by Monica Y. Hong
And then there were five. Holy guacamole we’ve been tuning into Top Chef Texas for three months now! And Ed is still alive. He deserves a giant piece of cake and a huge glass of milk. Insert your favorite snack here and offer it to chef Edward Lee!
The episode starts off with Ed throwing off the covers, getting out of bed wearing a suit jacket and a button down shirt with crazy wolverine hair saying, “It’s all about business today.” Wolfman Jack has the right attitude, but he needs to put some pants on! His silliness helps preface an episode which stars guest judge Pee-Wee Herman! I know you are, but what am I?
For the quickfire challenge, the five remaining “cheftestants” have 20 minutes to serve up some of their most creative and delicious pancakes for Pee-Wee and Padma. Ed decides to draw from his favorite parts of the breakfast treat by making little crispy drizzles of batter rather than a whole silver dollar or full-pan pancake. He plates these scrumptious buttery bits with blueberries, raspberries, strawberries, bacon and brûléed marshmallow. Hand it over!
Ed impresses Pee-Wee with his whimsical play on pancakes, beats out some predictable lemon ricotta offerings and wins his first quickfire! And five grand! We can officially say we are proud of Ed for bringing home the bacon. Continue Reading »
Don’t bet on North Korea change
Toronto Sun
Maybe it signifies a change — a breakthrough — in the thinking and actions of the “Hermit regime” of North Korea.
Then again, maybe not.
In any case, Associated Press being allowed to open the first bureau of foreign news service in Pyongyang, capital of North Korea, may be a first step of the country joining the rest of the world.
Just how free and “objective” AP reportage will be from North Korea, is anyone’s guess. AP’s North Korean bureau chief is Jean Lee, who will live outside the country and periodically visit to supervise reporter Pak Won Il and photographer Kim Kway Hyon — both North Korean subjects.
Pinkberry co-founder pleads not guilty to tire iron assault
Los Angeles Times
Pinkberry co-founder Young Lee pleaded not guilty Monday to felony assault for allegedly beating a homeless man with a tire iron over a sexually explicit tattoo.
Lee, who remains free on $60,000 bail, was granted a one-time dispensation by Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge Upinder Kalra allowing him to travel to South Korea.
In return, he consented to automatic extradition should he fail to return to court March 5, the date of his next scheduled hearing.
Lee has been charged with assault with a deadly weapon in connection with a June 2011 assault on a transient on a 101 Freeway off-ramp.
Second Korean-American up for brigadier’s rank in U.S. military
Korea Herald
Col. John M. Cho of the U.S. Army has been nominated for the rank of brigadier general.
If his nomination is approved by the Senate, Cho will become the second Korean-American to join the ranks of generals in the U.S. Armed Forces. Before Cho, the U.S. Marine’s Daniel Yoo, who was made a brigadier general in February 2011, was the only Korean-American to gain ranks above colonel.
Two North Jersey women indicted in large-scale fraud ring
Bergen County Record (N.J.)
A federal grand jury in Newark indicted two North Jersey women on charges of conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud on Friday.
Rita Kim, 48, of Fort Lee and Hyon-Suk “Clara” Chung, 49, of North Bergen were named members of a large-scale identity and financial fraud ring.
Ringleader Sang-Hyun “Jimmy” Park confessed earlier this month to running an operation in Bergen County that fraudulently obtained and sold driver’s licenses, Social Security cards, credit cards and other identifications. The customers, primarily of Korean background, in turn peddled millions of dollars through fraudulent loans, according to the indictment.
New fire-expert analysis allowed in father’s 1990 arson conviction
Philadelphia Inquirer
A federal appeals court ruled Friday that a man who contends that he was wrongfully convicted of setting a 1989 fire that killed his daughter may have a prominent fire expert examine any remaining physical evidence to determine whether the fire was accidental.
The ruling by a three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit came in the case of Han Tak Lee, 76, who is serving a life sentence. His lawyers argued that he was convicted by junk science and that research since his 1990 trial has debunked many of what were once considered ironclad indicators of arson.
5 Questions with Daniel Dae Kim
The Peninsula blog via Korea Economic Institute
What was it that made you change your career path from law to acting during your university days?
DDK: For me, when I was going through college, there was a lot of tension between what I felt I should do and what I really wanted to do. It was unfortunate that the thing I wanted to do didn’t fall in line with what was expected of me. As much as I do love politics and government, the thing that I felt that my heart led me to was acting, and so that’s why I changed course.
The Chef and the Critic
Wall Street Journal
David Chang and Peter Meehan prove that the chef and the restaurant critic can break bread together. With a bestselling cookbook and a cool new magazine, they’re revolutionizing the way we talk about food, one cranky comment at a time
Lloyd Suh asks: What was Jesus like as a teen?
San Francisco Chronicle
Three years ago, playwright Lloyd Suh galvanized Magic Theatre audiences with the world premiere of “American Hwangap,” a funny, affecting family reunion for a separated Korean American couple and their disaffected children. Now Suh, 36, is preparing for another premiere at the Magic, “Jesus in India,” described as a play about what happens when a teenage Jesus of Nazareth runs off with Abigail of Galilee to the land “of Maharajas, punk rock and really good weed.”
