Once Again, LA BBQ
We started this day a little groggy from the drinking adventures we had around Koreatown. Gotta hand it to some of the expensive places. Some of them had really good pours and as you may know, some of them didn’t. Does it all even out? No. Because there was expensive and expensive’er. Only found one dive bar, but the hard liquor would still set you back $8. It was still in fact, Los Angeles.
By the time we got our act together it was off to check out Joneric’s restaurant, The Park’s Finest. I know Joneric from Tuesday Night Cafe and I remember the days he would bring in his barbeque masterpieces for us volunteers. Wings. Ribs. The barbeque sauce was the most memorable. Not saying the meats weren’t good. They most definitely were. But I have to say, nowadays at the restaurant he had stepped up his game. When you’re there try out the short rib. When you get over the Flinstone’s size rib, you want even more when you finish eating. The food really didn’t even need the old sauces. I did try a bit for nostalgia. And it was great to hear he’ll be bottling the stuff to sell. Fantastic thing for me to get for those times I try to barbeque. Yes. I’ll admit it. I’ve only been a picnic barbeque type of person. Haven’t spent time to properly do American BBQ.
I didn’t have time for that. It was off to more eating that evening. And this time it was for Korean BBQ at a place my friends have been meaning to take me. Genwa.
The first thing that stood out was the service. I usually don’t write about service in my Yelp reviews, but this place was memorable. Probably why it has such high reviews. The restaurant has a very attentive staff and great attention to furnishings. Their grills have fans around the edges that prevent you from being followed home by wolves with the scent you’re giving off. Not like you’re not going to smell like food, but it’s much much less than every Korean BBQ place I’ve been to. Overall, the place was good. Though I have to say, Soowoon has the edge for me with their special marinated cuts. Then again, it might be because of the server over cooking the Kobe beef. Not as melt in your mouth as it should be. So as you can probably guess, I’ll be back to try both places again. I won’t be writing about it though. They’ve gotten enough publicity from me. Just sayin.
p.s. – check out the Park’s Finest on Diners Drive-Ins and Dives July 8th, 2013.
For a filler dish, this was great. The rice had texture, you know from crisping in the clay pot. Wish they just gave me the whole pot though. My friends kinda stayed away from the carbs.
The must-have here. Don’t let the look fool you. This stuff is melt in your mouth goodness that’ll send you to food coma heaven. Eat it as is as the chef have helpfully carved out for you. $15USD.
This was a great combination of corn and Parmesan cheese. The saltiness gets offset with the creamy sweet corn. Delish! And at this price, why didn’t we order more. $4USD
The cream of the crop. Made the galbi second best. Look at that marbling. We actually had to order another plate of this stuff.
Letting the waiter cook this was a good idea. I would have overcooked the hell out of the scallop. Glad he didn’t. This stuff was fresh and firm after being on the grill for a few minutes.
In lieu of brisket we settled for tri-tip. Oh what first world problems we have here or I should say west coast problems. But for real, we need to get brisket up in here! $11USD
Oh they did the dry rub right on these. It’s not over-the-top-hand-me-some-water rub I’m used to getting. It was perfect and when I wanted a kick, I just added some of the sauce. $11USD
We chose Course E, but that doesn’t matter when it comes to banchan. The number of side dishes here was amazing. I thought there were duplicates. Nope. Each one was unique. Yet, none of them stood out for me. But all equally tasty.
A small refreshing sweet barley drink to clear your palette after the meal. Oh if I could only show you the devastation we left behind.