i like to eat.

I previously tried to get some Namu Korean tacos, but by the time I got to the front of the line, they were sold out. Sold out? Then they MUST be delicious. A week later, I was back at the Namu stand at The Ferry Building.

I met with my friend, Wendy, and we both waited patiently in the heat during the lunch rush. Our game plan was to order two Korean tacos (2 for $4) and we'd split the special of the day, sloppy chosun ($10).

This is definitely not your typical taco, not even similar to Kogi's (see post). Instead of a tortilla to hold the ingredients, Namu uses two sheets of toasted (Japanese and Korean - don't know the difference) seaweed. The mixture was filled with rice, kalbi short ribs, daikon and kimchee salsa and kimchee remoulade. It's small (four bites and you're done), but it was jam packed with flavor.

The sloppy chosun was Namu's version of the sloppy joe - ground beef cooked in tomato and kimchee puree on a grilled bun and served with shichimi potato chips. It was a little on the dry side considering the sloppy joes I eat are seriously sloppy with a ton of sauce. But, it had good flavor and the potato chips were extra crispy with a kick of heat.

Loved the Korean tacos and would definitely go back for more. Want to give them a try? Namu is only at The Ferry Building on Thursdays. Follow @NamuSF to see their specials and other happenings.

     

Click here to download:

Namu_Again_tag_korean_food_jap.zip (648 KB)

Oakland's highly anticipated Eat Real Festival was in full swing. I arrived with Kate around 2 and we were ready to roam and try some food trucks.

Except, it was ridiculously hot.

So hot that we felt lazy and became indecisive about what to eat.

But, one thing we did know for sure was to get into the building with AC. The building was filled with a ton of different vendors that sold fresh produce, garden kits, yogurt, flowers, baked goods and other foodie related stuff.

After we cooled down a bit, we were ready to eat. There was so much to choose from - bbq, tacos, Mexican, cupcakes, pizza, Korean, chowder, Southern, baked goods, desserts..the food trucks were endless!

Our first stop was Tapas To Go, a truck from Whole Foods. We ordered garlic chili shrimp that was hot, but not super spicy, garlicky and delicious. The shrimp were large and fresh. The best part? Only $5. All the food at the festival was $5 or less!

It was still really hot and I didn't feel like waiting forever in a line (I know, I know, the good trucks have the longest lines, but still, it was way too hot!) I saw Pizza Politana had a short line and I was intrigued that they had their own little brick oven - definitely fresh! I ordered a slice of Market that had cheese, greens, onion and bacon. My favorite part was how amazingly thin the crust was. It was sooooo good. I love thin pizza and this was one of the thinnest I've ever had. The crust was crispy and held the toppings well, no soggy crusts here! So good.

Kate ordered a hot link from Phat Matt's BBQ that came with some sort of cheese dip and saltine crackers - interesting combination. Not bad.

I saw some ladies making fresh pupusas at Los Angeles de Pueblas Frutas, so I had to give it a try. Yummy and filled with beans and cheese.

Seoul on Wheels had a long line, but I was determined to try their version of the Korean taco. They unfortunately were sold out of the rib eye taco, so we got chicken and spicy pork. LAME. Tacos were cold, meat was chewy and there was nothing special to it. No special sauce or toppings. I can make this at home! I don't get their hype.

As soon as the boys came, we had to leave, but we tried some of their food before we left - falafals from Liba (not bad and not dry) and also pork ramen from Poleng (decent, you can see the hair on the pork!).

The festival was a lot of fun and exciting to try all the different trucks. I wonder if this truck craze will last... Either way, I'm enjoying it and so happy that I was able to try so many in one place.

EDIT: The hot link was actually from Jim 'N Nick's Bar-B-Q. Sorry for the mixup. Thanks to Charlotte for the catch! :)

                                                   

Click here to download:

082909_eatReal.zip (7004 KB)

When I was young and underage, I'd go to a Korean restaurant in Oakland nicknamed "Porno." The place got its nickname because the interior walls were decorated with x-rated movie posters. I'd frequent this restaurant with Jason and his friends in high school to enjoy pitchers of watered down Miller and Kimchi Fried Rice.

After many numerous visits, Porno became old and we stopped going there. I don't remember exactly when we stopped, but all of a sudden, we didn't go there anymore.

It's been years since I've last gone, but the boys decided to reminisce and go after Eat Real's Ice Cream Friday event (see previous post).

The place looked the same, except there weren't as many x-rated posters. They were replaced with American and Korean movie posters. What's surprising is seeing the place almost empty. It was once a popular spot for kids and now it is dead on a late Friday night.

Jeff ordered an array of dishes for all of us that included kim chi fried rice, gizzards, fried chicken and spicy "everything (noodles, dumpling, vegetables, etc)." We also got a special on-the-house fruit platter because the boss remembered Jason (wow, 8+ years and she still remembers!).

The food was mediocre, nothing special and not as good as I remembered. I happily enjoyed a pitcher of soju cocktail. Don't worry, it wasn't completely by myself. Although, I wouldn't mind since it's so good. haha.

