|
|
 |
| |
Sam Kang, owner of Dotori |
Bringing bibimbab to Finsbury Park
HIDDEN round the back of the Centre Point Tower, St Giles High Street has long held legendary status among fans of Korean food, boasting many Korean cafés and restaurants, some of which also offer haircuts and karaoke.
But the popularity of bibimbab and kimchi is expanding.
The former is composed of rice, beef, vegetables and raw egg, which can be stirred until crispy in the piping hot bowl in which they are served, while the latter describes over one hundred different kinds of pickled vegetable – a delicacy so beloved by Koreans that there is even a kimchi museum in Seoul.
Such dishes have recently arrived in Finsbury Park courtesy of Dotori, which is owned by Sam Kang. Along with his wife, a chef, Sam spent many years in Poland and Slovakia, where he catered for thousands of Korean workers at industrial sites.
“We were in Eastern Europe because of the Koreans there,” says Sam, “but many Germans and Eastern Europeans also ate our food. We realised that if we always kept the food fresh and high quality, it would be very acceptable to Germans and Eastern Europeans.
“That encouraged us; we realised we could sell to European people.”
Such experiences inspired Sam to open a restaurant in London. He identified a gap in the market in Finsbury Park, which has lots of takeaways but relatively few sit-down restaurants.
Dotori offers Japanese as well as Korean food. Sam says: “In Slovakia, the Europeans who came to our restaurant often asked for sushi. In Eastern Europe, it is difficult to get fresh fish, so we didn’t offer it. But in England the fresh fish is very good.”
A bibimbab and Japanese beer comes to around ten pounds.
On the sushi side, sashimi (thinly sliced raw fish) and maki (rice and fish rolled inside seaweed sheets) are prepared by Mr Jang, a Japanese chef with 16 years experience. Dotori has proved popular since opening in July. Sam says he sometimes has to ask people to wait for a table, which he always feels bad about, adding that he would like to open up a second Korean restaurant nearby.
JOSH LOEB
• |
 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
