Our little grunge-ite Inner West precinct of Newtown/Enmore seems to be lacking something. It seems if you want Thai for lunch or dinner you have thousands of choices. Okay, make that 25. Why so many!? Now if you want Korean you have all but one choice. One choice. What’s that all about? Haymarket has its share, Strathfield and Eastwood also have a decent selection yet Newtown only has room for one.
This one place, Ssam Korean BBQ, has been running for many years now and is consistently busy. The front of the restaurant is deceptively small as it only accommodates about six round stainless steel bbq tables, however, if you wander into the large room out the back that resembles a covered garage the bbq’s sprawl for miles.
The menu is simple and has a limited selection of marinated meats and vegetables for your closely-watched interaction with the fire in the middle of the table. The staff here, it seems, assume everyone is a novice when it comes to barbequeing your lovely bits of flesh as they constantly help themselves to your tongs and scissors and fiddle with your food. If you have no idea of how to look after grilling meat this is very helpful, but if you know your stuff it gets damn annoying. Twice I told the guy we were ok with doing it ourselves, if there came a third I was throwing chilli sauce in his eyes.
There aren’t many starters to speak of though I can vouch for the tasty little fried dumplings. Is that eye-rolling I hear? The pastry is quite thin and oily yet the filling of pork and vegetable is pretty good, and yes, there is one missing in my photo as somebody snatched one before I could get my photo in.
Several small bowls of pickled sprouts, kimchi, cabbage salad, pickled cucumber etc are scattered around the table as usual condiments for the construction of your meaty (or vege) lettuce cup roll. On this particular visit we both went for pork: one plate of belly strips and the other was marinated in soy sauce and a touch of sugar. A delicious, relatively quick and healthy meal that leaves your clothes smelling of smoke. Well maybe just here as the exhausts never seem to work properly. One of the nice finishing touches is the complimentary bowl of cold cinnamon and ginger tea with a lone pinenut bobbing about. Lovely.
{ 7 comments… read them below or add one }
Fantastic grilling shot.
The lighting is splendid!
I don’t know Korean food but it looks appetizing with the grilled meat and dumplings; it would have been fun to hear a tale of your fight with the Korean server, over the grill, very lethal, very exciting.
i’m always on the look out for a good korean bbq. did your clothes smell of bbq after, always seems to happen when i try it. i like the look of your made up lettuce and pork yum!
I think it is impossible to do Korean BBQ without smelling like it afterwards. I find the smoky smell even soaks into my tong holding hand. This place looks good.
Hmmm, nice place for Korean that’s not in the city. Thanks John.
i love this place.
they have the best kim chi and that cinnamon tea with the little pine nuts makes a great dessert.
i have a feeling you and i live very close to each other.
LOL! “throwing chilli in his eyes” too funny! I’m looking fir a nice Korean BBQ for Mr’s birthday as the kids love it, but we don’t feel like traveling halfway around the world to Parra or Carlingford for the buffet-style experience. Will short list this one. Thanks!