The concept isn’t as snarky as it may sound. Suh grew up in the suburbs of Indianapolis among a “fairly active Korean church population” that “would gather every Sunday for services and Bible study in Korean.” He now lives in Brooklyn with his wife and their infant daughter. We reached him during a work break from rehearsals, at the Lark Play Development Center in Manhattan.
Editorial: Racial dispute in Texas
Korea Herald
An ongoing racial dispute in Dallas, Texas, involving a Korean-American gas station owner and the local African-American community draws our concern for its possible impact on the life of the Korean immigrants in the area and elsewhere. Reasonable efforts should be made to prevent mistakes by individuals from causing unnecessary racial clashes.
A Park, who runs a gas station and a convenience store in the predominantly black South Dallas, seems to have somewhat antagonized poorer customers for his refusal to accept debit cards for transactions below $10 and relatively high gas prices. An argument occurred on Dec. 9 between Park and Jeffrey Muhammad, a minister at the local Nation of Islam mosque, when the latter wanted to use his debit card for a $5 purchase.
South Korean activists send socks to North Korea in balloons
USA Today
South Korean activists have floated giant balloons carrying boxes of socks into North Korea. The activists hoped Saturday that North Koreans could wear the socks or trade them for food during the harsh winter. Associated Press video showed five helium-filled balloons rising into the air at an observation post in the South Korean border city of Paju.
How Standardized Tests Stunt the Intellectual Growth of Asian American Students
8Asians
Standardized testing was pretty much invented by the Chinese. As an American of Taiwanese and Chinese heritage, this means that standardized testing is part of my ethnic and ancestral heritage. The fact that Asian Americans tend to score better than everyone else on standardized tests is not news to anyone. I mean, after 5,000 years of test prep culture (there’s even a god of testing), it’s not really a surprise right?
But what are the consequences of all this standardized testing? After a lifetime of school here in the United States spanning from pre-school to my Ph.D. in Education (20 years of school), as well as 14 years as a professional educator in both public school and private settings, I’ve given this a lot of thought. I’ve come to the conclusion that standardized tests, a vestige of ancient China, stunt the intellectual growth of not just Asian American students but of all students.
Korean golfers: The magic formula
The Economist
ON JANUARY 29th, Lydia Ko (pictured) became the youngest woman ever to win a professional golf tournament. At 14 years old, she’s not yet old enough to drive a car. But she can drive (and putt) a golf ball well enough to beat a pack of adult pros. This staggering achievement provokes a question: Why are Korean women so good at golf?
South Korea beef farmers struggle for aid, sympathy
Los Angeles Times
South Korean beef farmers, hurt by oversupply and low prices, press for more government aid, sometimes taking drastic action. Too drastic, some say.
In South Korea, quirky barber and his shop retain following
Los Angeles Times
Lee Nam-yul is a third-generation old-school barber with a preference for scissors over electric cutters. He and his ramshackle shop are a fixture in Seoul.
Park Scores Against Liverpool, But United Out of FA Cup
Chosun Ilbo
Park Ji-sung of Manchester United shone against the club’s biggest domestic rival on Saturday, but even a blistering performance from the Korean midfielder could not prevent his team from losing their fourth-round FA Cup against Liverpool on Saturday.
Huh’s sharp learning curve continues at Torrey Pines
Reuters via Chicago Tribune
John Huh carved out another memorable chapter in his whirlwind introduction to the PGA Tour when he surged into contention for the Farmers Insurance Open at Torrey Pines on Saturday.
Playing in only his second event on the U.S. circuit, tour rookie Huh, who calls himself a Korean-American after spending about half his life in each country, fired a four-under-par 68 in the third round to end a picture postcard day of dazzling sunshine on the southern Californian coastline in a tie for second place.
by Monica Y. Hong
This week on Top Chef we put all our weight behind Chef Edward Lee, our last Korean American hopeful. Six chefs remain in San Antonio and with last week’s near perfect meal, the “cheftestants” cannot screw this up. Roll tape. Check out this week’s misfires.
Cut to the quickfire challenge where the chefs are tested on their precision and ability to think, well, quick. They have to prepare a dish highlighting the ingredients of shrimp, corn and pasta in 40 minutes. There is, of course, a catch. Within that 40 minutes, they have to peel, de-vein and butterfly two pounds of shrimp, shuck a crate of corn and make a pound of fettuccine from scratch.
To make sure everything is done perfectly, judge Emeril Lagasse and guest judge Cat Cora are there to check their work. Whatever time remains once all the prep is finished is the time they’ll have to cook their dish.
The chefs make three teams of two and Ed is paired with Paul. As soon as the clock starts, Ed begins making the fresh pasta while Paul shucks the corn.
