Tommy C.
Yelp
Songhak BBQ (B- or 3.5 star) : KBBQ restaurant (non-AYCE) with very fresh meats and a broader selection of food choices than most KBBQ restaurants, but flavors seemed tame and won't be added to my "revisit" list.
For my daughter's Christmas break back home, she requested two meal types: hotpot, and Korean BBQ. And today, we checked off the second box.
I'm not super familiar with Korean food, but based on previous experience, places that don't offer AYCE typically give higher quality meat. Given I'm not looking to gorge myself with meat, I specifically looked for restaurants that offer a la carte BBQ and serve other dishes as well. I ended up selecting Songhak as it was one of the highest rated non-AYCE spots, and the online wait list that put me in line before driving cemented the decision.
I was lucky today, finding a parking spot was relatively easy. The restaurant itself is pretty standard, nothing fancy. Floors were slippery so you know it's authentically Asian. Service was rather spotty. I rarely expect great service in Asian restaurants, but forgetting basic items like eating and cooking utensils multiple times, and having to ask for warm water three times before we got it was even weaker than my realistic expectations. But that's okay, been to much worse in Asia - at least no fingers in our waters
Dolsot Bibimbop with spicy pork (B- ) : Bowl was nicely super hot, giving the rice some char, and vegetables and pork were plentiful, but felt weak on all the key flavors, lacking heat, savoriness & sweetness. And the pork didn't have any char on it. All the ingredients tasted fresh, and adding a touch of the sweet soy definitely helped, but as my favorite Korean dish, it didn't meet up to my expectations.
Soontofu with beef brisket (C+ ) : Heat and nothing else - kind of strange. I'm used to a more acidic flavor mixed with the heat, a little along the lines of a tomyum soup, but not this time. The bowl looked scrumptious and all the ingredients tasted fresh, but why so bland?
Prime combo 1: Beef brisket, wagyu beef belly, pork jowl (B ) : Definitely the highlight of the meal. Everything tasted very fresh. The pork jowl was scrumptious, super juicy and nicely complemented with a little salt & sweet soy. The beauty of fatty beef, you can cook it to your heart's content with lots of crunchy char, yet still tastes rich and juicy, and you know your arteries are clogging up but hey, you only live once.
Songhak is the 5th Korean restaurant I've visited in SD over 2.5 years - the others being Woomiok, K-Cuisine, Olleh BBQ, and Kangnam BBQ - but since I rarely crave Korean food, I think I'll wait for my travels to Canada or Asia before tackling Korean restaurants again. That is, unless one of my two bosses mandates we go again while in SD.
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Food Grading Scale:
A+: Life changing. You remember these bites for the rest of your life. Occurs very infrequently and when it does, you'll know it. You don't even know how to further improve it with a magic wand.
A: Wow! Excellent. You felt happy biting into it. You're considering whether it's life changing, but know it misses the mark.
A-: Very very good. Whatever it is, it's one of the best, but you can think of further improvements.
B+: Very good. Very enjoyable, not to the point of "impressive," but worth revisiting.
B: Good. A solid example of whatever it is, offering enjoyment, but not enough for making an effort to get.
B-: Not bad. If in a pinch to eat something, this offers some enjoyment and is a reasonable option.
C+: Mediocre plus. Pretty average, but with one or two positive characteristics you can identify.
C: Mediocre. "Meh". Very average. Not bad enough to make you angry, but nothing good about it at all.
C-: Bad. You recognize it for what it is, but a very bad rendition. Your foodie self is a little pissed, and feeling like a dummy you ordered it.
D: Awful. Whoever cooked it should be ashamed of themself. Somehow, you still managed to swallow a bite.
F: WTF is this? Inedible. One chew, you had to spit it out. Fire the chef.