Category: Korean

AlbuquerqueAsianClosed in 2020Gone But Not ForgottenKoreanNational ChainNew Mexico

Bonchon – Albuquerque, New Mexico (CLOSED)

Gil Garduno12:50 AM

Hawkeye Pierce had a very unique (and very sarcastic) take on the Korean War: “I just don’t know why they’re shooting at us. All we want to do is bring them democracy and white bread. Transplant the American dream. Freedom. Achievement. Hyperacidity. Affluence. Flatulence. Technology. Tension. The inalienable right to an early coronary sitting at your desk while plotting to stab your boss in the back. That’s entertainment.” History has shown there was prophecy in his words. After thousands of years of civilization, South Korea now has donuts, quesadillas, pizza, cheeseburgers, fried chicken nuggets and all the fast foods which…

AsianClosed in 2018Gone But Not ForgottenJapaneseKoreanRamenVietnamese

Nanami Noodle House – Albuquerque, New Mexico (CLOSED)

Gil Garduno3:13 PM

If Chinese superstitions have any credence, some of us may not be long for this world. Chinese superstitions posit that long noodles symbolize a long life. Ostensibly, if you cut your noodles, you’re cutting your life short. Instead of cutting your noodles, the Chinese advocate slurping up long noodles without breaking them. When it comes to noodles, the Chinese should know. After all, they’ve been preparing noodles longer than any culture in the world. In 2005, archaeologists uncovered a 4,000-year-old bowl of noodles in Northeast China, the earliest empirical evidence of noodles ever found. Buried under ten feet of sediment,…

AlbuquerqueKoreanRating: Excellent

Arirang Oriental Market – Albuquerque, New Mexico

Gil Garduno5:01 PM

“Cuisine is the tactile connection we have to breathing history. History and culture offer us a vibrant living society that we taste through cuisine. All cuisine is a reflection of the society from which it emanates … in the end cuisine is the result of culture” – Clifford Wright If cuisine is the result of culture, then it can certainly be stated that music is the expressive language of that culture. Well before the advent of the written word, music was used to tell stories, impart wisdom, express ideas, share emotions and convey the history and culture of the civilization.…

AlbuquerqueClosed in 2020Gone But Not ForgottenKoreanRating: Excellent

Fu Yuang – Albuquerque, New Mexico

Gil Garduno5:12 PM

“I’ve eaten a river of liver and an ocean of fish! I’ve eaten so much fish, I’m ready to grow gills! I’ve eaten so much liver, I can only make love if I’m smothered in bacon and onions” ~ Hawkeye Pierce MASH 4077, Korea FROM THE FU YUANG FACEBOOK PAGE: Our Dear Fu Yuang friends, we closed the doors for business on Saturday, November 21st, 2020. 😢 Mia is no longer able to meet the physical demands of operating the restaurant. We tried to sell the restaurant to many prospective buyers, with no luck due to COVID-19. We want to…

AlbuquerqueJapaneseKoreanRating: GoodSushi

Sakura Sushi & Grill – Albuquerque, New Mexico

Gil Garduno4:08 AM

In describing “food porn,” The New Yorker once wrote, “The point is to get very close to what you are filming, so close that you can see an ingredient’s “pores” which then triggers some kind of Neanderthal reflex.  If you’re flicking from channel to channel and come upon food that has been shot in this way, you will be hardwired as a human being to stop, look, and bring it back to your cave.” Madison Avenue, which is virtually synonymous with advertising, recognizes the impact food porn has on the American consumer.  That’s why we’re bombarded with television commercials and…

IllinoisKoreanRating: Very GoodUnited States

Kimchy Cabana – Niles, Illinois

Gil Garduno3:18 PM

To the unenculturated, the pungent emanations of Korean kimchy (pickled and fermented cabbage) are malodorous and offensive to the olfactory senses. To the Korean people, however, kimchy is so much more than a national dish; it’s a family treasure handed down from one generation to another over the millenniums. The influx of Korean war brides following the Korean War and beyond has meant the gradual introduction into the American mainstream of kimchy and other Korean culinary arts. Having experienced Korean cuisine from coast to coast, it has always impressed me to find Korean food remarkably consistent–usually at least good and…

AlbuquerqueClosed in 2018Gone But Not ForgottenKorean

Korean Barbecue House – Albuquerque, New Mexico (CLOSED)

Gil Garduno1:48 AM

For dining patrons in the know, the 2002 closure of the Fu Shou House was one of the most heartrending moves in the Duke City restaurant scene. In the Korean B.B.Q. House, Fu Shou was reborn. While the Fu Shou proprietors don’t own the Korean B.B.Q. House, they did hold court in the kitchen for a while after the restaurant’s launch crafting the delicious entrees for which they were renown. Another chef now stewards the kitchen, but has maintained the high standards of his predecessors. Initially serving both Korean and Chinese food, this Central Avenue restaurant now focuses exclusively on…