211 september 28, 2023 | WWW.bestofphoenix2023.c0m | best of phoenix 2023 this large restaurant, everyone is family. It’s a gathering place for the Valley and welcomes a cross section of Phoenix resi- dents all there to enjoy bowls of steaming hot pho, sugar cane shrimp or rice congee. We recommend starting with the build- your-own spring rolls. Order one of the bánh hỏi dishes and a multitude of meats, cold vermicelli noodles, fresh veggies and herbs will arrive at your table. Dip a piece of rice paper into a provided dish of water, and once it softens, fill your spring roll with all your favorite things, roll it up and enjoy. The flavors of rich meats and aromatic herbs are an exciting indication of the rest to come. Best Thai Restaurant LOM WONG 218 E. Portland St. 602-675-0522 lomwongaz.com Over the past few years, Yotaka and Alex Martin have achieved nothing less than a total reinvention of the standard by which Thai restaurants in Phoenix are measured. With a heartfelt hat tip to Glai Baan for raising the bar and setting the stage, Lom Wong stepped into a city brimming with halfhearted Americanized dishes and chal- lenged Phoenix diners to embrace Thai cuisine on its own terms. That tremendous gamble that has paid off in spades, mostly because the food at Lom Wong is so flipping good that even Americanized Thai fans set in their ways are left agape. Eschewing the big city Bangkok-style of their contempo- raries (there’s no pad Thai, get over it), the Martins have focused instead on faithfully re-creating the hyperlocal specialties of rural Thailand, with a particular focus on the Moklen cuisine of southern Thailand and the northern cuisine of Yotaka’s native Chiang Rai. They pound their own curry pastes, squeeze their own coconut milk and cut their own noodles, resulting in a wild display of technicolor flavors unparalleled in this town and — to be frank — in most of the country. Best Korean Restaurant HODORI 1116 S. Dobson Road, Mesa 480-668-7979 hodoriaz.com Before the summer of “Gangnam Style,” the rise of BTS and the K-drama invasion, a handful of mom-and-pop Korean restau- rants held down the fort, but suddenly we’re awash with a bevy of international Korean chains. Some of them may have a leg up on a specific dish or genre, but as an all-purpose destination for a variety of soulful homestyle food, it’s tough to beat Hodori, the grande dame of the Phoenix Korean scene. Now owned by a former employee, Hodori remains as tasty and comforting as ever. Kimchi or seafood pajeon kick things off with a crisp crust and supple interior. Cold noodles like fiery bibim kuksoo or the ice-flecked broth of mul neung myun feel like they were made for Arizona. The barbecue won’t match that of the better KBBQ joints, but it’s still quite good and the perfect complement to Hodori’s outstanding soups and stews. And mountainous shared platters like the bosam — pork belly wrapped in cabbage with kimchi and doenjang — or a cauldron of budae jungol, with its ramen noodles and thick slices of Spam, make this the perfect place to bring a horde of friends or family. Best Korean Barbecue SIZZLE KOREAN BBQ 21001 N. Tatum Blvd. 480-265-4406 3720 N. Scottsdale Road, Scottsdale 480-247-2027 sizzlekoreanbbq.com Yeah, it’s a bit bougie, and some might bristle at the a la carte format and phalanx of tableside grill cooks. But the fact remains that if you’re looking to stuff your gullet with the best Korean-style grilled meats Phoenix has to offer, it’s awfully tough to make a case against Sizzle Korean BBQ. Hyunwook Lee set his sights on elevated fare from the get-go, trucking in top-shelf meats from a Korean butcher in Los Angeles and prepping them with exceptional care. In doing so, he raised the bar and carved out a niche for premium Korean BBQ theretofore unheard of in Phoenix. Cuts of beef and pork with stunning marbling unfurl on the grill in front of you, and while it’s fun to cook your own, most of the tableside cooks will do a better job if you let them. Marinades avoid the common trap of being too cloying, while sauces are potent and sparingly applied, but the truth is that these succulent, sizzling slips of meat are so good on their own, they don’t really need either.