“Whenever Ed and I are on a team, I’m bad luck for him,” says Paul. Cue menacing sound effect. Continue Reading »
Food Restoration
Edward Kim of Chicago’s Ruxbin uses his past to restore everything from hungry souls to childhood memories.
by Lola Pak
Nostalgia plays a big part in chef Edward Kim’s Chicago restaurant, Ruxbin. Taking a play on the name kids used to tease him with in school (think plush, story-telling teddy bear, Teddy Ruxpin), Kim has turned the namesake restaurant into a Chicago hotspot—a fact that hasn’t escaped Bon Appetit magazine, which placed Ruxbin on its Best New Restaurants list in 2011.
“It’s been surreal,” says the Windy City native, referring to his No. 5 spot on the list. “That could have easily gone to another restaurant. In the end, though, we would still be the same restaurant we were before.”
He’s talking about the 32-seat micro-establishment situated in West Town, where a two-hour wait is the norm. No, you can’t make reservations. No, you can’t have more than six people in your party. Yes, you do want to bring your favorite bottle of wine and $5 for the corkage fee.
“We definitely want people to feel special, but it’s actually the opposite of exclusive,” Kim counters. “We wanted to make it so that anyone walking by could come in and not need a reservation.” Continue Reading »
China ‘protecting Kim Jong-nam’
The Telegraph (U.K.)
Kim Jong-nam, the oldest son of North Korea’s late leader, is being protected by China as a fallback option if the regime of his half-brother, Kim Jong-un, collapses.
Meet the Western Members of the Kim Jong Il Fan Club
Time.com
The day before Kim Jong Il’s funeral last month, George Hadjipateras, 36, put on a black suit and tie and drove to the North Korean embassy in west London. Beneath a portrait of the Dear Leader, the office clerk laid a floral tribute, red carnations arranged in the shape of a star. He shook the hand of the first secretary lengthily as he pressed upon him that Kim was “a shining light, not just for his people, but for revolutionaries worldwide.”
“I mentioned to him I had lost my own father in September, and so this was doubly tragic for me,” Hadjipateras says. “My voice broke a bit then.” He had been closely monitoring Kim’s health since his 2008 stroke, and was blindsided by the death. “It’s tragic; he should have been getting better,” he told TIME. “I was as upset as the English were when the Queen Mother died.”
First look: Obama is a fan of Macy’s new style star
USA Today
On-the-rise designer Doo-Ri Chung is not a household name — yet.
But the Korean-American designer will get a shot at noteriety when she unveils her doo.ri capsule collection for Macy’s Feb. 15.
Chung stepped into the mainstream fashion spotlight in October when Michelle Obama wore a one-shouldered doo.ri stunner to the White House state dinner honoring South Korean President Lee Myung-bak. Hollywood stars, including Jessica Chastain, Kristen Stewart and Jessica Alba, also are fond of her frocks.
REVIEW: For Ellen
Variety via Chicago Tribune
With a directorial voice as consistent as that of any current American independent filmmaker, So Yong Kim takes what could have been routine story elements and transforms them into something deeply sad and touching in “For Ellen.” As a struggling rocker making a last-ditch attempt to gain shared custody of his daughter, Paul Dano delivers a beautifully wrought performance in a different key from any of his previous roles. The patient pace and generally forlorn tone makes this a tough sell Stateside, though Berlin screenings will attract much Euro bidding.
Bill Kim opening Belly Q, an Asian barbecue restaurant, in the West Loop
Time Out Chicago
The Michael Jordan-backed Cornerstone Restaurant Group tapped Chicago chef Bill Kim to head a new Asian barbecue concept restaurant.
The connection between Kim (the former Charlie Trotter’s chef de cuisine who set the trend of chefs going downscale when he left Le Lan to open and subsequently ) and Cornerstone (which operates, among other restaurants, Michael Jordan’s Steak House and WAVE) stemmed, per the press release, from “a chance conversation.”
S. Korean ex-spy’s asylum confirmed in U.S.
Yonhap News
A U.S. court has upheld a 2008 ruling to grant political asylum to a former South Korean intelligence agent who claims to face threats from both South and North Korea, sources here said Tuesday.
Best Kimchi In a Jar: Granny Choe’s Version Comes With A Ninja Pepper Bonus
LA Weekly
Of the Big Questions in life, we’ve long wondered why a really good store-bought kimchi is so hard to find. Until, that is, we stumbled upon Granny Choe’s Kimchi at our local market. It’s the best store-bought kimchi we’ve ever tasted, even better, it happens to be made by a small local (Moorpark) company.
FOR ONLY $28!
Featured Event
It’s the new year, and Yim Jae Beum is coming to town! After a sold-out show in Los Angeles last October, he is coming back to hold two U.S. concerts for the 2012 Lunar New Year. Everyone already knows this man can sing! He’s got an impressive resume, debuting as a rock singer back in 1986, releasing Korean classics, such as “For You,” and most recently, joining and winning first place twice on the MBC show, “I am a Singer.”
Seattle and New Jersey, get ready! We are happy to announce that we will be giving away TWO (2) pairs of tickets! read more
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