Tag: Korean

Is there still a glass ceiling for Asian cuisine restarants in North America?

For a time in Toronto there were discussions I was following in various forums about the low cost of food in Asian restaurants. For example, people were asking: Why are Chinese restaurants so cheap in Toronto?  There were various reasons given, from “people don’t value the cuisine” to “it’s a form of fast food” to “racist attitudes and beliefs”. And this wasn’t just Toronto: you could see similar patterns in other major North American cities, from Montreal to New York.

It concerned me that this might be true. I knew Chinese and other Asian cuisine was just as sophisticated and varied as cuisines of Europe, and I felt North America needed more restaurants that reflected that.

Based on the latest list of the top 100 restaurants in New York (produced by Pete Wells of the NY Times), I think we have those restaurants. I went through this review by Eater of the list of the New York Times best restaurants list (2024) and I extracted the following info on Asian cuisine restaurants. Of the top 100 places, I made this short list:

  • Chinese: 5. #15 CheLi, #36 Szechuan Mountain House, #59 Great NY Noodletown, #68 Chonging Lao Zao, #84 Hakka Cuisine
  • Japanese: 4. #9 Yoshino, #22 Kono, #32 Shion 69 Leonard, #45 Raku
  • Indian: 4. #7 Semma, #54 Dhamaka, #80 Temple Canteen, #95 Hyderabadi Zaiqa
  • Korean: 7. #4 Atomix, #16 Jeju Noodle Bar, #30 Atoboy, #40 Okdongsik, #52 Yoon Haeundae Galbi, #77 Oiji Mi, #91 Mapo Korean BBQ
  • Vietnamese: 1. #20 Mam
  • Thai: 1. #29 Zaab Zaab

(The number after the cuisine is the number of restaurants (e.g. 7 places serve Korean cuisine). The ones in bold-italic are in the $$$$ price range, bold is the $$$ price range, and italic is $$.)

It’s not just one or two places, like Yoshino or Atoboy: there are numerous high end restaurants in NYC serving Asian cuisine from all parts of the continent.  There are everyday places like Temple Canteen and Great NY Noodletown, too, and I am positive there are tons of places serving great Asian food that is not listed in the top 100 that are still great. But Asian cuisine is no longer limited to restaurants in the $ to $$ range.

That is not just New York. In Toronto we have high quality and higher end Asian places like Sushi Masaki Saito, Aburi Hana, Kaiseki Yu-zen Hashimoto, Shoushin, 156 Cumberland, Indian Street Food Company, Sunnys Chinese, PAI, and more, according to experts like Michelin. I suspect it is the same in other North American cities too. It’s good to see and a good sign.

Here’s to more people gaining a greater appreciation for cuisines of all kinds, and here’s to more opportunities to experience that, be it in a small place in a food court or a grand establishment in a beautiful building. Cheers!

P.S. To see the entire New York Times list, go here.

 

 

Do you like Korean BBQ ribs? If so, you need this


This recipe for a Slow-cooked Asian Roast (from Chatelaine) is something easily adaptable to other dishes. Meat, onion and garlic aside, you can mix up the other ingredients use it for an overnight marinade for beef or pork or chicken that you quickly cook. You can also use it for things you want to simmer on the stove for awhile. And of course you can use it for roasts. It goes without saying you could use it for ribs. Whenever you need to impart those flavours you associate with Korean BBQ ribs, then you want this recipe.

A few tips: if you want to add some spice to it, try sriracha. Don’t worry if it doesn’t seem sweet enough at first: when I was braising some pork chops, I found it seemed sweeter the longer I cooked it, so best to leave it cook and then adjust for sweetness at the end. (That also goes for spiciness.)

BTW, if you want a straight up recipe for Korean BBQ ribs, I recommend this one (which is where the image comes from). Now you have options. 🙂