You've Had Bbbop's Fried Chicken, But Have You Tried the Pancakes?

Welcome to "You Like This," in which we ask chefs two questions: 1) What's the best-selling dish at your restaurant? and 2) What's your favorite dish at your restaurant? We hope the answer to the first question will open your eyes to the fan favorites and the Dallas palate, and that perhaps the answer to that second question will inspire you to go out on a kickass food limb once in a while. This week's You Like This features chef/owner Sandy Bussey from bbbop Seoul Kitchen.

Hey, chef! What's your best-selling dish at bbbop Seoul Kitchen?

Although we started as a rice bowl place, the most popular item became the Not Your Mama's fried chicken. When we first started, we didn't even have a fryer in the kitchen; healthy was our thing. But customers started asking for wings, then fries. One day, I started playing around with fried chicken, since Bonchon was coming in across the street, and I started serving it to my staff and partners. They insisted it go on the menu.


What's your favorite dish right now?

Right now, I'm doing a wild mushroom Korean pancake. The batter is made with ground mung beans, roasted mushrooms (maitake, hon shimeji, enoki, shiitake, oyster, king trumpet) and gosari (a type of fern commonly used in Korean cuisine). This dish reminds me of my grandmother. I can see her now, standing over an electric griddle cooking these. All the kids would come by and grab them as she was cooking them up.

If you could give any advice to diners who are headed to bbbop Seoul Kitchen, what would it be?

Although Korean food can look intimidating, most of the ingredients are pretty commonplace — for instance, bibimbop (a Korean rice bowl consisting of rice, beef, egg and usually spinach, zucchini, carrots, sprouts, etc.). But then again, we do have some foreign ingredients like gosari, the fern, which has a taste and texture that is very similar to mushrooms. So try something different and don't be afraid. Different could be your new favorite thing.

If you haven't been over to bbbop Seoul Kitchen yet, get over there and try this stuff. It's the perfect time of year for delicious.