Soon's Kal-bi Drive In

Yesterday, I made the drive out to 99 Ranch Market to pick up some food for the upcoming week.  On the way home, I decided to stop by at Soon's Kal-bi Drive-In for dinner.

It's been years since I've been here, but everything seems to be as I remembered, except the food pictures lining the glass enclosure where orders are taken and picked up. 

There's a bench in front of the counter, which is where I sit while waiting for my number to be called.  I ordered the Soon's Special Combination Plate (US$8.25).

This plate come with 2 scoops white rice, 2 pieces kalbi, one piece BBQ chicken, some meat jhun and one fried mandoo.  There is also a small amount of vegetables in the little foil "container" in front.  Inside the "container" we have bean sprouts, cabbage and kim chee.

The kalbi is exactly as I remembered.  The marinade is delicious and suits the local palate.  If you're used to eating traditional-style kalbi, you may not enjoy this.  Tasting more like a Japanese-style teriyaki sauce, the kalbi is quite sweet.  That said, the meat is tender and practically melts in my mouth. 

The BBQ chicken is a little different.  A whole chicken thigh is cut away from the bone (and the bone is left attached), then grilled with the skin on.  I'm sure the marinade used is not the same as the one that's used for the kalbi as this one's not quite as sweet.  This one had lots of charred bits...which is how I like my BBQ chicken done.

The meat jhun, is beef that has been thinly sliced and then marinated before being dipped in egg batter and fried.  This one is quite good, although like the kalbi, it was a bit sweet.  There was just enough of the egg coating on this to make it slightly crunchy around the edges.  Perfectly cooked.

And the lone mandoo, was over-stuffed and deep fried.  A winner.

Unlike other local Korean "fast food" restaurants, such as Yummy's or Gina's BBQ, Soon's does not give a lot of vegetables and that has always been a disappointment to me.  That said, the price is quite steep for the amount of food given.  Although good, there is definitely better value elsewhere.

Soon's Kal-Bi Drive-In
Salt Lake Shopping Center
898 Ala Lilikoi Street
Telephone:  808.836.7665

Comments

[FatMan Seoul]

Sure looks different over there.

[Reid]

Hi FatMan,

For some reason I expected you to say that. The Korean food we get here is sometimes nothing like what you get there. In many instances, the Korean "plate lunch" places, serve dishes with a local slant. Most of my friends who were born and raised in Korea constantly tell me that this type of food is not available in Korea. In fact, when I was in New York years ago, I couldn't find this type of food there either. I'm sure this is unique to Hawaii, especially since we have a special fondness for the plate lunch.

Here are some links to a few posts that I've done on Korean food a while back...probably before you were reading the blog.

Gina's BBQ (plate lunch): http://onokinegrindz.typepad.com/ono_kine_grindz/2004/05/ginas_bbq.html

Million Restaurant:
http://onokinegrindz.typepad.com/ono_kine_grindz/2004/04/million_restaur.html

Yakiniku Koryowon:
http://onokinegrindz.typepad.com/ono_kine_grindz/2004/05/yakiniku_koryow.html

[Clinton]

Reid,

When we were there in Hawaii last April, my uncle took us to a place in Kaneohe off Kam Hwy and I think it may have been Yummy's. It was sort of like a fast food diner and inexpensive according to Hawaii standards. It was located in a small shopping center and the food was rather good. Not quite Kim Chee I or II quality but tasty for the price. I've noticed one thing about Hawaii's Korean food vs. Los Angeles' type and that is LA's seem to be more spicier and uses a lot of red bean paste and chilis. Hawaii's seems to be a little sweeter but that's my personal opinion. I love Korean food but it seems Korean food doesn't love me. I only do it on weekends.

[wotmecook]

Hi, what's mandoo?

[Jo]

You caught me when you mentioned "Ranch Market", I thought you were suddenly on the mainland. I was gonna find out if you brought me some shave ice and spam! I sure wish I'd known about Bubbies and some of these other places before we went over. Although I throughly enjoyed what we had.

