Myung Ga

He said:

I don’t know much about Korean cuisine except that I really like Bulgogi, so we decided to try Myung Ga. A little before noon, we were the first lunch guests to arrive at the restaurant located just around the corner from the Maverik Center. A waitress soon met us at the reception kiosk, where we admired the tall floral arrangement and hanging paper lanterns. Then we took a seat at a three-sided booth.

As we reviewed the worn paper menus, we thought we might need a guide. Although the menus were printed in both English and Korean, we didn’t recognize the names of most of the dishes. A few pictures on the menu helped a little. I got the sense that the selection catered to authentic Korean tastes.

The Lunch portion of the menu had only three items. Two had pictures, but not the option that I might have considered. I decided that “Lunch Box” was too vague, even with its “Choice of beef, chicken or pork.” That’s okay; I found the Pork Bulgogi, so I knew I would be fine. It didn’t have a lunch price, but as I would soon discover, it included much more than a typical lunch offering.

Kathy didn’t recognize anything on the menu, so she asked me to order for her. Because I knew that she would appreciate plenty of vegetables, I ordered the Bibimbap for her.

We didn’t have to wait long for our meals. First, the waitress placed five small bowls of vegetables in the middle of our table. If I understood the menu correctly, these accompanied the Bulgogi, as the Bibimbap already had plenty of vegetables in it. Nonetheless, I was happy to share, but Kathy left the spicy bowls for me. I love the Korean tradition of serving such a variety of small side dishes. I believe it’s called Banchan. Traditionally, the number of dishes served depends on one’s rank. The king or emperor would get a 12-banchan setting, while other members of the noble families would get 9. I suspect economics had more to do with my 5-banchan setting than rank did. My banchan included boiled bean sprouts, kimchi, steamed broccoli, spicy pickled cucumbers, and soy-marinated potatoes, all served cold. We also got two bowls of clear miso broth with plenty of tofu in it.

Shortly after, my spicy pork Bulgogi arrived with a bowl of white rice. We knew it was on the way when we heard the sizzle of its hot cast iron skillet. The generous serving had little enhancement aside from its marinade. Besides a small bed of onions, it contained nothing but the pork. Yet, it possessed great flavor. Its spiciness was mild, and the marinade gave it a hint of sweetness. In fact, now that I think about it, several of the foods had a bit of sweetness to them. The spicy pickled cucumbers had a delightfully sweet contrast to the chilis that gave it some kick. The soy-marinated potatoes were sweet with no spice. The pork continued the contrast of sweet and spicy. Yet, all of these pulled off the right balance.

I sampled the broth and tofu, but didn’t find it inspiring. That’s okay; I enjoyed the banchan and the bulgogi and did not leave hungry.

She said:

When Brian pulled into Myung Ga’s parking lot, I was a bit dubious about it because it was unfamiliar. He told me it was Korean, which is cuisine that’s out of my comfort zone. The first thing that comes to mind is lots of meat and rice. I’m not overly fond of either, to be honest.

Anyway, we were greeted cheerfully by the hostess/waitress and led to a large booth in the far corner of the restaurant. She left us to peruse our menus and surroundings. I took it all in: large beigey-blush vinyl booths ringing the raised perimeter of the spacious room, with wooden tables and chairs grouped together in the center. Above the booths hung red glass pendant lights, but white lantern fixtures looked down on the tables-and-chairs section below us. The walls were each a different color—red, brown, green, and eggplant—and were adorned with Asian-inspired artwork. In the background, K-Pop music played upbeat tunes. I wondered if the male voices might belong to BTS.

So, feeling overwhelmed by the menu, I asked Brian to order for me. He chose the Bibimbap that came with beef, rice, a fried egg, zucchini, radish, spinach, bean sprouts, and mushrooms. Oh, and a garnish of seaweed. Everything tasted okay except for the seaweed. However, there was something about it all that I couldn’t quite pinpoint, a slightly bitter, burnt taste to my food that I couldn’t identify. I wondered if it was deliberate, perhaps the way it’s traditionally prepared.

Although it wasn’t my favorite, I was pleasantly surprised that our food arrived quickly, and I was happy to be served by such a friendly server.

Conclusion:

The Myung Ga appears to cater to authentic Korean tastes, which are a bit unfamiliar to us. Brian enjoyed the Pork Bulgogi, but Kathy was a bit tentative about her Beef Bibimbap.