Tako

Tako

3030 T Street, Sacramento, CA 95816. (916) 346-4933.

Date night this week didn't start out too great. Mr.S. had a bad day at work and showed up being 50 shades of grumpy. So to lighten the mood, I suggested we keep dinner casual and check out the new Korean taco joint that recently set up shop at the retro-looking gas station at T and Alhambra. Tako (the name's a play on the words "taco" and "Korean") has been driving me crazy in the two weeks it's been open. Since I drive down T Street at least once a day, I can usually smell the enticing aroma of their marinated meats grilling from a block away and it makes my mouth water every time.

We showed up around 7pm and decided to place a to-go order (the weather was so nice, we wanted to take our dinners over to McKinley Park). We decided to go with the bulgogi mini burgers ($6) and an order of tacos (2 spicy pork and one fire chicken, $7). Considering it wasn't a very large order, we were surprised how long it took to get our food...in fact, after awhile I was kind of wondering if they had perhaps lost our order. But nope, they finally came through. We chalked the lengthy wait time up to the place being new and possibly working out it's kinks. Now based on what I'd been hearing from friends, I was really looking forward to sinking my teeth into some tasty fusion food so we skedaddled over to the park. Once we got situated at a picnic table and shooed away the pushy squirrels, we dived in. The bulgogi burgers turned out to be mediocre. The bulgogi didn't really hold up to the bulgogi I've had in the Korean restaurants on Folsom Boulevard. It wasn't fatty or dry, it just lacked flavor. Also, there seemed to be a lot of bun and by my second burger I felt like I was mostly eating a giant wad of bread sprinkled with cheese. The tacos though- they're worth going back for! The meat/slaw/sauce ratio was perfect and Tako's take on "spicy" wasn't kill-your-taste buds hot; in fact, the sauce had a nice, sweet undertone. There were three street tacos to an order and they let us mix and match the meats (marinated steak, short ribs, spicy pork, chicken, fire chicken or tofu)- a recent change, which is a nice touch. Everything we had tasted fresh, no nuking at this place.

Helpful Hint: be sure to grab plenty of napkins, the tacos do get a wee bit messy...ok, a lot messy. :)

All in all, we liked Tako. The owners did a nice job of sprucing up the run down historic gas station. There's indoor and outdoor seating, service is friendly, they use cardboard for their takeout orders and street parking isn't too difficult in the evening (they also have a very small parking lot to the side). Additionally, they take plastic and are open until 10pm--score! I would love to see the tortillas warmed up and the cheese melted- but hey, I realize they're working with a limited amount of cooking space. Hopefully, I'll get back there soon- I'm interested in trying out their short rib tacos and kimchi quesadilla next...both menu items looked intriguing.

On a side note, I hadn't been to McKinley Park's rose garden in quite awhile (it used to be my go to place for reading). The renovation looks fantastic- check it out! It's a great place to take a date...all the roses are in bloom right now and there are comfy benches where you can sit, chat and hold hands.

Sarang Bang

Sarang Bang

3631 Southport Drive, Sacramento, CA, 95826. (916) 368-2277

Just over a year ago, my buddy Jeff (who's my go-to-guy for Korean restaurant recs) introduced me to Sarang Bang and somehow it's become one of my favorite Korean places in town despite it's drawbacks...and the place does have some major drawbacks- it's seedy location and limited hours of operation mainly. First off, it's located off of Kiefer in a Rosemont strip mall, next to The Mushroom dive bar...not the safest part of town for a girl and her fork to be roaming about. Add to that, it's only open at night. But hey the good part is, it's open late...really late--like 2am late. In fact, Mr. S. and I have often subbed in Sarang Bang as our late night "Korean Denny's" when we've needed some midnight chow after attending a party or event.

Make it in from the creepy parking lot and you're golden. The establishment's weathered wooden booths covered in graffiti illuminated by dimly lit lanterns gives the place a cozy, comfortable feel like you've stumbled upon some odd little out-of-the-way pub. Two little old Korean ladies usually run the show...sometimes they chat with you; other times, you merely get a slight nod and a request to take your order...it's the luck of the draw. Mr. S. and I usually have a good time watching and discussing the Korean music videos or variety shows while we sip our barley tea and wait for our meals. It tends to be pretty quiet in there, but sometimes some soju-soaked revelers stumble in post-karaoke and things get a little noisy.

