Mr Lim’s Korean BBQ

August 2012

The success of Mr Lim’s Korean BBQ on the same site as two ill-fated Korean restaurants before him is bewildering. I imagine quality of food must play an instrumental role in ensuring Lim’s ongoing success. In short, apart from the wretched aroma of cooked meat and oil that pervaded the restaurant thanks to an underpowered exhaust system, the food at Lim’s was rather decent.

Korean BBQ meats (particularly the spare ribs marinated in a house sauce, tender ribeye, and beef tongue that we ordered) are the focal point of the menu, and a cold room adjacent to the main dining area attested to the popularity and quality of Mr Lim’s meats. The ban chan (complimentary appetisers) however, were underwhelming, both in terms of range and quality.

The Korean equivalent to spaghetti bolognaise, chab chae, comprising fried plump glass noodles at Lim’s is fairly represented, although it’s by no means memorable. It was the fried omelette – not too oily or stodgy – that proved to be the star. Lim’s exhaustive menu also includes steamboat, seafood (‘steamed monkfish smothered in spicy sauce’ is one dubiously described example), and set menus that proffer the restaurant’s signature dishes in pre-packaged dining deals. And therein maybe lies the secret to Lim’s success: deals are aplenty here. That and the good quality of meat seem to have worked enough magic to keep this Korean eatery heaving with diners. Fay Khoo