Beth McDaniel’s In Search of the Best column explores her adventures in food around Northern Kentucky as she looks for the best … everything! If you have an idea for the perfect something, email Beth at mcdaniel.elizabeth@gmail.com. Click here to meet all of our food writers.
One of my first meals in Korea nearly snuck out of the pot and onto my plate.
My employers had taken me to an upscale seafood restaurant, and imagine my surprise to find the octopus — which was being cooked in the middle of our table — lifting the lid of the pot in an attempt to escape.
Fortunately, nothing will arrive alive at Riverside Korean, yet the experience remains as authentic as any Korean restaurant I’ve been to since being back in the States.
When I arrived in Korea in August of 2005, I had only ever eaten one Korean meal at a restaurant in Indianapolis. That meal left me slightly skeptical of Korean food, especially that beloved staple of the Korean diet — kimchi.
During my initial days and weeks in Korea, I really did think I might go hungry. So much of what I found to eat was far too spicy for my then delicate palate. And, there was another unexpected obstacle — thin metal chopsticks that made me feel like Uma Thurman in Kill Bill, struggling to get the tiniest morsel of food to my lips.
People told me I’d get used to eating spicy food, and it turns out they were right. One of my enduring favorites is a spicy seafood stew with creamy soft tofu (sundubu chiggae). Luckily, it’s on the menu at Riverside and absolutely everything I remember it to be.
While I was in Korea, I also learned that there’s a slightly more “easily” palatable side to Korean food, which includes bulgogi (grilled meats often served with lettuce to make a wrap), pajeon (savory pancakes with vegetables and meat), dumplings (mandu), and kimbap (a little like a sushi roll but with crab stick, daikon radish, cucumber, and spam!).
Korean “Chinese” also includes some of my favorite dishes, like japchae bap (sweet and savory glass noodles with veggies and beef, often also served with rice) and jajangmyeon (springy, chewy noodles with a sauce made of fermented soybeans).
All of these options are available at Riverside, and they’re excellent choices for anyone who’s new to Korean food.
Vegetarians (and vegans) will also delight in one of Korea’s most famous dishes — bibimbap. You can order a cold version or a hot pot, which allows you to stir veggies, rice, a runny egg (or tofu), and any amount of gochujang (a red pepper paste) you want into a warm, crispy delight.
An important note: If you’re strictly gluten free, don’t eat the gochujang, which is typically made with wheat. Luckily, Riverside has gluten free gochujang – just ask!
When I was in Korea, I lived in Jeonju, the country’s bibimbap capital, and I can honestly say that the bibimbap at Riverside is every bit as good as I remember it being in Korea.
Anyone who has never been to a Korean restaurant before will also be pleasantly surprised by the diverse, rotating array of banchan (Korean side dishes), which arrive in advance of your meal.
During my time in Korea, I remember my friends and I being truly amazed at this offering — likely because we were recent college graduates accustomed to poverty and saw this array of little starters as free food (score!).
After a long hike, we’d rock up at a local restaurant and devour every bite of these little delicacies, which always include traditional cabbage kimchi but can also feature sweet bites of potato, sesame seasoned spinach, radish or cucumber kimchi, marinated bean sprouts, tofu with chili sauce, and even little bowls of shellfish.
No doubt the reason for Riverside Korean’s authenticity is its owners — Bruce and Yujin Kim who continue longstanding family traditions and have a passionate commitment to bringing Korean flavors to the Northern Kentucky food landscape.
Bruce Kim says he makes everything to his own mother’s standards, and it shows. Riverside Korean has been named the most authentic Korean in the city since 2010.
Today Riverside offers a more traditional eating experience on one side, with floor seating and décor that features hand painted walls and tables, tapestries, and colorful decorative drums. On the other side, there’s a modern bar and café style seating with painted tigers climbing the walls. You can also choose to eat outside on the patio.
One thing you won’t find at Riverside are those thin, somewhat mettlesome chopsticks. Instead, you can ask for wooden chopsticks or opt for regular old silverware. The latter could just be the better option so there’s no delay getting this delicious and addictive fare right into your mouth.
