Mapo Galmaegi (마포갈매기)

Mapo Galmaegi (마포갈매기)
136-71 Roosevelt Ave
Flushing, NY 11354
$$$
Menu

Mapo Galmaegi is a relatively new Korean barbecue restaurant based from a popular chain in Korea. Its located right in the heart of Flushing and outside the train station which means delicious and good value BBQ without venturing into Murray Hill Korea Town.

You are greeted by friendly welcomes and loud K-pop when you walk in. There is a mix of rectangular and circular tables inside. The tables along the wall are much more spacious and comfortable.

Each chair ingeniously doubles as storage after removing the lid to the seat. This way your clothes and bags won’t smell like smoke. However, the ventilation is already really good as it is so you won’t smell like meat anyways.

Before the meal even begins, a waiter pours a egg mixture from a golden pot around the grill that would eventually cook into something wonderful.

You can’t have a Korean meal without ban-chans. The selection here is not that great as all four sides resembled some form of salad. There is a pickled carrot salad, a lettuce salad with sesame dressing, a scallion salad, and kimchi.

I like this Korean BBQ restaurant because of their combo deals. These allow you to try a bit of everything without costing extra and you might save a few bucks. The two they offer are beef and pork. We ordered the beef combo (89.99) for 3 people which consisted of:

– Prime Rib Fingers
– Paper Thin Sliced Brisket End-Point
– A Choice of Prime Beef Boneless Short Rib or Prime Beef Rib Eye Steak
– Mapo Marinated Prime Short Rib
– Boneless Short Rib Sushi
– A Special Grilled Medley

The first course is the short rib “sushi”. These are brought out raw but then seared with a blow torch to add a smokey depth to the meat. It is then drizzled with a teriyaki-like sauce.

The second course is the sliced prime brisket. This is the first of the meats to hit the grill and gave the loudest sizzle.

The third course is the assorted grilled plate consisting of rice cake, mushroom, sausage, and shrimp. By this time, the egg around the grill is ready to be eaten.

The fourth course is when it starts to get serious. By now, they have changed into the grid-grill for the beef rib eye steak. They cook it to the point of medium rare and then it’s up to you on when you want to remove it and eat it.

Fifth is the prime rib fingers. These were juicy and tender with little effort in chewing.

The sixth and last course is the mapo marinated short rib. These were my favorite of the night and had the most flavor.

Tteokbokki

If you are weird and came here not to eat meat, there are plenty of appetizers and noodle dishes to choose from like  spicy rice cakes Dukbokki ($10.99) or seafood pancakes Haemul-Pajeon ($14.99).

     I had a good impression from my first visit here. The meat was high quality and the service was friendly and worked their butt off. The waiter did all the cooking and serving. Room on the tables is scarce so eat fast or else there is no room for the next course or other dishes. The prices are about the same as your typical Korean BBQ joint but it is worth it for the convenience, service, and quality.

Joo Mak Gol (주막골)

Joo Mak Gol (주막골)
3526 Farrington St
Flushing, NY 11354
$$

Everything from the food to the staff radiates a rustic, village feel. Stews and soups are the highlight here and if you are a bit hungrier, cheap Korean BBQ is available too. Joo Mak Gol is a little restaurant surrounded by many small Korean bars on Farrington St. This place seems to be popular to the local older crowd as many diners were rowdy men enjoying drinks or adult couples dining a modest dinner.

I have to admit that the less English spoken, the more authentic the restaurant is. While lacking in English, the staff seems to be fluent in Korean and Chinese. But language is not an issue when pointing and repeating after the waitress gets you by.

The entrance is quite small and could be easily missed. The Korean name is written boldly above the door and do note that the English name is written as “Jun Gol Jumak.”

Fear not as they have an English menu although it’s only two pages. One side is stews and drinks while the other is bigger dishes and entrees meant to be shared.

Most of the tables are in sets of 4 seats and they have portable heaters in the middle of the room.

Like any legit Korean restaurant, an assortment of banchan is served with the meal. My meal came with fish tofu, bok choy, a type of dried tiny fish, kimchi, potato salad, soy sauce braised squash, and octopus.

Spicy Fermented Kimchi Stew

The Spicy Fermented Kimchi Stew ($8.95) sets your tongue ablaze with its strong pungent acidic flavors. It got to a point where I was just spooning the soup down my throat to avoid the it burning away my taste buds. The bowl was generously stuffed with kimchi, firm tofu, rice cakes, and pork belly. I would recommend this if you love strong flavors and need to warm your body up. Each stew is served with a bowl of rice.

Soft Tofu & Spicy Sea Food Soup

The Soft Tofu & Spicy Sea Food Soup ($8.95) aka Soondubu seems to be the only one of its kind on the menu. I saw traces of clams, squid, and scallop but missing the egg typically served on the side like other restaurants.

Potato and Pork Thick Stew

The Potato and Pork Thick Stew ($10.95) had the richest flavor of the stews, a little on the salty side even. In the stew there is a huge chunk of potato and three pork bones to gnaw on.

Joo Mak Goo has a very homey feel to it and it’s only fitting soups and stews are their M.O. Also, when it comes to Korean food, I’ve never seen cheaper. Pair that with their no-nonsense traditional cooking equals a restaurant that has withstood the test of time. Like an old shop in a village, the staff is welcoming and the food is warming.

Kimganae (김가네) (Recommended)

Kimganae (김가네)
3912 Union St
Flushing, NY 11354
$
Menu (Prices Not Updated)

If you are looking for cheap Korean food, look no further. Kimganae serves some of the cheapest kimbaps around and they are generous with the portions as well. It is located on Union Street along with other small Korean restaurants.

Kimganae is known for their kimbap or gimbap, a rice roll with various types of vegetables and meats inside. The typical ingredients are usually pickled radish, egg, imitation crab meat, carrot and rice. Be sure not to confuse this with sushi as this roll rarely contains fish and the rice is flavored with sesame oil instead of vinegar. This is one of the most popular types of Korean fast food.

The kimbaps take up a whole page on their menu. The best part is that they are super cheap. The rolls range from $4.50 to $5.50. The popular ones are any roll that contains beef, squid rolls, and spicy tuna rolls.

Left: Sausage Roll / Right: Beef Roll

On the left is the Sausage Roll ($4.50) containing a vienna sausage-like meat. The right is the Beef Roll ($5.00) filled with thinly sliced beef. You can see the workmanship on how compact and even the rice and ingredients are put together.

Pork Cutlet Roll

Rolls like the Pork Cutlet Roll ($5.50) that has some sauce inside taste better. The cutlet still retains some crispness since the food gets to the table quickly.

With the meal, each table gets complimentary spicy picked daikon and bowls of soup. The soup is frequently refilled your empty soup bowls as well.

Kimganae also has non kimbap options like rices and noodles. However I hear these are not that great.

You can tell the Combination Ramen ($7.00) is just instant noodles. I don’t think its ever worth it to pay that much for instant ramen. It is topped with a bit of meat, kimchi and cheese.

The kimbap here will definitely fill you up. I was already stuffed after one roll so I recommend ordering a couple to share because it was difficult to decide on one. For about $5 a roll, its a bargain and definitely worth a visit.