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| - I returned to Seoul Hot Pot to try their non-grill menu, and I came away very impressed and questioning my current devotion to Seoul Garden as the top dog in Cleveland Korean cuisine.
Their seafood pancake might be the best I've had thus far, prepared with just the right amount of pancake, scallions, and seafood. Their dukbokki (spicy rice cake) also steals the crown from Seoul Garden, as it packs a much more dynamic, hearty flavor, and they even topped it off with a few strips of savory bulgogi. The rice cakes were so tender they practically melted in my mouth. Their japchae was delicious, not much else to say there. The bibimbap, however, arrived already burnt, our server forgot the chili sauce, and overall it just lacked flavor. Rounding the meal out was the banchan, which was standard fare, and the complimentary orange slices which are still out-of-this-world good.
Where they take the hit this time is their service. The owner manning the tables that night, while he is a very sweet, pleasant old man, could have used some help in the service department. Parties that arrived later were waited on before people that arrived earlier. Whoops. And to mention again, he forgot the chili sauce for my bibimbap, which comes in a squeeze bottle. No biggie, he apologized and proceeded to yank it from another party's table for me. lolwut? They were still eating...
Aside from those minor hiccups, my dining experience was a lot better this time around. Service was worse, but the food was spectacular. Look beyond the gimmick-y grill tables and you'll stumble upon some really good menu items.
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