I would love to hear what you have to say about McCully Chop Sui (SP?). We got a recommendation from my brother-in-law who is a Honolulu ex-cop. We were impressed with the food, service, and the prices. We live near San Jose CA so there is plenty of good Chinese food. Not like Jax Fla where I grew up. (Anybody ever hear of Chop Stick Charlie's?) We have never heard of Gau Gee, the wonton skins, shaped like rectangular pillows and stuffed with a wonderful sausage then deep fried. We tried it as an appitizer the first time we went. I took a menu back to the hotel to study it carefully for our second and final trip the day we left. We did fried wontons then and the Gau Gee with stir fried veggies and gravy. We also the twin mushrooms with beef sizzling platter. Awesome. I just wish I had room in our luggage to bring home some of their wonderful house made almond cookies.

Anybody out there want to send me a plane ticket back? If not, will you just mail me cookies and shave ice? Maybe a slush float from Rainbow Drive In with a side of custard stuffed malasadas?

Please? Pretty pretty please?

[Dina]

That is certainly something we do NOT have here in the mainland (Bay Area to be exact) that I have always envied. The "fast food" Korean spot. Everytime I am in the islands I have to have my taste of YUMMY's, with my one scoop of soy sauce potatoes, long rice noodles, mac salad, and something else with my meat and rice. *sigh* Shoot give me the number and I'll open up a franchise here ;)... only in my dreams, a girl can dream though, right?

[Reid]

Hi Clinton,

If you go to Korean "fast food" places like Yummys and Bears Kitchen, the food definitely is a bit sweeter. I think it has to do with the local palate. If you go to a Korean bar or yakiniku restaurant, the spiciness is there and the food seems to be a bit more authentic.

I'm not certain where you went to eat on the Windward side. But I do know that the original Kim Chee restaurant is in Kaneohe.

Hi wotmecook,

Nice to see you again. Mandoo are Korean dumplings, similar to Japanese gyoza. They can either be deep fried or steamed. Most places here serve it deep fried. The steamed ones are normally used in soups.

Hi jo,

I only recently found out that 99 Ranch Market was a chain that started in the mainland somewhere (I think it was California). I've been to a couple of the stores in the states and they seem to carry different sorts of food items.

To tell you the truth, I haven't been to McCully Chop Suey in years. In fact, the last time I was there was probably when I was 7 or 8 years old. The food got really bad at one point, but I've heard that it's gotten a bit better recently. I may be convinced to do a post on it at a later date.

Hi Dina,

Yummys is OK for "fast food" Korean. If that's the sort of Korean food you like, you should definitely check out Gina's BBQ the next time you're here. The portions are much larger than Yummys, and in my opinion, the food is much better. Besides, I think the prices are more reasonable as well.

[Clinton]

99 Ranch Markets are located all over here in the Los Angeles and Orange County areas. It's a good local source for Asian foods especially shopping for Chinese ingredients. Most are located in denser Asian populated areas like Gardena, Walnut, Monterey Park, Westminster, etc. The prices are equivalent or just a little bit higher than going to Chinatown but I like it for it's convenience purposes.

Haven't been to McCully Chop Suey in years. The last time we went, the food was very inexpensive and good. I just took the family just for nostalgic reasons and was not disappointed. Don't know what the quaility is like now but it seems to be empty most of the times we pass by on our way to the H-1 freeway.

[Jo]

Hey Dina! I'm Bay Area myself. My best friend, Milgwimper, (posts here on occasion) is half Korean and she's teaching me not only about cooking & eating Korean, but shopping "other" stores. 99 Ranch are Chinese specific stores. They have foods for other countries, but mainly they are geared to Chinese tastes. If you want good Korean shopping, the best shops I know of are on El Camino within a mile either way of Lawrence Expy. The largest is in the corner of the strip mall across El Camino from Flames. The best sides are on the opposite side of El Camino, down past the new Kohl's store (there's a Korean/American bookstore in the same strip). The best Korean bakery we've found (so far) is across the "little street" from Kohl's. As for opening a franchise, I want to open a Krystal Hamburger shop. Wonder how big we could make Krystal Korean? ;o)

Reid, I was interested to note that McCully's was recommended by an ex-cop and the second time we went was for lunch. When we went in there was a table full of city workers who soon left and were replaced by a table full of cops. That told me that the place was likely to have good food for a good price with decent service. That or the owners have a HUGE family. I would love to hear what you have to say about the place now particularly since you are the resident expert.

