Nostalgic Eats

Kalbi Jjim ($26.95)

For authentic Korean food, just like how it tastes in Korea, visit New Shilawon Korean Restaurant.

The locally owned, family-run restaurant takes pride in serving traditional home-cooked meals that often bring back memories of home for customers from Korea.

“It’s the food my parents grew up eating in Korea,” explains manager Jandy Lee, whose dad Jae Keun Lee is the chef and took over ownership of Shillawon Korean Restaurant in 2014, renaming it New Shilawon. “We grew up here, but this is also the food we grew up eating because my mom cooked everything at home. A lot of Korean families will buy their kimchee, but we never did. We always made our own.”

Known for its all-you-can-eat yakiniku and shabu shabu, the popular Korean eatery also offers an a la carte menu with more than 40 Korean dishes to choose from. An additional lunch menu also is available from 10:30 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Fill up with New Shilawon Korean Restaurant’s All-You-Can-Eat Shabu Shabu ($31.95 adults, $15.99 children ages 4-10) and enjoy cook-at-your-table Korean-style hot pot with a tasty homemade beef- and vegetable-based broth, along with thinly sliced ribeye, lettuce, Chinese cabbage, bok choy, tofu, zucchini, Korean mint and other greens. It’s also served with rice, a citrusy house dipping sauce and assorted ban chan (Korean side dishes, such as kimchee, bean sprouts, seaweed, broccoli, potato salad and spicy fish cake). Add udon noodles for $4 or a porridge set (rice, nori and egg) for $7.

All-You-Can-Eat Shabu Shabu ($31.95 adult, $15.99 childrend ages 4-10)

“We keep refilling the broth, the vegetables, the meat and the side dishes,” says Lee, noting that they do not use MSG in any of their dishes. “The ban chan is made fresh every morning, and we don’t slice the meat until they order it. It’s not precut.”

There also is a Lunch Special Shabu Shabu ($14.95) perfect for those who aren’t hungry enough for an all-you-can-eat meal, but still crave shabu shabu.

FOOD MADE WITH LOVE

New Shilawon’s Steamed Short Ribs, aka Kalbi Jjim ($26.95) is a traditional Korean dish served in a stone pot with rice on the side. The kalbi is marinated in a homemade sauce with shoyu, sugar and ginger; and steamed together with daikon, carrots, onions, green and red bell peppers, sweet potato, sesame seeds and green onion.

“The stone pot keeps it hot and keeps in the flavor,” says manager Jandy Lee. “All of our sauces are made from scratch. We use fresh fruits and vegetables, and fresh local ingredients. And when my parents make it they think of family, so they’re putting their love and time into the food.”

New Shilawon Korean Restaurant

747 Amana St., Honolulu
944-8700
Sunday-Thursday, 10:30 a.m.-11 p.m.; Friday-Saturday, 10:30 a.m.-midnight