the spectrum

I'm not a fan of Asian fusion (remember that?), but a fusion of modern and tradition can be fun. Growing up, the Korean food I remember was always traditional. Okay, there really was no such thing as trendy, modern and fusion Korean back then. Chinese was as far as the average person went. But now, everything can be modernized, traditionalized, trendified, fused and gentrified. And you can have it both ways at Danji, a cute and tiny Korean restaurant in Midtown West that has a Michelin star. I feel like my mom would laugh at all this food. My god, bulgogi burgers?! I can hear her saying. But she'd also find them very cute, mockable and pretty good, all at the same time, and then wonder why am I am eating in such a place in such an area isn't it all dangerous?

Nevertheless, Tricia and I shared the bulgogi beef sliders with spicy pickled cucumber and scallion salsa. A nice bite from the Modern side of the menu. I think I would like to serve this at a cocktail party.


But it was the tofu that actually blew me away. And I can hear my mom saying, tofu? My god. But yes, the tofu, simply and unassumingly described on the Modern side of the menu as "tofu with ginger scallion dressing," was scrumptiously soft, crispy, spicy, zingy and etheral. But if you are like Tricia, you might find it offputting.


Over on the Traditional side was the japchae: stir fried vermicelli with beef and veggies. Sweet, salty and glassy. Yes.


Still on the traditional side, the kalbi jjim: "Danji" braised short ribs with fingerling potatoes, cipollini onion and toasted pine nuts. Hearty and succulent, but not anything different.


No, my friends, it's not corned beef hash and an egg. We finished up with the Modern: kimchi bacon chorizo "paella" with a fried jidori hen egg. How bizarre! How, Dr. Seuss! I want to put a fried egg on my next paella. As a matter of fact, I want to put a fried egg on everything now. All strange, intriguing and kind of silly, but deliciously addictive.