Korean Cuisine, Straight From the Grill

Featured in the New York Times Dining Section Sunday, February 6, 2005
By Stephanie Lyness

Of the Asian cuisines, Korean food is less familiar to Americans than Chinese, Japanese, Thai or even Vietnamese, which may account for the fact that most Korean restaurants also sell Japanese food as a sideline.

At Seoul in New Haven you can eat Japanese-the quality is good-but if you are a stranger to Korean cuisine, Seoul is also a fine place to discover it.

Two of the best-known dishes in the lexicon of Korean cuisine are kimchi (spicy, pickled and fermented cabbage) and Korean barbecue (bulgogi or kalbi), which is comprised of small pieces of meat and vegetables that are cooked at the table and served with several accompaniments.

I first encountered Korean food at a restaurant in Manhattan, where a wood brazier was built into the center of the tables; our waitress brought raw slices of meat (marinated in soy, sesame oil and sugar, among other seasonings) and vegetables to the table and cooked them for us over the fire.

At Seoul, the operation is less dramatic but still authentic.  A convex, butane-powered grill is brought to the table along with small dishes of seasonings and accompaniments: chili marinated zucchini, fried strips of fish cake with sesame seeds, kimchi, cooked spinach seasoned with sesame oil, a sweet bean paste (reminiscent of plum paste), crisp bean sprouts and lettuce leaves for wrapping.