The customer notices what is easily recognizable; egg rolls, dumplings, soups, "common" dishes such as barbecued pork or sweet and sour chicken. But the menu's exceptional points are the dishes with more traditionally Korean touches, such as the pajun (Korean style pancakes), the stew and white noodle dishes, and the various seafood choices, ranging from shrimp to stewed monkfish.
Even the more run of the mill dishes are different than the Asian food most of us are accustomed to eating. The vegetables served in many of the dishes are sometimes quite unexpected, including asparagus and even some sort of potato. Most entrees are made up of sliced meat marinated in Korean sauces, which are generally thicker than one would expect, and either sweet or spicy.
And where else in State College could you get gom tang (stewed meat of ox bone and tripe with rice)? The menu, however, is not limited solely to Korean treats. Customers can also order tempura dishes, fried rice of any variety, Japanese-style sushi dishes, and even vegetarian selections and soups, all within a price range of $10 to $14.
Customers should be warned of some things before ordering, though. In general, items on the menu listed as "spicy" definitely are just as explosive as the tiny graphic "bomb" which is pictured next to their name, although quite delicious anyway. And the familiar dishes might not be what one would anticipate; the "sweet and sour chicken," for example, is actually more comparable to what one would expect from a "General Tso's chicken" at a Chinese restaurant.
The vegetable egg roll was an ideal appetizer, filled with fresh and succulent vegetables and served with duck sauce. Although this did arrive at least 25 minutes after the order was placed, the wait was not too much to handle. The main course was served another 20 minutes after this, but the food was worth the wait. The meat and vegetarian dishes were served in hearty portions with separate bowls of rice, the stew was generously filling and there was a moderate helping of sushi.
The two vegetarian dishes were each quite nourishing considering their lack of meat. The tofu bok kum was served in a sweet brown sauce with tender pieces of bean curd and juicy vegetables, including baby corn, carrots and onions. Although similar, the spicy vegetable bok kum had more unique vegetable variety, consisting of string beans, squash and asparagus, among others. This dish reached a level of spiciness not for the faint-of-mouth.
The jam bong was a kind of soup or stew served with plenty of white noodles and meat. Another hearty dish, this item can also be found on the lunch specials menu, served from noon to 3 p.m. on weekdays, which features several other menu items for under $6. The California roll sushi was a fine effort, but it was bland and had few outstanding characteristics. The ingredients were garden-fresh and blended together nicely, but a better bet for good sushi would be a restaurant specializing in the area.
Diners that are unsure of either the type of food they will be getting or the atmosphere should not worry. The restaurant's ambiance is generally ordinary for this type of ethnic restaurant; small fountains, melodic door chimes to greet the customer, a wall paneled with tiny mirrors, lush green plants and green lamps hanging from the walls.
Customers should note that Seoul Garden only provides two metallic chopsticks and a large spoon as utensils, so practice up on your hand dexterity. The only complaint regarding the restaurant would be the long wait for the food. It is often true that haste makes waste, and the food was certainly thoroughly prepared.
It can be easy for a customer to feel the average "been there, done that" attitude with some ethnic restaurants. Seoul Garden presents a distinctive, scrumptious and often fiery twist on food that we've all had a thousand times, and it should not get the old "side street sidestep."
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