Left Coast Artisan Burgers – Itaewon

Left Coast is one of my favorite places to hang out in Itaewon. The atmosphere manages to provide a comfortable place for either dinner or a quick drink and app at the bar. The windows overlook the street that marks the beginning of an area known for antique shops, providing great people watching opportunities. Also, scientifically proven fact: food tastes better when you’re listening to old school rap.

My usual go-to appetizers are the fried mac and cheese balls and the tachos, both of which are awesome. The crispy fried mac is served with a tasty red sauce, and the tachos are house-made tater tots covered in cheesy and spicy sauces, and should you opt for it, delicious pulled meat. This time, we decided to try the baked mac and cheese. On it’s own, it doesn’t quite hold up to those favorite apps, but we did discover it was an ideal dipping choice for the skinny fries that came with our burger.

LC does a great job of balancing flavors in their burger recipes. The Hapa features a pickled cabbage slaw, fried egg, and pepper aioli. The yolk breaks when you bite into it, and along with the tasty sauce, produces a very delicious mess. Each burger is served with the aforementioned lightly seasoned and crisp skinny fries.

Traditional Lemonade with Vodka

The adult lemonades are freshly squeezed and tasty like whoa. They come in three varieties, each with a different liquor – ginger/gin, strawberry/tequila, and traditional/vodka. Also pictured: Sriracha – I love that LC stocks this hot sauce.

Strawberry Lemonade with Tequila

Galbi Bao

Another great item is LC’s Bao buns. Each features a different meat and distinctive sauce, and all are served on fluffy white dumpling. My favorite is the pork belly with soy glaze and cucumber. It is surprisingly light and the veggies produce a satisfying crunch to go with the soft, fatty meat. The galbi is also super tasty and tender. These are my go-to bar snacks when we stop by for a drink – just big enough to satisfy a craving without being too filling.

Pork Belly Bao

Left Coast’s food is both interesting to the palate and satisfying to the appetite, and the staff is welcoming and awesome. They always have a special going – that day, it was a 1+1 on the lemonades, and they often feature unique burgers. Every once in a while, they also host late night snack nights with Mexican or Hawaiian food menus. Word is they’re also getting a new set of cocktails and an expanded dessert menu soon.

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On the Table – Seohyeon

One should never live too far from a decent food court. Fortunately in Korea, that’s not something you have to worry about. I love On the Table for nights where we’re feeling indecisive or when the group can’t agree on a type of cuisine.

I guess I also like being able to get a side of wings and an oatmeal stout with my pad thai.

Korean, spare ribs, bibimbap

The veggie bibimbap was excellent and the spare ribs were incredibly spicy and tender.

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Burgers, Fries, Wings

Really good burgers. Seasoned patty, spicy sauce, plenty of cheese, salty bacon and a soft fresh bun. Eric thinks that out of all the burgers in the area, Brooklyn has the best quality meat and the some of the better topping options.

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Sandwiches, salads, fresh fruit juice, tea

Try the camembert panini. Decent bread and great cheese topped with honey and sliced almonds – almost more of a dessert than a meal.

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Korean, stir fry

I have yet to try this place. The spicy stir fry looks tasty.

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BATTERY PARK

Pasta, Sangria

The pasta’s pre-cooked, but the sauces are good. The sangria is very sweet.

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Chinese, fried rice, sweet & sour

Yummy Korean-style Chinese food – the fried rice was fresh and the sweet and sour pork was crunchy and a bit more sour than sweet, but still quite enjoyable.

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Japanese, donkatsu

Another I haven’t yet tried – this place is mostly donkatsu.

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Japanese, udon, donkatsu

The udon is just ok, but the bento boxes are a good deal for the price. The beef was cooked very well.

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Pancakes, waffles, omelettes

The pancakes had a re-heated texture, but the toppings were good – syrup, strawberry sauce, and extra sweet cream.

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Fruit bingsu

I haven’t tried this yet either, but looks to be pretty straight-forward version of the popular dessert.

