Korean restaurants are sprouting like weeds in Duluth. A new addition opened this month in the same plaza where Great Wall supermarket is located and there are two more nearby which I haven’t had a chance to visit. According to my translator good friend EDM, Namsangol is a village in Korea where traditional houses exist. I so wanna live there. Follow the link and look at the amazing houses!

Anyway, I was hoping they have table-side BBQ at lunch but was told they only do it during dinner OR you must order for 3. Which I can definitely finish. But I only had half an hour for lunch so BBQ will have to wait another time. The menu here is extensive with the usual soups, rice plates, stews, meats, and more. But what’s great are the combination options. $10.99 gets you a bowl of tofu soup and a choice of fried rice, galbi or bulgogi. The pork-kimchi fried rice isn’t as spicy as I would’ve wanted it to be but it hit the spot. Lots of flavorful pork in “well-stir-fried” rice. Well-stir-fried, you ask? My mom coined the phrase and we heard it a lot growing up: it’s when rice is properly stir-fried — not sticking to each other, dry, not wet, not mushy, and each morsel has that crunchy exterior yet soft inside. They do that here. Oh, and did you know, it’s even topped with a fried egg!

The soondubu is almost excellent. They use the softest, silkiest, high-quality tofu and there are a lot of seafood in it (clam, mussel, squid, shrimp, fish). But while the soup is hearty, the broth, although flavorful and bold, needs a little bit more punch. Almost excellent. Almost.

Definitely a good addition to the neighborhood. Will have to explore more of the menu and try the BBQ of course.

Nam San Gol
2300 Pleasant Hill Rd.,
Duluth, GA 30096
770-623-1789

Technorati Tags: Korean, Duluth

First things first. This is a group activity. The more people the better, the merrier. Besides, if you live ITP, you’ll need friends to talk to on the long drive over. Because, unfortunately, (almost) all Korean BBQ joints are in Duluth, Suwanee, and Buford Highway. But it will be worth the drive. Trust me. Ready?

In a nutshell… Korean barbecue joints use either coal, gas, a combination of both coal and gas, or propane gas canisters for grilling. Tables are outfitted with a hole in the middle — the barbecue pit — and topped with a steel grill to cook the meats on. Other places use table-top domes, heavy cast-iron trays or griddles which are set on an angle so that the grease from meats can drip onto a bowl. When you sit down, you will be given an assortment of banchan — appetizers or accompaniments to your meal. These consist of assorted pickled veggies (kimchi) in small plates, sauces to dip your meat in, and, rice wrappers (large squares of pasta sheets made with rice flour), sheets of radish, and romaine lettuce leaves to wrap your meats in. Your server will then start grilling your meat of choice and some kimchi. Use your chopsticks to take cooked meat from the grill and transfer them to your plate. Dip the meat in the sauces and either eat them as is or wrapped with or without the grilled kimchi. Half-way through your meal, your server will give you a steaming bowl of soup. Dish it out and pass it around. Other places give you a bowl of steamed egg custard soup that’s just absolutely heavenly. At the end of your meal (if you’re in a place that does not use coal), the server will cook fried rice on the grill. Believe me, nothing tastes better than rice cooked in meat drippings.

Almost all of these places have all-you-can-eat meal deals and I highly recommend getting those over anything else especially on your first visit. You’ll get thinly sliced beef brisket and delicious pork belly but there are a la carte cuts that are also available such as short ribs and ribeye. Now that you know what to expect and what to do, let’s go on a field trip. Here are my favorite Korean BBQ places in our city, in no particular order.

Honey Pig
3473 Old Norcross Road
Duluth, GA 30096
(770) 476-9292

Popular among tourists, Honey Pig has a fantastic ambiance and is the only place in town that uses cast-iron domes for their barbecue. I recommend getting the all-you-can-eat meat for $21.99, which is an awesome deal. They use not only good cuts of meat but also good quality in general.

Iron Age
2131 Pleasant Hill Rd
Duluth, GA 30096
(678) 334-5242

Catering to a younger, hip crowd, Iron Age offers a $14.99 all-you-can-eat deal. Young, good looking male servers dressed in military-style uniforms mill about ready to serve (sorry, no pun intended) patrons who linger around watching music videos of boy and girl bands on the big projector screen while downing bottles upon bottles of Makkoli, a popular Korean milky rice wine. The pork belly here (uncured thick slabs of bacon) come in several flavors: plain, garlic, spicy, and miso. Try them all as they’re all good. One tip, reservations are highly recommended especially for big groups as waits of more than an hour on the weekends are not uncommon.

Star Daepo
Near Mega Mart
3525 Mall Blvd., Ste 3
Duluth, GA 30096
(770) 418-9810

The newest of the BBQ bunch, Star Daepo has funky furniture. The tables inside are regular Korean BBQ tables. But they’ve got a quirky patio that has been covered and converted into a dining room. Here, they have these cute table bases made of steel trash cans geared for parties of two to four. Beware of the back-less, tiny stools. Do not, I repeat, do not make a mistake of leaning back. I witnessed an older man keel over right in front of me and landed on my feet. But I digress. The cuts of pork here are thicker and the tofu soup that comes with your meal is amazing: really flavorful broth.

Hae Woon Dae
5805 Buford Hwy NE
Doraville, GA 30340
(770) 451-7957

Hae Woon Dae is one of Atlanta’s oldest Korean restaurants. My earliest memory of eating at this restaurant was in the mid 90s. There were three of them fierce competitors within a one-mile radius: the now closed Seoul Garden originally located on BuHi, and another favorite place also already closed but whose name escapes me at the moment. In any case, charcoal is used here. The kimchi is pretty stellar. The pork belly has that chewy fat that I love. And, more than anything else, the service rocks.

