In between fast-casual Korean plate-lunch outlets and more formal yakiniku restaurants, there is the bunsikjip, or Korean snack cafe, serving homey dishes a Korean mom would make for her kids to enjoy after school.
It’s the kind of restaurant well understood in Seoul, but here people tend to be confused when they walk into Mama’s Dish, a small new restaurant on King Street, and see a menu of kimbap (Korean-style sushi), tteokbokki (rice cake), dumplings and ramen, the instant kind. (The literal translation of bunsikjip is “food made from flour.”)
On multiple occasions, I’ve seen people walk in and walk back out because they don’t see the familiar local-style BBQ meat and rice plates they were craving. I’ve also read complaints about the use of instant ramen, or ramyeon (noodles in a spicy broth) as it’s called in South Korea, where it really is a big deal and not regarded with any such scorn and snobbery.
Surely, in a place where some are willing to pay to have someone wash their hair for them at a head spa or dry bar, there will be also be people who want someone else to make their instant ramen. I would say it’s a little more difficult to boil water than wash one’s own hair.
Besides, this is not just plain ramyeon, but ramyeon dressed with a layer of cheese ($7.99), flat ribbons of fishcake ($7.99) or steamed mandoo ($7.99).
MORE HOMEY decadence comes in the form of a spicy sausage stew ($34.95), also known as budae jjigae or “army stew,” a lasting vestige of America’s post-war occupation of South Korea. The hot pot of sausage and navy beans can generally feed about four along with a few side dishes. It’s worth the extra $4 splurge to get a combination of Spam slices, fish cake, bacon and cellophane noodles added to the pot, along with a crown of instant ramen that looks so delicious as it’s boiling.
At the opposite end of the spectrum from the hot, spicy stew is a perfect late summer dish of mul naengmyun, buckwheat noodles in an icy cold vinegared broth.
Either style of shareable dishes would serve as a nice centerpiece for a meal, to which you could add a side of kalbi ($18.50) or Korean fried chicken, at $9.95 for a small order or $13.95 for large. There are spicy and soy sauce fried chicken options — as we had ordered other spicy dishes, I decided to go with the deliciously sticky-sweet soy sauce version, finished with a sprinkling of slivered almonds.
The cold noodles can also be ordered in combination sets with dumplings ($16.99), BBQ chicken ($21.99) or teri- yaki-like bulgogi ($22.99).
THE OTHER star of the menu is the Korean rice cake dish tteokbokki. It’s only $8.50 to have the dish prepared in the kitchen, but those in the know opt for tteokbokki on the spot ($15.50), which like the army stew is brought to a slow, showy boil at the table. Add a boiled egg for $2 or a combination of fish cake strips, cheese, vegetables and ramyeon noodles for for $4.
Different kinds of kimbap ($4.50), roll sushi filled with vegetables, bulgogi, fish cake or kim chee, round out the menu.
Depending on who’s manning the shop, language can be a barrier here, but for the most part the language of food is a universal one.
MAMA’S DISH
1738 S. King St. (across from Zippy’s)
Food: ***
Service: ***1/2
Ambiance: **1/2
Value: ****
>> Call: 200-5801
>> Hours: 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. Mondays to Saturdays
>> Prices: About $30 for two
>> Parking: Small lot in back, or on street
Ratings compare similar restaurants:
**** – excellent
*** – very good
** – average
* – below average
Nadine Kam’s restaurant reviews are conducted anonymously and paid for by the Star-Advertiser. Reach her at nkam@staradvertiser.com.