The restaurant's menu is pretty extensive (and includes many photos) and they serve the whole menu up to closing. On my first visit with friends, I tried the yangnyeom (spicy/sweet fried) chicken, haemul pajeon (seafood pancakes), dukbokki (stir-fried rice cakes) and all were tasty but on my return visits, Mr.S. and I have gotten into the routine of ordering the bulgogi and omurice. (Now, I know what you're thinking omurice isn't Korean...but at 12am...it's the perfect midnight snack, don't you know? And hey, it's on their menu!) Anyhow, their bulgogi I think is some of the better bulgogi I've had in Sac. Tender and not fatty or too sweet. One order of bulgogi, one order of omurice and the banchan and we're good to go.  Way better than any other eatery burning the midnight oil in the River City and quite filling.

*soju, rice/plum wine, beer only
*$20 minimum purchase to use plastic
*if business is slow, sometimes they close early

Screw the Leaves, Visit a Taco Truck

Screw the Leaves, Visit a Taco Truck

Did you spend the first Saturday of December raking leaves?

We didn't! We were busy eating korean tacos from Seoul on Wheels at SactoMoFo #3. Mmmm! (Both Mr. S. and I loved the meat in the tacos but agreed there should have been less lettuce...I would have preferred to have seen some kimichi or asian slaw in it's place but they were quite good nevertheless.)

Hope you too were able to stop by and catch some of the tasty delights offered at the mobile truck festival located under the W Street freeway yesterday.

Pine Tree House

Pine Tree House

Dolsot Bibimbap  

9205-D Folsom Blvd, Sacramento, CA 95826. (916) 366-3323

For some reason, everytime I go to mention Pine Tree House (a Korean restaurant) I get mixed up and call it Pioneer House (an old folks home...um, senior living community in Midtown) which inevitably earns me a confused look from whomever I'm speaking to.  The food there is anything but slow or old, so I'm not sure what the deal with my early onset Alzheimers is. Name issues aside, Pine Tree House located in Sacramento's "Little Korea" (the portion of Folsom Blvd that runs from La Riveria to Zinfandel that houses several Korean restaurants and shops) is a solid place to grab Korean fare. It's clean, the service is friendly, prices are reasonable and the food is remarkably good.
 
On my first visit, I went with a friend that spoke fluent Korean and he took the helm. He ordered us some bulgogi, a seafood-tofu stew and some pajeon. We started with the pajeon (a Korean pancake made of eggs, rice flour and scallions served with a dipping sauce), which was good. It was light and fluffy and a nice dish to balance out the highly flavored entrees we ordered. The bulgogi (tender bits beef marinated in a soy-based sauce served on an iron plate) was tender, well marinated and not overly fatty like at some establishments. And our last dish, the seafood-tofu stew warmed us up quickly-- it packed some heat and had an ample amount of juicy claims and mussels, which made me happy.
 
My second visit to Pine Tree House was with a friend, who like me, spoke absolutely no Korean. We decided to go with three appetizers and one entree so we could get a nice variety of dishes. Our waitress smiled at our order...little did we know, the appetizers we chose were huge. We ended up with enough food to feed the Korean army and then some! (Side note: Since we used the point and order method at dinner, I had to ask one of my Korean friends afterwards what the names of the dishes I had were called.)  
 
Our meal started with about a dozen banchan dishes (an assortment of fermented vegetables and custards). Our waitress was kind enough to explain what all of them were and cut our kimchi up (with kitchen scissors) for us. We then moved on to some kimchi pajeon and jap chae. I liked this version of pajeon better than the plain version, the kimchi gave it more flavor. The jap chae (cellophane noodles tossed with sesame oil, soy sauce and mushrooms) was delicious. The noodles stuck together in a giant clump but the taste was smooth and clean. We then fumbled through the special of the night - a platter of yangnyeom gejang (miniature crabs served cold with sliced jalapenos and a spicy/sweet chili powder sauce). The sauce was good but the crabs were a bit difficult to contend with (even after we asked the waitress what the proper way to eat it was). I'm sure the staff had a good chuckle when one of the crabs went rogue and tried to escape by exploding all over my friend's sweater.These incidents must happen fairly regularly as the waitress was over pretty quickly with wet napkins to help sop up the mess. Our last dish, was the traditional bulgogi...which was just as tasty as my last visit. Our waitress concluded our meal with a cup of complimentary sujeonggwa (a punch made from dried persimmon, ginger, peppercorns and cinnamon, served cold and garnished with ice) which was wonderful. I'm definitely going to have to learn how to recreate that drink for the summertime...maybe even an alcoholic version.
 
