Well good afternoon guys.
After so many days of heavy rains and grey skies, the weather has suddenly decided it
is going to be scorching hot and humid.
Yeah.
So here we are out in Koreatown.
We figured if it is already hot let's go have some hot spicy food, so Sam suggested Cheese
Dakgalbi (닭갈비) which is a Korean dish which I don't think I've ever had before.
Not that I can remember but I mean it has lots of cheese so it has to be good.
So yeah it is a meal where we're going to turn up the heat.
I hope you guys enjoy it.
So how can you tell we've arrived in Koreatown?
I have a few clues for you guys.
First up K-Pop music is blasting.
Also, so many Korean makeup stores selling Korean cosmetics.
Of course lots of Korean restaurants and that is exactly what we are looking for.
It is airconditioned.
Wonderful.
So here we have it.
We're going to have the cheese dakgalbi (닭갈비) with the Bokkumbap which is going to
be a fried rice cooked at the very end.
With all of the cheese that is leftover from this.
Well aren't you happy to be in an airconditioned space Sam?
That is like a godsend seriously.
I was melting outside today.
Absolutely melting.
And it is cool because they've already brought the heating element.
The cooking element here.
Yeah.
Which the dakgalbi (닭갈비) will be cooked on.
Waiting a little bit.
And they also brought us the banchan.
They did.
So we have four different things.
It is really cool and in very much Korean style check out this guys.
Sliding utensil drawer.
Yeah, if you ever can't find the chopsticks and the spoons yes just feel around the table
to see if there is a drawer.
Yeah, exactly that is really good tip.
Alright Mister so this was your idea.
Yes, it has arrived and it is sizzling hot guys.
Look at it you can actually see the bubbles.
The delicious bubbles forming.
Cheese.
Sauce bubbles.
Yeah the sauce is bubbling and the cheese is bubbling.
So let me tell you what we are having.
We're having Dakgalbi and this is a very popular dish with university students in Korea.
You can see why it has kind of a communal type of atmosphere where you are just like
eating off of a pan.
And what you have in Dalkgalbi.
Dalk means chicken and galbi is like a kind of barbecue.
So if you take a look down here you've got your chicken obviously.
And then you also have your cabbage and other ingredients.
Onions.
There is a spicy red.
Onions.
Spicy red gochujang sauce which is made with red pepper.
And it is typically sweet.
You've got the bubbling cheese in the middle.
Oh man.
And then you also have items over here such as rice cakes.
So basically this is the exact same thing from side to side.
Yeah, it is a double portion.
It is a double portion.
It is enough for two of us.
So yeah we're just waiting for it to cook and yeah it is steaming right before our eyes
guys.
You look very happy to be eating this.
I'm so happy.
So they are coming to move around the cheese.
Look at that.
Ooey gooeyness.
Woah.
You basically have a blob of melted cheese here.
This is pretty awesome.
And it looked like mozzerella and cheddar.
A mix of both.
Arigatosimas.
Oh yeah.
Argh.
Guys and one more thing I wanted to mention, and this is just like a random fact I have
from when I was living in Korea.
Is that this is from Chuncheon.
It is famous to come from Chuncheon in South Korea.
Time to dig in.
Alright.
It is time to dig in.
I'm so excited.
Yeah.
I'm going to grab.
Bubbling goodness.
I don't even know what to grab.
Should I start with veggies?
Yeah, go for the veggies and mix it with that cheese.
So let's get some cabbage and onions.
Nice cheesy bite.
Look at that.
Wow.
It is just strings of cheese.
We've got these little plates.
You know it would probably be a good idea to grab our spoons and like scoop it out so
we're not burning ourselves.
Urgh.
It is hot.
Hot?
But so good.
Is it so good?
Yeah.
I just love all of the flavors like that gochujang sauce.
Yeah.
It is like super spicy but it is also sweet and then you have it mixing with the cheese.
Yeah.
And it is just wonderful.
Wonderful flavors.
I feel like this is really clearing my sinuses and my throat.
It is probably going to flush out my system as well.
Um but yeah this is really nice.
Good selection Sam.
I wasn't too keen at the beginning like oh we're going to have melted cheese.
That is right.
You've never tried this before.
Uh uh.
