CREATIVE WRITING - A RESTAURANT REVIEW

   Creative Writing 

Tutorial Assignment 8 / Kimbap88: A Restaurant Review

Snugged between the shops of Desa Sri Hartamas is a humble Korean street food restaurant named Kimbap88! While passing by, most would not take a second glance at its plain and cramped interior of half a shop with barely enough room for average family to dine-in. Yet, the authenticity of their food and wide smiles of the staffs never fails to bring warmth and satisfaction into the bellies of many with a fraction of the price of an average Korean restaurant.

You guessed it, their specialty is kimbap! Think of them as Korean sushi rolls. On a bamboo sushi mat, first lies the roasted, crispy seaweed. Then, a thin layer of rice topped with five colourful condiments that represents the five elements: earth, water, fire, metal and air. They represent all five flavours: sweet, sour, bitter, salty and spicy. 

Each ingredient embracing each other in a tight seaweed hug creating a kaleidoscope of bright colours that compliment one another. Each of them sharp and distinct, contrasting from each other, contributing their own flavour. The yellow in the pickled radish, the green in the spinach and orange in the carrots, all coming together as one; a balance. Topped with a brush of fragrant sesame oil and sprinkle of lightly roasted sesame seeds, they come in the perfect size for your mouth to properly savour the swirls of flavour. 

They offer many varieties ranging from original kimbap, tuna kimbap or beef bulgogi kimbap for all you meat lovers out there! No doubt, original is the best! While you are at it, order their signature sweet and spicy tteokbokki! Tteokbokki translates to spicy rice cakes cooked in sweet and spicy sauce is made out of gochujang(red pepper paste) and savoury fishcake broth called eomok. Cylinder bite-size rice cakes are cooked until chewy and bathed in the vibrant vermillion, fragrant sauce accompanied by fish cakes, carrots, onions and a hard-boiled egg, topped with a sprinkle of white roasted sesame seeds. You can have a choice of adding ramen, or cheese or why not both! Make sure to dip your kimbap in the tteokbokki sauce - best combination ever!

Kimbap88’s diverse menu offers many other belly-fulfilling dishes; from Korean street toasts to steaming beef ribs soup that will sure warm you up on a rainy day. So begin your gastronomical journey with their signature kimbap and end on the last page of their menu. Takeaways are highly recommended as it does get crowded almost any hour of the day unless you are lucky! If you cannot seem to find this hidden gem amongst the shop lots, once you sense the irresistible waft of freshly made banchan (Korean side dishes) and a loud ahjusshi (‘uncle’) speaking coming from every swing of a glass door, you are in the right place.

(471 words)