Food and Culture class enjoying Korean food at Sobahn Restaurant. Our menu included Kimbap, Bibimbap, Veggie Pancake, Bulgogi and Spicy Chicken. Of course, we had the traditional side dishes - kimchi, fish cakes, spicy cucumber, bean sprouts, and broccoli/soft tofu.
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| Kimbap |
I really enjoy Korean food and Korean restaurants provide a great place to eat with your family so I really enjoyed Sobahn. The only thing I hadn't tried was the Veggie pancake, which kind of looked and tasted like some sort of hash brown mixture. My absolute favorite Korean food is Bulgogi but I found this Bulgogi to be less flavorful than what I am used to. Maybe that was a way to Americanize the dish, because I am used to the spice and flavors. When my family and I make it at home, we stick with heavy spices and more sauce than the Bulgogi here. I was kind of disappointed with the Bibimbap only since they prepared it before we got there so as it sat there, the rice started to burn to the bottom of the stone bowl. The Kimbap was delicious but I wish they provided more soy sauce. As for the communal side dishes, the cucumber is always my favorite. I already knew that I did not like kimchi so I avoided that. The cold broccoli was interesting, I was not really a fan. Along with the first restaurant, the décor inside fit the culture we were experiencing. The chairs were very interesting because they were smaller and wider. Overall, great experience, loved the food.
ReplyDeleteI am glad that my first time eating Korean food was at the Sobahn restaurant! It was a great experience, everyone was so nice and all the food was hot when served. My favorite part was the Kimbap, I took a lot as leftovers to enjoy as lunch the next day! I also really enjoyed the spicy chicken, the sauce mixed with the white rice was delicious. My favorite side dish was the kimchi, the spice to it was good, but overall the side dishes complemented the spicy chicken and beef well.
ReplyDeleteI find the whole Korean table manners interesting, it is mainly geared towards showing respect to the elders. For example, waiting until the eldest eats first and serving drinks to the eldest first with both hands. I think the concept of showing respect is important and should be mirrored in American culture.
I will definitely be going back in the near future with friends to try more Korean plates. Besides the food, I really enjoyed the company of the students I ate with, they were humorous and helped improve my chopstick skills a bit.
Once again, thank you for the opportunity.
The Korean Restaurant wasn't what I expected. Everything on the table was mostly veggies, and I don't eat vegetables at all. So not like Ethiopian food where the food I tried mostly everything on the table. I didn't touch nothing at the Korean restaurant. I started off eating rice only with the chop stick. Which was very hard to use, I had a difficult time using the chopstick, my classmate tried to teach me but it didn't work. But once the bulgogi came out, and I tasted it, my heart melted. I really don't eat beef so to have some with so much flavor was delicious. I ate the beef from both platters and the bimimbap. I was using the chopsticks to eat this food, but it was so good I started using the spoon to eat. I didn't have the patience to eat with the chopsticks, it was really hard to grab rice and enough meat at the same time. The spicy chicken wasn't as good as the bulgogi, to me it didn't have flavor. It wasn't spicy either, I only had one serving of it. The beef really had me wanting to go to PF Changs and eat dinner, I really needed more.
ReplyDeleteTenka Stringer
My first time eating Korean food was yesterday when we visited the Sobahn restaurant. And I might add it was a great experience I might add. Walking in restaurant it was a very quiet and up close experience on what it would be like to eat in Korean. For once the chop sticks, was something new and something that I couldn’t get the hang of. My favorite side dish was the kimchi, it had a very good flavor to it and it reminded me of my favorite vegetable cabbage. Surprisingly the veggie pancake was pretty good to me with the sauce, it reminded me of a sweet healthy desert. The two dishes that I enjoyed the most was the spicy chicken and the bulgogi over the white rice. The bulgogi was sweet and the beef was very tender, while the spicy chicken sauce was an important part in the taste with that dish. Also the Korean table rules were very interesting and it shows the amount of respect they have for one another in that country. For instance, letting the oldest person at the table eat first and the fact that no one pours their own drinks. I feel a lot of more countries should show the respect that the Korean people exhibit at a dinner setting. In the future I will definitely be going back to the Sobahn restaurant in the near future.