This is something that we didn't have together in Korea which is pretty incredible because
we really sampled a lot of different Korean foods when we lived there.
And also when we traveled there.
Wow, this is hot.
And look at the cheese.
It is like bubbling warm.
Oh yeah.
It is like super bubbling.
It is like foaming almost.
It is.
It really is.
Alright the moment I've been waiting for.
Time to try it.
And I am going to start off with a rice cake.
Tteok.
Rice cake.
Just look at that.
Taking it for a big swim.
And I'm almost scared to put it in my mouth because the cheese looks like so piping hot.
And tteok is not to be confused with dak.
No, tteok is a rice cake.
Dak is chicken.
Even though it sounds like duck.
How is that?
Oh my goodness that bubbling cheese just makes it.
And I love how the rice cake has been cooked a little bit so it is a little bit crispy
on the outside.
Chewy and ooey gooey in the middle and like you said that sauce that gochujang sauce is
sweet and spicy.
The contrast is just phenomenal.
Mmmhmm.
It is like if we're going to be sweating today being out in the city we may as well be sweating
in a restaurant eating delicious food.
That is right and there is this expression that one of my Korean friends once told me.
He said in the summertime you fight with fire with fire so you fight the heat of the sun
with the heat of the spicy dish.
Nice.
And you sweat it all out.
Apparently, it is supposed to be healthy.
I'm not entirely sure of that logic but we'll go with it.
So I'm also going to try the rice cakes.
Found one so I'm just rolling it around in the cheese.
Taking it for a swim.
I want to make sure I'm not missing out on the cheese.
Yeah, I think there is enough for about five people.
We could use about three other friends to help us out.
I know if you're like lactose intolerant could you imagine coming here.
No, I cannot imagine it at the moment.
And I'm just going to break this into little pieces.
Yes.
So I don't burn my mouth because this is like really starchy rice you know?
One thing I've noticed is that in Korean restaurants the banchan, the little side dishes, they
just keep refilling it.
If you finish it they will fill up those plates like 10 times.
In Japan once you are done you are done.
We didn't really realize and we like ate it all.
We gobbled it up quickly.
And then we were waiting where are the seconds?
They didn't come.
They just cleared the plates so something to keep in mind.
Yeah, let's get a bit of sauce.
In all fairness though we do have our work cut-out for us with a lot of food still.
Yeah, we still have this bowl with rice and a whole bunch of other ingredients.
We're going to be cooking that later once we've eaten a bit more.
Exactly.
Mmmm.
Do you like that rice cake?
Wow.
I think it is my favorite part to be honest.
Mmmm.
I like that more than the meat.
Yeah.
It is just really nice you've got the chewiness of the rice cake and the cheese.
Yes.
And the spice.
Mmmm.
So many flavors huh?
I'm having a good time here.
I just spat.
I just keep dipping it in the sauce.
I'm just craving spice.
Maybe it is the weather.
Fighting fire with fire.
So you tried the rice cakes now time for the chicken.
Here is the chicken and I've got to mention guys the cheese is starting to burn at the
bottom.
It is probably going to even taste more delicious now.
Wow.
I'm trying some cheese, trying some chicken here.
Still piping hot.
Mmmm.
Oh oh my gosh I take it back.
I like the chicken way more than the rice cake.
Oh yeah.
The chicken is so tender and so juicy it has really been absorbing the flavors of the sauce.
The spiciness.
The sweetness.
And now the cheese is taking on more of a I don't know the way I would describe it is
if you know you've had nacho cheese and it has been cooked a little bit too long it has
that kind of consistency.
The cheese is starting to get a little bit burnt and it is becoming even more tastier.
I think we need to eat faster and film less.
Yes.
(Sizzling sounds)
Alright so now time for the next step.
The rice they just put it on here on top of the melted cheese and the chicken.
So we've got rice, red peppers, chives.
What is this called again?
Those are the bean sprouts.
Beansprouts.
We have seaweed.
We have fermented cabbage and we have gochujang.
So this is going to be so so good.
Urgh.
It's a heart.
Alright guys this is pretty cute so the guy was cooking the rice and he shaped it like
a heart.
Awe.
A heart.
Awe.
That is pretty cute.
Imagine coming here on Valentine's Day?
Haha.
