Chez Bong; B

Nestled in a basement in Chinatown, this surprisingly clean hole in the wall serves tasty Korean food. This is a humble place, but still has the best Korean food we’ve found in the city.

The banchan, or little amuse bouche-type dishes that are commonly served with meals, includes too sweet radish kimchi, decent cabbage kimchi, and seasoned potatoes. In winter, the thin, spicy soup also has potato in it – Quebec-Korean-style, I suppose. We often order dol sot bibimbap, jap chae, and bulgolgi. The bulgolgi is thicker than it usually is, but is attractively served in a sizzling stone plate; table-side cooking is also available. Dishes were churned out in an impressively short time and are hot and delicious – especially nice on a chilly, wet night – however service can be slow when the resto is full (especially during conventions). The hot tea is made with a tea bag. Kimchi to go is available. Korean pop music videos are played on the flat screen tv. Pay at the counter.

B-1021 Boul. St-Laurent at Rue de la Gauchetière

Metro: Place d’Armes

See my October 2009 review here.

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Chez Bong; B

Finally, we’ve found a decent Korean bbq place in Montreal. Nestled in a basement in Chinatown, the surprisingly clean hole in the wall serves tasty Korean food.

We were served too sweet radish kimchi, decent cabbage kimchi, and seasoned potatoes. The slightly spicy soup we were served also had potato in it – Quebecoise Korean-style, I suppose. For consistency, we ordered dol sot bibimbap, jap chae, and bulgolgi. The bulgolgi was thicker than it usually is, but was attractively served in a sizzling stone plate; table-side cooking is also available, but the other tables were taken. All of the dishes were churned out in an impressively short time and were hot and delicious – especially nice on a chilly, wet night. The hot tea was made with a tea bag and we were initially served dishes without chopsticks and spoons, but I can overlook that in a small basement resto. Pay at the counter.

B-1021 Blvd. St. Laurent at Rue de la Gauchetiere

metro: Place d’Armes

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Kimchi Hana; A

Alas, this beacon of Korean goodness is located in NJ, USA and not in my new home of Montreal, QC. Still, if you’re ever in the area, it’s just over the Piscataway/South Plainfield border, just past the best ShopRite in NJ. Just a hop away from Rutgers, New Brunswick. They don’t advertise and it’s hidden in the far corner of a strip mall, but who care’s about the exterior when it houses such a gem inside?

This is one of the best Korean restaurants in NJ – I’m including the Fort Lee/Palisades Park area as well in that sweep. The food is exactly what one expects when one goes to a Korean bbq place. Several private tables are available behind sliding paper doors (and yes, you’re supposed to leave your shoes on the steps), a great selection of those little appetizer dishes (mook, a mung bean paste gelatin, is my favorite; hot spiced sweet potatoes are my husband’s), hot roasted tea, and glowing coals inserted into the bbq grates in the middle of your table.The kimchi is fresh and the bibimbap is perfect. And yes, the japchae is steaming hot.

The waiters are all Korean, and the menu includes everything you might possibly want – including a couple of sushi options for those uninitiated in the joys of gochujang. It’s all delicious. Everything. Service and food are consistent, though we still get slightly better service when we go with a Korean than by ourselves. It’s ok – we love Kimchi Hana so much that we even had our wedding reception there. That’s right – it’s that good.

6101 Hadley Rd., Middlesex Mall, South Plainfield, NJ 07080, USA

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La Maison Bulgolgi; C+

Unfortunately for La Maison Bulgolgi, I have very high standards for Korean cuisine, which they failed to reach. Neon lights on the dingy part of Rue St. Catherine O. continues on into the inside where my husband first commented that he was worried about its cleanliness. Not a good sign.

We had to try the bbq, and ordered bulgolgi and pork as well as a dol sot bibimbap (the kind that comes sizzling in a stone bowl). The bibimbap was fine, but the gochujang was harsh to my palate, as was the reddish paste they gave us for the bulgolgi. The bbq was more like a wok on a gas burner – nothing remarkable. The little side dishes were overcooked and seemed slightly fermented. Service was friendly and attentive. No repeat visits are anticipated.

2127 Rue St. Catherine O. at Rue Chomedy

metro: Atwater

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