Milgwimper, we need to go for some buttered bread! Writing to Dina made me hungry! ::whimper::

[Jo]

As soon as I hit POST, I remembered what else I wanted to say. I like to think I'm fairly "expert" on the restaurants and eating experience here in the Bay Area. Anyone planning on visiting is welcome to email me for some tips. Reid, if you ever get this way, it's you and me and the San Francisco International Food Tour! Have you ever had peroshki?

[Reid]

Hi Clinton,

I think that all of the 99 Ranch locations are individually owned and operated. The one here has a nice selection of Korean products as well as Thai/Vietnamese/Indonesian seasonings.

I have heard that the food at McCully Chop Suey has gotten a little better in recent years, but I don't know if word of mouth is enough to convince me to go back.

Jo,

I have had piroshki. It's actually quite good. In fact, there is a place here called Rada's Piroshki that has been around since at least the early 80s.

[MrsTweety]

Hey .. Jo.. :)
Yer wanna let me in.. on some good places to eat. at Bay Area.. ?? a g/f of mine..just moved to bay area.. so i would like to point her to the right direction.. for food.. :)
Thanks.. :)

[Jo]

Greetings Mrs. Tweety! I'd be happy to offer some suggestions to your friend! Hitting my name on the posting should (it did when I hit it at least) bring up an email form with my address in it. I would need to know what area she's in, how far she's willing to travel (yea, that's a need to know piece of info around here!) and what she has a taste for. I'm familiar with most of the Peninsula and East Bay and I got your back for most cuisines unless you like "near death" spice heat. I got friends for that kind of stuff. My tounge and I have an understanding, I don't try to mutilate or murder it and it, in turn, provides superior feedback regarding what I place upon it! Great relationship! ;o)

[MrsTweety]

Thanks Jo.. will email yer soon.. after i murder the contractors doing the house next door.. !!

[Les]

I love shave ice too! Does anyone out there have some ono flavor recipes?

thanks!

[RS]

Kim Chee II
kalbi

I'm wanting something comparable, shipped to us in Vancouver, WA. Or, maybe theirs a place nearby that has something similar? Yea, the tender meat & perfect flavor is hard to beat.

I did contact Kim Chee II - no luck on shipping.

Help?
Tks.

[Reid]

Hi RS,

Welcome to my blog.

I'm not sure if anyone will ship to Washington as the costs are quite high. When I inquired on shipping a 5 lb package of stuff overnight, I was told that it would cost more than $50. If you have friends that live in Hawaii, perhaps you can have them buy some for you and bring it up with them. I know Soon's sells marinated meats that are uncooked for about $20-30.

Good luck!

[Blala in Texas]

I am looking for a good recipe for meat jhun the marinade and the dipping sauce. Appreciate any help. I have been in the DFW area now for 8 years and there is NO meat jhun to be found.

[Tom Tam]

I'm glad someone has mentioned Rada's Piroshki...I remembered it from the 60's when it was at Ala Moana Center, but then it moved to Fort Street Mall. I have never found Piroshki like hers. Hers are deep fried balls of dough with fillings. I would sure like to have the recipe for the doughs and how to deep fry it. Would be nice the have the fillings recipe, too. Now living in Spokane, Wa.

[Linda N]

Does anyone have the recipe for Meat Jhun? I was stationed on Oahu for 4 years and get back once in awhile and from the airport we hit Soon's before the hotel. I really miss Korean fast food joints. thanks