Moim
Brooklyn, NY 11215
Phone: (718) 499-8092
- Price:
- $$$
- Cross Street:
- Between 6th Avenue and 7th Avenue
- Directions:
- 2, 3 at Grand Army Plaza
- Hours:
- Tue-Sun 5:30pm-11pm
Editorial Review for Moim – by Erin Behan
The Scene
The name means "gathering" and the visually pleasing restaurant certainly encourages lingering. Though almost subterranean, its clever low lighting and soothing grey stone and brick walls banish thoughts of basement dining. Service is accommodating to both the older Park Slope crowd and the younger date-night set.
The Food
A gratis sampler of pickled radishes, black beans and kimchi shows the kitchen's range--and also its tendecy to stop short of spicy. A starter of thick-skinned dumplings stuffed with tofu, ground pork and cabbage ensures a familiarity with a pleasing Korean twist, as do the barely tongue-tingling spicy chicken wings. Though moist, crisp-skinned roasted half chicken is listed as a neighborhood favorite, it's the amazingly tender beef short ribs that deserve a special mention. Another must-order for the table: The traditional dol sot bi bim bop, filled with fragrant veggies and served sizzling in a stone bowl. Nontraditional desserts, like a dry chocolate cake, falter.
Hits: The beautiful dining room woos Park Slopers out for a relaxing but elegant night out, and the cuisine is a nice switch from the neighborhood's American and French norm.
Misses: Those who have tasted from Koreatown's cup may wish for more spice and adventurous dishes.
Editorial content is independent of paid advertisers. Any expenses are paid for by Citysearch.
Insider Tips
What to DrinkTry the Hite Lager from Korea. While not a complex beer, it has a light refreshing taste that compliments the food.
Look GoodThe restaurant is almost invisible from the outside--look for the wraparound wooden slats that shield it from the corner of Seventh Avenue and Garfield Place.
Date SpotLooking for a nice Brooklyn restaurant that says you're adventurous but still know how to pamper your date? Then Moim's a good option.
User Reviews for Moim
05/13/2008 Posted by zaranoff
This isn’t a traditional Korean establishment. The food is more “Korean inspired” or “Korean fusion” or “hip Korean” than “real Korean”, but that’s fine with me since I’m not a snobbish purist. I think this is one of the better additions to Park Slope. It’s a restaurant that tries, though doesn’t always do so successfully, to bring new flavors and innovative dishes to the neighborhood. I’ve eaten there several times, and my overall assessment is mixed yet on the positive side. Some dishes are a bit odd (like the Kimchi dumplings – they’re not bad, I just don’t know if the dish really works), some dishes are very tasty though VERY small (such as the meatballs and the steak tartar) and some are actually fabulous and worth the trip for them alone (such as the marinated beef short ribs – worth every penny!). The décor is “sleek contemporary” and sets the tone for the place. The drinks are expensive (if I recall, one is $18!). And the vibe is “trying to be Manhattan hip but not quit there yet”. Overall, if you don’t mind shelling a few extra bucks on an interesting meal you would never be able to prepare yourself, you should certainly give Moim a chance, or even several chances. Go with someone so you can check various dishes. I will certainly go back, although I’m not sure when. If the portions were more generous, I would be a regular. Given the size and the price tag, I don’t rush back.
Pros: Tasty dishes
Cons: Small portions, trying to be hip
02/20/2008 Posted by sp73
After visiting Moim on a recent Friday night, we definitely will not be returning. Checking the website before heading out, we read that "we will have a happy hour beginning an hour before dinner service" (click the info tab on their website) and that the restaurant opened at 5:30 pm. We calculated an hour before 5:30 as 4:30. How silly of us. We arrived at 5:15 and were told that the restaurant hadn't opened yet. We asked if we could wait inside and were told that we couldn't because things still needed to be set up. The bartender said that the doors shouldn't even have been open. Okay... When we came back at a little after 5:30, we asked about happy hour and were told that it wasn't offered on Fridays. The bartender asked (who I'm not sure) if the sidewalk board had been set up outside. I guess she assumed that we got the information about the happy hour from the sidewalk board. We had simply asked a question, but the bartender seemed more interested in deflecting any blame that might come her way. Now for the food: it was okay, but really cannot be considered Korean. It has Korean influences, but you most likely wouldn't be served that kind of food in the average Korean house. Perhaps we would have enjoyed the meal a little more if we hadn't had such a horrible welcome. Seriously, the food was completely overshadowed by the “welcoming committee.” At some point, the bartender must have clued in that we were upset. On our way out, she was all smiles and asked if we enjoyed ourselves. Totally bizarre. We weren't looking to be fawned over, but hadn't expected such hostility. That all said, if the food had been outstanding, we might have considered running the gauntlet to go back, but as I mentioned earlier, it was lame. For authentic Korean food, head to Koreatown, which is just a train ride away. Sure, you probably won't find the best service, but you won't find the worst. And you can be sure of the food.
Cons: hostile welcome, unremarkable food
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