It’s amazing how many times you go to a restaurant and totally miss a menu item because you were too busy ordering other things. Such was the case with Manna Wok. I reviewed Manna Wok after my first visit there in early 2013. (Review can be found here).
Every time I stop by Manna Wok, I start with an order of salad with ginger dressing. For whatever reason, I decided to venture out and open with a different side to start with and thus this new blog entry was born.
So for the next installment in the “Must Try Menu Item”, we return to Manna Wok, an authentic Korean restaurant at 4865 E Harry St.
Their menu can be found at the original Manna Wok blog. But with many of their dishes, it will come with a side salad served with delicious ginger dressing, steamed rice or Kim Chee salad.
What is Kim Chee Salad?
Kim Chee (or Kim Chi) is a traditional fermented Korean side dish made of vegetables with a variety of seasonings. It is often described as spicy and sour. In traditional preparation, kimchi is often allowed to ferment underground in jars for months. There are hundreds of varieties of kimchi made from napa cabbage, radish, scallion, or cucumber as a main ingredient.
The look of it may throw some people off but let me tell you, it’s wonderful.
For my visit to Manna Wok, I decided to go with the Kim Chee Salad which can also be had for $4.25 separately. I was not disappointed.
The Kim Chee Salad comes with an assortment of fermented vegetables such as cabbage and cucumber. It’s a true variety in comparison to other Kim Chee (Kim Chi) I’ve had around town like at Hot Stone Korean Grill or Juni’s Cafe.
The Kim Chi at Manna Wok is truly the best I’ve had in town. Of all the vegetables offered in Manna Wok’s Kim Chee salad, the cabbage was my favorite but they all have their own unique and excellent taste to them. My cousin who’s a huge Kim Chi fan also thinks Manna Wok’s is the best.
I even brought some over to four year old Cylee to try and here were here exact words, “It tastes delicious when it touches my lip and it has a little spicy to it.” Then she downed six more pieces of it. I’m going to teach her well.
I’m so glad I changed it up and tried the Kim Chee Salad. I’ve had it twice since the first time I tried it and it’s well worth the drive to go pick it up to go.
That wraps it up for the tenth chapter in our Must Try Menu Item feature. Hope you’ve been enjoying them as much as I’ve enjoyed eating them.
Otherwise, I hope this helps you all out.
The owners of this establishment are family friends of mine. If you ever want your picture on the wall, they will take it for you and post it. Other menu items to try is the beef galbi, fried mackerel, or my personal favorite, the stone bowl bi bim bap. I promise you can't go wrong with any of these. I would also get the fried mandu rolls. Delicious Korean eggrolls.
I am half Korean and when I can't get home to enjoy my mom's cooking, I come here and they take great care of us. We sometimes order the green bean kimchi in bulk!
Nice blog. I have one as well, but I am not anywhere near as famous as you are! 🙂
I go to Manna Wok way too often. I could eat my body weight in their Kimchi.