BEST OF NEW YORK


Food

Best Korean Barbecue
Woo Chon
8-10 West 36th Street
212-695-0676

"I think part of the reason Americans haven't really got into Korean food yet is that the names are so non-Western," says comedian and actress Margaret Cho. "There is something in their non-Asian brains that keeps them from remembering how to ask for it." Somehow, we have never had that problem at Woo Chon; we just order by the full descriptions on the menu. Every table has its own gas-fired grill for preparing the barbecued meats. Try kalbi (short ribs) marinated in a powerful but light mix of soy, garlic, sesame, sugar, and ginger. Actually, the Koreans call it barbecue, but we gringos would call it hot-iron-skillet cooking. Have it with bibimbop — rice and vegetables prepared tableside in a hot stone bowl.