Ninth Gate Korean Bistro
11 Jarvis St., Toronto, 416-981-1919. Dinner for two with wine, tax and tip, $75.
There are precious few foods that don't capture my interest. Ditto restaurants. I am usually neither squeamish nor unenthused about eating foods that are not served on white tablecloths, from greasy French fries in down 'n' dirty diners to cheap curries and goat rotis. But Korean cuisine has been my culinary bête noire. Despite certain charms ( kimchee is great, kalbi and bulgogi are fun beef), its appeal has always been lost on me, thanks to spicing that blows the roof off my mouth and makes me want to send out search parties for my taste buds.
Hence my delight when Ninth Gate Korean Bistro opened at the corner of Jarvis and Front Streets, where most recently a Golden Griddle reigned. Food snobs are already whining about Ninth Gate's concessions to weak palates, but I am happy.
For starters, the place is pretty. Floor-to-ceiling windows on two sides let spring light flood in. White tables and chairs contribute to the lightness, splendidly punctuated by squares of silk fabric, like a coat of many colours, behind the bar. There's nothing luxe about Ninth Gate (which refers to the gated wall that surrounded ancient Seoul); it is beautiful but casual.
The menu offers clear explanations of all things Korean, and executes them (for the most part) credibly. Chapchae, one of the items upon which my dinner always depends in a Korean resto, is beautifully wrought here, oodles of glass noodles aromatic with sesame, soy and crunchy vegetables. Seafood scallion pancake is kissin' cousin to the scallion pancake that is part of the Chinese dim sum lexicon; this rendition is as deliciously greasy as its counterpart, with fillings embedded in pastry. Naengche (seafood and cucumber salad) is a charming julienne of mostly cucumber in a nicely balanced dressing of hot Korean mustard with sugar and vinegar.
Madu are crisp beef dumplings with banal filling. Dumplings are one of my top 10 foods, but not this kitchen's forté. These same bland dumplings appear in mandu gook with boring and cloudy chicken broth. The other soups -- a spicy red broth with seafood and tofu, and another chicken soup -- are equally unexciting.
Go figure: The chicken soups are terrible, but ramen, the meal-in-a-bowl that is based on chicken soup, is the best main course on the menu. It sure ain't Mr. Noodles. Golden chicken broth that is full of flavour is backdrop to al dente curly noodles with tender shredded chicken and tasty veg.
The second-best menu item is tang soo yook, deep-fried chicken with sauce that is sweet, sour and just spicy enough to be noticed. It makes a fun, gooey coating on oodles of raw red onion, green pepper and thin carrot slices. Aficionados of real Korean food -- as it is served in Toronto on Bloor Street, west of Bathurst -- will find this rendition insufficiently spicy, but I enjoy its restraint.
Bibimpop, Korea's meal-in-a-rice-bowl, I can do without. This is a bland rendition: rice, veg, egg, tiny beef shreds, hot sauce -- boring. The wang kalbi (short ribs of beef), on the other hand, is not. It is more of a contest of wills. Who will win: the cow or the diner? The meat is so gristly and tough that the diner seems fated to lose and leave it on the bone. For less money ($13.95, versus $19.95), there is bulgogi, similarly marinated beef (in sweetened soy) that has been tenderized and is almost melt-in-the-mouth.
Is Ninth Gate a sad example of cultural dilution, of immigrants pandering to white folks' timid taste buds? Do we mind that the kimchee (pickled cabbage) is but a shade of its usual mouth-blistering self? Not one bit. Pander away, I say, because Korean cuisine in its pure form is less than accessible. Ninth Gate dilutes it gracefully. If this is Korean lite, bring it on.
RIP: Dipamo's BBQ on Eglinton closed in April. The doors are locked and brown paper covers all the windows. The original Dipamo's on College Street, which is now called Phil's Original BBQ, is intact.
Sic transit . . . gloria? The three-storey Original Motorcycle Cafe (formerly Indian Motorcycle Cafe & Lounge) on King Street West is closing May 31. This resto-lounge has never known whether it was a bar, party space or restaurant. Trying to be all things to all people, without good food, has not brought success. After a quick reno, it will reopen on July 3 as King West. The café's owners have wised up and brought in David Lee and Yannick Bigourdan, co-owners of Splendido, to oversee the new incarnation. Can the partners maintain their stellar standards on Harbord Street and turn the café clunker around? Stay tuned.