On our recent trip to London we discovered the Covent Garden version of On The Bab – Korean Street Food restaurant. The small, rustic cafe is tucked amongst pubs, cafes, shops, and museums near Covent Garden, making it an easy spot to stop while exploring the iconic central London destination. With a mix of tourists and lunchtime office workers the busy cafe can have a line-up but the turnover is quick so on our visit we waited less than 5 minutes. From observation we noticed it has a large take-away following, most likely from the many offices and institutions nearby. If the line is long, grab your order to-go and eat while people-watching at Covent Garden.
We had first heard about On The Bab from a Korean Englishman YouTube video English people try Korean Chicken and Beer!! Having seen much praise of it, I had to try Chimaek – Korean Chicken and Maekju (beer, in Korean).
At On The Bab they serve Yangyum Chicken, spicy boneless Korean Fried Chicken (KFC) with crushed peanuts in a choice of flavours; soy ginger, sweet spicy, garlic mayo, or seasoned spring onion. For the Maekju I choose a cold bottle of Korean Hite Lager. The crisp, chill of the beer nicely cuts the spice, and compliments the crunch of the chicken.
For his selection, Billy tried Baek Ban, nicely cooked and seasoned bulgolgi beef and rice with salad and fresh kimchi served bento style reminiscent of his school days.
Along with the Chimaek & Baek Ban, we tried Chicken Kun Mandu, nicely flavoured plump pan-fried dumplings.
The Octopus & Prawn Salad, a blend of seafood and shredded veggies was as fresh as it was spicy.
We enjoyed everything we tried at On The Bab, and would definitely share more from their Korean Street Food menu the next time we visit London.
On The Bab has four outlets around London, Shoreditch, Covent Garden, Marylebone, and St Paul’s. Visit onthebab.com online to find directions, and menus for each outlet.