Shik Do Rak

I think I may have found the perfect Korean restaurant; the only problem is it is in Northridge, so you may have to drive a bit to get to it, but after the first bite, you will want to move nearby.

Shik Do Rak does not have a website, but it is located at 18434 Devonshire St., Northridge, Ca 91325 Tel # 818-832-7080. Besides the wonderful food, which I will get to in a minute, the best thing here is the SMILING people who work here (and yes, they are Korean). Menus are in Korean and English with good descriptions, so you will actually be able to say what you want in English or Korean. The service here was fantastic, especially since we were a table of four non-Koreans. We got kimchee refills twice and they brought us to go containers at the end of our meals without us asking.

The food was delicious, as good or better than the restaurants in Korea Town. The portions are large, so plan on splitting an order if you are not starving or a linebacker; the numerous sides are all fresh, from the two types of kimchee, salad and bean sprouts, to the winter melon soup. Aside from the kimchee, all of the sides are very lightly seasoned, but there is a tray of condiments on every table to spicy things up. One nice touch is a spicy bean paste and seasoned salt oil dipping tray comess with the meal, and rice is automatically served with every dish (usually it must be ordered separately); they even give you an extra plate for your food. I would recommend the marinated Galbi and Bulgogi ($15 lunch), but they also have a whole mackerel ($12 lunch) that is tender, crispy, and slightly salty for non meat eaters, as well as an array of everything from soon tofu to fatty pork.

This is a bit out of the way, but if you are ever even remotely in the area, give it a try; some of the best things in life are hidden gems.