Despite its central location, I had never noticed Miss Korea before this summer, even though it’s right there on Long Row West, just a stones throw from Market Square.
The restaurant itself is long and thin with tables down the two sides – each one with a rather frightening looking BBQ grill built into the surface. This could be quite intimidating to someone who isn’t sure what to do…someone like… me. Fortunately, I found myself there as part of my ongoing education into Korean food with someone who knows what he’s on about so phew.. all was good.
Although there is plenty to choose on the menu which doesn’t require live action BBQ, we went for it (why the hell not!) and ordered galbi (갈비). Essentially this is grilled beef ribs with accompaniments, in this case, lettuce, garlic and chillies, ssamjang (쌈장) a beancurd paste and gochujang (고추장) which is a hot chilli sauce.
We also ordered sticky rice and a staple with any Korean meal, plus my new favourite thing – kimchi (김치). It’s a spicy fermented cabbage (kind of similar in texture and process to sauerkraut I guess) and tastes way better than it sounds!
There is something quite exciting about cooking your own meal – even if it seems at odds with the concept of paying for a meal in a restaurant. Korean BBQ strikes me as a very social eating experience and although we had a lot fun with two of us, a group would have been even better. Who doesn’t enjoy poking at food over a grill with tongs?
The best bit for me was filling our lettuce cups (fajita style). Starting with a crisp lettuce leaf, we added a spoon of sticky rice, some kimchi, both sauces and topping with the garlic and chillies. We then toasted each time with the soju (소주), a kind of rice vodka and proceeded to stuff the delicious galbi parcels down our necks in a not so graceful fashion!
I’ve read a couple of mixed reviews online about Miss Korea about the food and service but for me, it was a great experience. The beef was tender and tasty and the kimchi was awesome. I was pleased that the service and food quality were equal to the enjoyment of a relatively novel eating experience.
*We paid for our meal in full. Images thanks to David Parry Imaging*
By Alex Ryder
Gingey Bites -Midlands based food blogger
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