Seoul of Sydney's Koreaculum 103

With work the way it has been, SIFF 2011 was going to fly by and I doubted whether I'd make it to any of the events that I was interested in checking out. But I made a special effort to find time for Seoul of Sydney's Koreaculum 103 after having been intrigued by a fabulous write up of Koreaculum 101 by eatshowandtell's Minh. I love Korean food and am constantly trying to tell lesser-educated friends just how great a cuisine it is, totally undeserving of it's "all meat and chilli" misconception that many people have. And Seoul of Sydney is just what Sydney needs to show people the potential Korean cuisine has to be a stayer on the modern plate. So I excitedly booked tickets and counted down the days...

Firstly, apologies for the fuzzy photos - there just wasn't enough light!

Fast forward to now, two weeks after the event and I'm still buzzing. As soon as we walked into Berta (their venue for the night) there was a real buzz in the air - a mingling of excitement, nervousness and enthusiasm. We were seated at the bar which suited me just fine as I got to peek over and into the kitchen to see some of the action.

The action in the kitchen behind the bar.

While we waited for all the diners to arrive there was a snack of "tofu crackers with sesame seeds" which were crispy with a hint of sweetness, mmm.. a good start to the evening.

Tofu crackers with sesame seeds.... snacking on these while the team prepares the matching drinks.

The first dish was served, "buckwheat pancake filled with kimchi, with a mandarin dressing". Our host for the night Peter Jo (founder of Seoul of Sydney) explains that this is a dish that comes from the south island of Korea, eaten at the start of spring (could it be 메밀전?). It's fabulously fresh, the kimchi is not the usual kind that you get with banchan side dishes, it's lighter and contains capsicum and carrots as well. Together with the mandarin sauce, it has a bit of a spicy kick which is balanced nicely by the nutty, earthy taste of the buckwheat pancakes. We're duly impressed and eagerly await the next dish - the bar has been set high already!

Buckwheat pancake with kimchi and mandarin dressing.

And we most certainly are not disappointed when the second dish arrives - it's a modern take on 육회 (yukhoe) which consists of beef tenderloin served with sesame oil, soy dressing and a dainty quail egg to mix through. There are pieces of pear and possibly mandarin along with some baby herbs and some thin slices of almond (or something similar). It's a pretty looking dish and I hesitate a moment before breaking the quail egg yolk to mix it all up. The meat was served in big slices as opposed to being diced - I'm initially worried that it will be hard to chew or overly raw-meaty in taste but it's an absolute revelation. The flavours are well balanced, hands down it's the best raw-meat dish I can ever remember eating. I get to the end and I want more.

Yukhoe - it's so fresh. Tastes as good as it looks.

But alas, dish number three is not another plate of Yukhoe. It's a modern take on Torangtang which translates as taro soup and is eaten during Chuseok which is a Korean harvest festival held around the Autumn Equinox. This version has an anchovy broth with daikon radish, braised octopus and taro chips. The presentation of this dish is simple yet striking with the octopus tentacles curled on top of the radish that sits in the centre of the broth. Upon cutting into the radish, there's a little surprise - a mix of diced mushrooms and something else I can't quite put my finger on. Each individual flavour in this dish is distinct and pronounced without overpowering the other components.

Torangtang.

Next up is duck with Ssamjang (a spicy paste for Korean wrapped food), chilli and jellyfish salad. It's quite spicy with all the chilli but it's a good match for the duck which is perfectly cooked and so, so tasty. Did I mention the duck is perfectly cooked and absolutely delicious? Well, it is was. The jellyfish salad had a fresh tang to it and works well with the richness of the duck. The spicy ssamjang really gives it a kick too.

Perrrrrfectly cooked duck!

The last savoury dish - braised mackerel with chilli sauce and chilli powder on a bed of confit radish with kim (the Korean word for seaweed) and spinach. This is really simple and as C says, "really Korean". I love the simplicity, the fish is tasty and is cooked in a very Asian style - almost verging on dry, but not in a bad way at all. And eaten with the salad it tastes really fresh and healthy yet totally satisfying. I'm looking at the photo and I really want to eat it again now, I can taste the fish in my mind and I'm getting very hungry.

Braised mackerel with chilli sauce, chill powder, confit radish, kim and spinach.

Onto pre-dessert and I'm ecstatic to hear it's going to be an interpretation of Bingsoo (Korean shaved ice desserts). This version consists of a milk-based granita, which is hiding misutgaru (roasted rice powder) and fresh fruits (strawberries, blueberries, kiwifruit). It's is perfectly light and refreshing, one could probably eat this everyday in summer. None of the components are anything special on their own, but when mixed together it tastes fantastic. The fruit gives a sweetness and the misutgaru adds an earthy, nutty flavour.

