Cheryl Lu-Lien Tan

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Sodaeng (Edinburgh): Korean, Or Something Like It

YukgaejangThe thing about a good thing is, sometimes you shouldn’t shrug off that nagging feeling that it’s not going to last because, well, that may be true.

In this case, I’d be referring to my recent elation over discovering that, contrary to my previous belief, the Korean food scene in Edinburgh is terrific.

After being surprised by a very tasty lunch at Kim’s Mini Meals and then chasing that with an outstanding meal at Cafe Andamiro, I had decided to eat my words. Perhaps this city actually does do Korean well, I thought.

But then I paid a visit to Sodaeng …

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Café Andamiro (Edinburgh): Stellar Korean

Yuk Gae Jang

As you’ve probably gathered from some mutterings on this blog, I’ve had rather low expectations of the Asian food scene in Edinburgh.

There is one Vietnamese restaurant in town. (Well, two if you count Saigon Saigon, which really is a Chinese restaurant that decided to go with a slightly more exotic name.) And my trusty Edinburgh food gurus over at Asian Cajuns inform me that there’s pretty much only one place that serves good ramen in the city.

There is, however, a narrow street right by the University of Edinburgh that is speckled with ethnic food joints. When I mentioned to Lar over at Asian Cajuns that I’d sampled — and adored — the Korean place Kim’s Mini Meals along that stretch, she immediately asked, “Did you go to the other Korean place a few doors away? It’s good.”

Another Korean place? I had to see for myself.

The very next day, I headed straight over to the charming Café Andamiro …

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Kim’s Mini Meals (Edinburgh): A Little Korean Gem

Soondubu JjigaeI’ve not been in Scotland long when I have to confess: “I’m craving something Asian, spicy.”

Now, Edinburgh is a sizable city, and a fairly cosmopolitan one at that. What it isn’t however, is terribly varied in its Asian cuisine offerings. Yes, there are Indian restaurants and cheap Chinese takeouts galore. But when it comes to cuisines or dishes that go beyond the basic 101 of Asian foods, there’s not a whole lot.

So it’s not entirely unexpected that Dorset Boy retorts: “Asian food? Where do you think you are?”

I know there must be something good here though — I just have to believe it. In fact, in our many car rides through the city, I’d spied a handful of promising places. A little blue storefront in particular always caught my eye because whenever we drove past, there was often a long line of people waiting outside.

The sign up top? Kim’s Mini Meals …

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Seaweed-Bok Choy Noodle Soup With Peppery Pork Balls: A Kitchen Experiment

RamenA few years ago, I vowed to log all my random kitchen creations on this site.

Well, I’m a little embarrassed to say that other than a delicious Singapore-inspired turmeric-sambal chicken stir-fry I concocted one early spring night two years ago, this endeavor has rather fallen by the wayside.

And then this week, I whipped up a quick lunch that had me reaching for pen and paper at first bite — a garlicky seaweed and bok choy soup noodle studded with super peppery pork balls.

From the first taste, I knew this was a keeper …

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Korean Roast Beef Sandwich: Umami on a Bun

Among the problems to have, this was a good one: What to do with that tub of leftover ssamjang in the fridge?

After whipping up a batch of the sweet, spicy and garlicky Korean dipping sauce for a recent night of kalbi, the leftovers remained front and center in my fridge, nudging me to do something — anything.

Sure, marinating a few pounds of short ribs for another round of kalbi was tempting — perhaps when I have more time.

For now, however, I had other easier plans …

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