Izakaya-style restaurants are really taking off in the United States, with establishments popping up nationwide, from Musha in Santa Monica and O Izakaya in San Francisco to Sake Bar Hagi in Manhattan and O Ya in Boston. Tapping into the small-plates craze, these friendly bars offer Japanese food beyond the teriyaki, tempura and sushi that Americans already love.
Korea. The foods of Korea are hot right now, literally and figuratively, but many cities with a Korean population have been enjoying the Korean barbecue specialty bulgogi for years. Beef ribs, cut thinly across the bone, are marinated in soy sauce, sesame oil, green onions, chiles and garlic before grilling. In restaurants, diners grill their own dinner on burners set into the table, then wrap the meat in lettuce leaves and garnish to their taste with a variety of sweet, spicy and vinegary condiments, like gochujang, a hot chile fermented paste, and doenjang fermented soybean paste, the Korean version of Japanese miso.
Korean fast-food restaurants have even developed a “bulgogi burger,” a hamburger patty marinated in bulgogi sauce and served on a bun with lettuce, onion and tomato slices—a great way to deliver new flavor in a familiar format.
Thailand. Nearly anyone lucky enough to visit Thailand is immediately seduced by the amazing street food. In the outdoor markets amidst the smoking braziers, everything that will fit on a skewer seems available—tofu, chicken, seafood and fruit. The combination of sweet, hot and umami that’s so appealing in Thai food is the basis for dips, sauces and seasoning pastes that turn a simple skewer into an irresistible treat.
Grilled vegetables are also a jumping off point for salads, like yam makeua issaan, a mélange of grilled eggplant, shallots, garlic and chiles, mashed in a mortar and complemented with lime juice, herbs and the ubiquitous fish sauce.
Southeast Asia. Other countries in Southeast Asia also shine in the grilling department. In Vietnam, grilled pork, marinated in fish sauce, sugar, garlic and shallots, is piled on a baguette along with butter, mayonnaise, pâté and pickled carrots and daikon to make the banh mi sandwich that’s becoming increasingly popular in American cities.