Stone Korean Restaurant

Ever since I discovered Maangchi on YouTube, I have become enamored by Korean food. Each dish is an adventure that's served with its own comrades, or side dishes. When I heard of the raved-about Stone Korean Restaurant, I decided to try it out for myself and see if it lived up to the hype! Everything on the menu looked so delicious, and since I was dining alone, it was hard to choose just one thing. So I ordered the #2 combo: Kalbi ribs and Bibimbap for a total of $25. It was a little steep price-wise, but I was so full by the end that this ended up being my only meal of the day.

I had heard of Korean Kalbi ribs, watched videos of how to made them, and even read recipes, but today was my first time tasting them. Served on a sizzling hot platter atop a bed of onions, these were the most tender pieces of beef I had ever had the pleasure of eating. The meat fell off the bone and the ribs were covered in a sweet and sticky sauce. One you ate one, it was hard not to eat five more.
Rating: 4/5 (a little too much fat for my liking)

Next was my usual go-to at Korean restaurants, bibimbap. The version served with the combo was only vegetables, but the helpful server added beef for free! When ordering bibimbap, ALWAYS go with dolsot, or stone bowl. (I see where the restaurant got it's name...) The rice, vegetables, and meat are served in a stone vessel that has been warming on the stove. This allows the rice to crisp up on the bottom, which adds a nice texture to the dish. But be careful not to touch the bowl, you'll get burned! Bibimbap is traditionally served with an egg on top. In other restaurants I've eaten at, the egg has been fried, but at Stone, you receive a raw egg yolk as garnish. Worry not. Immediately mix up the rice and vegetables with the egg, and the heat from the bowl and the rest of the dish will cook the egg. I ate several of my ribs in the meantime, allowing my egg to heat up and the rest of my dish to cool down.
Rating: 4/5

Perhaps the best part of Korean food is the banchan, or side dishes, it's served with. Stone rotates it's side dishes, so there's always variety. Today, I was served traditional cabbage kimchi, steamed broccoli, pickled onions, cucumber kimchi, potato, bean sprouts, and something that tasted like a sweet coleslaw. I really enjoyed everything except for the broccoli, since it was plain, and the bean sprouts, since they didn't seem to have much flavor. I was also served a spicy gochujang chili sauce that I squeezed all over my bibimbap. Delicious!