ReplyDeleteTerrell Abernathy
Yesterday was my first experience going to a Korean restaurant, and I must say despite how picky of an eater I am I actually enjoyed it. The atmosphere in the Sobahn restaurant was very welcoming and it was a nice place to eat at. I had no idea what to expect with the taste of Korean food, but I actually found some dishes that I liked and would eat again. I enjoyed the bulgogi with the white rice, as well as the chicken with vegetables. I also surprisingly enjoyed the broccoli. I was not aware that there was tofu mixed with the broccoli until after I had finished eating, and if I would have known that beforehand I probably would not have given it a chance. I was not a big fan of the kimchi. I normally like cabbage, but I think the fermented flavor turned me away. I liked using the chopsticks for picking up the meat, but I was not very good at using them so I mainly ended up using my spoon to eat. I would definitely recommend Sobahn restaurant and other Korean restaurants to my friends and encourage them to have an open mind to the food.
ReplyDelete-McKenna Mendenhall
The visit to the Sobahn restaurant was attended with great reservation. I know absolutely nothing about this culture but still somehow created a delusional preconceived perception of what this variety of food would taste like. I have heard from other Americans who have lived in Korea that Kimchi is very, not good. :) Though squeamishly reluctant to try it, I did. I was almost confused.... It was really good! I don't think I could eat it for breakfast but good nonetheless. The Bugolgi was great and very close to home in flavor. It was nice to have a comfortable and familiar food choice in the mix. The veggie pancake was not very pancake-like in texture. I wasn't a big fan of that one. The spicy chicken was super fantastic and everything went great with the rice. The cucumber salad was good too. The spicy is present in almost everything which works out undeservingly well for me. Overall it was a great interaction with friendly fabulous service. I would have never tried this food but for this involvement and will hopefully continue to get out of this tiny little box of familiarity that I have been complacent in far too long.
ReplyDeleteYesterday was my first time eating Korean food, and it was quite different. Especially with all the rules you have to follow, while eating at a Korean restaurant. Such as using your two hands for everything, which signifies respect for who's serving you, or around you. It was a great experience, I actually liked most of what I tried, but there was somethings that I wasn't use to, and I may have to try it more than once. Like the seaweed. I could tell that it would be something I'd eat, if I had it every day or on a regular basis. Also what they eat out of, I'm used to eating out of a much larger dish. Even putting all that I'm going to eat on one big plate, rather than having to eat little by little by putting so much food on the plate at a time. Also the environment was quite different as well, it was very quiet. As if we were to go to Buffalo Wild Wings it'll be much more going on, but for the most part it was peaceful and calm.
ReplyDelete-Devon young
Going to the Sobahn restaurant was a good experience for me. When we first walked into the restaurant it was quiet, so I felt like the atmosphere of the restaurant was laid back and calm. When we went to sit down I was surprised that all of our side dishes were already sitting out on the spinning glass table. I observed the table setting, and noticed that we all did have both a fork, and metal chopsticks. I didn’t really eat anything with the chopsticks other than the side dishes because I felt like I had to scoop the entrees. I got to stir up the Bibimbap and watched the egg cook as I continued to stir it. We also let the oldest of the table eat first just like the video explained. Most of the things that I ate I enjoyed, or couldn’t tell if I enjoyed. For example, I couldn’t tell if I liked or disliked the Kimchee, but I think it was just because it’s served cold and I’m used to warm cabbage. The fish cake wasn’t good to me at all. After I took a bite I didn’t even want to look at it again. I enjoyed the spicy sauce that was supposed to be mixed into the Bibimbap, it was spicy but not too much. At our table the chicken was the most popular dish (it was gone in about two rotations of the spinning table.) Overall, I would eat Korean food again, and maybe only try to use chopsticks next time.
