Best Korean 2015

Best Korean winners of Vancouver Magazine’s 26th Annual Restaurant Awards

• Gold: Hanwoori
• Silver: Damso Modern Korean
• Bronze: Seoul Doogbaegi
• Honourable Mentions: Ma Dang Coul, Dai Jang Kum

 Opposite a car dealership, in the sort of grim strip mall that propels people to leave the suburbs forever, Hanwoori may be the most deceptive-looking restaurant ever to serially dominate a Gold prize in these awards. Look past the doors and survey the clientele in the dining room: bona fide Koreans, far from the mother cuisine, who know this is real-deal cooking. It isn’t always cheap (beef and seafood dishes can scale upwards of $30), but in both quality and quantity, you get what you pay for. Damso Modern Korean (Silver) telegraphs its siren’s call to the late-night masses: this is where you want to stuff your face as either a prelude or coda to the evening’s indulgences. You will come to believe in the allure of a kimchee-stuffed bulgogi burger. Seoul Doogbaegi (Bronze) offers zero in terms of ambience or attentive service, but if you want filling portions of bulgogi, beef tendon soup, and steamed or fried dumplings, just order to your heart’s content and shut up. Honourable Mentions: Ma Dang Coul, Dai Jang Kum