Sollip offers Korean-French fusion cuisine in a tasting menu at lunch and dinner.  Sollip is the Korean word for pine needle, which is supposed to be the best ingredient to control smoke and fire in cooking.  A Korean husband and wife team, Woongchul Park and Bomee Ki,  combine their European skills with their heritage to create this one Michelin star restaurant.  Opening in August 2020 they made some changes during the Covid shutdown but now are back with full service.  One wall of the small place is windows to the street outside.  Bench seating lines another wall that was fitted with small bare wood tables.  There was a large cloth napkin and music in the background that helped drown out the noise of the jackhammers outside (lots of construction nearby).  Minimal decorations are provided by dried plants and earth tones make up the walls and drapes. The tasting menu did have optional supplement charges for caviar and/or truffles.  Service was friendly and relaxed and the food was good.

Set-up

 

Food

Gim is edible seaweeds and this took the form of cabbage stuffed seaweed cup topped with sea urchin.   The cup was a nice thin crust but it was large for one bite and messy for two.  It was tasty.  The second piece was a cheese filled bit topped with dashi gel and then seaweed.  The cheese was quite liquid and very good.

 

Mandu is Korean dumpling and this one was in a Matsutake and other mushrooms broth with crisp Jerusalem artichoke topping along with black truffle.  The broth was wonderful with tons of flavor.  The truffle was not particularly distinctive but blended in nicely.

 

Sot-Bap (rice) was alongside barbecued wagyu with pink radicchio Geotjeori.  The radicchio had a kimchi dressing that was nicely spicy and tasty.  The beef was a short rib cut (under radicchio) and some sliced skirt meat that was presented rare.  Both cuts of beef were tender and tasty.  A dollop of hot sauce on the side gave the skirt steak a good spark as well as the rice.  The kimchi dressing was a bit salty but when combined with other bits it all worked out nicely.  A great plate.

 

Korean rice pudding was topped with strips of Buddha’s Hand and Pomelo sorbet.  The sweet sorbet and rice were fun with the bitter Buddha’s Hand.  Very good.

 

Kugelhopf madeleine also contained nuts and raisins.   It was warm and delicious covered with a dusting of granulated sugar.   It was a really nice end for the good meal.