Han Il Kwan
5458 Buford Hwy NE
Doraville, GA 30340
(770) 457-3217
Mon-Sun. 10:00 a.m. - 2:00 a.m

Han Il Kwan is one of the few places that uses charcoal for grilling. There’s just something about the taste and smell of charcoal on grilled meats. To use the charcoal grills, your party must order two types of meat from the barbeque part of the menu. Unfortunately, it’s also one of the few places that do not offer all-you-can-eat deals but the meats here have thicker cut and of really good quality. I highly recommend getting the galbi (shortribs) and ribeye. The gyoza, kimchi fried rice, rice cake soup, and short rib soup (all a la carte) are fantastic here.

Seodulnyuk
2790 Lawrenceville Suwanee Rd., Suite 165
Suwanee, GA 30024
(678) 394-5190

If you want a quieter, more subdued, more family-oriented atmosphere, then head on over to Seodulnyuk. They have meat combo meals starting at $40 that are sure to fit any one’s palate (and budget). These meals are good enough for two to three people. What I like about this place is the big pieces of brisket that they serve. No matter which meats you choose, you will not be disappointed.

So there. Grab a bunch of friends and go! You can thank me later

Technorati Tags: Korean, Korean bbq, Atlanta, Buford Highway, Duluth, Suwanee, Scoutmob, Local Scout

The place is huge. The tables inside are regular Korean BBQ tables. But they’ve got a quirky patio (it used to be a Longhorn’s) that has been covered and converted into a dining room. The cute table bases are steel trash cans and the back-less seats are tiny. Do not, I repeat, do not make a mistake of leaning back. They’re stools without backs. I witnessed an older man keel over right in front of me and (almost) landed on my feet. So beware.

I’ve only had the Korean BBQ here. They use flame on box-type cooking trays. See how thick the slices of pork belly are? So far, everything’s pretty good.

Oh, and the tofu soup? Amazing.

Did you know? Can’t wait to try more of the food. Who’s coming with me?

Star Daepo
Near Mega Mart
3525 Mall Blvd., Ste 3
Duluth, GA 30096
(770) 418-9810

[tags]Duluth, Korean, Korean bbq, bar[tags]

This is one of the best Korean BBQ deals in the city: $9.99 or $14.99 buys you all the bbq meat you care to eat. The $9.99 includes beef brisket and pork belly; while $14.99 adds boneless galbi to the repertoire (good quality saeng galbi). Definitely get the $14.99 deal. By the way, this isn’t your typical ghetto buffet style all-you-can-eat type of thing. There are no sushi or Chinese food included. Just great tasting banchan and your bbq meats delivered to your table upon request.

The tofu soups are good, too. I love the silky tofu they use. Possibly the silkiest tofu in the city hands down. So, go and eat here now!

Sodeulnyuk
2790 Lawrenceville Suwanee Rd.,
Suite 165 (next door to Umaido)
Suwanee, GA 30024
(678) 394-5190

Technorati Tags: Korean, Suwanee, bbq, ayce

I took the pork fat drippings and drizzled it over my rice. OMG.

I eat Korean all the time. There was one week in May last year that I ate it 7 times in a week. Crazy. I’ve been here many times. But the other night was the best Korean dinner I’ve had this year. We demolished everything in front of us. The boneless galbi and pork belly rule here. And the delicate chawanmushi is to-die-for. (What happened to the pictures, FB?)

Oh and I almost forgot… I became a Korean last year. Thanks, Gene.

More here and here.

Open later for dinner on weekdays than weekends. (Does that make sense to you?)

Cafe Todahmgol
2442 Pleasant Hill Rd, Suite 3B,
Duluth, GA 30096
770-813-8202
Mon-Sat: 5PM-2AM
Sunday: 5PM-12Midnight

Eating with guys is just wonderful because, one, they can match my appetite (at least most of them), and, two, I do not get embarrassed ordering 12 different entrees and 6 appetizers for two people. Jimmy (aka as Mr. Half Iron Man) is so awesome because, not only does he not have a single ounce of body fat, he is also probably the only person who can eat as much as me. They say skinny people can eat a lot because there is no fat in the gut that gets in the way. The first time we met, we tried to out-eat each other. Thirteen pizza slices was the record. Chloe: 1, Jimmy: 0. (Okay, for the record, he ate 12 so it’s not really a blowout. And only because someone beat him to the last slice.) FoodieBuddha eats like a normal guy so I really do not know what is going on with that. Sean is the nicest guy I know (especially because we both love durian) and he’s showing promise and could possibly out-eat me pretty soon. Get this though, this dude can cook!

Song Do was the chosen place for us because of their Korean charcoal barbecue (and because Sean needs a quick getaway to school). There is just something about the smoky flavor imparted by charcoal in meats.  The best part, though, is their all-you-can-eat program. For $21.95 per person, you get to eat all the kinds of meat they have. Which is just what we did. The banchan here is buffet-style. While the items are all fresh, I personally think the taste is just pedestrian.

The meats, however, are the main reason to come. They are well marinated and sliced on the thicker side than most places. The boneless galbi and pork belly are my favorites and the best in the house.

Our server was quite attentive and checked on us regularly. They are only open for dinner. Check them out, you will not be disappointed.

Read other reviews here and here.

Insider tip:
A few steps down from Haru Ichiban.

The scoop:
Song Do Korean BBQ
3616 Satellite Blvd.
Duluth, GA 30096
(770) 497-9799

Technorati Tags: Korean, barbecue, Duluth