local restaurant review: emc seafood in koreatown

Fresh oysters!

(Los Angeles, CA).  EMC Seafood & Raw Bar is one of many new

hip additions to Koreatown, and is definitely my favorite of them all for its awesome happy hour ($1 oysters!) and consistently delicious food.  To me the food here is hands down better than Beer Belly (another popular trendy pub in Koreatown) which seems to think all food is better if you fry it and smother it in sauce.  EMC does offer creative asian-fusion flavors but ultimately still relies on simple, fresh ingredients.  They also have good cocktails, sakes and a decent wine offering.

Sake flight.

I've introduced this place to different groups of friends and they all loved it enough to return again and again.  The restaurant is located in City Center (at the intersection of 6th Street and Mariposa Avenue), which also houses a Korean grocery store, bakery and retail shops, etc.  There is parking in the building but it's unclear to me how much they charge - sometimes the gate is open and parking is free; other times they charge a few bucks.  I don't live that far from Koreatown so I usually uber it to the bar.  They only take reservations for groups of 10+ people; otherwise, it's first come first serve, and I've noticed the lines are getting longer as word gets out, so try to come early or be prepared to wait. 

There are 2 happy hours!  There is one between 4-7 pm everyday with $1 oysters, $5 house wine and beers.  The other happy hour is from Sun-Thurs from 10pm - closing, and offers $1.25 oysters, $5 house wine and beers.  Normally I try to hit the happy hour to have oysters, but I can never resist their regular menu offerings.

Overall the food is fantastic.  I haven't really had anything bad yet, but some are definitely better than others.  The following is a list of items I've had (not all at one time) and my thoughts:

• $1 oysters - good and fresh - they aren't the best I've ever had but for just a buck, it's pretty darn good.
• littleneck clams - also very fresh and tasty.
• zucchini fries - pretty good, but not amazing.  I actually prefer their french fries.

  

  Zucchini fries.

• crispy smelt - delicious if you like whole little fried fishies, but I do wish they were a tad smaller.
• shrimp tacos - tasty! my favorite of their taco offerings so far.
• fried fish tacos - good, but the shrimp tacos were better.
• crispy brussel sprouts - delicious!  must have!

  

  Crispy brussel sprouts.

• fries with truffle mushroom aioli - yum!  if you like fries, you should get these!
• crispy soft shell crab sliders - quite delicious.  the combo of the buttery bun, sauce, slaw and soft shell crab were perfect.

  

  Soft shell crab sliders.

• fried fish tenders - good, but not amazing.  I prefer the crispy smelt, but some people are afraid of the fish heads.
• blue crab lettuce cups - this was ok, but the flavors weren't striking.
• uni pasta - delicious - on par with the uni pasta at son of a gun
• congee with clam - very soothing and a nice hint of ginger and plenty of clams.  If you have a cold, having congee is the ultimate comfort food.
• shrimp lightly battered with salt and pepper - so delicious, perfectly cooked and seasoned - must have!

  

  Lightly battered shrimp.

• lobster roll - sort of small, but the buttery toast and chunks of lobster were nice

  

  Lobster roll.

• crab roll - just ok
• shrimp roll - good but I personally prefer lobster rolls.
• spicy albacore tuna crisps - delicious!  the contrast of savory and sweet and textures is outstanding- must have!

  

  Tuna crisps.

• tuna tartare - good, but I prefer the tuna crisps

  

  Tuna tartare.

• yellowtail ceviche - just ok; can't compare to the dish at matsuhisa or nobu.
• scallop carpaccio - good, fresh and nicely balanced flavors

  

  Scallop ceviche.

• sake flight - wonderful and refreshing
• chocolate mousse dessert - this was very delicious and light.  recommended.
  
• key lime pie - just ok; there is a weird marzipan topping on it.

Have you been?  What are your favorites?