It felt lame hanging out there and just not the same as how it was years ago, so we left soon after we finished eating.

I doubt I would go back anytime soon. I'd like to tuck this restaurant with all my other high school memories and keep it there.

By the way, I finally found out the name of the restaurant that night - Dan Sung Sa. But, it'd always be Porno in my heart.

                 

Click here to download:

082809_porno.zip (2494 KB)

Thursday's Farmers Market at The Ferry Building has gotten so much better. Instead of just having purveyors sell the freshest produce, the market has latched onto the street food craze and now offers an array of food booths.

As I was walking back and forth, trying to decide upon a booth, I saw Namu was quite popular, but not so popular that I would have to wait in a 20 person deep line (ala Roli Roti). Namu serves Japanese Korean food and I saw Korean Tacos on the menu. My thoughts instantly flashed back to LA, experiencing delicious Kogi (see post). I knew I had to try Namu's version.

By the time it was my turn to order, they ran out of Korean Tacos. Darn it, so disappointed!

I ended up ordering okonomiyaki, a Japanese style pancake filled with seafood and vegetables. The dish was smothered with Tonkatsu sauce, Kewpie and topped with bonito flakes. For an extra dollar, a sunny egg was placed on top of the pancake.

Namu's okonomiyaki had the prefect ratio of batter and filling. The batter was light and crisp, but also extra tasty when the yolk was popped.

It was satisfying and I'm determined to try the Korean Tacos. Can't wait until next week!

   

Click here to download:

Street_Food_tag_san_francisco_.zip (452 KB)

My friends and I had a lot of time to kill before dinner and fortunately, there was a Kogi truck near our hotel. My previous attempt was a failure, so I was hoping this time would be better. Plus, eating some Kogi was my number one mission in Los Angeles. I HAD to get some, dammit!

We arrived at the location 10 minutes before Kogi started serving (6P) and there were already 50+ people in line! I couldn't believe it and was praying it was worth the wait.

Minutes kept ticking as we waited...and waited...slowly inching our way towards the truck. Plus, this time around, there was no music to entertain us, just conversations of "are we almost there yet?!, it BETTER be good and should we jump ship?"

About 40 minutes later, we were at the front of the truck, knowing exactly our game plan of what to order and what we'd split. Jason and I ordered 2 spicy pork tacos, 2 (signature) short rib tacos and we'd split a kimchi quesadilla with our other friends.

OMG.

First bite of the short rib taco, AMAZING.

Both tacos were on two tortillas, filled with marinated, barbecued meat and topped with a tasty sesame-chili salsa, romaine lettuce and cabbage in Korean chili-soy vinaigrette and sesame seeds. The tacos were bold and juicy with the perfect amount of meat and vegetables.

I was skeptical about the quesadilla - cheese and cabbage? Hmm, doesn't sound like a good combination. But wow, the flavors actually work! The quesadilla was golden brown and topped with Kogi's special sesame-chili salsa. I'm not 100% sure what cheese they used, but it tasted like cheddar and was a compliment to the mild kimchi.

Kogi was well worth the wait and delicious. But, I wouldn't wait more than 20 minutes for it. I feel like I have more important (haha, VERY important) stuff to do than wait 40+ minutes in line. Just not my cup of tea with my (surprisingly) low patience, but I'm so glad we didn't jump ship this time.

Mission accomplished! :D

Side note, read this interesting article about Kogi's typical (and long) day.

       

Click here to download:

Second_Attempt_of_Kogi_tag_kog.zip (910 KB)

My only request for LA was to try Kogi, a Korean bbq taco truck. In LA, there's this huge craze of taco trucks reinventing themselves and selling food that's not typical of a taco truck. Some trucks have Mexican/Chinese tacos (Don Chow Tacos), Vietnamese sandwiches (Nom Nom Truck), Japanese rice burgers (Marked 5) and even Indian food (India Jones).

I was determined to try Kogi, the original and granddaddy of them all. Since the trucks are mobile, they rarely are in the same location. So, you have to follow them on Twitter to know the exact location and time. It's a great method of intertwining the internet into one's business. Plus, it's like a game, you never know when and where the trucks will pop up. These trucks are novelty and the idea of tracking them down is fun.

We looked up the nearest Kogi truck and for that day, it was at a book store's parking lot. By the time we got there, there was a massive line (I already expected this - there is usually a long line at these trucks) and music was bumping from loud speakers. I appreciated Kogi had brought some entertainment, while their guests waited patiently in line.

It was extremely hot with no shade and after twenty minutes of moving only a few inches, I threw my towel in and said "let's leave." I thought I was a very patient person, but the heat makes me grumpy and the line was moving way too slow. I also felt bad that my friends were waiting solely for me in a very uncomfortable, hot situation.

As we left the line and walked back to our car, I saw several people enjoying their tacos. I was bitter that I couldn't taste the deliciousness and still determined to try Kogi by the end of the trip.

