Korea House - New Korean place in Portland

[johnnydj]

630 Congress used to be Happy Teriyaki, but the new Korean owners, Kum and Myung You, decided to re-vamp the menu and stick to what they do best - Korean "home-style" food. Helped by the local Korean community, they put together a menu showcasing typical and much-loved fare.

At a friends invitation, I attended a menu sampling a few weeks ago that featured some of their dishes. They included three kinds of whole-grilled fish, spicy octopus stew, bbq short rib, kimchi fried rice, a couple egg-based dishes, mussels and scallions in a spicy broth, and stuff I don't remember - all of it was pretty good and the spices were good too. Kum's daughter showed me the giant pot of simmering broth in the kitchen - the "Mother" of her Kum's soup items. She knows her stuff.

The best part - for me - is they have decided to not dumb down their menu with items one might find in a typical "Asian" American restaurant and I hope they can stick to their plan to serve authentic Korean food - some of it, I found, might be a bit challenging to some palates.

And with the opening of another Korean place on Exchange Street, it appears that the demand is really there.

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Korea House
630 Congress St, Portland, ME 04101

[Mister Meatball]

Always thought Happy Teriyaki was way underappreciated. Finally got to the (new) place last night, and it was fantastic!

Shared three dishes: Seafood pancake, grilled mackerel and (my fave for awhile now) the dol sot bi bim bap.

Let's just say that I'm really glad they're in this town!