on the korean fringe

Kang Nam
4103 W Olympic Blvd
Los Angeles, CA 90019
(323) 937-1070

price: $$
verdict: it's aight

i use to REALLY love korean food. then i attended this wedding that served korean food buffet style and it KILLED IT for me. the large heap fulls of chap chae (mung bean noodles stir fried with meat and veggies) and the softened kimbap (korean style sushi-esque rolls) amongst loads and loads of other korean food that sat around way too long when it shouldn't have seriously traumatized me. oh, did i mention i got the shits after that meal? *shudders with a tear drop*

so needless to say, i normally don't think "korean" when i'm hungry. but when i DO eat it, i think OMG, so freakin' good. why haven't i eaten more of it? taste aversions...it's a weird thing. but opportunities do come along and my belly goes korean for a meal once in a while.

so my friend had her bridal shower at kang nam. it's a sleepy little restaurant that has seen better days based on it's worn down decor and rickety furniture. it is also obvious that it's more family oriented since i saw a few while walking through. they have private rooms in the back for feasting and in this particular instance, it worked out well for the bridal shower because the bridesmaids made the area so purty!

the typical korean meal starts off with a banchan (vast array of pickled, mayoed, or fishy appetizers). kang nam was generous with theirs as well. what a great start to a meal right? well, once my galbi combo meal was served, i noticed the shortcomings. the galbi was ok tasting but i've definitely had better elsewhere. the meat was a bit too fatty which reduced consumption. the seaweed soup that accompanied the meal was lukewarm when it was served...ah, not the best korean food i've tasted by far, but decent.

i think one of the perks about this place is that it's not in the center of koreatown which normally means crappy traffic, god awful parking, and possible spikes in blood pressure when you have to cuss loudly at crap ass drivers. driving to kang nam felt so zen like. you can park in their lot and once inside, the servers are friendly and the menu is diverse. worth a shot i suppose if you find yourself in the outskirts of koreatown and hankering for some korean.