ReplyDelete-Amara Meeks
The Sobahn Korean restaurant was a complete shock to me everything that I thought I knew going in wasn't what the realty came to be. When I pulled up I was surprise how many times I drove pass it before this class and would have never knew it was there. Then once I went inside I saw the tables already set and as I sat down to settle my self I only had one question "where's the chicken?". The whole time as the sever brought out the food I keep thinking when is the chicken going to come out. The part that shocked me about that is they brought out the beef first and I ending up liking that more then the chicken. That shredded beef was cooked to perfection made me forget all about the bird. The chicken finally came to our table and I had one spoon full and ending up asking is there any more beef. One thing I know when I go there again get the bulgogi beef with extra steamed rice. I sure wish I was in the course that we actually went to Korea cause I would love to try that bulgogi burger at burger king that Eric told me about it sounds amazing.
ReplyDelete-STEWART
This Korean restaurant was very yummy. I loved the atmosphere and the different unique things about it that I have never seen before within Kansas city. The first thing that I thought was unique was when we got there there was a hot bowl that we had to stir up and eat from. It was pretty cool to be able to kinda cook our own meal. I think that this was one of my favorite parts. I find it interesting that some people have the raw meat mixed with there other food in there and cook it within the bowl because I don’t know if i would trust me cooking it in a hot bowl. I would want it cooked on a hot stove. I also liked how we had metal chop sticks. I think that this was unique because you could tell that they are washed and reused similar to other food establishments. I think that my favorite thing in this whole thing was the beef. It was very tasty how it was seasoned. I ate this with the white rice and it was pretty darn tasty. I will be referring this restaurant to my friends and see if they liked it as much as me.
ReplyDelete-Brittney Braxdale
I loved the food at the Korean restaurant. some of the foods were different and new and were exciting to try. of course, the foods that I am use to eating like rice, beef and chicken were great. they were full of flavor and had a different taste than ordinary American foods. I never been to a Korean restaurant so I really wanted to know how much of a difference it had from a local Chinese restaurant. I enjoyed the scenery and table set up. my favorite park of the whole meal was the rice because I used it to try all the new foods. it made the experience easier and made me more comfortable trying other foods. I look forward trying more Korean food in the near future.
ReplyDeleteDavante Frazier
I never had Korean food before visiting the Sobahn restaurant on tuesday. I expected the food to resemble Chinese food and in one way it did. There was emphasis on rice just like in Chinese restaurants but, that was the only similarity I noticed. The food was pretty good, I thought the spicy chicken would be a lot hotter but it was actually sweet. The beef had good flavor and also tasted sweet. I was surprised by how hot the bowl was and how the egg actually cooked inside the bowl. The mix of vegetables, eggs, and beef in the bowl reminded me of stir fry. I liked the food overall, it had great flavor and it was seasoned well. I did not think I would like the Kimchi because I heard it was fermented but, I thought it was good even though it had a strange after taste. One thing that was difficult for me was using chopsticks to eat. I never really mastered using them throughout the meal, which made it harder for me to eat. I couldn't imagine having to use chopsticks everyday. I am extremely grateful for the chance to experience some of the Korean Culture and I would definitely go back to this restaurant.
ReplyDeleteBeing a Kansas City native, I would have never thought to try Korean Food, or even known of any Korean restaurants in the metropolitan area. Sobahn, Korean restaurant was a really good restaurant to eat at in Kansas City. There are many side items that are served with your meal; however, I really enjoyed the beef that was served. The beef was really flavorful and delicious. I enjoyed in the steamed rice which is common in our everyday life. The Korean culture is really different compared to the American culture. For instance, you must wait until the eldest at the table start eating before you start eating. Also, its frown upon to leave your eating utensils in the bowl. One thing I found that was difficult for me was eating with the chopsticks. It’s been quite some time since I actually used chopsticks that I forgot how to. The mixed veggies with the egg was pretty good, the bowl was extremely hot when the food came out. It went really well with the beef that was served with it as well. What I enjoyed the most about the restaurant food wise definitely the beef because its flavor. Honestly would definitely visit the restaurant again to get the beef.
