Wednesday 14th January 2015
Restaurant: Jubo at Bedroom Bar and On the Bap
Price per Person: £12 upwards
Rating: 8 out of 10
Restaurant: Jubo at Bedroom Bar and On the Bap
Price per Person: £12 upwards
Rating: 8 out of 10
Well, you know me, I am a hipster at heart and proud of it,
therefore I am obviously obsessed with Korean street food like the rest of the East
London hip kids. I had never had it
before, and to be honest, I’m not sure if I have had anything authentic yet; however
what I have eaten in two fine London eateries was delicious, so I am sorry this
is where my hipster façade falls as I don’t care if it’s ‘the real deal’, it’s
AMAZING!
First up I was in Bedroom Bar on Rivington Street to watch
my cousin’s band play (Hi 5 to The Plastics!).
When you walk into the venue there are all these little tables to the left,
and it has been set out as a Korean Canteen called Jubo. It is all very ‘trendy’ with exposed wood and
brick, dim lights and tight spaces. We
moved into the main bar to listen to sound check and have a drink. The food smells however and the plates moving
past us where too good to resist. After enquiring
about a menu at the bar I was told we would need to move to the main restaurant
and put our name on a list. She was a
bit gruff and rude, the only down side of the place being that some of the
staff seem to have forgotten it’s called the ‘hospitality’ business, therefore
be HOSPITABLE!
I went to the host who was lovely, and quickly told me that
we could eat where we want and he would be right with us. So back in our comfy seats we decided to
order the Chicken Dinner Platter between the 3 of us, which is 8 wings, 8
strips and 3 sides. The sides all
sounded amazing so we asked the lovely host who was quick to attend our table,
what he would recommend. He
enthusiastically said to try the lotus root chips as they are so unusual. We went for that, with of course some Kimchi
slaw and chips for good measure. You can
always judge a place by the quality of its chips, as my dad says. We were asked how spicy we want our chicken,
to which we when to ‘hipster’ middle of the road – medium – so we got half soy
garlic and half hot and sweet. The food
arrived quickly and was piping hot. The chicken
was a mix of wet and dry marinade. The
portion was MASSIVE – we struggled with three of us. The flavour of the meat was the perfect
balance of sweet, salt and spice that Korean food is known for, with fresh
chopped spring onion garnish giving it a fresh lift. The kimchi slaw was punchy and vinegary
working well with the mayonnaise dressing.
The lotus chips were beautiful and crisp –not the biggest flavour, but
delicious when combined with the other elements. And chips were crispy on the outside, soft in
the middle as it should be! We even had
to ask for the balance to be wrapped up – which was done with pleasure. It was a lovely atmosphere, the food was
fresh and delicious, and apart from the reluctant bartender it was an
experience I can’t wait to repeat.
http://www.bedroom-bar.co.uk/assets/Uploads/Food_Menu/JUBOA2PRINT.pdf
So, now I am clearly an expert in Korean food, I decided to
brave On The Bap on Old Street last week, sibling to Koba in central
London. The ‘bap’ part of the name means
served with ‘rice’; not a floury bread roll in sight I regret to inform. I say I braved it as, there was only one
table at the back occupied and three expectant waitresses waiting eagerly like
a personal welcoming party at the door for anyone coming in, which always
intimidates me a bit. I am also a curvy
westerner, wearing a large coat and was more scarf than human, so the insanely
close together tables injected another level of danger to me deciding to dine there:
would I get into the seat, will my arse clear the table behind me as I was
sliding in? But god loves a risk taker
and I got into my corner table safe and sound!
The deco is of course exposed brick work, with soup tins
holding cutlery on the tables. The menu
was printed on brown paper and on a clip board – I was in hipster heaven!! Service was efficient and friendly. The menu was varied enough that I wasn’t sure
what to choose from so asked for advice between two tempting dishes. To be honest, I wasn’t sure what a lot of it
was, which also didn’t help! In the end
I went in favour of Kimchi Bokeum Bap, described as Korean style bacon Paella
with a fried egg on top. I also ordered
a miso soup as I am obsessed. This arrived
first in a bowl on a little wooden tray – it had a big pillow of softly friend
tofu, something I had not seen treated that way before. It was full of flavour, scattered with fresh
spring onions and seaweed.
My Kimchi Bokeum Bap arrived a couple of minutes after, and served in an enamel bowl, my hipster scale exploded with joy. The dish had the flavour to back it up though, served with a raw salad of mixed cabbage and kohi rabi (I think that is what is was anyway), smothered in a smoky/spicy mayonnaise style sauce. The bright orange yellow yoke burst forth all over the rice, with a gentle nudge, creating a rich sauce to baste the delicious tangy, umami rice that lay below. It was pure joy in a bowl to eat, and I managed ever last mouthful with satiated happiness.
My bill was £12, a total pleasure for exciting, and fresh flavoured food. I felt relaxed, looked after, and oh so ‘hip.’ I cannot wait to dine there again, this time going for the Soondubu Jjigae, a seafood stew made Koba style … whatever that is … I better get googling Korean lingo!
http://onthebab.co.uk
And yes, I am moving back to London after 3.5 long years
away! I look forward to sharing all my
London foodie adventures with you soon!
Much Love
The Hungry Londoner
