Kimchi

KOBA

119 Hardware St, Melbourne 9973 8425

Korean Sliders

Sweet brioche bun served with short rib patties, Korean slaw, ssamjang mayo and crispy onion rings

= Excellent

Beef Taco

Marinated beef, tomato salsa, kimchi and Korean slaw

= Not bad

Kimchi Fries

Crispy fries topped with cheese, kimchi sauce, onion relish and sour cream

These fries were so addictive. Who knew Kimchi and fries went so well together?

= Good

Koba Fried Chicken Wings (Soy Garlic)

Not so crispy but well flavoured juicy chicken wings, with a sprinkling of quinoa for added texture

= Good

Spicy Pork Korrito

Sweet marinated pork, kimchi rice, melted cheese, tomato salsa and kimchi

= Good

Overall:

Incredibly tasty Korean-Mexican fusion! Service was quick and the staff were very helpful and friendly. Note that there is limited seating here (as this place is tiny) so grabbing takeaway is a good idea.

Kong BBQ

Smoked Brisket with Ssamjang and Kimchi Bun

★★★★☆

Spicy Pork Belly with Pickled Cucumber and Kong Crazy Horse Chilli Bun

★★★☆☆

Korean Fried Wings with Honey, Garlic and Sesame

Super sticky, super sweet

★★☆☆☆

BBQ Corn with Chilli Salt and Miso Butter

★★☆☆☆

Kong Bossam BBQ Tray – Pulled Chicken and Pork, Pork Belly and Beef Brisket, Pickled Kimchi, Walnut Ssamjang and Lettuce

★★☆☆☆

Teriyaki Roast Ora King Salmon, Wok Fried Broccoli and Tomato Roti Roll

★★★☆☆

Pulled Pork with Slaw, Kimchi and Burnt Chilli Mayo Roti Roll

★★☆☆☆

Overall:

We came on a late Sunday afternoon (to avoid the queues) and were immediately seated. The place was bright and open with the kitchen being in plain view from the dining area, and the service was very efficient. The ‘Chin Chin’ cookbooks that were neatly lined up along one of the shelves remind you that Chris Lucas (the brains behind this place) is also the brains behind other restaurants such as Chin Chin on Flinders Lane and Baby pizzeria in Richmond.

The fusion of American, Korean and Japanese flavours create a very unique menu here at Kong BBQ. So if you are a fan of Asian fusion cuisine, this place is definitely for you.

Kong BBQ

599 Church St, Richmond, VIC

(03) 94271307

https://www.kongbbq.com.au/

Mrs Kim’s Grill

136 Koornang Road, Carnegie 9563 4424

Moo set

Oink set

Thoughts:

Moo set – 350g of marinated Galbi beef ribs, 150g of Skirt steak, tomato and avocado salsa salad = Good

Oink set – 250g of chilli pork belly, 150g of pork neck fillet, smoked salmon and onion salad = Good

Note that each set comes with butter and garlic potatoes, corn, soup of the day (which was soy bean paste soup), and rice for two.

The complimentary side dishes that are served with all meals include: homemade kimchi, pickled onion, spring onion salad, ssamjang soy bean, dipping sauce, and pepper and garlic salt.

Overall:

Really delicious and well marinated meat! In fact everything here was very tasty. My only complaint is that the meat sets need to be bigger so that there is more meat to be enjoyed! The atmosphere is casual and the staff are efficient and friendly.

Hodori Korean Garden

1344 Centre Rd, Clayton 9562 7849

Spicy rice cakes

Kimchi pancake

Spicy kimchi hotpot with tofu and tuna

Mild beef stock soup with rice cakes and dumplings

Japchae

Teriyaki chicken sizzling plate

Dolsot bibimbap

Side dishes

Thoughts:

Spicy rice cakes – soft chewy rice cakes covered in a moderately chilli sauce = Not bad

Kimchi pancake – mildly spicy pancake that tasted almost pizza-like with the amount of capsicum that came on it = Not bad

Kimchi hotpot – regular kimchi soup that came with a decent amount of (canned) tuna = Not bad

Rice cake and dumpling soup – great for those who don’t like spicy soups, comes with a total of 3 dumplings (that contain indistinguishable meat) = Not bad