ReplyDelete-Darryl Terrell
Korean food is something that I usually find myself craving for, so I was excited when I found out that we would be trying a Korean restaurant, Sobahn, right here and Kansas City. However, when we got to the restaurant much of the food that was meant to be hot was cold as if it had been sitting there for a while, giving it a very odd and unpleasing texture. Normally I love to have the Bulgogi, but here it was bland and dry; when we started stirring the bowl to mix the ingredients there was very little meat and only a little more veggies, but the most disappointing aspect was that it was cold. For the first part of the meal the only thing that was good was the bowl of rice, and the Gimbap which is meant to be served cold. The sour texture of the seaweed, and the veggies and little amount of egg in it actually made it taste as if it was sushi, the Gimbap was actually quite nice. The meal started to get better once the next dish was served; this one was some kind of beef. On its own it was better than any other dish that had been served so far, but mixed with the rice it was phenomenal. Then it went down hill after that, when they brought out the spicy chicken I thought I would love it. It smelled delicious, but when I tried it there was no spice to it what so ever. The dish was pretty much chicken and veggies. All of this could have been because many types of foreign foods are changed to fit and American palette, and I think that perhaps the restaurant made their food too American. I hope to find another Korean restaurant and give the food another try.
ReplyDeleteI've never had Korean before so this was another new experience for me. Again, even though I don't typically think of myself as a picky eater, when I get out of the American realm of foods, I'm really challenged! This food was closer to something that I was used to, as I've tried Chinese before, again, not a type of food that I ever crave (to be completely honest) so I wasn't "in love" with Korean either. But that's ok. I successfully tried all of the different dishes that were offered and I learned a lot about the different dinner rituals that the Koreans observe. The way that the eldest typically pays for the food, the fact that they wait for the eldest to begin eating and the way that they expect the youngest at the table to stir the dishes is very intriguing! (Side note: I wonder what the minimum age is for the stirring job?) I also enjoyed the fact that they say the Korean sentence every time they are at the table thanking the one who paid for the meal, this made me think of how it is expected/polite to thank whoever paid for our meals. The entire experience was very informative and I really enjoyed it. - McKenzie Harms
ReplyDeleteThe Korean food was an excellent alternative to the usual Japanese food that I eat ever my week. Some of the vegetables that were offered I did not eat since i know from the American version i wouldn't like it. I don't eat fish but I tried the Fish cakes that were offered and and as expected I didn't like the fish cakes because of the fishy taste. The ther vegetables I didn't really try so I don't have an opinion on them. The kimbop was one of my favorite dishes. I dipped that in soy sauce and the taste was amazing. I took some home and ate them as snacks for the next day. They are even delicious without the soy sauce. I expected those to be delicious so I was open to tasting them. The dol sot bibimbop was also so good. The mix of meat with the vegetables with the eggs was delicious. That was my first time trying that dish and it is something I would recommend to some one trying Korean for the first time. The beef and chicken was also one of my favorites as well. The sauce made for the chicken was outstanding and the beef mixed with the sticky rice was outstanding. Using the chopsticks prove to be no problem and even enhanced my experience there. I enjoyed my time and also sharing the experience withsome friends also helped me have fun -Dyjwun Watson
ReplyDeleteDuring my time at the Korean restaurant I enjoyed the food we had. This wasn't my first time at a Korean restaurant. I am slightly familiar wish the dishes and love their culture. The food is delicious and very healthy, I like how they include a wide variety of vegetables. The bowl dish was my favorite along with the beef it had a nice taste. One thing for sure is I don't like spicy food at all, but when the waitress brought out the spicy chicken I actually like it. The spicy chicken was tolerable for me and taste just as good as the beef. Its not common at home to try different culture foods that's the reason why I like to go about things with an open mind when trying new things from other cultures. Having friends from all over the world is good because when traveling you can find out which many things about yourself that you wouldn't knew from just staying home. Growing up I never thought I would like Korean food but having Korean friends and taking this class opened my mind to finding out my favorite foods in another culture. Overall I like the restaurant we went to I give it an A+ with the food we had I tried everything and loved it all.
ReplyDeleteThe Korean restaurant experience was honestly much more comfortable for me then the Ethiopian restaurant. Part of it being that I've already experienced a new food culture once and also because I thought the food was better tasting. This time around I was much more open to trying new things and knowing that there going to be things that I did like and didn't like. And because the food is from a different culture it may taste a little odd. It was also more comfortable to me because we got to use a spoon. I didn't do very well with using the chip sticks. Like most of the class, I enjoyed the chicken. But my favorite part of the meal with the beef. The vegetables were decent to me. I had a good eating experience at the restaurant and surprisingly I would go back on my own in the future. Another interesting part of the meal was the spicy sauce that was giving to us. I enjoyed it. One thing that I found off was the cabbage, because it was served cold. I have never had Korean food before this experience so I did not know what to expect but overall it was a great experience.
