It hasn't been much of a weekend of cooking around here. Friday night I grilled some mediocre steak; that's all I will say about it from now to eternity. Yesterday we went to Ichiban for a mid-day feast. Last night, I made a gravy and some ricotta meatballs with the sincerest intention of having them for Sunday Dinner today. But we all know about the best laid plans, and somehow it just wasn't meant to be. This gravy will be an easy meal for the future, but it also meant we needed to find a place to eat in the present!I had read a thread recently on Urbanplanet that mentioned Sura, a Korean bbq restaurant on George Waterman Highway in Johnston. The poster, known as "The Ank", said he had a great meal there for 2 that was very reasonable, and the restaurant was dead, so they need our help.
I have been to Sura many times in the past few years and enjoyed it very much on all occasions. I used to live much closer to it than I do now, but that should really have no bearing in a state this small. I took the Dinnerman there once before, and we really enjoyed the bbq, the sushi, and the strange juxtaposition of the bigscreen tv with bizarre Korean food shows and the greatest American hits of the 70's and 80's piped in overhead. Sensory overload? Maybe. But what other way is there to live?
So today, a gloomy, drizzly Sunday in late July, proved to be the perfect storm for a return trip to Sura.
The Dinnerman came back from the gym. I was in the shower. I emerged.
"What are we doing?", he says.
"Dunno", say I, feigning ambivalence.
"We having those meatballs?", he asks hopefully.
"Dunno. You want that?"
"I don't know. What do you think? What do you want?"
"Eh, not so into it. You?"
"What do you want then?"
"How about Sura?"
"Sura?"
"Sura"
"Let's go then! I'm hungry! They open?"
"Dunno. I'll call."
(I call. They are open.)
And so it came to pass. I ordered a bottle of soju right off the bat; he got an Asahi. I'd never had soju, which is a Korean distilled spirit traditionally made from rice like sake. In most soju today the rice is supplemented by other sources of starch like sweet potato, wheat, potato, barley, and/or tapioca, lending it more of a sweetness and full-bodied taste than sake. I actually thought it was much better than any sake I've had, but the Dinnerman thought it tasted like vodka. Huh? Drink your Asahi then.
To start, we got some fried dumplings, a few pieces of sashimi, and a couple of maki - spicy tuna and spicy scallop. The dumplings were really good - crispy and flavorful. The sashimi we ordered was fantastic - the white tuna and salmon very creamy and rich, the yellowtail rich and more fishy than normal which I liked - and the rolls were very good too. I am a purist; I like smaller maki with the seaweed on the outside. Usually a spicy tekka maki fits the bill, but this one had the rice on the outside. To boot, it contained minced tuna mixed with spicy sauce inside - not so much my style. The spicy scallop maki had the rice on the outside too, and a squirt of sauce on top of each piece - again, not so much. Nothing was wrong with the maki, but they were very Americanized and not so Japanese. I guess it's too much to ask of a restaurant in RI to do authentic Tokyo style sushi, but my bar is set there and won't budge.
We then ordered Korean bbq - bulgogi - which at Sura is cooked on a grill built into the table if 2 or more people order it. The Dinnerman got the pork belly; I ordered the spicy chicken. It came with romaine lettuce leaves, garlic and hot pepper slices, and some sauce that tasted kind of peanutty. Also included in the spread were the requisite banchan, those little bowls of various pickled veggies and sometimes fish that accompany a Korean meal. Today we were given deliciously spicy kimchi, seaweed salad, cubed potatoes, sweet black beans, and pickled bean sprouts. Can I just tell you how much I love kimchi? I am so happy the Dinnerman abhors cabbage, because I get all the kimchi to myself.
The pork belly was great. I forgot my camera, so you are all stuck with a phone pic, but it was slices of uncured bacon. The first round we took off the grill before it got crisp; the second time we let it get crunchy. So good. The chicken was delicious as well, but by this time all we could do was take a bite and wrap the rest; we were so full. So, a snack for later, while we watch 21 on a rainy Sunday night. I guess I had a bit too much soju, because in my effort to take the grill plate off the heat, I accidentally dropped it into the depths in the middle of the table. It required every person working in the kitchen to come to our table and fish it out, all the while conversing in Korean. Can I just say that I felt every inch the Ugly American? I kept apologizing. I couldn't figure out how to turn the heat off, I explained, and I didn't want the pan to burn. The Dinnerman kept rolling his eyes. Uh oh. I can't leave anything alone. What can you do?
(The Dinnerman is fond of quoting the legendary words of my unforgettable grandfather, "Goddamn woman hovers - can't leave anything alone.")
Hope your weekend was relaxing and filled with great food, friends, and family.
Go to Sura. Just don't mess with the grill.
Sura Korean BBQ Restaurant
300 George Waterman Road
Johnston, RI 02919
(401) 233-7888
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