Mogo – Korean Fusion Tacos
Boardwalk and First Avenue, Asbury Park, NJ 07712
Monday – Thursday and Sunday 11am-10pm (or later)
Friday and Saturday 11am-3am (or later)
and
Cubacan Restaurant
800 Ocean Ave, Asbury Park, NJ 07712
(732) 774-3007
Open 11:30am – 10pm
I was recently at Asbury Park, somewhere I haven’t visited in more than twenty years. The boardwalk is still there but with some new storefronts and eateries. The Stone Pony, of course, is still there. So, too, is Convention Hall. What wasn’t there twenty years ago, however, that is there today are Cubacan and Mogo.
We were there as part of a mini-weekend getaway, staying at a friend’s place in Sea Girt. The weather wasn’t conducive to the going to the beach so we ventured into Asbury Park so my wife and son could experience a Jersey–perhaps, The Jersey–boardwalk. The rides and such weren’t too keen on our son’s list of things to do but the mini-golf was. We were also pressed for time and the weather wasn’t on our side so we made it a quick visit. During our time there, naturally, we got hungry so we perused the boardwalk and examined a couple of menus until we decided upon Cubacan for lunch. I’ll discuss more on that later.
As we strolled along the boardwalk, our son became famished and needed an immediate snack–or so he said. We came upon a small takeout stand called Mogo, which my wife and I had both heard of but never tried, so we decided to give it a go. Our son is not very adventurous when it comes to food and less so when he’s almost hangry (extreme hunger that leads to anger that turns a person into Karen Black a la The Exorcist). Our son has not yet exhibited hangriness (yet) but my wife has on occasion so it’s natural that one day he might. As for now, he takes after me–just deal with it.
While Mogo was intriguing to my wife and I, my son didn’t want to have anything to do with it so he settled for an orange soda. So much for being famished. My wife and I, on the other hand, ordered one Bulgogi (beef) taco, one Sae Woo (shrimp) taco and one Jae Yook Bokkeum (pork) taco. Before I go on, let me say that I love Korean food. Ever since I first tried Bulgogi at Arirang Restaurant in Hong Kong–once in Causeway Bay but now in Wan Chai and Tsim Sha Tsui–to today when I go to Palisades Park, New Jersey or K-Town in Manhattan or Keo Ku Restaurant in Parsippany, New Jersey, I’ve had a love affair with Korean food. In fact, I count Kalbi Chim as one of my all-time favourite dishes. However, I also have to confess that, while many fusion dishes do succeed, I am, generally, not a fan of fusion cuisine. I was excited to try Mogo for the first time but, I’ll admit it, I was also apprehensive.
Mogo Tacos; bottom to top, Bulgoggi, Sae Woo, Jae Yook Bokkeum
As tacos go, they were okay. I might even say they were good. They had the requisite taco trappings–vegetable garnish, some kind of salsa, the taco and the protein filling. Unfortunately, as a ‘fusion’ taco, I was a little dissatisfied. I was very excited as I bit into the first taco–the Bulgogi–and I wanted terribly to be knocked off my feet. I wasn’t. The beef itself was very tasty and comparable to most Bulgogi I’ve had at other Korean restaurants. Unfortunately, and here’s one reason why I don’t typically dig fusion cuisine, the tastiness of the meat and the sweat renderings of the Bulgogi marinade and seasoning were overshadowed by the pico de gallo and romaine lettuce. I didn’t taste the meat until several chews into my bite and this wasn’t because I’d bitten off only a small chunk of meat. It was like having a salad followed by the main course in one bite instead of having the two tastes come together in culinary harmony. With the Sae Woo, the shrimp itself lacked any kind of flavour. It was simply some kind of cooked shrimp buried under the toppings of its taco. The menu description says “tangy sweet and sour shrimp” but I tasted neither sweet nor sour in the shrimp when I pulled a piece out of the taco and ate it by itself. Lastly, the Jae Yook Bokkeum taco offered some redemption. The pork was delicious and something I’d like to have over rice. In its taco, combined with citrus-mayo slaw, there was something in each bite that the other two lacked. Each part expressed its own identity and they combined nicely with each bite. Unfortunately, the beef took a backseat to the pico de gallo and the shrimp just kept silent.
