Food Court Kimchi Fried Rice - Bann Korean Cuisine versus Sue’s Korean Kitchen

I was working from home recently and just needed to get out of the house. Luckily, I had some time to grab some lunch. For some reason, I was craving Kimchi Fried Rice....now granted, I could have just made my own at home.......but that wouldn't be any fun, would it?

**** Bann has closed

I decided to head on over to the H Mart Food Court; I hadn't been to Bann since 2019. And I thought they made some decent kimchi fried rice. The food court was fairly busy; even at a few minutes past 11.

But there was only one person ahead of me in line at Bann.......

I quickly noticed that the price of the Kimchi Fried Rice with Spam had gone up in price; by $2 since my last visit and was now over $13!

Anyway, it was ready in a fairly quick amount of time and I headed home.

   First thing I noticed was that the egg hadn't travelled real well and the usual runny yolk was now solid. There was an abundance of Spam and large slices Kimchi in the fried rice. It had a decent "kick", perhaps a bit more than I prefer as it kind of over powered the Spam. The rice was nicely coated, moist, and there were no complaints. Like I mentioned in my previous post, the portion sizes here at the H Mart location is a lot larger than when Bann was on Miramar Road. It's also a lot spicier as well. And I did appreciate the amount of Kimchi and Spam.

Bann Korean Cuisine
7725 Balboa Ave. (In the H Mart Food Court)
San Diego, CA 92111
Hours:
Tues - Sun 11am - 730pm
Closed Mondays

I couldn't help but wonder how this compared to Sue’s Korean Kitchen. So, the very next day at the office, I headed out between meetings. I like the fact that Sue's opens at 10. I can get there early and get my food rather quickly.

I guess I've been coming here fairly often; the really nice woman working remembers me......."no jokbal, today?" Was the question presented on this morning. I told her that I was only getting lunch for me today and she laughed.

Of course, the first obvious thing is that the Kimchi Fried Rice here is $9.99. 

The prep is much more rustic than the version at Bann. Also, as you can see by the shade of red on the rice; it's not as intensely flavored, though make no mistake about it; there's some decent sour-fermented tones and a mild spice to things. Not as much Spam or large pieces of Kimchi in this version and of course it's just julienned egg instead of a golden orb crowning the rice. 

Still, I think it's one of the better things on the menu and I really like the friendly folks that work here as well. I think of this as being a more homey version of kimchi fried rice....like what my friend's mom would make for us back home. And you can't complain about the portion size as well.

I'm also glad that it seems like they're doing some good business. There was one customer in the place when I arrived. She picked up a rather large order....it came to $150!!! Good for them!

Sue’s Korean Kitchen
6755 Mira Mesa Blvd.
Suite 109
San Diego, CA 92121
Current Hours:
Mon - Sat 10am - 9pm
Closed Sundays

So, pick your poison....a more spicy, refined fried rice, with a generous portion of Spam and Kimchi....or something homey and rustic, that makes you feel like your Auntie made it. I think they both have a place in my lunch rotation....and my stomach!

 

Comments

[kat]

I would probably go with the cheaper one:)

[Kirk]

It's still a great choice Kat!

[Junichi]

I made my own version over the weekend. Perfect for the hot weather.

[Kirk]

Yes it is Junichi!

[Lynn @ Oh-So Yummy]

Hmm I wonder how it compares to the kimchi fried rice at Cross Street Chicken and Beer. I guess we don't eat at enough Korean spots if I'm suggesting Korean fried chicken locations lol.

[Kirk]

I'll definitely try the Kimchi Fried rice at Cross Street Lynn. I was just comparing food court KFR in this post.