Each glistening handmade dumpling at Rockville’s Moa Korean Restaurant is the size and shape of a large croissant, its translucence revealing the vibrant colors and coarse textures of the kimchi and ground pork inside. Dumplings are served with two versions of chili sauce, one on the mild side, dark with soy and scallions, and the other, day-glow orange with fiery chili peppers. These massive dumplings make the provided disposable chopsticks seem puny and inadequate for all but the most nimble customers.
Moa Korean Restaurant is way off the beaten path of eateries in Rockville, the prize waiting within a labyrinth of Parklawn Drive and Twinbrook Parkway. “Moa” means “to gather together” in Korean, and the portion sizes of both food and beverages clearly are designed to be shared by clusters of hungry customers. So, while the prices may seem steep, each dish can feed several people, and it all winds up being a bargain as well as a sumptuous feast — or superb leftovers.
Service is gracious and effusive, with an eagerness to describe each dish and satiate each guest. And the talent in the kitchen is evident, even on a slow weekday evening. While beverages include Korean wines and beers as well as fruit juices and tea, the must-have specialty concoction of the house is Soju, a blend of freshly pureed fruit and Korean wine. Soju is not that potent, and is at first an interesting curiosity for the uninitiated. The brew comes to the table in a quart-sized beaker and gets doled out into tiny chilled glass cups. As various dishes arrive, it turns out that Soju is the perfect refreshment for spicy soups and protein-rich stews. Our kiwi Soju was delicious, and we will return for the highly touted watermelon Soju.
Small sides of various pickled radishes and greens, ranging from sour to sweet to hot and all made in-house, set the stage for the main dishes. Pungent kimchi, the classic Korean pickled cabbage comes in a long coiled mass and is cut into bite-sized pieces at the table by the server wielding a pair of scissors.
Seafood pancake (Haemul Pajun) is like a giant tempura stir fry. The conglomeration is a foot in diameter and an inch thick, stuffed with shrimp, squid and octopus as well as freshly sautéed greens, all bound in a rice flour batter that is fried until crispy outside and moist inside. It is sliced into pieces (not with scissors) and is designed to be drawn through either one of the two house chili sauces.
Spicy pork with kimchi, vegetables and rice cake stew (Mookeunji Kalbi Jhim) is a show-stopping hot pot casserole. A butane burner is brought to the table, and on it is placed a small cauldron filled with fall-off-the-bone pork ribs, tender pork belly, scads of greens and rice noodles as big as your thumb, all in a luscious bubbling broth laced with spices and herbs. This dish requires plenty of the house rice, the short grain sticky rice variety, cooked so each grain is toothsome without being mushy. This rice is served in nifty stainless steel capsules that look like flying saucers.
We thought we ordered fried rice, but were not dismayed when noodle soup was delivered. No harm, no foul as this soup won us over with its freshly made noodles served in a rich broth and garnished with whole head on shrimp and a giant clam. Mild yet well seasoned, it was a hit with the kids, and with a teaspoon of house hot sauce, became an entirely new and potent dish well suited for the heat seeker, and it paired nicely with kiwi Soju. Bulgogi, thin layers of grilled beef that are tossed with sliced onions and peppers as well as sesame, garlic and soy, arrives at the table literally sizzling hot. It is satisfying without being too piquant.
Dessert, which was not ordered, came in the form of tiny little tofu and fruit smoothies, packaged in Korea, a tasty, exotic confectionary beverage. Post-it notes tacked up around the dining room are available for patrons to leave comments, and although most are in Korean, judging by the enthusiasm and exclamation points on each one, this place is earning a well-deserved following, one post-it note and massive dumpling at a time.
Moa Korean Restaurant
12300 Wilkins Ave, Rockville
301-881-8880
Cuisine: Korean
Hours:
Mon.-Thurs. 11:30 a.m.-11 p.m.; Fri.-Sat. 11:30 a.m.-3 a.m.; Sun. 11:30 a.m.-10 p.m.
Lunch Specials: $5.99 (served 11:30 a.m.-2:30 p.m. Mon.-Fri.)
Soups, Rice and Noodle Dishes: $7.99-$12.99
Main Dishes: $8.99-$31.99
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