I’m not panning Mogo but I’m also not giving it raves. There was a long queue when we stopped by and there are days when things don’t always go right. The beef and pork, by themselves, did have tremendous flavour and as victuals, on a whole, there was some spicy kick and a nice contrast of crunchy and soft in each taco. As Korean fusion cuisine, however, at least on that day, it didn’t work for me and I really wanted it to. As a result, I’m still not a full-on convert to fusion cuisine. I would like to try Mogo again. Perhaps if the line isn’t long or maybe I’ll go to their sir-down restaurant, which is also located in Asbury Park. Unfortunately, I live a little far from Asbury Park so my next taste might not be for a while; but, hopefully not for too long a while.
As an Asian, good or bad, I’m naturally drawn to Asian and Pan Asian things. As a longtime student of Taekwondo, a Korean martial art, I have a pull towards Korean things as well. From both viewpoints, I wanted to love my Mogo tacos. I truly did but, alas, that didn’t happen. My experience with Mogo reminded me of something Bruce Lee said to Dan Inosanto, his best friend, student and training partner about martial arts and, specifically, the Filipino martial arts. He’d told Guro Inosanto, who is Filipino American, not to embrace the Filipino martial arts just because they’re Filipino. Bruce Lee was a pragmatist and examined many different martial arts and combat systems to develop himself into the best martial artist and fighter he could be. He took from (western) boxing, fencing, non-Chinese martial arts and Chinese martial arts to express himself. The same concept can be applied to cooking.
It was after our Mogo experience that we walked up and down the boardwalk, peered in storefronts and examined menus. The most interesting was from Cubacan–the first restaurant whose menu we looked at– and it was there where we decided to have lunch. Having had tacos to tie us over, we skipped ordering any starters.
For drinks, my son, whom I already mentioned is obsessed with orange soda, tried Cubacan’s version. It was house-made and not a Fanta or Sunkist and tasted more like an Italian Blood Orange Soda but with less fizz.
My wife and I weren’t sure if our son was going to like it but he did and gave it a ‘thumbs up’. For my wife and I, we tried the Red Sangria. It wasn’t as sweet as the Red Sangria I make, the recipe of which I stole from a Spanish restaurant on West 4th Street in Manhattan’s West Village. Nonetheless, it was a refreshing fruity drink that, if you’re not careful, you’re going to feel when you stand up. It wasn’t one of those cocktails that hide the alcohol but it wasn’t overbearing either. Regardless, it was delicious and perfect for a summer shore getaway.
For lunch, my wife had the Mejillones; blue bay mussels in a green jalapeno soup with fennel. There was, as expected, a hint of fresh garlic in the salsa.
Mejillones
Mejillones is listed in the menu as an appetizer which, after having the Mogo tacos and scheduled to attend a dinner party later, was exactly the kind of healthy, light and extremely tasty lunch my wife was looking for. While it was very tasty, it wasn’t different from many of the other mussels in green sauce I’ve had at other Spanish or Hispanic restaurants.
I was a little nervous that our son wouldn’t be inspired by anything on the menu. He’s very picky and only eight and I thought it was going to be bread and butter for him but Cubacan has, also as a starter, Sliders de Cubana.
Sliders de Cubana
He ordered that and he thoroughly enjoyed it even though it was a touch spicier than he would have preferred. The sliders at Cubacan aren’t made just from beef. They’re made with beef and chorizo (Spanish sausage common in Spain, South and Central America and Mexico), which is on the dry side and tangy. (Don’t confuse the Spanish-style sausage with the Filipino kind, which I knew growing up also as chorizo but is more commonly referred to as longanisa. Of the Filipino chorizo, there is a sweet variety and a spicy variety.) Although he had his without it, the Sliders de Cubana also comes with Manchego cheese. Accompanying the mini burgers on the plate were some very tasty, freshly made French Fries.
