Bibigo

I have to confess, I’m not a huge fan of Korean cuisine, whenever I’ve had it it’s been lots of uninteresting little things in bowls but perhaps I’ve not been to the right places.  Granted, I thought Koba was alright and I love a bibimbap, so I’m not writing it off.

Sue and I were well on our way to getting drunk on Sunday afternoon and thought we should eat.  Honestly, the sole reason Bibigo took our fancy is because Psy is plastered all over the exterior of the place with a pose much akin to the Kitchener ‘your country needs you’ posters.  We’re easy targets, were drunk and found it hilarious.

 

Anyhow, they offer an incredibly reasonable lunch club menu of 2 courses for £9.  We both opted for the calamari to start which was billed as spicy and wasn’t, nice coating though and good quality squid, we were happy enough.

For main I chose the bo ssäm which is sliced belly pork served with a nice soybean dip, kimchi and cucumber.  The dip made it and I was really plesantly suprised.  It’s not really enough to fill you up so you kind of need to order sides too which ups the cost, but it’s still excellent value.  We got a side salad and a bowl of rice. Sue was pleased with her scallop dish which comes with roe and truffle yuzu dressing.

I’ll definitely be back to try more and I now have a lotta love for Korean food, the small plate thing is still annoying though, much like Psy.

Bibigo

58 Great Marlborough Street

Soho

W1F

8/10

Nara

I'm in another sushi phase, come 1 o'clock nothing else will do. By far the best value selection I've found is at Nara on D'Arblay St. For £6 you can order a lunch special, they have a pretty vast selection of Korean hot dishes and a couple of sushi selections up for grabs.

I've tried the bibimbap - fine example of the dish but not as good as the sushi platter, prawn, salmon, tuna and octopus.


I've also tried the beef and pork dumplings which are seriously good but my favourite dish yet has to be the silken tofu in a hot and spicy broth topped with spring onion served with sticky rice.


As part of the lunch special, all main dishes are served with miso soup and salad and are all under £8. You also get a cleverly dissected orange for afters.
A bargain lunch just across the road from the office. Service is slightly vacant but sufficient. Watch your knees when you sit down, there's a cacophany of 'ow's' when newcomers are seated, the fittings for the grills are boxed under the tables for their Korean BBQ dishes, cooked at the table which I have yet to try.

Naro
9 D'Arblay Street
Soho
W1F 8DR
6.5/10