Anyone on the island happen to know if Soon's Kalbi is still operating? It was in the Salt Lake area when we visited about 4 or 5 years ago. Mahalo.

You might want to try www.hawaiiantel.com to be sure. If NOT, there are a ton of delicious Korean restaurants in the Ala Moana/Keeaumoku/Sheridan area.

Wow - what memories - I really did like that place. Haven't been in years, come to think of it, since I don't regularly go to that area.

Did a quick check in the phone book and didn't see it listed.

Thank you, Melissa and Chepar. My daughter loves Soon's Kal-bi (so do we). We stumbled there when shopping at "Morning Glory" nearby.

I checked Hawaiiantel and they are not listed. Can you give some recommendations? We've tried "Yummy" (?) at the Ala Moana food court already. Kal-bi doesn't taste the same here in Houston...or we haven't found one yet. LOL.

Depends where you are, but I live in the Keeaumoku area....I like Choi's on King Street but my Korean friend says it's not authentic like his mom's. Upscale Korean can be had at Sorabol (or any of those Korean restaurants nearby).

You can't go wrong with Kim Chee I, Kim Chee II, Kim Chee III restaurants. I like those better than Yummy, but I think if I were coming from Houston, Yummy would do in a pinch.

Really, really Korean--I like Han Yang, located on King Street in the heart of Kalihi.

Just a funny story in case you are Jonesing for Korean food while traveling--I was running the Vienna Marathon and the course went through the Prater. As I was running, I looked up and saw a kiosk labeled "Prater Bulgogi." whut?!

Sorabol is good, but my current favorite is So Gong Dong in the McCully Shopping Center - their King Kalbi and seafood pancake are great.

Gina's in Market City is good for plate lunch style takeout, as is Best Drive In on Sand Island Access Road.

Kim chee pancake is one of my favorite dishes now. I even bought the mix from chinatown to make at home!!! $2 a bag.

I've got a bag of the pancake mix too -from Palama market. Haven't tried it yet.

My sister also bought a bag of the mix, tried it and said the texture of the pancake wasn't right. A friend of ours (who is Korean) said to add an egg to the batter.

Melissa,
I hope it will be out of your system by the time you see the K9ers tomorrow!

-Bill

I kid you not, Bill--I'm eating kim chee right now. The owner of Aloha Tower BBQ makes her own from scratch so I had to have some.

I will send you a full report (maybe video?) of my plane ride tomorrow. hee hee.

OK my Korean assistant insists that you MUST try "kalbi chim" or "Kalbi cheem"--he's not sure how it will be spelled on the menu, but that's how he pronounced it. He says it's steamed kal bi, and you can get it in most Korean restaurants (most likely Sorabol). He says the meat is much more tender and falls off the bone.

Also I forgot that the Honolulu Fodorites had a GTG at Seoul Garden on Kapiolani Boulevard. It is in the same building as Femme Nu (a famous strip club). Interestingly enough, Seoul Garden is a family restaurant. My assistant also mentioned this as a good place to go...but you have to cook your own on the tabletop.

I live in the area and Soon's is definately still open for business. The Morning Glory store next door now is a Pizza Hut though.

I too also like the Kim Chee restaurants. The Kal Bi is great. I usually get the combo meals. And don't forget the daikon kim chee.

Mahalo to everyone. Coconutwilly, thank you so much. My daughter will be thrilled to hear that she can go to Soon's again. She's been waiting a few years to return to eat at Soon's. We may try Sorabol or Kim Chee too.

Melissa, thanks for the Bulgogi laugh.

Just checked Hawaiiantel.com again by just typing in only "soon's". They are listed. It didn't show up earlier because it's "Kal Bi" with a space in b/t.

So, Hanalei, did you find it? I thought of you today because I finally got around to eating Kalbi Chim. It was more like stewed kalbi, but no teriyaki flavor, which is what I go for. It really was fall-off-the-bone tender, though.

Hi Melissa,
Not yet. We will be there 5/29 and will let you know how it goes. Thanks for the Kalbi Chim review.

Aloha Melissa,
We just returned from the islands yesterday. We stayed on Oahu for 2 nights and 7 nights on Hawaii.

On Oahu, we tried So Gong Dong and Soon's. They are both good. We had the kalbi and bulgolgi from both. My daughter had bibimbap and liked it. It had lots of vegi. I think SoGongDong gives more vegi. Soon's is very good though but a little less kimchee. I like their kimchee better than SoGongDong. We also wanted to try Kim Chee, but had to try other places. Mahalo to everyone who helped us search for Soon's again...and gave us other options.

By the way, SoGongDong's ladies' bathroom door had a poster of "Rain" coming to Oahu in June (14th?). My daughter sighed... and said she wished that she lives on Oahu to see him.

Glad you found it, Hanalei! If you like the bibimbap, next time try the Hae dop bop....it's all the rage here now because it's cooler and refreshing (but still spicy). It's basically poke (raw fish) over shredded lettuce, maybe some rice, tobiko, shredded carrots & cucumbers....served with a spicy-ish dressing.

Glad you liked So Gong Dong - we were just there for lunch last week. I saw the posters for Rain - I had to ask my sister who he was - he's a Korean soap actor, right?

Melissa - the Hae dop bop sounds good. I'll have to see if the menu has it the next time I go.

Too funny Hanalei--if you lived here, you guys would be addicted to the Korean drama shows. Next trip, come in August when they have a Korean film fest here with Korean celebrities!

Rain is a literal translation of his Korean name, Pi. Pi = Rain. You might see him on the mainland...he was in concert in Vegas last December! chepar, I think he only does pop, not soaps, but a lot of them do cross over...