Taste of Korea, Colorado Springs, CO

Taken from a Yelp review as I forgot to take a pciture os the place on the place on the  way out: http://www.yelp.com/biz_photos/taste-of-korea-colorado-springs?select=0Qyl5Jq84OqxX0KQSyAotw

Though happily surprised by the variety and quality of food in Colorado Springs there have been a few let downs.  I will not discuss Mexican food because that is a subject sacred to all Californians, let's just say that when I find one I love I will write about it.  No, instead I shall touch upon the myriad of Asian delicacies that I have come upon in my new home.

It was after both highs (Ai Sushi) and lows (almost every Chinese restaurant I've been to here) that I happened upon a little Korean place on the East side of town named Taste of Korea.  Found within a strip mall a few doors down from what appeared to be a dive bar, on first appearance I did not have high hopes for the food there.  Walking in my expectations rose a little bit.  First off it was clean, and while I don't immediately equate cleanliness with good food (even McDonalds has to clean their bathrooms once in a while) it did give me a glint of hope.  There was nice lady behind a counter that directed us to any two seat table.  Unsure of where to sit we choose a table that had the least amount of blinding sunlight coming in from a covered window.

Slowly the experience got better and better.  After sitting down at the table the nice lady moved us to another table farther back out of the sunlight.  She quickly got us water and we ordered a plate of Yakimandu, which were your basic fried dumplings.  These came out rather quickly and I would rate them as your average fried dumplings.  They had good flavor to them, and were cooked nicely, but I felt I could have got them at almost any Asian themed restaurant in the city.  Still they were hot and fresh and our hostess (the only person we'd seen since entering the restaurant) delivered them with a smile.

After gobbling those up, we were both pretty hungry by then, we sat and waited for our orders to come out.  Thankfully the dumplings had filled me up enough to appreciate the fact that it was taking time for our orders to be completed.  I think I would have been a little worried if they had just shoved them out in the next five minutes.  It would have made me think that they were just warming up food they'd kept on had in the microwave (again see most of the Chinese restaurants here).  Honestly I would say it took about twenty minutes to get our food, which wasn't bad as while we sat there at least three people with very large to-go orders came in to pick up their order.

So the moment arrives and someone from the back, probably one of the two cooks, brings us out our food.  My wife's dish is by far the more complex looking of the two.  In addition to a large serving of Bulgogi (thin slices of marinated beef) served on a hot cast iron plate, she also got eight small bowels of additional food (not including a small bowl of rice), which included her most favorite dish (kimchi pancakes) and her least favorite dish (seaweed).  I, loving all things spicy, commandeered the bright red kimchi.

While not quite as impressive looking as my wife's dish I was instantly intrigued by my own food.  This was the first time I had ordered Bibimbap (rice mixed with vegetables and beef).  I was a bit put off by the fried egg, as it appeared slightly overcooked, but it didn't stop me from digging in.  I was a bit surprised by the vegetables, in a good way.  I am not normally one to enjoy beansprout, as I have had to push them aside in healthier dishes, but the seasoning and flavor of them when combined with the meat (agian Bulgogi), the egg, and the rice was the perfect balance of flavors.  My only complaints were that there should have been a bit more meat in the bowl.

My wife on other hand thoroughly enjoyed her meal but believed they had been mistaken and given her the "hot" Bulgogi.  After taking a few bites of her meat I had to agree, it was a bit spicy.  Thankfully that just made it easier to steal some of it and put it into my bowl.  So it all worked out in the end.

As we finished our meal the same cook from the back came out to see how we had enjoyed our food (the woman manning the front had since disappeared).  She looked surprised to see that I had eaten all of my food, even going so far as to pick out almost every grain of rice out of the bottom of the bowl.  This was done partly as I found myself still a bit hungry (a Bibimbap is not a whole lot of food but was probably the right amount for me) and partly because everything tasted so good.  She asked us how we'd found her and was surprised when I said Yelp.  I get the feeling Yelp isn't used a lot in Colorado Springs.

