Suk Hui Hi's: a small, but personal, slice of Korea
There's a little hole-in-the-wall Chinese/Korean restaurant called Suk Hui Hi's on State Street near the Park Circle in Watertown .
If you didn't know exactly where it was, you might drive right by it. At dusk, the only giveaway was a neon "OPEN" sign in the front window.
When we visited, the small dining area was made up with tables for four. Chef/owner Suk Hui emerged from her small kitchen to reconfigure tables for our party of six.
She's a jovial lady from Korea who obviously loves her work and her customers. She helped guide the novices at our table through the unfamiliar but standard Korean food on the menu, things like bulgogi and kimbap, yakimandu and kimchee chigae.
If you're not feeling adventurous, familiar Chinese dishes are interspersed throughout, like sweet and sour chicken, pork lo mein, teriyaki chicken and broccoli beef stir-fry.
But we were there for Suk Hui's Korean cooking. Let the feasting begin.
We got started with yakimandu, traditional Korean dumplings (50 cents each) filled with stewed (almost mushy) cabbage and deep-fried. And just to say we did, we ordered Chinese egg rolls ($2 each) with a similar all-vegetable filling. They were crispy on the outside and served with soy sauce dotted with sesame seeds for dipping.
Kimbap ($7.99) was excellent. Also known as kimbob, these made-to-order Korean sushi rolls consisted of warm sticky rice surrounding pickled radish, carrot, beef, egg and spinach, wrapped in a sheet of softened seaweed.
Comments from around the table: "The best I've tasted in a while." "I could have easily eaten the whole dish by myself." "I'll be back for more of these."
Squid is big in Korean cooking. I got jampong ($10.99), a Korean seafood and noodle stew with squid, shrimp and clams in a broth of water and kimchee (spicy cabbage). The broth was quite flavorless, but the seafood was OK. The Korean noodles were good, thicker than fettuccini and round.
Korean-style chicken ($8.99) was tasty, marinated chicken served over stir-fried broccoli, carrots and onions in a mildly spicy sauce made with just the right amount of chili paste.
Beef and garlic sauce ($8.99) was similar as far as the vegetables go, but the sauce was darker, and at the request of the macho beef eater, excruciatingly hot. (This is the same guy who orders his chicken wings extra, extra hot).
He told Suk "the hotter, the better," and she took care of business, kicking the dish up to a perspiring, red-faced level for this gentleman.
The menu describes sam gul sal ($10.99) as pork fried with garlic, served with lettuce, green onion, sesame oil and rice. As it turned out, the vegetables were carrots, onions and broccoli, same as in the chicken and beef dishes around the table.
The sauce was a combination of sweet and spicy and not overly hot; perhaps a little heavy on the sesame oil. The pork, unfortunately, was not the best; it was overcooked and gristly.
By the way, you get to call your degree of hotness when you order.
Suk Hui's Korean-style squid ($9.99) is a sauté of broccoli, carrots, onions and squid in a savory brown sauce.
The squid was mildly firm but not overly chewy. The vegetables had a nice crunch. The sauce wasn't spicy enough for the person who ordered it hot.
But Suk Hui fixed that, emerging from the kitchen with a scant teaspoon of a fiery red chili paste and mixing it right into his dish. I'm not sure which came first, the sweat on his forehead or the smile on his face, but he was in hot sauce heaven.
Complimentary kimchee, pickled cabbage and pickled cucumber, were presented, one spicy hot, the other one cooling.
The gregarious owner presented the check to us, written entirely in Korean. After a quick laugh, she brought the translated version, $82 for dinner for six.
She personally delivered our dinners to the table with the help of an assistant, Stephanie Duerr. Stephanie doubles as the delivery person and chef's assistant (she was responsible for the excellent kimbap).
The menu is easier to read than in the past. Each item contains a one-sentence description, making it easier to order.
A trip to the unisex bathroom in the employee dining area near the kitchen allows a peek at Suk Hui and her assistant at work.
There are no desserts available, but Suk Hui was kind enough to bring mints and Hershey's kisses to our table.
You can contact restaurant reviewer Walter Siebel via e-mail: wsiebel@wdt.net.
Suk Hui Hi's Chinese/Korean Restaurant
1301 State St.
Watertown, NY
785-9740
Home-cooked Chinese and Korean cuisine
HOURS: 11 a.m. to 8:30-9 p.m.-ish daily
FAVORITES: Kimbap (Korean sushi rolls), Korean style squid
RATING: 3 forks