Bingsoo with misutgaru and fresh fruit - perfect for summer.

Dessert is a real contrast to the pre-dessert which makes things interesting. It's also based off traditional Korean sweets. Presented on a wooden board, there's a plank of 'kanjang' (?) which is described as Korean praline - it includes many seeds and nuts including pumpkin seed, pine nuts and walnuts. It's sticky and nutty, best eaten by snapping segments off using your fingers, as one of the waiters tells me. I think he's right - it's much more satisfying to eat it with your fingers! On top is something that sounded like 'lun' - Peter describes it as a traditional tea snack where they take something like a fruit, desconstruct and sweeten it, then reconstruct it back again. The flavours tonight are raspberry with dried/dehydrated apricot, ginger with pine nuts, and lastly pumpkin rolled in red bean. It's a sweet dessert, although the ginger one gives some heat which might not be to everyone's taste, but I like it all and polish off my board without any problems.



The most sophisticated "fruit and nut" I've had.

And so the meal comes to an end. It hasn't just been a good dinner but it has been a great experience which I hope to take part in next time Koreaculum happens. It was a really good example of the variety in Korean cuisine, something I've always known and appreciated - hopefully more people feel the same after experiencing Koreaculum 103.

What: Koreaculum 103
Where: It was held at Berta Restaurant, by Seoul of Sydney as part of the Crave SIFF 2011
How much: $90 for meal only, $130 with matching drinks

Se Jong

So I'm still drowning in tonnes of work - there's paper all around me on the floor as I spend another Saturday in front of the laptop. The pile of work is not going anywhere but to hell with it - this poor blog is feeling so neglected and sad, it's time to give it some love.

I've been working so much that there hasn't been much time for checking out new places, and sometimes when you're exhausted from work you just want to go somewhere familiar and comforting. Se Jong is just that. I still remember the first time I ate here, way back in November of 2006. Not much has changed since then, the menu and decor are still the same. I've eaten here so many times that it feels like I'm going to an Auntie's place for a homecooked meal. And that's exactly why, after a very long and tiring week at work, this was the perfect dinner to recharge my soul.

There's 2 rooms at Se Jong, the first is a standard room with wooden tables and chairs, each with the obligatory hot plate for Korean barbecue. There's a shoe case next to the doorway to the second room as this room is strictly floor seating - the tables still have the bbq hot plate but they're low to the ground with cushions for you to rest your posterior.

The banchan (side dishes) here are always tasty - today we get kimchi, odeng (fish cake), bean sprouts, eggplant and radish. My eyes always light up when I see the eggplant - it's soft and full of garlicky flavour. We're pretty hungry so we also order "Goonmandoo" (deep fried dumpling, $12.00) which are perfectly crispy half moons with a home-made tasting filling that includes noodles (not sure if it was mung bean or sweet potato). We also got "Tofu Chigae" (stew of soft beancurd, seafood, egg and chilli paste, $10.00). If you were feeling poor, you could get this stew and a bowl of rice and have a very satisfying meal. The tofu is silky and light, a good balance for the spiciness of the soup.

Goonmandu, complimentary (and super tasty) banchan, tofu chigae.

C's favourite dish at Se Jong is probably the "Hwedubbap" (rice with sashimi, vegetables and chilli paste, $13.00). I love it too - it's so fresh and tasty - everything but the rice is raw - the salmon, kingfish, carrots, cucumbers, radish, cabbage, perilla leaves and just one more ingredient that I can't think of right now. Turn out your bowl of hot rice on top, add as much Chogochujang sauce (vinegar red pepper paste) as you like and then mix! mix! mix! until it's all combined. What you get is a fresh and healthy all-in-one bowl meal which tastes fantastic.

Hwedubbap - all healthy food should taste this good!

As much as I love Hwedubbap, there's one dish that I can't resist - "Jebichuri" (thin skirt beef with sesame oil, $14.00). It's a great cut of beef for Korean barbecue because it's so tender. You get the dipping sauce of salt and pepper mixed with sesame oil and you also get fresh lettuce leaves and bean paste for wrapping too. That and a bowl of rice and I'm in food heaven. Oh, did I mention that they cook all the barbecue items for you? All you have to do is eat, what more could one ask for?

Jebichuri - it's my weakness.....mmm....Jebichuri..

And so finishes another homely meal at Se Jong - all thoughts of work have disappeared, my tummy full and satisfied.

