If, like me, you have never experienced Korean food before Kimchee is a great place to start. A spacious warm venue in Holborn, with canteen style seating and dark wooden panelling, it reminded me of Busaba Eathai, my favourite Thai chain in London. It is an intimate and relaxing place to dine.

Arriving early on a chilly Monday evening Kimchee was already teeming with hungry visitors, we were slotted into a quieter table. Looking round I noticed a high proportion of Asian guests, which must surely be a sign of the authenticity of this restaurant. The menus were swiftly delivered by our courteous waiter who treated us like royalty for the whole night. Intrigued by the Korean cocktails we chose two different flavoured Soju concoctions (Soju is Korea’s most favoured spirit). The alcohol is almost unnoticeable in these drinks, they tasted just like fresh fruit juice. The best cocktail was definitely the ‘Sojito’ a Korean twist on the old classic with a blend of Soju, zesty lime, brown sugar and muddled with mint and soda water, it is a refreshing and light drink that accompanies the strong flavours of the food perfectly.

As our waiter advised, we chose a selection of starters to share. The first thing that struck me looking at the menu, was that all the names seemed totally unpronounceable, much to my embarrassment. We ordered the Kimchee Jeon (Pancake with kimchee and vegetables served with a soy and chilli sauce), the highly recommended Yang Yeum Chicken (lightly battered chicken in sweet chilli sauce served in a rice basket), Crab Tuigim (soft shell crab fried in breadcrumbs served with plum dipping sauce) and Nangawanse (pork bites with vegetables in oyster sauce). Surprisingly (as I am a non-fish eater) the crab was my favourite, crunchy and crispy and sensationally crackling to bite into, served as a presentable stack, with a little pot of devilish sweet sauce. The breadcrumbed chicken was delicious – light and very moreish but with perhaps a little too much of the very sweet gooey chilli sauce. The pork bites were mixed with lovely vegetables and salty sauce but the meat itself was a little bland. The kimchee pancake was strange but yummy, a kind of exotic omelette with all kinds of interesting ingredients inside.

For main course we had an absolute feast of food, our waiter continued to bring out ‘must try’ dishes, much to the surprise of the surrounding guests. It was the barbequed meat that delighted me most, black sizzling dishes of marinated pork, lamb, and rib-eye beef steak. The Bulgogi is a Korean dish where the meat is marinated in an exotic fruity, spiced pepper and chilli mix and delicately cooked on a chargrill with onions and garlic. It is served with crisp lettuce leaves and sticky rice… you can then pile up delectable portions of lettuce, meat and rice for the perfect mouthful. We also tried the chargrilled broccoli with soybean sauce which was fresh and tasty. And I couldn’t resist the Chicken Dolsot Bibimbap… a dish served sizzling hot in an earthenware pot, consisting of rice, cooked vegetables, egg and red chilli paste which the eater then mixes together to create an instant stir fry. This was great fun, once I realised what to do with the steaming pot, and the results were scrumptious.

Our stomachs were full to the brim but there was still more to come… without even so much as a glance at the menu our waiter brought us a small assortment of desserts: almond and black sesame ice-cream, both creamy and delicious and topped with a sprinkling of nuts; Chap Ssal Ddeok, traditional soft chocolate rice cake dusted with cocoa powder. These were bizarre slug-like chocolate dumplings, kind of rich chocolate mousse coated in rice jelly.

Kimchee provided us with a delicious, high quality meal, unique in flavour and design…it is a restaurant that would suit any occasion, I am very much looking forward to returning soon to try more Korean delights.

Visit the website to book here.