Japchae – a highly sweet dish that consists of chewy potato noodles, beef, capsicum, baby corn, onion, cloud ear fungus, spring onion and sesame seeds = Not bad

Teriyaki chicken – the excessively sweet teriyaki sauce is overwhelming = Not bad

Dolsot bibimbap – tasty combination of beef, egg, beansprouts, carrots, spring onions, onion, and dried seaweed = Good

Side dishes – pickled bean sprouts, kimchi, fish cakes, candied potato, chicken mayo salad and seasoned broccoli = Good

Overall:

Typical Korean fare at a place that has fast service, decent servings and is good value for money. The main dining area is upstairs, although they do have some traditional floor seating tables downstairs. Now each table upstairs has a service bell which you press whenever you require a waiter’s attention. However this only works when the waiters are not busy so you may need to press it at regular intervals to remind them that you still waiting to be served. Note that this is a cash only place.

Gami Chicken and Beer (Lt Lonsdale)

100 Little Lonsdale St, Melbourne 9671 3232

Corn cheese

Kimchi pancake

Fried chicken

Spicy sauce fried chicken

Thoughts:

Corn cheese – hot bubbly cheese mixed with juicy corn kernels and a bit of mayo for sweetness = Good

Kimchi pancake – crispy, oily, kimchi laded pancake that was full of flavour and didn’t need any dipping sauce = Good

Fried chicken – ordinary deep fried chicken = Not bad

Spicy sauce fried chicken – the spiciness of this chicken doesn’t hit you immediately, but when it does it’s fiery hot! = Not bad

Sweet chilli fried chicken – somehow reminded me of sweet and sour pork = Not bad

Sweet soy garlic fried chicken – sweet sticky chicken with a hint of garlic flavour = Not bad

Overall:

Unfortunately this place did not live up to its hype and was a bit underwhelming. The original flavour chicken was alright while each flavoured chicken came drowning in sauce. This is the place to go to if you are after a quick meal that is messy, greasy and fatty. The service is average and the atmosphere quite noisy. Also be sure to use the toilet before you come here as the single toilet that they have is quite disgusting.

Wooga Korean Restaurant

270 Victoria St, North Melbourne 9328 1221

Top grade beef rib

Spicy kimchi and pork soup

Seafood pancake

Thoughts:

We ordered the Combo A set menu ($39 pp) which included:

Top grade beef rib (I found this to be extremely tough and chewy)
Top side with salt and pepper (tender and delicious)
Beef brisket (just okay)
Bean paste soup (which we swapped for kimchi and pork soup, which turned out to be good)
Rice (2 bowls)

Seafood pancake – contained lots of egg and not that much seafood, so was just an average pancake. HOWEVER the dipping sauce that comes with it is fantastic! = Not bad

Overall:

Among the multiple Korean BBQ restaurants along Victoria St, I found this one to be so-so. The food overall was average with nothing standing out (apart from the seafood pancake dipping sauce, which I’m not going to count). I found the portions to the Combo A set menu to be on the small side, so unless you eat very little, this set menu will not fill you up. Service to this place was standard with the waiter coming around every now and again to turn our meat on the BBQ. What I did like about this place was that they used good exhaust chutes for each table which made the place less smokey compared to other Korean BBQ places. Having said that there is still no escaping the strong BBQ smell that seeps into your hair and your clothes, that lingers with you once you leave this place.

Yami Yami

1d Bank St, Box Hill 9890 4588

Agedashi Tofu

Seafood Pajeon (Korean style seafood pancake)

Creamed garlic prawns with kimchi fried rice

Kimchi Jjigae (Spicy stew with kimchi, pork and tofu)

Thoughts:

Agedashi tofu – Warm silky tofu encased in a crisp batter with sweet tsuyu sauce = Excellent

Seafood pancake – perfect for those who like their pancakes on the crispy side, a bit bland so the dipping sauce is needed = Good

Creamed garlic prawns with kimchi fried rice – Amazing! Creamy fried rice that has just the right amount of spiciness in it to give it a tasty kick! = Excellent

Kimchi Jjigae – Spicy and full of flavour = Excellent

Overall:

I have been to this place numerous times and have yet to experience any bad service (which seems to be the main complaint for most of the Urbanspoon reviews of this place) Maybe I just got lucky? Who knows? What I do know for certain is that the food here is delicious, and that I will definitely be returning.