       

Click here to download:

First_Attempt_of_Kogi_-_Fail._.zip (915 KB)

The whole reason we went to LA was to celebrate my birthday and Jason's (we're one week apart). For our first night, we wanted to celebrate at an affordable place (no bottle service at a fancy lounge), since there were so many of us.

The LA experts in our group geared us towards Koreatown, a non-pretentious place where drinks are cheap. We first headed to Bliss, which had the look of a night club, but was very mellow. It was too mellow for a late Friday night, so we went down the street to Blink. Blink was packed, but luckily there was a table to seat all 15 of us. Blink was less of a nightclub and more of a restaurant where you can drink a lot. haha.

What's cool about Blink is they offer drink and food combinations. If you order a bottle of liquor, it comes with your choice of appetizers. Within minutes, our large table was filled with various apps - dried squid, beef jerky, nuts, fried chicken, grilled beef, kabobs and fruit.

I stayed off the Glenlivet and stuck with soju cocktails and Korean beer, Hite. Soju cocktails are actually one of my favorite mixed drinks. Soju is rice wine, but it tastes like vodka, so I rarely drink it straight. At most Korean restaurants, you can order soju mixed with yogurt drink (something like Yakult). The yogurt drink is sweet and often masks the hard taste of liquor.

Remember I mentioned affordability? Blink only cost us $15 each!! Wow, I was shocked to hear how cheap it was. You can never get that good of a deal in SF!

           

Click here to download:

BDay_Celebrations_tag_bliss_bl.zip (1259 KB)

I love Korean "soon du boo," also known as soft tofu soup.

My ultimate go-to place is My Tofu House in San Francisco on Geary x 10th (see post). I swear, everything there is so good, from the side dishes to the boiling hot soup in an iron pot. But be ready to wait, there's frequently a 20-30 minute wait during peak hours.

I haven't had soon du boo in a long time and was craving it. We decided to try somewhere else and ended up in Pyung Chan.

The side dishes were definitely very different from My Tofu House's. Pyung Chan's was mediocre, it all tasted the same - pickled and spicy. But, one thing I've never had before was a "stewed" version of kim chi. Instead of spicy, crisp kim chi, the cabbage was much softer. Decent, but too salty to eat alone.

Besides our individual soup orders, we also got a plate of bulgolgi (barbecued beef) to share. Don't know why the boys did this, their eyes were bigger than their stomach!

The soup had the same ingredients as My Tofu House's (I ordered the combination) - chunks of soft tofu, shrimp, beef, clams and scallions. At first, I enjoyed the flavors very much, but the broth quickly became too salty. I felt like I was drinking cubes of sodium. It just did not surpass My Tofu House.

After the waitress serves you rice, she puts hot water into the iron pots to make a "rice soup." She didn't put water into one of the three pots and scooped out the layer of rice that turned crispy from the iron pot. I liked this crispy rice a lot. It was yummy to dunk it into my soup.

Another thing that Pyung Chan does differently compared to My Tofu House is they serve beer. The boys like this, but I don't care for it. Although, after eating all that salty food, you do want an ice cold beer...

My Tofu House still wins my heart. Pyung Chan is a close winner, although, their service really sucks (it took the waitress forever to take our order - I feel like it's the non-Korean syndrome).

             

Click here to download:

Seeking_Soft_Tofu_Soup_tag_foo.zip (1576 KB)

I stumbled upon this recipe from Gourmet magazine awhile ago and finally had the chance to make it.

It was delicious and so easy to make. I used regular red pepper flakes in lieu of Korean ones (I think the difference is its finer texture) and the dish still came out amazing.

The only thing I'd change is less garlic. Don't get me wrong, I love garlic, but I might have gone a little too crazy with the garlic because I did not have a fresh breath afterwards. Then again, do I ever when I eat Korean food? There's always a ton of garlic in Korean dishes, but that never stops me from eating it. I love Korean side dishes.

Anyways, give the recipe a try, it's really easy to make. Plus, the best part? You'll have leftover sauce. I'm still debating on what I should do with it, more to come!

     

Click here to download:

Vegetarian_Korean_Dinner_tag_f.zip (674 KB)

Last Wednesday, I was craving for some ramen (see post) and planned to go to Norikonoko. We arrived around 9 and unfortunately, they were already closing. We ended up going to Oriental BBQ Chicken Town aka OB Town, as an alternative.

I used to go here in high school because they would serve us pitchers of beer without checking ID. Now they card because they got busted for serving alcohol to underage.

Still, years later, whenever I think of OB Town, I think of beer and fried chicken. Their fried chicken is well seasoned, moist, tender with a crispy batter. We also got their yummy garlic fries and something I've never tried at OB Town, steamed egg.

Steamed egg reminds me of my mom. She'd make steamed egg with dried scallops or shrimp with chopped onion every now and then for dinner. It's comforting and I haven't had my mom's version in a long time. It wasn't like my mom's at all, a little too overdone (it was boiling in a clay pot when it reached our table), but still brought back memories.