What: Se Jong Korean Restaurant
Where: 68-72 Evaline St, Campsie (where Woolworths is) (02) 9718 4039
How much: Most 'single serve' dishes in the $10-$20 range

K-Week continues... NARU Korean Restaurant

So far during this K-Week, the posts have been fairly standard Korean things. Korean BBQ, instant noodles - nothing too new there. But there are many, many other Korean foods out there and I will, over time, try to blog about many more. So I thought it fitting to introduce something very Korean this week.

Haejangguk (해장국)  is a Korean "hangover stew". Read more about it on wiki. I first had this dish in Strathfield last year and it is a really hearty dish, perfect for the oncoming winter. It's very Korean too, you won't find it at any old restaurant - here in Sydney I've only seen it at a couple of eateries and it's always the specialty dish.

And now there's a new restaurant in the city that specialises in Haejangguk. Yay! It's called NARU and I have been waiting and waiting for this place to finally open as I had walked past it many times while they were still renovating. Was it worth the wait? Most definitely.

Finally it's open! Head downstairs and it's a little piece of Korea.

It's in an inconspicuous spot amongst the other Koreatown restaurants - you need to walk down the stairs to get to the entrance. But inside is a bright space full of Korean's eating Haejangguk. The menu is a laminated A3 sheet with a few noodle dishes but the rest consists mostly of meat and seafood. The Haejangguk comes with either Short Beef Rib or Spicy Pork Rib. We got the Spicy Pork Rib ($13). It's a big serving and comes out in a hot pot - there's big chunks of pork rib, cooked chinese cabbage, eschallots, shredded fresh mint and cheoncho powder (powder from fruit skins of a citrus tree). It's all nestled into a hot, chilli soup. The flavours combine together and have a great kick. And the pork is so soft, you can't help but try to pick every last bit off the bones. They even give you a small tin 'bucket' lined with a plastic bag for discarding the bones.

Haejangguk - the tastiest hangover cure I've ever seen and yummy banchan on the side.

Check out them bones!

I thought we should order something a little different to the Haejangguk to try, so opted for Grilled Fish and Soybean Paste Stew ($12). It's very simple, the Soybean Paste Stew has only a little spice to it and is filled with cubes of tofu and cucumber. The fish looks rather plain but don't be fooled - it's so tasty and perfectly fried, not a dry bite to be found.

She looks a little plain, but mmm that is one tasty piece of fish!

Last but not least are the banchan side dishes that come complimentary (doesn't everybody just love complimentary banchan at Korean restaurants). These are definitely worth mentioning because NARU actually sells banchan, there's a fridge section near the entrance. The best one we tried tonight was the Kkakdugi (깍두기) which is kimchi made with daikon. It's tart, crunchy, chilli and cold all at the same time, just looking at the photo again I could eat some right now! But funny enough I didn't spot it in the banchan fridge for sale. There was, amongst other things, regular kimchi and white kimchi (kimchi without chilli, apparently this was the original form of kimchi before chilli was introduced to Korea).

So next time you're in the mood for Korean, consider trying NARU for something new. The only question that remains is - does Haejangguk really cure hangovers? I'm not too sure as I've only had it when I've been sober. If anyone has put it to the test, please let me know the results!

What: NARU Korean Restaurant
Where: 375 Pitt St, Sydney. The times on the opening banner said Mon-Sat 11am-Midnight, Sun 3pm-10pm but on the glass window it says Mon-Sat from 8am, Sun 11am-9pm. Take your guess I suppose!
How much: Dishes range from $10 to $45. Our meal cost only $25 for 2 and we were more than satisfied!

Welcome to K-Week! First up - Kozy!

Happy Easter to everybody! Hope you are all enjoying a well-deserved break. For me, this means catching up on sleep (I have a HUGE sleep debt) and just as importantly, finding time to work on the preciousssss. Not that 'ring' precious, but 'this' precious - our blog!

So welcome to K-Week! This week of posts from me is all about a cuisine which I love loads and eat loads of - Korean food! To some it may seem there's not much variety, the stereotype of Korean food is Kimchi, Korean BBQ, Bibimbap and Bulgogi. I do love all those things, but there is so much more, and the variety available in Sydney these days is getting better and better. Let's get to it!

First up, what is this dark alleyway??? Where exactly am I taking you?

Err.. where are you taking me?

Don't be scared! I'm not going to threaten you with a knife and demand your money! No, no, nothing like that. In fact, this is my absolutely favourite Korean BBQ restaurant in the city. Yes, there are many good k-bbq's around, but there are many reasons why I like this one...

One night many months ago I was on my way to O Bal Tan (another very good Korean BBQ place in a city laneway). But on my way I came across this laneway, and my tummy told me I should go and have a look-see at what was down there. Lo and behold I found Kozy, a Korean barbecue restaurant. I peered through the doorway, took a squiz at the menu and decided this was our new destination instead. It was a fantastic meal and ever since that night I have returned many times. It is the only k-bbq restaurant I have eaten at ever since.

