Cycle 3 – Item 315
15 (Thu) November 2012
Mongolian Khuushuur
2.5
at Kargo
(World Food Land)
-Paldal, Suwon, Gyeonggi, Republic of Korea-
solo
Project 30/30/30: 15 of 45 (see also 45/45/45)
Throughout this November, I am challenging myself to eat 30 dishes from 30 countries over the course of 30 consecutive days.
Mongolia is the 15th country.
World Food Land is an international food mall. Comprises a collection of restaurants from 6 countries: Bangladesh, China, Mongolia, Russia, Thailand, and Vietnam. Partly subsidized by the municipal government, the ostensible objective is to promote multiculturalism in the city, though whether for foreigners or for locals is uncertain.
Sadly, the restaurants were largely empty, some of them with lights dimmed, one of them closed (Bangladesh). Reportedly, random closures are common. Still, the very existence of the mall is intriguing per se.
Kargo is the Mongolian restaurant.
Khuushuur is a Mongolian dish. Deep-fried flat dumpling filled with minced lamb and onion.
Having done zero research on Mongolian cuisine, and seeing that the menu was written in Cyrillic with vague descriptions in Korea, I asked the server to bring me anything authentically Mongolian and preferably good. She brought me khuushuur.
It was pretty good. Especially the wrapping, which was both crispy and chewy. The filling was passably tasty if a tad gamy. The portion was quite generous, 4 dumplings each the size of my hand. Not bad for 7,000 won. The large can of Borgio, a Mongolian lager, was light and unremarkable. 5,000 won.
When I inquired about several dishes with the thought of ordering them to go, I was told that almost everything on the menu was unavailable because the small customer base didn’t justify keeping the ingredients on hand, which in turn surely wouldn’t encourage much repeat business, a vicious cycle.
What will keep me from visiting again was their refusal to accept payment by credit card. I experienced something similar at an Uzbek establishment during Cycle 1 (see 1.160 Manty); in response to reader GK’s comment about keeping away from Central Asian restaurants in Seoul, I was careful not to generalize, but maybe it is in fact a trick that they’ve oh-so-cleverly figured out would increase their margins by savings on bank commissions or government taxes, not realizing the fallout from customers who won’t return as a result. This time, the guy behind the counter pointed to the server and claimed that she’d dropped the credit card machine while drunk – she did smell of vodka – forcing me to go upstairs and outside to withdraw cash from an ATM, resulting in a fee of 1,200 won. Although I could’ve just walked away without paying, I went back. I didn’t, however, purchase the bottle of Mongolian vodka that I’d selected. When I gave the bottle back, he seemed to hesitate but stuck to his guns. Dumbass.
(See also BOOZE)
(See also GLOBAL FOOD GLOSSARY)
(See also RESTAURANTS IN KOREA)