Overall, a messy but pleasing meal. If you haven't hit up "Little Korea" or are just looking for a new Korean restaurant to try, I strongly urge you to stop by Pine Tree House. Just a bit of advice-- don't wear white if you plan to eat the crab, those things are slippery!


March 2012

I've returned several times since my initial visits to Pine Tree House and each time the staff has been courteous and the food fresh. I've also found that they prepare the best dolsot bibimbap in town and it's become my go to dish when I visit there.

Oz

Oz

3343 Bradshaw Rd, Sacramento, CA 95827, (916) 362-9292

It was a dark and stormy night, when... Ok, ok, maybe it wasn't stormy but it sure as heck was dark (and cold) tonight; when my buddy J., my hapa partner in crime M. and I decided to get together for some tasty Korean cuisine and catch up on our lives. J. brilliantly suggested a Korean BBQ restaurant by his home. As I turned off of Hwy 50 on Bradshaw and was preparing myself to drive at a granny's pace and squint through my windshield to find this Korean eatery, I was surprised to find myself suddenly confronted by a mammoth of a building (perhaps a Ho-Jo's in another life?), bedecked in miles of twinkle lights ... welcome to Oz , folks. Like a beacon in the dark, it's hard to miss.

As you walk up to the behemoth structure, you're enveloped in a wonderful heady aroma of garlic, sesame and soy. Just follow this delicious scent to the foyer. You'll find yourself in a spacious lobby decorated in muted earth tones with walls that are inscribed with short poems about the glory of Tahoe. There's plenty of benches and even a large table to wait at in the lobby but there was no need to tonight. My resourceful friends had already secured a table up front. I was the last to show, but within milliseconds of me sitting our server David materialized to take my drink order and drop off some tasty banchan (small side dishes) to be shared. Yelp Tip: During the week (Monday -Thursday nights), Oz offers an all you can grill and eat special for $16.99 per person, served family-style. This is a great deal! Seriously, I love meat as much as the next person and can tear it up like a T-Rex but I ate ridiculous amounts of meat tonight (although I think my dinner companions still out ate me). The food just never stopped coming. The first platter of raw meat that was brought out is a carnivore's dream- a potpourri of marinated galbi (beef short ribs), brisket, pork belly (bacon) and chicken. Once you finish that platter, you can request more of any of the meats specifically. Hands down our favorite was the juicy brisket and we requested encores of that several times. Now I myself dislike what I have dubbed "fatty" meat, but my dining companions chowed happily on the chewy pork belly. In fact, M. quipped, "Everything's better with bacon!" Condiments are graciously provided and consist of whole garlic cloves, fiery sliced chilis, crisp ssam (lettuce leaves) and a salty red bean paste. We were also armed with a pair of large tongs and heavy duty scissors to assist us with our dining adventure.

Dinner was wonderful. Our server, David, provided top notch, impeccable service. There was never a want for anything. More meat-poof, it was there! More water-poof, it's filled! Dirty dishes- poof, they're gone! We never had to ask for anything, as though he was ESP-driven David anticipated our every want. Also, since he was training to bartend David offered our table a free "house" drink each to sample if we'd take a short survey afterwards. Being the lushes that we are, we eagerly volunteered to be his guinea pigs (yeah, like you really have to twist my arm when it comes to accepting a free drink).The sample drink turned out to be a full sized cocktail that tasted like a day at the beach... seriously...it could best be described as a coconutty mojito. It was oh, so tasty and the sweetness balanced the garlic-infused meal perfectly.

Filled to the gills with a delicious meal, my only last desire was a fluffy pillow so that I could curl up and take a nice nap by the warm grill. Like a content cat, I was purring after my dining experience at Oz and dreaming of my next visit.