Kim’s (Happy Hour!)

Kim’s has been open for a while now and being honest I didn’t love it when I first went. The food is well done and I can tell there is quality there, but it doesn’t feel like it elevates Korean food or changes it enough to warrant some of the prices. The flavors felt muted to appeal to wider clientele compared to what you may find at a more traditional Korean restaurant. That being said, I went back to try their new happy hour and was really happy with the items! They had a burger that used Hotteok buns and a kimchi mayo along with their Ramyun Fries! The flavors are savory and the textures are all on point and I found myself contemplating ordering another! All of that for $9 is a really great deal as it isn’t huge, but definitely works great for a happy hour with friends! I also thought the cocktails were still plenty for reduced prices and the Veggie Pancake was a classic done right. I would highly recommend coming to try out happy hour.

Chicky Choco Pop

I’ve wanted a great Thai Popcorn Chicken place in the cities for years, and Chicky Choco Pop definitely delivers. Located at the same Hopkins pop up kitchen that Bao Bao Buns also works out of, I thought it was well worth it to trek there from the NE Metro. Their menu is conveniently located online at https://chickychocopop.com/ and they do pop-ups about once a week. We got the spicy popcorn chicken and I was so happy that it had a lot of heat and flavor. The Korean Fried Chicken also had a lot of sweetness and the cheese definitely had me craving Korean BBQ. The fries were thin and crispy and well seasoned and I think that is the optimal way to make fries so no complaints from me.

It was a pretty long drive back, so I did have to reheat the food. I found that air frying at 370 for 5 minutes was plenty enough for warmth and crisp!

Dario

I’m pretty conflicted on Dario as there has been a ton of hype around the restaurant which opened up right in the middle of Warehouse District nestled away right in the alley. It’s really beautiful and the vibrant pink colors and bright decor remind me of a Miami or LA vibe, but the food was kind of expensive for what we got. The flavors were all there, but the Pasta was pretty typical of what you would normally get somewhere making American pasta dishes. None of the dishes did anything really crazy with their flavors or toppings, but everything was done decently well.

Dario is one of those places that would be great for a date or hangout with friends, but the price definitely made me wish the plates were 20% larger.

J Pot

I don’t even have any pics of my meal because I was so excited/Hot Pot doesn’t usually look that great. J Pot opened up in the corpse of Pizza Ranch over in Maplewood, which is not the sexiest location but probably the most worth visiting at the moment. The offer standard AYCE Korean BBQ AND Hotpot, but all their ingredients are really great quality and $25 for lunch is well worth it. I don’t think there is anywhere else in the State that does it this well. They just opened fairly recently, so I am worried that quality could go down as they operate longer, but that is just more reason to head there ASAP.