Okay guys this is my absolute favorite part.
This is the Korean stir-fry rice.
The bokkeumbap and this is the most delicious kind of bookumbap you can have because it
is absorbing the chicken, the cheese flavors and also the rice sizzling at the bottom.
And yet the rice starts to get crispy and that is the most delicious thing ever.
It is almost like having the dolsot bibimbap.
Remember how the rice gets burnt at the bottom of the bowl?
I can't believe you destroyed the whole heart just so you could have crispy rice.
You know what?
It looked beautiful but this is the way to go guys.
This is the way to go.
Alright so I'm just scooping up a bit of rice.
I don't want mine to get too too toasted.
As you can see it is already going crispy.
Oh wow.
But yeah definitely.
That is a thing of beauty.
We've got the burnt cheese starting to go a little bit brown.
We have the sauce from the chicken.
We sure do.
So yeah this looks wonderful.
This is actually something I used to eat in Korea all of the time.
Bokkeumbap.
The fried rice.
Kimchi Bokkumbap mostly right?
Yep.
And this one does have kimchi.
Yeah it does.
It does.
Mmmm.
How is that?
It keeps getting better huh?
The burned cheese is the best part.
Yeah.
The burned cheese and the burnt rice.
Those are the stars for sure of this.
And Sam is not even going to bother with a plate here.
Well this is a little tip for when I was in Korea.
When I went out with a friend.
You would just literally eat from the pan.
From the element.
Okay.
I think it is more delicious that way.
From the pan straight to your mouth.
But you do have to blow on it.
Yeah.
Look at how crispy that is guys.
Wow.
Oh my gosh that is pipping hot.
This is my favorite kind of bokkumbap hands down.
Just because of the burnt rice, the burnt cheese and all of the ingredients mixing together.
And the flavors combining.
It is just wonderful and if there is one kind of Korean bokkumbap you've got to try it is
this after having the dak galbi (닭갈비).
It is just amazing.
Well, that was a wonderful meal.
I've got a big candy in my mouth.
But as you can see looking down at the pan we ate it all.
All of that crispy cheese.
It is gone.
Gone-zo.
Let's get to price point.
The total was 2592 Yen which came to $23 US dollars.
Not bad.
Everything.
I know considering we had like the first chicken with cheese dish followed by the crispy fried
rice dish.
Yeah that is a really big meal.
Like if you come here with another person and you finish all of that food you're not
going to need to eat again for a very long time.
Yeah.
Except we are because we are going for dessert.
So we're not saying goodbye we'll see you soon.
(Buzzing sound)
Alright guys since we are in Koreatown and we had a Korean lunch it only makes sense
to have a Korean dessert.
And right now we're at a place called Snowy Village and we are eating Bingsu (빙수).
Bingsu (팥빙수) is something that we used to eat a lot in Korea during the summer months.
Yeah, we went to a place called Sulbing.
Yeah.
And basically it is like shaved ice and you can get a whole bunch of different toppings.
Today we went for Oreo and whipped cream and there is also condensed milk in there.
But honestly, you can get it with mangoes, strawberries, blueberries, blackberries, cheesecake
flavored.
Brownies.
Whatever you want.
They've got it.
Check out the giant oreo on top there.
Wow.
Is it good?
Mmmm.
It is refreshing.
So refreshing huh?
On a hot day.
It is the number 1 dessert here.
I was choking earlier because of this powder.
Yeah.
I breathed it in.
Don't breath it in guys.
Careful this is like crumbled Oreo cookies.
Pro tip.
So yeah it is good but try not to choke.
Yeah, try not to choke.
Alright time for me to try this.
So this is basically my favorite Korean dessert.
Especially in the summer.
It is refreshing.
It is delicious.
It is sugary.
And the traditional recipe calls for beans.
It is Patbingsu with cold beans.
Patbinsu (팥빙수) yeah.
Yeah, that is actually the first one I ever tried many years ago in Korea.
But there has been so many contemporary twists these days.
Yes.
In fact it is more common to have these kinds now than it is the original, unfortunately.
The original is still my favorite.
But this is delicious.
Very refreshing.
And a reasonable price too.
It came to 970 Yen which is probably about $9 US dollars.
So yeah this is for the two of us to share.