Michael In San Francisco, we go to Japantown to eat so often that I always joke we might as well rent a place in one of the retirement homes there. Recently, in Los Angeles, we visited the neighborhood of Koreatown, known among insiders simply as "K-Town." Located slightly south of Hollywood and a bit west of Downtown, the area attracted many Korean immigrants in the 1960s, who opened shops in the old Art Deco buildings there. To this day, you can still find these relatively well-preserved houses from the 1920s in Koreatown.
In Korean cuisine, aside from the spicy pickled cabbage "Kimchi," grilled meat is particularly popular. Typically, at a Korean BBQ, a small gas grill is built into the restaurant table, which the waiter lights up after taking the order and bringing the ordered raw meat for grilling. In the better restaurants, the waiter also takes care of the grilling, turning the meat on the grill while moving from table to table. Koreans especially appreciate beef marbled with fine fat veins, but also enjoy chicken, pork, and specialties like heart or tongue. According to my Korean sources, there isn't a single place in San Francisco or the wider Bay Area that serves even remotely authentic food; instead, people are directed to Los Angeles.
We drove, as is typical for Los Angeles, by car to Koreatown on a weekday around 2:30 in the afternoon, got stuck in a bit of traffic, parked, and went straight to one of the most renowned BBQ joints there, "Quarters." Despite the unusual hour, we had to wait 15 minutes for a table; in the evening, according to Yelp, the wait time is several hours. The food was very delicious; we ordered the beginner's combo of beef and pork, and about 10 small pots with appetizers like kimchi or pickled cucumbers were on the table. The lunch cost about $100 for two with drinks, which is roughly the price level of San Francisco. In the evening, the place is said to be bustling, with young people strengthening themselves with grilled meat before or after visiting nearby clubs, chatting so loudly that you can't hear your own word. I believe that without verification!
Greetings from La-La-Land
Angelika & Michael