Mexican Seoul
Restaurant · Mile End
Bow Wharf, 221 Grove Rd., London E3 5SN, United Kingdom
Highlights
Korean & Mexican street food fusion, award-winning wings & tacos
Korean & Mexican street food fusion, award-winning wings & tacos
"In case you hadn’t guessed, Mexican Seoul is an LA-inspired fusion spot making Mexican and Korean food. Things like elote corn ribs which are happily nibbled at by groups halfway through their first round of mango margaritas. The Bethnal Green restaurant has a fun-loving energy to it, where tables are pushed together for last-minute group get-togethers, and beef bulgogi tacos are greedily attacked. Staff all but dance towards you, dropping off rounds of picantes, complimenting your outfit, then moving on to make another person’s night." - jake missing, tome morrissy swan
"If ‘friendly house party’ is the energy you’re going for this year, Mexican Seoul in Hackney is the place for you. Excellent rum cocktails flow and tables are pushed together for last-minute groups. The friendly staff all but dance around, dropping off rounds of lychee daiquiris, complimenting your outfit, then moving on to make another person’s night. Dishes are an excellent mashup of Mexican and Korean street food, like bulgogi beef tacos, elote ribs, and gochujang wings, and suit a crowd. " - jake missing, rianne shlebak, sinead cranna, heidi lauth beasley
"The dishes at this Hackney spot are a successful mashup of Mexican and Korean street food: cheerful combinations that suit the vibe, a.k.a. the friendliest house party in the world, or at least Hackney. Bounty bars are balanced on top of excellent white rum and pineapple cocktails. Tables are pushed together for last-minute groups, lured by the laughter drifting outside and the promise of wings smothered in gochujang sauce. And friendly staff all but dance towards you, dropping off rounds of picantes, complimenting your outfit, then moving on to make another person’s night. " - jake missing, daisy meager, sinead cranna, rianne shlebak
"The dishes at Mexican Seoul are a successful mashup of Mexican and Korean street food, a fusion that originally comes from California. Here, in a decidedly more grey east London, the cheerful combinations—beef bulgogi tacos, elote ribs—suit the atmosphere which channels the friendliest house party in the world, or at least in Hackney. photo credit: Aleksandra Boruch photo credit: Aleksandra Boruch photo credit: Aleksandra Boruch photo credit: Aleksandra Boruch Pause Unmute The narrow, corridor-ish space has the kind of lovable energy usually reserved for a litter of Andrex puppies. Bounty bars are balanced on top of excellent white rum and pineapple cocktails. Tables are pushed together for last-minute groups, lured in by the laughter drifting outside and the promise of wings smothered in gochujang sauce. And friendly staff all but dance towards you, dropping off rounds of picantes, complimenting your outfit, then moving on to make another person’s night. Gnaw on moreish elote ribs, check your teeth for kernels, and before you know it, you’ll be endorsing lychee soju coolers as your new drink. photo credit: Aleksandra Boruch Some dishes are a little heavy handed: take the thick batter on the boulder-like cauliflower bites or one-time special of underseasoned choriqueso. But even these dishes are still tasty and fun. No one can be mad at a gooey pot of cheese, after all. The dining room and the menu are small, but nights at Mexican Seoul involve big belly laughs, feasting on spicy pork tacos, and inevitably buying Seouls Of Mischief merch. Food Rundown Elote Ribs Using cuts of meat to describe vegetables usually sends us into fits of involuntary eye-rolling—see cauliflower steaks—but we’ll forgive Mexican Seoul because these corn on the cob ribs are fantastic. They’re dusted with tangy pecorino and chilli flakes and we usually re-order another round immediately after finishing the first. photo credit: Aleksandra Boruch Spicy Pork Belly Tacos These are the kind of tacos that are loaded so high they require a few forkfuls before you can hold them in your hand. The filling—soft, thin slices of spicy pork belly—pairs well with the smooth, refreshing lime crema and the sweet, crispy fried leeks. photo credit: Aleksandra Boruch Bulgogi Beef Tacos Unlike us after indulging in a few kimchi bloody marys, these tacos are perfectly balanced. We’re big fans of the soft meat covered in a sweet soy sauce, with the citrus tang of the slaw and pickled onions. Once again, the fillings are generous. Gochu-Gang Wings These are some of our favourite wings in London—and we nearly broke up with our long-term partner because we had to share them. They’re meaty and the double fry gives the gochujang coating the perfect crunch. We’re also big fans of the crispy pops of sesame seed, raw spring onion, and generous zig zag of creamy gochujang mayonnaise on top. photo credit: Aleksandra Boruch Korean Fried Cauli Bites The coating on these pieces of fried cauliflower are a little thick and they’re far from being bite-sized. They could easily sub as golf balls. They’re tasty, but the batter on the wings is better. photo credit: Aleksandra Boruch" - Sinéad Cranna
Richard Hampson
Sammy
Fiona Durning
Samara
Allegra Barontini
Matthew Tuite
Celine
Sandy Andrès