ReplyDeleteBreonne Maltbia
The Korean restaurant was a fun and interesting experience. I got to try new foods that I’ve never tried before and was introduced to a new culture that I’m not familiar with. This experience was better than last because I was more comfortable with my peers and the food tasted better than the Ethiopian food. There was food I still didn’t like but there was also food that I actually enjoyed and kept eating more of. I enjoyed the beef and the chicken the most. The cucumbers and broccoli were also good to mix with the rice. I didn’t enjoy the egg and bimbop it tasted odd to me and also the veggie pancake wasn’t to my liking either. I’m glad I tried everything. Last time I didn’t feel comfortable enough to try everything that was served. I wanted to get out of my comfort zone this time and live a little you never know if you may like it or not if you don’t try it. I had a difficult time using the chopsticks I could never pick the food up the first time it kept dropping but after practice it got easier for me. Overall I loved the experience and glad I got to be a part of the experience with my peers
ReplyDeleteDonte Tibbs
The Korean restaurant was so amazing. I love Korean food and eat it all the time when I'm at home in St.louis I was even talking about this at the table and by a funny coincidence found out our server use to eat from the same restaurant I did back home. But as far as food goes I was in heaven. The bolgogi beef and kimchi were my favorite I had to of course get seconds on that. It was so authentic and delicious. I think my favorite aspect of the restaurant outside of the food was the metal chop sticks, even though I fine metal ones harder to use I like that they were still handed out with the food. Something new that I tried that absolutely loved was the pancake. I hate mushrooms but couldn't even tell they were in it, it was so good I had to take some home. This restaurant was so good and I can see myself going back there on my own. I liked the family style of eaten with the rotating table which allowed for us to get a little taste of everything. Also the chicken dish we had was amazing it was so flavorful and just delicious. I'm so happy I have found a Korean restaurant in Kansas City to enjoy.
ReplyDeleteJazmine
I really enjoyed our recent trip to the Korean restaurant. The food was really good and the restaurant had a very home like feeling to it. It was nice that we could all share the meal family style. My favorite part of the meal was the spicy chicken, it had a lot of really good flavor and it had just enough kick to it. I also like how there were so many options with the main dishes and all of the sides. And it was nice that we each got our own little ramekin of rice. I also thought that the Kimbop was really good, and I understand why it is so popular in Korea. Being that I've never tried Sushi before the Kimbop has made me consider giving it a try. The pancake was another part of the meal that I enjoyed. It had the same principle as the bread we had on our last trip, but this time I enjoyed the taste more. All together I would definitely recommend this restaurant to someone who is looking for a good Korean restaurant or just a new place to eat in general. And I am looking forward to taking my Mom and brothers there in the future.
ReplyDeleteOur trip to the Korean Restaurant was truly intriguing and pleasant experience. It was a good way to interact with another culture's food as it was my first time visiting this restaurant and trying Korean Restaurant. I appreciate that it is located in a good area which isn't too far from where I live or from Avila University. Upon walking in, I noticed the lights were a bit dim which gave me a relaxing and calming feeling. The tables and set up gave this restaurant a classy elegant and authentic look in my opinion. I enjoyed how our tables were set up which allowed us to be comfortable and easily try each food. I enjoyed each food given to us from the plain white rice to the Kimbop. I had many pieces of the Kimbop as I enjoy Japanese sushi, which made the Kimbop in some sense familiar. I also really enjoyed the beef and spicy chicken platters which were brought out to us to try. I found it pretty cool how the chicken was brought out on a sizzling hot skillet in the shape of a cow. I appreciated that many of these meals contained good amounts of vegetables which created a good healthy balance in each of them. The sauce provided was also very delicious and had a good spice with a different but delicious taste to it. Overall it was an amazing experience and I definitely plan on returning with my family so that they may also taste it.
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