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Steak sandwiches, wings, fries

I love their cheese steak with provolone – tasty beef, melty cheese, and sauteed onions, mushrooms and peppers on a soft Italian bread bun. The wings are also pretty decent.

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Tempura, fried food

I haven’t gotten to this place yet, either. The window is full of pre-fried tempura style offerings.

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Burritos, nachos, tacos, margaritas

Mediocre Mexican food – light on meat, heavy on lettuce, and everything seems to be served colder than it should be. Ok for a burrito fix, but don’t expect greatness.

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Fried rice, noodles

Perfect take-out level noodles and rice. If the menu says spicy, they really mean it – my favorite is the delicious burn-your-mouth Thai rice. Don’t let the gimicky box presentation fool you – the food is much better than the serving vessel would imply.

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Most, if not all these places are chains, but don’t let that deter you. Despite the cafeteria style seating, you can find some really good food here.

Williamsburger – Baekhyeon/Pangyo

Baekhyeon is a really pleasant place to walk around. During summer weekends, there are hand-made craft vendors set up along the fountains that flow all the way down the main cafe street, and throughout all the seasons, the pedestrian-friendly area has countless events and festivals. It’s also a neighborhood with a wide spectrum of restaurants of many themes, and a few standouts like Williamsburger.

Williamsburger keeps it simple and tasty – a handmade patty seasoned and topped with hot sauce, bleu cheese dressing and a fried onion ring on a soft sesame seed bun. They have a variety of toppings, but one thing all the burgers have in common is a simple flavor profile. They don’t rely on gimmicks to sell their fare – the meat is good enough to stand on its own.

One dish I hadn’t yet tried was the “Hole French Toast”. The toast is soft on the inside, crispy on the edges. The hole in the center is filled with a perfectly cooked over-easy egg and covered with mild cheese. I found the combination a bit strange when I ordered, but once I tasted it with maple syrup, it made perfect sense. The dish also came with a salad, small biscuit with fruit chutney and a couple of slices of bacon that were thick and delicious – the house-cured breakfast meat may have been my favorite part. You wouldn’t expect to find great brunch food at a burger place, but this was quite good.

The Oreo flavor of the milkshake was a good break from the traditional vanilla/ strawberry/ chocolate you usually find. The creamy cookie concoction was well blended without being too thin and one was big enough for two people to share.

The wings were very well cooked, but fair warning – the sauce has a heavy Tabasco content. The meat was still moist, and the skin was a bit crispy on the edges.

If you’re craving some grilled meat, Williamsburger will suit your needs nicely. The food is fast, delicious and a good price. The neighborhood is also a great place to window shop or grab dessert after you chow down.

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Burger Mill – Unjung/West Pangyo

When Mr. Big closed, I didn’t expect another burger joint to open in its place. I’m quite glad that Burger Mill decided to do just that.

This was my favorite part of the meal. Every great milkshake needs to start with good quality ice cream – this one was thick and creamy and tasted like the ice cream we used to get back home in Maine at a local farm.

On a whim, I ordered the “tornado” without knowing exactly what that meant. Turned out that the tornado is an order of delicious curved fries, crispy around the outside and soft in the middle. It was a good gamble.

The onion rings were fresh and well prepared, but strangely sweet. The breading was seasoned and crunchy and not oily at all. The order came with a ranch dipping sauce.

The burger was quite tasty. The bun was soft and the patty seasoned well and cooked to medium. Even though it’s winter, the produce was crisp and fresh, and the sauce that garnished the burger was spicy and complemented the taste of the beef rather than overwhelming it.

I took another chance and ordered the “bulgogi dog”. In general, I don’t really like hot dogs, but I decided to give this one a shot. Turns out there’s no hot dog in the bulgogi dog – instead, it was a little like a Korean steak sandwich, garnished with cheese, onions, lettuce and relish. It ended up being quite delicious.

Located on the cafe street that runs along the stream in Unjung, Burger Mill is just a stone’s throw from us. I’m glad to have a local burger place again, and even if I weren’t a glutton for ground beef, I’d come back just for the rich milkshakes.

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