Tozi: Korean BBQ in Wicker Park

A friend and I had a pleasant dinner here over the holidays. We started with the kimchi dumplings, which didn't have much recognizable funk or spice...but as traditional pork dumplings were quite good (memory is fuzzy but I'm pretty sure they contained pork).



We also liked the oyster pajeon, though the oysters didn't add a whole lot. The pancake had a nice balance of airiness and crispy edges.



As for meats, we shared an order of bulgogi and an order of pork belly. I got distracted cooking the meat, so only have raw shots. We were happy with the everything. Only challenge was that our gas burner kept going out, and we needed the server's help to restart it each time.



Finally, the full range of panchan was also as good as any I've had in town. Charcoal would be nice, but I can walk to Tozi and stop for a cocktail at TVH on the way home. Especially, during winter, it'll be hard to pass up for Korean barbecue farther north.

Tozi
1265 N. Milwaukee Ave.
Chicago, IL 60622
773-252-2020

I went to Tozi shortly after it had officially opened. At that time, they only served 4 dishes of panchan.

Has this changed?

Han wrote:I went to Tozi shortly after it had officially opened. At that time, they only served 4 dishes of panchan.

Has this changed?

Yes. We got at least 7 or 8--that I remember clearly because my friend and I swapped panchan half way through our meal, so we could both reach them all.

Not sure why I thought I posted about this earlier but I also made a trip to Tozi with a couple of friends a few weeks ago. My overall impression--nice, if somewhat sterile environment, diverse menu, decent panchan (hard to compare when I made my first trip to Cho Jung a couple of days later), generous portions and fresh-tasting ingredients. I wasn't wowed by anything but I wasn't disappointed either, if that makes sense. The only item we ordered that I wouldn't order again was the Hae Mul-Pa Jeon (seafood pancake)--the ingredients were chopped so finely that you really couldn't make out any of the individual components. Also tried the Yook Hoi (shredded raw beef marinated with sesame and soy sauce, served over asian pears) which was good although the meat tasted a bit frosty. Flavors of both apps were a bit muted.

One thing that I really liked was that they have "Tapa" portions of the BBQ--I rarely go for Korean BBQ when I'm not with a large group because the portions are so large that you can't get much of an assortment--here the portions are about half-size (so still a good amount) and range from 5.95-8.95--very reasonable. We ordered an assortment--Wang Kalbi, Pork Neck, Octopus and Pork Belly---maybe one other I can't remember. All were very fresh and flavors were good to very good. We didnt' have any burner issues and service was attentive, eager and helpful without being overbearing. I look forward to returning to try some of the soups and rice dishes and the oyster pancake sounds like a better option than the seafood. Overall, good for the area, especially if your party includes folks who might be a bit sketched out by the grittiness of some of the places further north