The BOOT KNOCKER (photo below) is a dish made with a long list of ingredients including SPAM, corned beef hash, spicy sausages and instant ramen. It’s POT restaurants’s version of Korean budae jjigae, which means “army stew”.
I know what you’re thinking, that it looks like something you’d eat ONLY when you’re drunk, or possibly to cure that wicked hangover the next morning.
Recently I tried it at lunch, unquestionably sober, and sat gleefully picking out flavors from my childhood.
SPAM always takes me back to my early years in Okinawa, where food was rationed during the Vietnam War. Corned Beef Hash was a regular on my American grandfather’s breakfast table, and I still eat it every once in awhile, cooked almost burnt, with a fried egg on top – just like grandpa made it. And like most, Top Ramen was a life-saver in my early 20s, when I was flat-broke between paychecks. The BOOT KNOCKER tastes like my childhood in a bowl and I loved reliving each bite.
So, which C.I.A.-trained chef would dare serve this on his new L.A. menu? Well, Chef Roy Choi of course. The same genius behind Kogi BBQ, A-Frame, Sunny Spot and Chego. He also wrote “L.A. Son”, a heartfelt immigrant story that I’ve read twice so far.
POT restaurant (named for Korean hot pots and maybe weed) is located at the new, swank LINE HOTEL in Korea-town. Check out a few photos of the hotel here.
If the BOOT KNOCKER isn’t your type of comfort food, there’s always the decadent Uni Dynamite Rice Bowl. My server said they regularly run out of this dish, so grab it when you can.
The NOODLE OF THE DAY was a Chilled Somen Noodle w Various Raw & Pickled Vegetables, Chili Paste, Shredded Beef, Hard Boiled Egg.
If you love pork as much as I do, then a must-order is the SPICY BBQ PORK.
Choi is also a co-producer on Jon Favreau’s new film called (appropriately), “CHEF”. I haven’t seen the movie yet but here’s a link to the trailer. You can also check out details at my friend Eddie Lin’s blog. Warning: SPOILER ALERT.
If you’re a fan of the film and near Korea-town on Thursday May 15th, Roy is hosting a popup at POT (serving Cubano sandwiches) to celebrate the movie.
POT Restaurant
(Inside The Line Hotel)
3515 Wilshire Blvd
Koreatown
Los Angeles
213-381-7411
website
Follow Chef Roy Choi on twitter
Follow POT on twitter
All my POT photos here, including some serious drunk-eats at the Line Hotel Cafe.
my last bite... 