KAYA Korean BBQ

After having Korean BBQ in LA last week, Jon and I are kind of obsessed. Now that we're both in Manila, we want to seek out legit Korean BBQ restaurants. Last night we got to eat at Kaya on Jupiter street with my aunt and cousin, our first attempt at Korean BBQ here in Manila.

We ordered some meat to cook on the grill: kalbi gui (marinated short ribs) and seng kalbi (angus short ribs) and two other already prepared beef dishes: bulgogi (marinated sirloin strips) and kalbi jim (korean beef rib stew). It seriously confuses me when I look at the menu because I never know what to order due to the fact that all the meat pretty much sounds the same. But trust me, you'll eventually have your favorites. Korean BBQ also comes with complementary banchan (side dishes) that come in little bowls, the size of soy-sauce platters. It's refillable too, so don't hold back on the tiny sides. You'll see the pictures below of our banchan. We also ordered my new favorite rice dish - garlic rice has been moved to 2nd place for now - called dolsot bimimbap (rice topped with assorted vegetables and egg in a hot stone bowl). It's the best, it arrives in front of you and you're to mix all the goodies into the rice right away while the bowl is still hot. The last thing we ordered was japche (clear noodles with beef and vegetables). Don't you love this mini Korean language lesson on food you are getting right now? Look below for images to associate with the Korean mumbo jumbo.