marination

My fellow citizens, have you been enjoying the Seattle street food revolution even half as much as me?  Are we not truly living in glorious times, where airstream trailers and colossal iron pigs can travel freely from one neighborhood to the next, bestowing their culinary riches to the masses?  Well citizens, one of the newest kids on the curb is also undoubtedly one of the best – I speak of the Hawaiian-Korean fusion stylings of Marination Mobile.  Hawaiian.  Korean.

Now Seattle isn’t particularly renowned for either it’s Hawaiian or Korean cuisine, but I’m just going to say straight out that Marination totally nails it.  The brainchild of Kamala Saxton and Roz Edison (and clearly inspired by the insanely popular Kogi Korean BBQ in Los Angeles), the navy blue, custom-built taco truck looks like a police riot van as reimagined by Xzibit.  One side flips up to reveal a built-in sound system which bumps big beats while you stand in the surprisingly fast-moving line.  There’s a self-service cooler installed on one side with those awesome Hawaiian Sun juices perfect for spiking with your Rum of choice (Guava Nectar is the best).  The tip jar is labeled “Converse Fund”.  I can support that.

I have to admit that even after multiple stays in Hawaii, I’ve somehow managed to go my entire life without ever eating SPAM.  No longer.  The Aloha sliders are served on soft Hawaiian sweet rolls, piled with a tangy slaw made from cilantro, carrots and cabbage, and stuffed with a thick slab of grilled SPAM.  The proverbial mystery meat was surprisingly tasty – soft and salty and lightly dressed with a sweet ginger barbeque sauce.  Nice and bright (although I would personally ratchet up the heat a touch with some Sriracha, thoughtfully provided counter-side).

I was also excited to try the kimchi quesadilla with kalua pork – the kimchi is unique, but used so sparingly that it’s almost completely lost in an oversauced pink mess of spicy aioli.  On the other hand, the shredded kalua pork is beautifully smoky and chewy with a slow burn courtesy of some thinly sliced jalapeños.  The soft flour tortilla is grilled to a nice crispy char, and the cheese is thick and strong.  Marination does a remarkably good job of recreating the deep flavor of traditional kalua pork without having to cook a pig underground for 24 hours.  So good, that I think it better to appreciate solo on a slider (when the SPAM is unavailable – seriously, try the SPAM).

Also better to enjoy the kimchi on its own in a rice bowl topped with a fried egg, lots of bright green shaved scallions and toasted sesame seeds.  The kimchi is crunchy and tangy and the heat builds slowly, but nothing over the top.  Perfectly executed, and packed with big slices of sweet onion and toasted, pickled cabbage.  The rice is nice and moist and tastes like soy and chilies and smoke.  Plus, I think we can all agree, everything tastes better with an egg on top.  FACT.  It’s a very satisfying dish, and probably my favorite thing on the menu.

Tacos are $2 a pop, wrapped in two corn tortillas and covered with that tangy, signature slaw and a more restrained application of the pink sauce.  Kalbi beef is chewy and sweet and tastes like classic Korean barbeque – soy sauce, sesame oil, a touch of honey, a ton of garlic.  Ginger miso chicken is creamy and smoky and positively brilliant.  There’s even marinated, grilled tofu for the vegetarians.  The tortillas are rather dry and lifeless compared to somewhere like Rancho Bravo, but a side of sliced jalapeños and a wedge of lime are thoughtfully provided to kick up the flavor.

Marination is truly an exciting addition to the burgeoning mobile kitchen scene here in town.  They’ve got a pretty regular weekly schedule now, but they’ll send out Twitter updates if anything changes.  I’m looking forward to eventually tracking down some of that elusive SPAM musubi I keep hearing about…

joule

There are some wonderful things happening with food over in Wallingford these days, and I credit chefs Rachel Yang and Seif Chirchi for leading the way.  Since opening Joule last year at 45^th and Burke, the husband and wife duo behind the only French-Korean restaurant in Seattle have been consistently producing some of the most innovative cuisine in the city.  At turns adventurous and elegant, their food has a serious mindedness that is belied by the playful menu (with course headings like Simmered, Crisped, Sparked, and my favorite, Staff of Life).  This laser focus is almost certainly the result of Yang and Chirchi’s previous employ at the ridiculously high-end Coupage in Madrona (which imploded shortly after their departure) and before that at Alain Ducasse in New York City.

Joule is a contemporary space with lots of dark wood offset by soft yellow paint and the most beautiful wallpaper in town – an exquisite deep indigo backdrop covered with white leaves and pink fairytale hummingbirds.  A pot of reeds filled with little white lights sits at the edge of the bar, where patrons can sit and watch Chirchi and Yang at work in the prominent open kitchen.  There may be jazz playing on the stereo, and some of it may be French.  It’s the perfect atmosphere to enjoy one of Joule’s seasonal cocktails.  Try the pomegranate tarragon shrub, a vinegar-based drink served in a carafe filled with fresh pomegranate seeds and ice.  Or the Parisian Sake, a mix of Kurosawa and St. Germain with a slice of grapefruit that is exceptionally bright and clean.

The menu at Joule changes with the seasons, and a recent visit found a strong emphasis on early winter greens.  We started with a creamed Swiss chard with hazelnut salt, which was slightly bitter and buttery and warm (and just a little too salty, dammit Seattle).  Even better was a zucchini pancake with shrimp and smoked chili vinaigrette – sweet and fluffy, with the occasional burst of cilantro.  We also enjoyed a piping hot baguette with housemade seaweed butter.  It was the perfect synthesis of East and West.

For the main course, I was compelled to order the wild boar spare ribs with spicy Korean barbeque glaze and collard slaw (more of that perfect chard with pickled daikons).  The ribs were so tender that the meat slid right off the bone with a poke from my fork.  The glaze was sweet and smoky with a little bit of heat, but nothing outrageous.  Restraint was further shown in the pickled cucumber kimchi with shitake mushrooms that I ordered on the side.  I’ve had some kimchi that was so far off the Scoville heat spectrum as to render it inedible.  In fact, I’ve never had kimchi quite like this before, remarkably briny in flavor.  Also unique: the housemade soy sauce, which tasted like it was mixed with sriracha or some other red chili paste.  I could not get enough of it.

We ordered several other entrees and passed the dishes around the table, including an enormous whole mackerel with smoked tomato puttanesca.  The fish was cut down the middle, but otherwise it was all about digging out the fragrant meat and dodging the bones (I’ll be honest, I appreciate the presentation of serving a whole fish, but it’s an awful lot of work to get through one).  Additionally: bison and lamb.  The bison hanger was served with a garlic chive chimichurri sauce, and while I found the meat a little too chewy for my taste, there was none of the gaminess that I usually associate with buffalo.  The lamb sirloin was absolutely perfect, with a subtle spiced yogurt and quince-ginger chutney.  Seldom have I experienced lamb that good.

For dessert, the signature “Joule” Box is imperative.  Vibrant slices of ruby red grapefruit, bruléed and served over snow white tapioca pearls – utterly original and positively delightful.  While we were savoring the sweet and sour of the grapefruit and tapioca, chef Chirchi came out from the kitchen to introduce himself, inquire after the meal and thank us for coming.  It was a gracious and authentic gesture, and one that I genuinely appreciate.

All told, it was another wonderful and satisfying experience.  I love this city.