B and K stumbled upon this article in the LA Times and since we all love seafood, we HAD to check it out. Flaming Clam Grill of Cheongdamdong is a Korean seafood restaurant, something that I have never really experienced. After all, BBQ galbi, not seafood, is synonymous with Korean food right?!? Well, I think Flaming Clam Grill will convince you otherwise. They offer multiple course menus consisting of fresh seafood at good prices and they'll even cook it for you. After this meal, I'd be reluctant to head back to a DIY smokey Korean BBQ joint.
There were photos of shellfish on the wall, perhaps as an homage to the ingredients that helped inspire this place. This photo of razor clams was hung right by our table. Honestly, it looked a little scary but I knew it would taste oh-so-good.
As with most Korean joints, they brought over banchan which is basically an assortment of free appetizers.
Spicy udon noodles, Korean pancake, tempura potatoes and sweet corn dynamite with shrimp.
I liked everything on this plate. The noodles were simple yet packed a punch. The dynamite was good too: the sweetness of the corn worked well with the creamy cheese mixture.
I liked everything on this plate. The noodles were simple yet packed a punch. The dynamite was good too: the sweetness of the corn worked well with the creamy cheese mixture.
So yes, those were all just banchan. Just when we were about to fill up on that, our waiter brought over the star of the night: a platter of fresh, uncooked seafood. Since we had communication issues with him, we weren't 100% sure what the shellfish were but speculated that there were clams, oysters, scallops, conch, octopus and shrimp.
He seemed to have a system going by carefully placing shells on the grill to hold the fresh shellfish in place. He also cooked each seafood group sequentially, pacing the cooking of the different dishes.
After our waiter cleared off all the shellfish from the grill *sob*, he brought over kimchee and a pot of noodle soup.
The bill came up to $78 excluding tip for the four of us ($25 including tip per person). A great deal and we all enjoyed the meal. If you are a shellfish lover, this is the place for you. The seafood was fresh, it's affordable and it was pure entertainment watching the waiter effortlessly shuck oysters. The food was prepared simply but yet the ingredients were premium. I loved how they stayed true to their seafood theme in every dish including the banchans. Dining at Flaming Clam Grill is a fun experience and the best part was that you didn't even have to lay a finger! It's good to know that Korean food doesn't always have to equal BBQ meats (although I can never turn that down either). Sometimes, it's more interesting to feast on grilled shellfish prepared by a experienced server.
Hits: price, shellfish galore, fresh seafood, banchan
Misses: wish I brought a Korean friend to translate the ala carte menu
Rating:****
Flaming Clam Grill of Cheongdamdong
3465 W. 6th St.,
Los Angeles, CA
(213) 388-6800
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