Korea Town

Kunjip is my favorite restaurant in KTown and nothing's more soothing than a spicy casserole on a cold night. Kunjip was packed as usual last night, around 9 o'clock, so packed that the hostess took our orders while we were in line, waiting for a table. Even though the place was crazy busy, the waitstaff was still incredibly courteous and efficient. About 45 seconds after we were seated, a waiter served us the Korean equivalent of a bread basket: little dishes of kimchi, jap chae (glass noodles stir fried with vegetables, seaweed tossed with some sort of vinegar sauce, pickled cucumbers, cold spicy potatoes and a steamed egg dish, with the consistency of a soft custard. The egg dish is almost exactly like a dish called dan geng my parents used to make when I was little, whenever i complained of a stomachache. All the little dishes are very delicious, a variety of different flavors and textures; it's alternately chewy and crunchy, spicy and sour. All this food even before we get our main course!

I ordered the Soon Dubu Chigae, which is soft tofu in spicy seafood broth, served in a clay pot. A side of steamed purple rice comes along w/ the chigae. I like to take a small spoonfull of rice and dip it in the steaming broth. The broth is so fragrant and flavorful, it warmed up my entire body. The texture of the tofu is smooth and soft, a nice compliment to the spicy broth. Amar orded the Bibimbob, which is rice, ground beef, fried egg and assorted vegetables served in a sizzling stone pot. The presentation of the bibimbob is enough to make anyone salivate. Brown ground beef, green and pale white sliced vegetables, bright yellow yolk and a dollop of deep red spicy paste.

A satisfying meal, completed by two complimentary bowls of cool cinnamon tea, a perfect way to end the meal and cleanse the palate.

And what just happens to be next door? Pinkberry, the crack of LA that recently made its entrance into New York. The place looks so Asian, I was expecting there to be a giant Hello Kitty stuffed animal waiting to greet me at the counter. I ordered the original flavor with a topping of fresh raspberries. The frozen yogurt tastes literally like frozen plain yogurt, not like the usual crappy frozen yogurt at other places that is pretty much tasteless and bland. Pinkberry's yogurt is distinctively sour, without a hint of sugar. I was a bit apprehensive after the first few bites, but the peculiar sour taste kept me intrigued. I've been thinking about the taste of the frozen yogurt all day, I'm definitely going back for more. Maybe I'll try the captain crunch topping next time.