with the Wife and Dominic
As I noted in a prior post,
kimbap (김밥) has always been "one of the most popular food items in Korea" (see
1.200 Kimbap).
Not that it needed further incentive, but kimbap enjoyed a period of several years around the mid-00s in which the price of a roll dropped to just 1,000 won each. Before then, the going rate had been 2,000 won or more. What began as one restaurant's successful pricing gimmick--attributed by many observers to Kimbap Cheonguk (김밥천국) (Kimbap Heaven)--suddenly set the standard throughout the country, as copycats were quick to follow suit, often with the same name and logo. In fact, the original restaurant had failed to secure trademark protection for its brand, prompting a court to dismiss an early series of infringement suits on the grounds that the name had become genericized through common use. Eventually, some branches were consolidated under various corporate ownerships, as identified by secondary logos. Anyway, a Kimbap Cheonguk--or Kimbap Nara (김밥나라) (Kimbap Nation) or Kimbap Sarang (김밥사랑) (Kimbap Love) or some similar alternative--would soon pop up on virtually every street corner, sometimes literally next door to one another.
It's across the alley from Dusi Kentucky Chicken and Sandong Gyoja-Gwan,
as well as a Kimbap Nara (not pictured).
The idea had been to offer cheap kimbap as a price leader, tempting customers into the restaurant so that they'd order other, more expensive items from the menu. In addition to kimbap, these restaurants typically offer a wide range of casual Korean dishes, ranging from noodle dishes, such as ramyeon (라면) (instant noodles), for about 3,000 won at the time, to rice-based meals, such as sundubu jjigae (순두부찌개) (silky tofu stew), for about 4,500 won at the time (most prices have since risen 500-1,000 won across the board).
With all the components ready to go, a roll of kimbap takes seconds to make.
Unfortunately, with many customers opting for the kimbap alone, the owners found themselves making rolls all day--open 24 hours--for little or no profit. Stories started circulating, some probably true, that the only possible way to maintain the 1,000-won price point was by using downmarket ingredients barely fit for human consumption, like eggs cracked during production or rice at the limit of expiration. In any event, the prices inevitably crept up here and there, until they stabilized at the current 1,500 won, which seems reasonable enough that it wouldn't invite skepticism (see generally
2.268 Kimbap).
The sides are minimized to keep costs down,
a practice that all Korean restaurants should adopt.
On the eve of the wife's discharge from the hospital and postpartum recovery center where she's been staying for the past few weeks (see generally
3.101 Engawa & Sake Nigiri Sushi), the mother-in-law authorized leave of absence for a meal off the premises, even if it didn't involve seaweed. She still doesn't know about the secret burger excursion a few days earlier (see
3.106 Dry Aged Hanwoo 1++ Fielt Mignon Burger).
Ddeokbokki (3,000 won) pairs nicely with kimbap.
Dominic's favorite is donkatsu (5,000 won),
which is Japanese, of course, but a staple in these types of restaurants.
When we gave Dominic the choice of venue, he didn't hesitate to select Kimbap Cheonguk, which has many of his favorite dishes, and he can check off the boxes for what he wants on the order form, and he's allowed to get whatever he wants because everything's so cheap. The food was okay, pretty much the same as at any other Kimbap Cheonguk/Nara/Sarang that I've even been to. The wonjo kimbap (원조김밥) (original kimbap), so called in reference to the original 1,000-won kimbap that started it all, was bare bones as ever, though pleasant in its simplicity. We had a good time.
-Cycle 3, Item 116-