The most important thing at k-bbq? The meat! Kozy's got all the must-haves and it's very, very good quality. I always order Wagyu Flapmeat ($24) and it is worth every dollar - so meltingly-tender and flavoursome. Even if you accidentally over-cook some it's still soft (seriously, it is! I know cause I've done so). I also really like their Pork Belly ($17). There's a variation, Wine Pork Belly ($18). Both are good, but taste wise I have to admit I can't really taste much difference with the wine. The wined-pig's crispiness was a little better but maybe we just happened to do a better job of cooking that particular night, I'm not too sure. Another favourite is Beef Tongue ($18), not everyone likes tongue (yes that sounds wrong) but I do like it's lean, slightly chewy texture. It all cooks exceptionally well because Kozy uses real charcoal. And here they change the metal grill-plate for you regularly - you don't have to ask them and you don't have to pay. I couldn't ask for more. Well I could actually - one of the best things about k-bbq is that it's not an overly meat-heavy affair when eaten properly. You get fresh lettuce leaves - place a piece of meat in the middle and some dipping sauce. The standard offerings are sesame oil with salt and pepper, and korean style miso based sauce. I love both and they complement the meat really well. Wrap it all up and it's a great balance of flavours. We get as much lettuce as we like here at Kozy, and there's also fresh garlic and green chilli too.

The 'banchan' side dishes are a good standard, if you ask nicely I'm sure they'll refill them for you. On one occasion that I ate at Kozy, it was my birthday celebration with all my girlfriends from school and we went through a lot of banchan, our waiter was very kind and kept refilling it. Maybe it's cause we went through it so quickly and with such gusto, like a banchan-hungry mob.

Meat is always on the menu at a k-bbq.

Banchan side dishes and dipping sauces on the left, big thumbs up for charcoal on the right.

Pork belly, wagyu flapmeat, wrapped up in lettuce. OMG I am in heaven everytime I eat this. Seriously!!!

They also have those hot pot soups, the prices range from $12 to $15. All the ones I have tasted so far have been good - Gom Tang (thick beef-bone soup with sliced beef and vermicelli in hot pot), Hae Mul Silky Tofu Stew (spicy silky tofu stew served with mixed seafood and vegetables in hot pot), Kimchi Cheegae (kimchi stew with tofu, vegetables, and pork served in hot pot), Duen Jang Cheegae (Korean style miso stew with beef and assorted vegetables served in hot pot).

So far so good - good food, good service. But there's one last, fantastic surprise.... wait for it.... cheap Soju!!! That's Korean distilled beverage for the unfamiliar - in other words - alcohol. It's super cheap because for every $30 you spend you can have one bottle of Soju for $1! Yeap.. one dollar!! I think it's a minimum spend of $10 per person or something like that, I can't quite remember. But in any case, the cheap Soju is awesome value. My girlfriends loved this bargain as much as I do. Does that make us a banchan-hungry mob of Soju guzzlers?

Don't get me wrong soups are good... but $1 Soju is even better!

Do you still need another reason to check out Kozy? I would say no. But perhaps I haven't convinced everyone. During the day, there's no bbq to cook at your table. Instead there's a lunch special for only $7.99. You can choose from numerous options - a bowl of noodle soup or maybe rice with a dish of meat. You get some banchan side dishes too. All for $7.99! I've had the afore-mentioned Hae Mul Silky Tofu Stew with rice, So Bugolgi Set (Korean sizzling bbq beef marinated in soya sauce served with rice) and the Jan Chi Guksu (Korean style noodles with kimchi and vegetables in seasoned soup). The stew is hearty and makes for good comfort food, the bulgogi beef is soft and flavoursome which goes well with rice, and the noodle soup is light with a little kick of kimchi. All are generous serves that come with banchan side dishes and make for a very filling lunch. Awesome value!

Lunch special Hae Mul Silky Tofu Stew with rice and banchan. Only $7.99! And it don't look so dodgy in daylight.

Jan Chi Guksu in the foreground, So Bulgogi Set at the back - both $7.99, I smell a tasty bargain...

In summary:
I love small eateries in little laneways.
I love authentic Korean bbq.
I love a $1 Soju bargain.
I love a $7.99 lunch special that is filling and tastes good.
So it's easy to see why I love Kozy so much, it really is one of my favourite places to eat in Sydney!

What: Kozy Korean Barbecue
Where: 7 Wilmot St, Sydney (02) 9267 3533
How much: Lunch special $7.99 (regular lunch menu also available), BBQ meats in the $20 range, many more items available on the menu. Aaaaaand don't forget the $1 Soju!