Korean food with a South African twist is how Brent Meersmann describes the food experience at Galbi.
You cook directly over a charcoal grill at the centre of a table fitted with an extractor hood, the effectiveness of which varies between places. One comes out of some Korean restaurants feeling distinctly sooty.
Two enterprising young South Africans, Coenraad Groenewald and Louis Smit, have brought the first Korean braai to Cape Town. They taught English in South Korea and then opened the rather understated Galbi Restaurant in 2011.
You enter through a downmarket shopping mall on 210 Long Street or, after 5pm, from an obscure little alley off Bloem Street. Either way, it is not the most attractive entry. On a rainy night, you pass pots in the alley filled with floating cigarette butts.
The interior is rough and ready, with backless benches and absurd heavy metal music blaring. It’s a noisy, young place, though it attracts a diverse crowd, including staff and office parties.
A good way to start the evening is with a small drinks platter with shots of saké, soju (Korea’s trademark alcohol), makgeoli (a milky coloured Korean rice beverage) and herby baeck se ju (literally “one-hundred-years wine” because, it is said, drink a shot a day and you will live to be 100).
You can order à la carte or choose one of the Galbi sets (R230 to R250 and serves two). There is also a vegetarian option.
The fusion set has as its main ingredients a 100g fillet, a 100g lamb skewer, a 100g rump steak and a springbok sosatie. The safari set includes ostrich, kudu, warthog and zebra sirloin, as well as fresh corn on the cob. Or you can stick to Korean.
Traditionally, meats for barbecue are either bulgogi (ribeye or sirloin) or galbi (beef short rib). At Galbi, they serve beef cut like a minute steak and spicy marinated pork.
Accompaniments include a Korean mashed potato salad. We also ordered some tasty twice-fried sweet potato strips with a coriander and jalapeño dipping sauce.
The coals are hot enough to give the meat a pleasant caramelisation without becoming overdone. Once cooked, you cut the meat into strips with a pair of scissors. You place these in a cos lettuce leaf in the palm of your hand, and then you select from the panchan or side dishes, adding rice, sesame seed spinach salad (sigumchi), segments of green onion, and top it off with kimchi (spicy Korean fermented cabbage).
The meal is finished off with lashings of doenjjang, a savoury soup with potato, baby marrow, tofu and chilli.
Galbi is a friendly, fun place for a casual night out, bridging braai with Korean culture.
Galbi, 210 Long Street, Cape Town 8001. Phone 021 424 3030.
For full report by Brent Meersmann: Mail & Guardian.
