the soup.  Mmmm!

Next up to the plate was a salad.  I believe it was Hangawi’s avocado lettuce salad with ginger carrot dressing.  They were generous with the avocado.  Salad=sublime.

The appetizer plate had three offerings; I can’t remember exactly what they were.  The serving staff explained everything but there was just too much!  I do recall tofu witha spicy accompaniment, a Gala apple cut and filled with a scoop of zucchinisauce, and then the last thing which I blanked out.  The apple was my favorite.  The apple was even cut at its bottom so that it would sit stably.  It’s the little touches!

The emperor’s rolls were like mini-tortillas which you fill up with various veggies and then dip in a kicking wasabi-touched sauce.  Everyone was given towels to wipe off hands prior.  Another little thoughtful thing!

For the entree, you were given two choices.  Stacy my prix fixepartner went with the mushrooms, and I tried the tudok.  According to the menu, tudok is a special mountain root from Korea which is like the ginseng-related equivalent of Red Bull, giving you energy.  The tudok was actually a bit like bamboo and hearty.

I should add that I was stuffed.  I probably could have ended the meal after the appetizers.  But I had to keep on keeping on, as there was dessert at the final stretch.  It was tofu chocolate pudding with possibly hazelnuts thrown in.  Not bad, could be more chocolate-y.  But I’m a fan of lighter desserts at the end of a significant meal.

Last minute notes: some cabbage and kim chee came out with the meal, rice was also offered, Rachel let me sample her pumpkin porridge, yum!

All right, I’ve written a novel.  But when you can’t wait to tell friends about HanGawi, you know you’re on to something special.  Thanks FJK for telling Stacy to eat here!

Restaurant experiment: Madangsui

Madangsui

35 West 35th Street between Fifth and Sixth Avenues

New York, NY

212-564-9333

madangsui.com

It was freezing, and we had to wait outside. All K-town restaurants seem to be way crowded on weekend nights; the small waiting area already had throngs of folks waiting for tables. This better be killer food! I guess it didn’t help that we were a large party of ten. Annie, the Constitution State hostess, had picked out this place and assembled a motley crew of dinner eaters. Korean food, new friends, can’t go wrong there!

Eventually we were seated. I stayed out of the ordering process so I probably won’t be able to name what we/I ate. I’ll look at the menu and try to make do. I am kinda hopeless when it comes to remembering Korean food names. Once the massive order was placed, the side dishes/appetizers began to make an appearance. One of my favorites, the baked? egg dish, showed up, yes! Love that stuff. Then the raw meat came to the party and got things cooking. The best in show meats for me were the hyeomit-gui (thin sliced all natural beef tongue) and the wine sam-gyeop-sal (1/4 inch sliced fresh pork belly marinated and aged in merlot). The chicken was just okay; it’s all about beef for yours truly. Annie ordered some bibimbap for all of us. Madangsui’s uses red [purple] rice for a slightly different take; I mistakenly told Jenny it was red bean rice.  Whoops, sorry Jenny.

Nick and I observed this woman sitting by herself at the four top adjacent to our end of the table. We overheard the lady tell a waitperson that she was waiting for her date. She waited so long that the staff moved her over to a smaller table, and our group was well into our dinner by the time her date finally showed up. The patience of a saint; Nick and I would have been outta there.

We inquired about dessert and were flabbergasted to learn that there was no dessert menu. Huh? The waitress told us that oranges were dessert. The complimentary citrus slices accompanied the bill which wasn’t too heart-attack-worthy for a party of our size. My wallet was pleased.  Huzzah.

Restaurant experiment: Momofuku Noodle Bar

Momofuku Noodle Bar

171 First Avenue between 10th and 11th Streets

New York, NY 10003

212-475-7899

www.momofuku.com/noodle/default.asp

The Momofuku restaurants are popular in NYC, with the crown jewel of the empire Momofuku Ko having some crazy reservation process which I won’t go into detail here but heard about secondhand. It’s like a Black Friday for 16 seats apparently?

But yeah, let me set the scene. It’s Halloween, so costumed kids are running around the East Village, invading stores for free pieces of candy. AmyC suggested that she, Lily, and I grab a bite here at Momofuku Noodle Bar since we had attempted to a million years ago and were denied (the wait was nuts) and instead went and waited for a table at the just-as-packed Yakitori Taisho (yum).

Surprisingly we didn’t have to stand around at all. It was still a bit on the early side, close to 6:30pm. All the tables were snapped up but there were slots open at the bar. We squished around a small end table, next to a dweeby pair. I had to overhear their bland talk without choice; I’m not about communal-type seating.

Our sever was a sweetheart: friendly and willing to answer questions. That always helps a dining experience. If you are not into noodles, never fear, as the menu features alternatives, mostly of a Korean nature. Our trio shared an appetizer of the steamed pork buns. These pork buns were not like the buns you would find in Chinatown. They were very artsy, avant garde, as the bun part resembled a silver dollar pancake and was folded over to protect the pork and slices of cucumber (!). The pork was fatty and tender and delicious. No dim sum prices however.

AmyC opted for the more deluxe Momofuku ramen with pork and a poached egg, while Lily and I went for the more basic ramen option with chicken; you could opt for shredded pork. Now, ramen broth is usually a bit salty, but this soup was off-the-hook salty. We like to slurp down all the liquid but had to refrain because otherwise we’d be nursing bottles of water the whole rest of All Hallow’s Eve. I was disappointed. The chicken pieces were salty too. To make up for this gaffe, I did wholeheartedly approve of the actual noodles. We’re too used to the dried stuff so when we eat actual, real noodles, it’s jarring, though in the best way possible.

Photo by AmyC

Restaurant experiment: Shilla

Shilla

37 West 32nd Street between Fifth Avenue and Broadway

New York, NY 10001

212-967-1880

shillanyc.com

Hey Leslie, have you eaten at this place? I was wondering what other people thought about it since I’m not a Korean food expert.

I met up with Amy, Sherwin, and Shirley at this monster three story restaurant in K-town. We waited a bit to be seated but not excessively so. I always love the free appetizers that you get at Korean restaurants; you can fill up on those even if you stick to the non-spicy ones as is my fashion. We ordered the Shilla special gal bi and some other meat to have cooked at our table. The waiter was right handed, and I was to his right, so I enjoyed his elbow close to my face. Tables very near each other, even by NYC standards. The Shilla sauce on the meat was a bit too sweet for me, but it was all right. If you dine here, be prepared to ask for things because the waiters are too harried and barking into their hands-free headsets to be paying attention to your needs and wants. We had to flag someone down to order, flag someone down to request more lettuce, flag someone down for water refills.

Other dishes we selected were o jing uh dun bob (“rice on the heated stone pot with squid and vegetables”) and hae mool pajun, the seafood and scallion pancake, one of my favorite Korean foods. It didn’t disappoint here. The tab for four people totaled around $100 bucks. There is a signed picture of Tila Tequila in the entryway. I’m not sure advertising the fact that she has eaten at Shilla helps business, ew.