Hankook Taqueria

Whenever people discuss Hankook Taqueria, the first and only Korean taco joint in town, people are inevitably going to bring up Kogi. Kogi burst onto the LA food scene in early 2009 with a variety of unique Korean/Latin fusion offerings available at their mobile restaurant (aka taco truck). They went über-viral when they got on twitter, notifying their followers of where they would be stationed each day, the in-the-know appeal only adding to the apparent deliciousness of the unique offering such as kimchi quesadillas, Korean hot dogs, and a ever-changing array of tacos. Now Kogi has three trucks, one brick and mortar location, and an army of 30,000+ twitter followers, eagerly awaiting to hear about the next offering and destination.

Of course imitators have followed, such as Calbi, another LA truck which recently sold out to Baja Fresh, who is trying to franchise the idea. Yes, the same Baja Fresh that had multiple locations around Atlanta, only to pull out of the market entirely, and is now trying to come back and get new franchisees. Why would anyone want to buy into a franchise that less than ten years ago decided they couldn’t compete in this market?

Myself, I’ve never tried Kogi or Calbi, but when Hankook opened up within walking distance of house, I was excited to try Atlanta’s first foray into this hip genre. But one problem was that with my knowledge of Kogi, expectations of quality and creativity were high. Not only that, everyone I know was so eager to try it, we dashed there in the first two days they were open, and it seemed the general consensus was that it was a little boring and execution and ingredients were slightly off. At least that’s what I thought, I hate to speak for others, though I linked to a bunch of other blog posts at the bottom of this page.

My bulgogi taco from my first visit was just too bland. The meat was soggy, like it had been in the steamer too long, the flavor wasn’t what I expect from bulgogi at all, and there was lots of empty space in this average tasting tortilla.

The fish and rice cakes from the visit weren’t bad, I liked the texture, but the flavor of the sauce wasn’t my favorite.

I also got the bibim-bop on this visit. This was a ton of food, a good value. I liked the variety and flavor of the cold sprouts, mushrooms, and marinated cucumber, but it was the same meat from the bulgogi taco.

It was almost two months between my first and second visit, and on the second visit I was in a rush on the way home, so I popped in and got two tacos to go. I went with the bulgogi again, as well as the “dae ji gogi”, which is a spicy pulled pork taco.

I have to say, I was pleasantly surprised when I got home and unwrapped my tacos. The tacos just looked better. They were more full, the toppings were more vibrant, and there was noticeably more meat.

Also, because the hot tacos were wrapped in the foil for a few minutes, the tortillas were softer, a nice side benefit of the to-go order.

I really enjoyed both of these tacos. The flavor of the meat was wonderful. I could taste the sweet and salty marinade on the bulgogi, and the additional meat balanced better with the flavors of the hot sauce and the onion and cilantro toppings. I could really do without the cheese and the large amount of lettuce, but no big deal.

The pork was similarly delicious. There was plenty of tender pork, with just enough, but not too much, of the spicy BBQ sauce.

I’d enjoy some more exciting vegetables in these tacos like kimchi and radish, or really any of the pickled/fermented vegetables that are offered as banchan at many Korean BBQ restaurants. I also think there’s a lot they could do create more interesting and flavorful fusion sauces. The tortillas could probably benefit from a few seconds on the grill too, or perhaps they could experiment with corn tortillas, which is what Kogi uses.

But I don’t mean to be too big of a complainer – I was very happy that I tried Hankook again. At under $5 for two tacos, I felt like it was a good value.

I made my final stop today, as on my visit last week I noticed some new offerings on the “street snack” section of the menu. I had to try one more taco though, so I started with the tofu taco. Again, the cheese and tortilla aren’t my favorite, but I loved the soft tofu and the bean sprouts. If this had some of those aforementioned vegetables, it would have been rocking.

From the street snacks I tried the kook-su, soba noodles and vegetables in a spicy “vinaigrette”. There was too much sauce and lettuce for my tastes, but the actual flavor and heat of the sauce was great. The vegetables were carrots, cucumbers, scallions, and onions. These are pretty much the same vegetables I see in every dish and again, some variation would be welcome.

I also tried the pa-jeon, the vegetable pancake with dipping sauce. Definitely tasty, I recommend sharing an order as it’s huge. Mine was slightly undercooked, but no big deal, I took the leftovers home and when I reheat them on my grill they will come out perfect. You better believe I also brought the dipping sauce home too, it’s my favorite part.

OK, so there’s my marathon post on Hankook. Yeah, it’s very much a “here’s a picture of what I ate and what I thought” sort of post, but from my visits I’ve also formed a strong opinion about Hankook.

I’ve decided that even though it isn’t perfect, I’m a fan. Maybe it’s not as good as Kogi, not that I or many others in town would know. Some preparations and ingredients could be better. Perhaps some things aren’t authentic, exciting, or inspiring. But there is nothing like Hankook ITP. They’re whipping up an ever-changing menu, with many items that I would consider progressive for our town. They are pushing our palates. AND they are doing it in an awful location. I think if they last, it’s only going to get better, and I’m getting in on the ground floor.

Hankook on Chow Down Atlanta
Live to Feast
Foodie Buddha