Yes, you read that correctly.
A pop-up Korean restaurant in a falafel shop.
Crwys’s Road’s Falafel Kitchen (here’s the review - it’s ace) now only serve their delicious pitta pockets at lunchtime whilst in the evenings a Korean restaurant called Secret K Garden takes over.
It’s secret by name and secret by nature, as except for a discrete sign in the window there’s no indication of Secret K Garden’s existence. In fact, someone tried to order a takeaway falafel whilst we were dining.
Despite the lack of street and web presence, Secret K Garden were three quarters full on the Thursday evening I visited.
Unlike Yakiniku and Kimchi, Cardiff’s other Korean restaurants, there are no hot plates for DIY cooking. However, the menu is extensive with an impressive range of dishes I’ve never heard of, many of which look vegetarian.
I kicked off with a super-refreshing Hite beer (£3.50).
Korean fried chicken (£9.50) saw tender chicken in crisp batter with a sticky, sweet and mildly spiced glaze. The dish would have been improved with more of the delicious glaze and slightly thinner batter.
Dolsot beef bibimbap (£8.90) was ace - a delicious combination of rice, fried egg, minced beef, beansprouts, onion, carrot, cucumber, fried egg and fiery chilli sauce in a piping hot stone dish.
The ingredients jumbled up to make a deliciously comforting bowl of food, the rice gradually crisping on the edges of the dish over time.
Tteokbokki (£7.50), fishcake with rice sticks was unlike anything I’ve eaten before, and I’m not sure I mean that in a good way. One of Secret K Garden’s most popular dishes, potently fishy slices of fishcake and hyper-chewy cylinders of bland rice stick were served in a sweet chilli sauce flecked with cabbage and carrot. Whilst the fishcake and rice sticks left me unconvinced, my dining companion thought it was pretty decent.
A trio of complimentary salads were good (aubergine & carrot, mushroom and onion, and potato and carrot) whilst an enjoyable dish of kimchi (£2.50) had its usual familiar tang, fizz, funk and kick of chilli.
For dessert, homemade green tea ice cream (£3.75) was deliciously soft and creamy but a touch light on tea flavour.
Secret Korea Garden is another interesting addition to Crwys Road’s internationally diverse dining scene. I wanted to love the place but on this showing I was a bit underwhelmed.
The Details:
Address - Secret K Garden, Falafel Kitchen, 76 Crwys Rd, Cardiff CF24 4NP
Telephone - 02920228228
Went here last night and had a very, very average meal. Nowhere near the standard Kimchi and frankly I think the owner's should've stuck to their falafel concept (which we loved)!
ReplyDelete@Anonymous - Yes, I far prefer Kimchi too! Cheers for sharing your thoughts.
DeleteI much prefered Secret K Garden compared to kimchi, as kimchi uses too much artificial flavourings and dosent taste right, it is more Chinese then korean food which is not a surprising as its own by Chinese. I know for a fact that korean people don't go to kimchi as it doesn't taste authentic at all. For a real authentic taste I would say definitely go to Secret K Garden.
ReplyDeleteI went there last week and I absolutely loved it!!
DeleteI totally agree with you Secret K Garden is so much better then Kimchi no competition. I went to Kimchi once and never ever again.. it tastes unbelievably fake.
It you want proper Korean food defensively go to Secret K Garden.
I must say Secret K Garden tastes better then all the other Korean restaurant I have been to.
We visited Secret K Garden after reading a review on Buzz magazine, and we fell in love with the quality and the taste of the food. This was the first time we ever tried Korean food and we can definitely say it won't be the last. Out of all the food we tried the Yangnyum chicken is to die for, it's really the best chicken I had ever had (Just as Buzz Meg described it to be) We will be visiting Secret K Garden every time we crave that delicious chicken which may be very often.
ReplyDeleteA better review on Buzz magazin
ReplyDeletehttp://www.buzzmag.co.uk/uncategorized/secret-k-garden-food-review/