Korean Village Restaurant used to be located along Adriatico St., in Malate, and Lolo Alejandro would take the whole clan there for special occasions in the mid-eighties. Continuing with that tradition, Vicky decided to celebrate her birthday at the restaurant's new location along Nakpil St., just around the corner from the old spot. We got in at 6:30 pm, and the parking areas were already full; diners kept on coming and going till we left at 9 pm, the restaurant is quite popular. We started off with the customary appetizers, some dumplings, a plate of sushi, and had three different varieties of hot soup--mixed with miso, tofu and fish cake.
The BBQ chicken is really the top seller of the restaurant (the marinade must be a closely guarded secret). Monique and the Callars swear that this was one of the best they have tasted, pre-flavored with a slightly sweet sauce. The pork strips, however, were not salted and would take the taste of the sauce you dipped them in. These liempo strips were perfect as filling for the lettuce wraps.
Of course we had pa-chon, which is like an omelet, some beef stew (Andi finished a whole bowl by herself), chap chae and bibimbop. I, however, didn't dare put some bibimbop sauce on top of the rice dish, as Bryan had informed me that this was super spicy.
The food was really good for the P400/person that we spent (and that included the obligatory Melona ice cream bars for dessert). The interiors of the restaurant, however, clearly showed that some renovation work would give the place better scores. Lighting seemed lacking, and the dark brown walls accentuated the dim and cramped feeling. Exhaust vents were evident, but still, much can be done to improve air circulation.
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