TacoWa in Boca Raton is part traditional Korean restaurant, part fusion and all of it is interesting, I just wish it was more exciting.
We met our friends Doreen and Joni at 6 p.m. on a Saturday hoping to beat the crowds. We got in just under the wire grabbing one of the last inside tables. Unfortunately, that meant we couldn’t sample the BBQ, since the outdoor tables have the built-in BBQ, but given the heat wave we were battling, we were willing to make the trade-off. We started by sharing the Jun, a fried savory pancake filled with slices of green onion mixed into a flour batter and pan-fried until crispy. There was easily enough for four of us as an appetizer. There’s also a version with seafood for a few bucks more. Other appetizer options include kimchi fries, tteokbokki (rice cakes seasoned with spicy Korean gochujang with fish flakes), mandu (pan-fried dumplings made with beef, pork, and vegetables), pan-fried tofu with soy sauce, and japchae, stir-fried beef, carrots, mushrooms, onions mixed with sweet potato cellophane noodles. You might also try the restaurant’s namesake tacos. Although pricey, at about $5 each, they certainly looked delish. The flavor combos include bulgogi (shredded beef), spicy pork, fried chicken, tofu, or shrimp. All come on a flour or corn tortilla topped with lettuce, sesame sauce, cheese, and cilantro.
We opted for bowl dishes. Joni and Dorreen, and got varieties of bibimbap. Joanie went for spicy pork with white rice, shredded spicy pork, radish, mushroom, zucchini, carrot, bean sprouts, and red cabbage, topped with a fried sunny-side-up egg. Doreen got the same variety but with chicken. They both ordered theirs in a stone hot pot. Which was a $2 additional charge and brought along a few extra side dishes of pickled vegetables. My hubby, Gregg, went for the tofu udon. I ordered a noodle dish, japchae, one of my favorite Korean dishes. The translucent noodle is made with sweet potato, so there is a slight underlying sweetness to the dish which plays well with the pan-fried veggies and the rich shredded beef in the bulgogi. A shot of hot sauce makes the dish the perfect combination of flavors.
As we were finishing our dishes, I saw that a neighboring table had several orders of different styles of Korean fried chicken, and I have to say I had a major case of FOMO. I’m going to need to go back and check out the two styles: yangneum (sweet & spicy) or honey-garlic. You can also order ban-ban (half-and-half) which I may just have to do. Service is attentive but overextended, with just two servers for the entire restaurant.
TacoWa
Korean BBQ & Taco
159 E. Palmetto Park Rd., Boca Raton FL
561-717-6604
tacowa.net
Doris Italian Market & Bakery in the Nob Hill Place Shopping Center in Sunrise is making this a September to remember with a Wine Night on Saturday, Sept. 7 from 7:30 to 9:30 p.m. There will be a selection of more than 150 wines from all over the world, so it’s a great opportunity to sample wines that may be new to you, as well as sip tried and true favorites.
A new restaurant, Eddie & Vinny’s, will take over the longtime Tavolino space in Coral Springs. Eddie and Christina Pozzuoli, who owned the previous space, have said the new eatery will be Italian with a seafood-forward menu. Among the features will be a 10-seat “pasta room,” where chefs hand-roll pasta shapes by day. Last spring, the Pozzuolis also became managing partners of Corvina Seafood Grill through their P Hospitality banner. Christina Pozzuoli sees similarities between Corvina and Eddie & Vinny’s, describing the latter as Corvina’s “cool older brother.”
