"Mapo Galbi is a quiet restaurant on the outskirts of Koreatown where everyone orders one thing: dak galbi. A simple dish of chicken, vegetables, and rice noodles stir-fried in a spicy sauce at your table, the flavors are so intense and complex that you’ll take breaks throughout the meal to permanently ingrain this moment into your mind. Then comes the second course—which involves a heaping pile of nori-topped white rice that’s smashed onto the same grill and cooked until it’s crispy. Spoiler: it’s just as good as the first round." - sylvio martins, brant cox, nikko duren, garrett snyder