14.284 Hojok Galbi

Cycle 14 – Item 284

16 (Mon) October 2023

Hojok Galbi

4.0

at Hojokban

-Sinsa, Gangnam, Seoul, Republic of Korea-

with JP et al

Hojokban is a Korean restaurant.  The menu, just a handful of ever-rotating dishes, describes the cuisine as “Korean soul food that is redefined with a bit of western twist.”  Part of the ever-growing GFFG restaurant empire.

Located 334 m from CGV Cinecity.

To promote Chili Crisp, Hojokban hosted a tasting event.  James knows the brand manager for GFFG.  By excellent coincidence, Hojokban will open a restaurant in New York City next month, where James is something of a local food celebrity, so he’ll help to promote the launch there, while they help him out here.

As service began, James was very sweet to give dbBOOKS a big shout out for our role in making the tour come together.

With a seating capacity of 24 customers, the event was only for invited guests, including journalists and food influencers, as well as VIPs and close friends – and dbBOOKS (we were also there to support on-site sales of the book).

A 5-course menu was offered, featuring 5 dishes already on the regular menu.  James had cooked up a huge batch of his signature chili crisp and brought it to the restaurant, where each table was provided a serving, to be paired with the food according to personal preference.

Everyday Savory Chili Crisp (see generally 14.280 Everyday Savory Chili Crisp with Greek Yogurt (+ Potato Crisps + Bagel Bits).
Crown Daisy Salad (4.0): undoubtedly the best use of crown daisy that I’ve ever experienced – surprisingly well-paired with chili crisp.
Truffle Potato Pancake (3.5): amazing crunch on the pancake, creamy sauce pairing very nicely with chili crisp.
Perilla Oil Noodle (4.0): delicate yet explosive – my favorite dish of the spread…
…paired perfectly with chili crisp.
Hojok Galbi (4.0): cooked sous-vide for 16 hrs – impossibly tender/silky beef, perfectly seasoned, perfectly balanced with the scallions – chili crisp unneeded.
Wureongissal Cheongju: rice wine, like sake.
Tiger Budae Jjigae (2.5): not only SPAM and sausage, but also beef brisket – way too much meat, at least for me – chili crisp entirely unneeded.

The food was awesome.  Every dish was thoughtfully conceived, expertly executed.  I was blown away by the salad and noodles, which don’t look like much, but deliver way beyond expectation, and both pairing so well with chili crisp.  The galbi was my third favorite but featured here as the restaurant’s eponymous/signature dish.  I can’t recall the last time that I was so impressed with Korean cuisine, which, generally, I find rather formulaic.

When I asked my colleagues about the name of the restaurant, nobody had ever heard the term “hojokban;” upon discovering the meaning on the internet, everybody was surprised to learn that traditional tables all had their own names.

DID YOU KNOW: The legs of traditional Korean tables were designed to emulate the legs of certain animals.  One of the most popular/common is the hojokban – “ho (tiger) jok (legs) ban (table) – which is supposed to look like the legs of a tiger, Korea’s national animal.  

We comped a copy of the book to the restaurant.

The event was a major success, at least the dinner.  Now let’s see if it helps drive sales.

On the way home, I passed by this adult shop.
First, it’s funny that they offer tax free, which means the customer has to show receipts and sometimes the actual items at the tax refund desk in the airport. Second, the operating hours includes a break from 16:00-17:00 – what do they need a break for?

(See also BOOZE)

(See also HANSIK)

(See also RESTAURANTS IN KOREA)

3 thoughts on “14.284 Hojok Galbi”

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