POTTER's GARDEN Korean BBQ
5599 Kingsway Burnaby, BC V5H4W7
Good Korean food is hard to find in Vancouver, in fact I'm still looking for it. Potter's Garden was a pretty disappointing visit. The interior of the place itself is pretty dingy and looks like an old, run down place to eat. Prices however, are quiet expensive for asian food. So far the only good Korean place I've found is Jiang Mo Jib but their dishes have been a bit westernized. Potter's Garden offers a much bigger menu and I believe their cuisine is meant to be more authentically Korean.
In terms of dining experience, the restaurant is quiet large and they have added a Korean touch. You get to ring a doorbell-style button on the wall next to your table to alert your server that you need assistance. Another cool bit that they offer is unlimited sides! With each dish you get a side of sweetened potato, peppered spicy seaweed, bean sprouts and kimchi and you can order as much as you want at no extra charge.
The Seafood Pancake 4/5 was probably the best dish we ordered there, we got the large and it was well made but quite pricey. I think it worked out to be $17.
The Sides 3/5
The sweetened potatoes were really good and were a nice side to complement the stronger flavors of the main dishes. I didn't like how the seaweed was dressed, it didn't taste particularly pleasant and I've tried much better seaweed sides at Chinese restaurants. The kimchi was more sour than it was spicy and not particularly well liked by our group.
Galbitang (#14) 2/5
This is a traditional korean soup of beef short ribs simmered for a few hours with green onion, and potato noodles that is supposed to be well made here. However as your average diner without a lot of knowledge or preference for traditional korean cuisine, I didn't like it. The broth was alright but there was barely any noodles and I found the dish very bland. There were a few generous chunks of meat but it was mostly bone.
Doltsot Bibimbap (#20) 4/5
Bibimbap means "mixed rice", its served in a hot stone pot (dolsot) bowl and is an extremely popular korean dish. Many Chinese restaurants have this as well and make a really good version. The dish is usually coated with sesame oil to prevent the rice from sticking. You're supposed to mix the rice and toppings well and keep stirring it while you eat it to stop it from burning. Its hard to make bibimbap taste bad because it really just is rice and seasoned toppings. Potter's Garden's was alright, I've had better ones at Chinese restaurants but this wasn't terrible either.
Recommended? No
Revisit? No
Food rating: 2.5/5
