Sam Ryan's
I love barbecue. Not only because it’s absolutely mouth watering delicious, but also because of its primal nature. Maybe all that open flame and the scent of charred burning meat draws out my inner caveman. At the very least it reminds me of the times during summer break my family would congregate in the park around smoking grills manned by the men of household. Barbecue is earthy and masculine and makes it ok for a guy to strap on an apron. So, really, what’s not to love about that?
So you can imagine my frustration when I first arrived in Seoul and discovered, to my dismay, the pitiful excuses for barbecue. I tried places high and low to find the rib bone holy grail only to end up with a pale chewy imitation not worthy of being called barbecue. I had just about given up hope of finding barbecue nirvana. Time after time, after hearing about a restaurant serving up barbecue, disappointment slapped me in the face leaving me with a mouthful of mediocre mess that could hardly be called meat let alone barbecue. How could a city of 14 million not be able to produce some finger licking rib deliciousness?
Well, that question has just been answered by the godsend of Sam Ryan’s in Itaewon. It’s just what you would expect in a sports bar and grill with several big screen TVs playing nothing but sports, beer and grub all around, and a rowdy crowd lapping it all up. A friend tipped me off to the Tuesday Tailgate special where barbecue is only 500W per rib if you also buy a drink. They also mentioned that it’s so popular that if you don’t get their early the horn of plenty trumpeting this rib bone bonanza will peter out around 9 PM.
With that thought firmly in mind, my friend Ian and I rushed over this past Tuesday evening around 6 PM. Even at this early evening hour Sam Ryan’s was nearly packed. We grabbed a table, ordered, and quickly found ourselves in front of a plate piled high with the most delicious ribs I’ve had since leaving home. They came so perfectly cooked that the meat literally slipped off the bone. The ribs didn’t come slathered in barbecue sauce, to hide its flaws, like some places I’ve been to in Seoul. Nope, like all good barbecue the ribs at Sam Ryan’s didn’t even need sauce but if you did use some it only served to highlight the flavor.
So if you’re hankering for some down home barbecue then by sure to head over to Sam Ryan’s. Tuesday is the night to go, but they do serve ribs every night, though not the tailgate special. You can find it above 3 Alley Pub in Itaewon just across from Scrooge’s.
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