Month: April 2007

When you think Korean food you usually think of the traditional BBQ meats flavored with a distinctive sweet yet garlicy marinade.  But I enjoy a different type of Korean food.

Tofu soups became popular in their native country during the Korean War.  It is basically a tofu soup/stew with a rich soup base and silken tofu.  The soup usually has pork, beef, seafood, kimchee, veggies, and/or a variety of other ingredients.  They are served in individual “hot pots” and come to the table boiling hot.  Crack a fresh raw egg into the mixture and the bubbling hot soup cooks the egg right in the bowl, thickening the stew/soup and adding protein.  The Tofu House (“So Gong Dong Tofu House”) on El Camino in Palo Alto serves various tofu soups, along with bibimbob (classic Korean rice bowl in an earthenware bowl with rice, egg, veggies, and various marinated meats) and Korean BBQ dishes as well.

The Tofu House serves some of the best tofu soups in the Bay Area and is one of my favorite places to visit for a satisfying, inexpensive, exotic meal on a chilly evening.

I ordered the Kimchee Tofu Soup and my husband had the Combo Tofu Soup (seafood and meat).  We went on a recent Friday night and the place was packed, but the wait was only about 10 minutes.  Good thing because we were starving!

Don’t expect anything other than bland tables and chairs and completely stark white walls inside.  But I’ve heard it said that the color is in the food, and that’s absolutely the case here.

Yelp.com photo by Kake S.

Once you order, they bring a big orange tray of what they call “banchan,” which are little plates (about five or six of them) of savory appetizers to intice the palate before the main course arrives.  The banchan varies from time to time, but will always include a plate of kimchee (the national dish of Korea which is pickled napa cabbage marinated mostly with a heavy dose of vinegar, chilis) that’s spicy and pungent, just like it should be.  Our array of banchan also included pickled cucumbers, soft boiled potatoes with a sweet sesame sauce, mung bean sprouts, and sweet marinated rice noodles with carrots and black pepper.  It’s a wonderful array of colors and tastes.  And if you want more of any of these little dishes, just ask.  They pretty much give you as much as you want.

Now, if you order the tofu soup they’ll also bring you a raw egg and a small bowl of rice.  At most Korean tofu soup restaurants it’s a bowl of white rice, but here they serve you red rice with red beans in it.  It’s just another touch that makes this place better than most.  The red rice makes the tofu soup you’re about to get much heartier.  You basically eat the rice and tofu soup together.

My husband’s Combo Tofu Soup was excellent as usual.  It’s got a mild yet extremely flavorful base.  He enjoyed every single drop and would lick the bowl clean if he could.  It was brimming with fresh seafood flavor from the shrimp and clams that are right in the broth.  Just the right amount of spice gave it kick without competing with the mild seafood flavor.

My Kimchee Tofu Soup was excellent as well.  It’s funny how two dishes that look so similar can taste so completely different.  They both have that bright orangy red broth, but because mine had the distinct vinegary, spicy flavor of kimchee in it, it tasted totally different than my husband’s.  The egg that you crack into the soup adds thickness and just completes the dish overall.  And the napa cabbage adds texture and a slight crunch to the soup with its smooth silken tofu.

There’s something about a nice hot bubbly bowl of goodness chock full of fresh, interesting ingredients to get you excited about your meal.  And with the wide array of banchan they serve you before your entree, it’s easy to look forward to eveything this kitchen puts out. 

But caution: if you enjoy spicy food, order your dish “medium” heat.  Going with the “hot” might just kill you, unless you enjoy that kind of torture.

If you’re looking for something completely different with a little variety and adventure thrown in, this will surely satify that craving.  There’s something so satisfying about it.  And a $20 tab for two doesn’t hurt either.

 Flickr photo by “foodblogger”

Just visited 900 Grayson @ Seventh in Berkeley with pal J. Lo.  I wanted to find a nice place for us to have a birthday brunch before heading over to the massive sale they’re having at Jeremy’s on College & Ashby.  MASSIVE sale. 

My usual choice when trying to find a nice lunch spot in the East Bay is La Note on Shattuck, but we weren’t in the mood to wait an hour for a table.  (It is one of my favorite brunch spots of all time, though.)

We wanted to try something new and I turned to the Chowhound boards to see what I could find.  As I suspected, they suggested La Note, but there was also strong mention of 900 Grayson.  And after checking out their menu, it was a no brainer.

Man did this place live up to the positive reviews!  There was plenty of parking in the area and there was only a 10 minute wait upon our arrival on a late Saturday morning at 11:45am.  First good sign of things to come.

The restaurant itself is incredibly cozy.  It’s basically a house!  The staff was so nice and welcoming (that ALWAYS makes things better) the minute we walked in.  But once we sat down and got the menu, we got excited.

There were several items on the menu we wanted to try, like the “American Idol” (their version of a reuben sandwich), “Miss Piggy and the General” (pulled pork sandwich), and the “Tom Boy” (corned beef hash), all of which we hope to try on another visit soon.  But in the end, I got the “Demon Lover” and J. Lo got the “Time-Life Cookbook” which was the egg omelette w/gouda cheese and gourmet hash browns.

 Pic by J.Lo

J. Lo’s dish was masterfully prepared.  The eggs were perfectly light, fluffy, and delicious.  It had just the right amount of melted gouda in the center, and it didn’t overpower the almost delicate texture of the eggs.  The accompanying hash browns were perfect.  They were fried in a single sheet to a crisp golden brown on both sides with a soft tender center of potato.  And the fuji apple salad made a perfect light accompanyment to the plate.

 Pic by J.Lo

My dish, however, was the complete opposite.  But J. and I both agreed it was the more yummy of the two.  It was also the more unhealthy of the two, unfortunately. 😦  Chicken and waffles is basically what the “Demon Lover” is, but much more sophisticated.  This fried chicken had the perfect light crunch to its skin, and the single buttermilk waffle the two pieces of chicken rested on was delicious.  The slight sweetness of the waffle with the perfectly cooked chicken was a true tasty delight.  The chicken wasn’t oily or greasy (yuck) and the meat was perfectly tender, juicy, and moist (yum).  There’s nothing worse than dry chicken breast when going out to eat.  And the cream gravy was perfect with its flecks of paprika.  A truly decadent dish that’s not for the faint of heart.  But their version was truly impeccable.

And the peach and pineapple aqua frescas we had with our dishes were super yummy, too!

There’s no doubt the food at this place is superb, but it was the cozy setting, affordable prices and unexpectedly friendly service that make a dining experience here one to remember.  And one we hope to relive, soon!

900 Grayson – Berkeley – 510.704.9900