Outing With Friends
On Friday, I went out with several former and current interns to Boka, a popular Korean eatery at St. Marks. Out of the two other Korean restaurants I have been to, this one, if I recall correctly, has the most reviews (and many of them are positive) on the Yelp website – and I know this information because I looked up this restaurant in the office beforehand just so I know what to expect and don’t look like a complete fool there when I order. I do this often enough that it becomes a habit. Because if there is a phobia for trying out new restaurant, I think I might have that.
It’s not that I have a fear of trying and eating new food – and I think they call this “neophobia,” but I can assure you I do not have that; it’s just that there is something, I find, intimidating about walking into new restaurants, but I am certainly not saying every new restaurant is inherently intimidating! Because of this phobia – and I seriously think this has to be the most pathetic phobia ever – I rarely summon the courage to actively try out new restaurants or other eateries. I cannot recount how many times I have walked into the typical places like McDonalds, Chipotle, Burger King, and the like. Is it because of the fear of unfamiliar environment, the fear of being alone (and eating alone), the fear of not being able to read the menu and being judged by other diners for not knowing how to order, the fear of the price, the fear of being the foreign one, or the fear of being underdressed at the restaurant? I cannot pin point as to what I find intimidating about walking into a new restaurant – it might be all and it probably is all. But when I was with the interns, they gave me this courage to bravely walk into any restaurant without that aforementioned pathetic phobia. With them, in a word, all of my worries dissipated.
Anyway, I had a great time at the Korean restaurant. There, I ordered and tried BiBimBob, which comes in a bowl of rice served with a mix of seasoned and flavorful vegetables with your choice of meat (marinated chickens, spicy pork, or beef) or non-meat (kimchi, tofu, or mushroom). The dish looks something like this:
The others ordered steamed buns (which looks really appetizing), fried rice (the portion seems really fulfilling), another variation of BiBimBob (and it comes with a poached egg!), the restaurant’s signature fried chickens, and lots and lots of soju, a slightly alcoholic beverage. I remember seeing hundreds of pictures of the restaurant’s signature fried chickens on the Yelp website – and I think the wings, with their crispiness and tender meat, definitely live up to the excitement. Afterward, we roamed the streets and spent hours at Washington Square Park, bonding! I don’t want to end the post on my bashing the MTA, but let’s just say the MTA was not exactly cooperative on the way home. Staying out late and getting back home at 1 A.M. in the morning aren’t exactly something I do all the time but with them, I definitely enjoyed the outing and had an amazing time. And of course, here are the pictures:
– Jason
The Junction Journal 