Among the ubiquitous South Korean and Japanese barbecue restaurants in the nation's capital, Kimichan Beer Bar remains popular five years after it opened; no small feat given the competition.
The Japanese barbecue restaurant is decorated in a simple, cozy style and is staffed by courteous and attentive servers.
If grilling your own food on the charcoal fire in the summertime sounds too much like hard work, the wait staff is more than happy to help you pick an ice-cold tipple from the joint's long list of sake, beer, plum wine, soda and fresh juice.
The meat is exceedingly fresh and dressed simply with salt, pepper and white sesame seeds. The magic comes from the restaurant's selection of sauces that includes green onion with pepper and salt, miso and spicy soy bean sauce with fruit.
Recommended dishes include chicken leg, pig intestine and plum-blossom pork.
The restaurant uses beef marbled with fat, which prevents the meat from drying out when cooked.
Pig neck is another dish not to be missed; it has an unusual texture that is initially crisp but which softens to melt on the tongue and ooze meat juices.
Though squeamish diners may at first balk at cow's tongue, Kimichan Beer Bar's version is grilled and comes to the table served with lemon juice and saute onion, and is a taste sensation.
Seafood options include fish, shrimp, squid and clams with prices raging from NT$120 to NT$190 per dish. The restaurant offers an assorted seafood platter that is well suited for sharing.
Codfish liver and raw beef prepared in Japanese and South Korean styles are the current menu specials.
An extensive selection of fresh vegetables and salads are on offer to provide a bit of roughage. Pumpkin, potato and mountain yam are staple fillers, and the vinegar seaweed salad and seaweed-soup rice bowl are two popular light dishes for the ladies.
After the meal, a plate of lemon slices is served to freshen up the palate. If the lemon is too sour for you, a saucer of brown sugar is on hand.
Indulgence takes many forms, and on many foodies' lists is ice-cream, which is homemade at Kimichan and includes green tea, pumpkin and peanut favors.
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