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Issue link: https://loumag.epubxp.com/i/62230
[ Dining Out>>Review ] Sharing at Charim >>By Stephen Hacker Photos by John Nation Broaden your international vocabulary — golbangy, anyone? — while satisfying your Korean-cuisine jones at the new St. Matthews restaurant Charim. I have the Catholic Church and Lent to blame for the glistening chunk of mackerel between my chopsticks. I have Yeon Hee Chung, owner and chef of Charim Korean Restaurant, to thank for making it palatable. See, I usually avoid mackerel, as it is a slimy ocean omnivore that yields an oily, XEHU ¿VK\ ÀDYRU %XW RQH RI P\ SODQQHG visits to Charim fell on a Friday during the Lenten season. My pious dining partner not only insisted on non-meat options but also demanded the mackerel as a kind of ironic salute to an antiquated anti-Catholic slur. So here I am, staring at a plate of godeung-uh jorim ($15), in a beige-walled little restaurant slotted into the mini-strip mall on Oechsli Avenue. And, happily, ,¶P ¿QGLQJ WKDW , OLNH LW 7KH PDFNHUHO tastes like mackerel, though it's braised to delicate tenderness. Its real advantage lies in the braising liquid, a kind of super- IXQN\ FKLOL ÀHFNHG ¿VK VDXFH ZLWK .RUHDQ FKLOL SDVWH 7KH ÀDYRUV VHHS into a huge mound of braised daikon radish chunks and sliced onions, with crisp scallion [96] LOUISVILLE MAGAZINE 5.12 shoots and jalapeño slices that add hot freshness. %HLQJ IDU IURP D SUDFWLFLQJ &DWKROLF; P\VHOI , ¿OO P\ VLGH RI WKH WDEOH ZLWK PHDW making sure to include an order of Charim wings ($6), the restaurant's addition to the Korean fried-chicken universe. Unlike the breaded, buttermilk-soaked Southern- style birds, a thin batter that's slowly and carefully fried to a delicate crispness gives .RUHDQ FKLFNHQ LWV FUXQFK 7KH &KDULP; wings are much better than the hot wings ($6) I ordered on a previous visit, when a bottled-tasting hot sauce made the wings' VNLQ GLVLQWHJUDWH 7KH SODLQ ZLQJV DUH lightly coated with soy sauce and sesame seeds, letting the crackly dermis remain while coating the moist meat in a layer of salty-sour $VLDQ ÀDYRU )RU WKLV PHDO I also choose a familiar Korean favorite, kalbi 7KH PDULQDWHG EHHI VKRUW ULE LV grilled and thinly sliced, and the wonderful surprise of sliced portobello mushrooms beneath the rib pieces offers an additional ELW RI EHH¿QHVV WR DQ DOUHDG\ KHIW\ SODWH Chef Chung describes her kitchen crew as "two staff, all ladies, no experience,"