The recently opened Hankook Taqueria takes after the current foodie craze spawned by Kogi BBQ — the roving Los Angeles vending trucks serving the flavors of Korean barbecue in Mexican-style tacos, burritos and quesadillas.
Hankook is the creation of Tomas Lee, who previously worked for Buckhead Life Restaurant Group and was the chef-owner of Tomas restaurant in Norcross. Stepping away from fine dining, Lee took over the former Good Eats space in a semi-industrial section of Collier Road on Atlanta’s Westside.
L.A. to Atlanta
Lee, who is Korean, says he got the idea to try his hand at Korean tacos after a trip to L.A. Eventually, he hopes to use Hankook as a commercial kitchen to run his own taco trucks around Atlanta. In the meantime, both the hole-in-the-wall atmosphere and the simple menu are works in progress. The meat-and-three remnants of Good Eats are visible in the cafeteria-style steam table counter and the ragtag retro oilcloth-covered tables and booths in the adjacent dining area.
Taco choices
In the huge open kitchen, Lee and his staff are cooking up five taco combos ($2.25 each), including chicken and stir-fried tofu. Among the best, pulled pork with hot and spicy barbecue sauce is a sort of Korean-Mexican-Southern fusion. Panko-crusted fried tilapia is covered in a sweet and spicy hoisin sauce. Korean-style bulgogi is savory strips of marinated beef rib-eye.
All the tacos come in a choice of flour or corn tortillas and are dressed with a salad mix of romaine lettuce, cabbage, cilantro and green onions tossed in soy sesame vinaigrette, as well as shredded cheddar cheese that appears to be sprinkled straight from the package. While the toppings add crunch and another bright level of seasoning, they tend to overpower some of the fillings and give the tacos a same-y quality. Burritos ($6.25) include a choice of one of the five taco fillings, rolled in a big flour tortilla, with kimchi fried rice and a repeat of the salad and cheese garnish from the tacos.
Street snacks
What Lee describes as street snacks are a jumble of takes on Korean and Mexican dishes, including traditional bibimbop and gogi nachos. A recent special, crispy spring rolls filled with cellophane noodles, vegetables and pork, was tasty but too greasy. Ditto the fried man-doo dumplings, with a satisfying ginger, green onion and minced pork filling. Undercooked tempura-battered sweet potatoes served with spicy ketchup suffered most from what seemed to be a problem with deep fryers that don’t get the oil hot enough to do the job.
Overall, Lee has a happening, bargain-price concept that seems perfectly in sync with the times. All he needs to do is iron out some of the kinks, and maybe become a bit more adventurous.
Dining out
Hankook Taqueria, 1341 Collier Road, 404-352-8881
Signature dish: Korean tacos
Entree prices: $2.25-$6.25 (specials higher)
Hours: 11 a.m.-4 p.m. Mondays-Fridays
Reservations: no
Credit cards: yes
Online: no Web site yet
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