After boxing up my wife's left overs we left Taste of Korea with a mostly full stomach and a smile on our faces.  I am happy that at the very least really good Korean food can be found in Colorado Springs, and I'm looking forward to coming back.

Taste of Korea
1825 Peterson Rd.
Colorado Springs, CO
(719) 574-2060
http://tasteofkoreacs.com/

The Corner, Huntington Beach, Orange County, CA

 Ah, the moon overhead shown brightly over one of the Orange County's many strip malls as my wife and I exited the car.  It was date night and I was attired in a shirt with actual buttons on it.  My wife, as always, looked beautiful in jeans and black blouse.  We made our way to one of the few non-chain restaurants in Orange County.  A little place hidden in the depths of Huntington Beach that served small portions but with big taste.  We had decided to go out to... The Corner.


Housed in what was once a Chinese Restaurant, if you look up you will see the original red tiling along the ceiling, is a hip retreat from the mainstream.  In a slightly darkened room with no windows, is a series of tables and booths have been placed for maximum comfort and my guess to focus on the main attraction of the restaurant, the food.  The atmosphere was loud but friendly that night.  The waiter just having finished talking to the table over and receiving a few belly laughs.  My wife and I took a seat and only had to raise our voice a few decibles to hear one another.

The wait staff, we had a bearded waiter that could have doubled as an action star, came to our table with a smile and a laugh.  I was already in a good mood when he asked us if we want anything to drink.  As it is date night I break my usual taboo about ordering whiskey with ice and decided on a Whiskey Sour Julep.  My wife ordered a Dark and Stormy, which has rum, lime, and ginger beer, on the rocks.  My wife has a weakness for ginger beer.  Our drinks arrive and we decide to try a couple of meatball sliders while we peruse the menu.  They come out fast and are just as advertised, chunks of meat and cheese on a french roll.  They are also delicious.  We also get some bacon wrapped dates stuffed with blue cheese.  They are melt in your mouth good, and I don't even like blue cheese.

Best of all though was one of the special appetizers, poutine.  I don't see it in a lot of places but when I do I almost always order it.  This is usually a concoction of fries, cheese curds, and occasionally something other ingredient, a protein most of the time.  It came out in an oversized bowl and at first I didn't know quite what to do with it, but then I grabbed a potatoe skin, dipped it into the cheese sauce and luxuriated in the taste of pure unhealthy food.

My wife and I finally decided on our "Not Entrees" as the amount of food is not quite an appetizer and not quite an entree.  It is a great amount of food if you are not that hungry, or if you are like us and want to try a bit of everything.  I order the Block Cut New York Steak in a wine sauce reduction.  I'm curious to see if it is as good as the one I make at home.  Usually they are not, but with this place I decide to give them the benefit of the doubt.  My wife ordered the Korean BBQ Chicken.  They make a point of telling you it is "non-traditional" and when you see it you know why.


My wife and I engage in idle chatter as our food is prepared and I decide to get a Dark and Stormy for myself.  I normally don't do drink reviews and I'm not going to start now.  Let me just say if you come to The Corner you have to get one.  A few sips later our food came out.  My steak was cooked perfectly.  Medium Rare as I believe all red meat should be cooked.  The wine reduction was really good but the steak barely edged out something I would have been able to accomplish in my own kitchen.  Still it was tasty enough that I did not need a doggy bag at the end of the meal.  My wife's chicken was a very interesting mesh-mash of flavors.  I liked it.  The chicken was cooked perfectly but the whole lettuce wrap delivery left a bit to be desired by me.  My wife on the other hand really enjoyed it.  I will say that the cilantro-lime emulsion that came with it was so good I would have put it on just about anything.

Overall this place was an amazing find.  And with that... all credit for finding this place goes to my wife, and her monthly AAA Magazine, but Shhhh!  Don't tell anyone, as most of the hip places in Orange Country are quickly changed into chain eateries, or Starbucks.  I think it has something to do with the city charter.  I kid! Check this place out the next time you are in town.  I promise you will not be disappointed.



The Corner
8961 Adams Ave.
Huntington Beach, CA 92646
(714) 968-6800
http://thecornerhb.com/