For me, I was torn between a traditional Cubano or the Choripan, a sandwich made of chorizo, Swiss cheese, caramelized onions, lettuce and tomato. I asked our waitress which she recommended but she informed us that doesn’t eat meat and hadn’t tried either one. She did say that the Cubano was very popular so I went with that.
Cubacan’s Traditional Cubano
I’ve had a Cubano before but here it was elegantly balanced. Between the roasted pork, smoked ham, Swiss cheese, mustard and pickles, each bite blended each flavour perfectly so I could taste each part by itself while chewing the sandwich as a whole. Compared to other Cubanos, the pork in this one was not dry and it was thinly sliced. It also tasted like the Roast Pork my college girlfriend’s mother would make during the holidays. My ex-girlfriend’s mother was from Spain but her husband was from Cuba and I have to say, to this day, hers is still the best Cuban Roast Pork I’ve had. Cubacan’s comes close. The pickles with Cubacan’s version were also thinly sliced which prevented it from overpowering the entire sandwich. Overall, the Cubano at Cubacan was a near perfect sandwich and one I highly recommend. My son tasted it and it also received his approval so it must be good and kid-friendly.
Accompanying our meal, we ordered two side dishes–Garlic String Beans and Yuca Fritta (Yucca Fries).
Yuca Fritta
The only Yucca dish I’ve had previously and subsequently made on many occasions is boiled peeled yucca that is drizzled with olive oil and fresh garlic; another dish I learnt from my college girlfriend’s mother. So, when I saw a different yucca option, I ordered it and, boy, am I glad I did. To be honest, I still haven’t worked out if the Yuca Fritta is dipped in batter before it’s fried or if the batter effect is a natural result of the yucca when it’s deep fried. Either way, it’s an excellent side dish. Adhered to the surface of some of the yucca fries were crystals of rock salt or, perhaps they were some kind of garlic rock salt (Is here such a thing and, if so, where do I get it?). This, for me, made the dish. Accompanying the Yuca Fritta was a small dish of what tasted like a garlic pesto dip.
Garlic String Beans
The Garlic String Beans were equally as tasty, sautéed lightly in olive oil and chopped garlic. They were cooked just right, maintaining their crunchiness without being hard.
Overall, our trip to Asbury Park was a successful one. We enjoyed some down time, away from the mundane monotony of our lives, our son enjoyed some mini-golf and we all savoured some new dishes. As a result of this experience, I may begin a third culinary mission–find the best Cubano. I’m already on a quest for the best New England Clam Chowder and a search for a version of the Monte Cristo my father introduced me to at The Holiday Inn in Hong Kong. On my last trip to Hong Kong, in 2007, the Monte Cristo was no longer on the Holiday Inn’s coffee shop menu and the coffee shop itself was very different from the way it was in 1978. Back to the present, I give kudos to both Mogo and Cubacan for their innovations in the kitchen. Unfortunately, Mogo didn’t deliver its best but Cubacan did and I’m looking forward to my next meal there.
My ratings:
Cubacan – 1 1/2 bites
Mogo – 1 bite
0 bites = Don’t bother. I suffered for you.
1/2 bite = I enjoyed it enough – I had to eat something, after all – but I wouldn’t recommend it.
1 bite = Good. I’d have it again but I wouldn’t go out of my way to get it.
1 1/2 bites = Very good/super tasty. I’m definitely going back and I’m bringing friends. If I weren’t married, it’s somewhere I’d take a first date to. That’s how good it is.
2 bites = Unique, I’ve never had (and probably won’t ever have) better than this. This is what I want if I were going to be executed and I could have whatever I wanted for my last meal. Epicurean Orgasm!
panlasa 