Peter Y.
Yelp
When we were in Las Vegas for a series of real estate continuing education classes, Willy wanted to eat kalbijjim.
I searched Yelp and found Daeho, and saw that trusted gastronome Rod U. gave it 5 stars and a great review.
Kalbijjim as typically made in Hawaii by restaurants which cater to the Korean community, is braised short ribs simmered in a savory and watery slightly sweet shoyu-based sauce. It may have a few carrots, daikon radish, and onions, but it is mostly meat. The kalbijjim served in Hawaii is intended to be a single serving, and costs maybe $30 or so.
At Daeho, this dish is huge, and has a very thick shoyu sauce, with a lot of vegetables. It is more like a full pot of stew, with a robust thick gravy. And it cost $80. At that size and price, it is a table dish meant for communal dining.
We also ordered the kalbi tang, which is a soup with short ribs and a few small pieces of vegetables. The soup has a different flavor and the beef short ribs are boiled, so is blander and soupier than the kalbijjim. I think this dish was around $23.
In addition, we got several typically included small side dishes of banchan. These are typically various types of mostly fermented vegetables, like kimchi chi. The banchan here were pretty good.
Three of us shared the two entrees. Willy was not happy. His first complaint was about the rice. It was served in individual covered metal bowls and it was cold, undercooked, and the grains were stuck together. Yes, they brought us replacement bowls which were fine. But once something like that happens, Willy will complain about everything else. And did.
I mean, I love the old curmudgeon but sometimes he is too much. Once when we were in a "Korean" bar in Kapalama, the old school bar district which caters mostly to blue collar guys after work but now has become a destination for white collar guys too since most of the bars in the Kapiolani area have been replaced by tony high-rise condominium projects, Willy told the bar owner she should fire the kitchen mama because she couldn't even cook a steak properly. I mean, c'mon, no one should be fired and go on welfare when they aren't really paying taxes anyway.
But back to Daeho.
Needles to say (yes, needles), the ambiance went chilly, difficult to imagine when the temperature that day was over 105F and we were huddled around a huge pile of primeval bubbling spicy food.
To be fair, the dishes were pretty good, just different from what was expected based on our regional preferences.
As they say, your mileage may vary. I thought it was pretty good.