The advent of a little Korea dawned so many years ago ever since the Korean population in the Philippines exploded.  One thing I’ve come to look forward to is dining at the authentic Korean restaurants.  But I haven’t seen the daybreak of a fine dining Korean Barbecue Restaurant in Manila.  I guess not until Kiwa Korean Grill Dining.  Forget about a loud and smoky setting, where all the wait staff scrambles from table to table.  You leave with the scent of barbecued food on your clothes.

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The dining interiors of Kiwa immediately dispels all of that, with high ceilings covered in wooden beams, spacious banquets and dining area, and a beautiful view of Manila Bay.  It’s so authentic that almost everything, from the tables, chairs, plates, exhaust, were flown in from Korea.  Not to mention, the Korean chefs!

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Here, you can relax in a more upscale dining setting and just savor luxurious Korean food.

On the Table

Yuk Hoe

Soy based raw beef mixed with pear and vegetables

If you are part of the marginal that eats steak tartare, you’d likely have an appreciation for Kiwa’s Yuk Hoe.  It’s similar to tartare but instead of finely chopped or minced, the high quality beef is hand-chopped carefully into strips then seasoned and dressed with soy-based vinaigrette.  The pear cuts the saltiness and gaminess of the raw beef and provides that cooling balance and crunch to the tender texture.

Jap Chae

Pan fried glass noodles with beef and assorted vegetables

I particularly liked that Kiwa’s Jap Chae did not taste oily and heavy handed.  It tasted light with the sweet potato glass noodles having a good balance of soy sauce, beefy taste, nuttiness and sweetness.

Kimchi Jeon

Kimchi pancake

I thought half a plate of this was sufficient.  I had to finish another plate when the first one didn’t seem enough.  I absolutely loved the kimchi pancake.  It was crispy on the outside and chewy on the inside, with some seafood bites and stir fried onions, and of course the sour spicy charm of kimchi but with a smoked taste.  I particularly loved the burnt ends, which has a toasty finish to it.

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