A time of ‘sweet rain’ in Los Gatos with new business arrival

Finally, that former Montebello Market space next to Parkside on Montebello Way has a new owner. Entrepreneur Janet Shoh, just opened her third location of Danbi Korean BBQ, finally bringing representation of this popular ethnic cuisine to downtown Los Gatos. Shoh has two other locations of Danbi—both in San Jose—on North First Street and Danbi Korean Santa Teresa on Snell Avenue.

First of all, yes, they have fried chicken (savory, spicy and soy glazed), and Kalbi (grilled beef short ribs), grilled pork, mackerel and bulgogi (sliced soy marinated beef), but they also offer kimchi, vegetable and seafood pancakes. There’s ramen and soft tofu soups, as well as several spins on fried rice. We asked Shoh what we should not miss. “The Japchae,” she said. This is a stir-fried dish of shiny glass noodles with spinach, fragrant bulgogi beef, sweet onion and crunchy cabbages.

She also recommended the hot clay pot sizzling rice, a version of bi bim bap. “This is one of my favorite dishes,” she said. “The rice cooks on the bottom and gets really crispy.”  It comes in several permutations, but we chose the chicken. It came out, sizzling away in dramatic style, the rice covered by a pile of shredded carrots, bean sprouts, radish, spinach, diced chicken and a fried egg. Add a little gochujang to spice it up. I must say the cheese hot stone pot with spicy pork, bell peppers and mozzarella is intriguing.

Accompanying any entrée dish is a set of little sides, called banchan, including spicy fish cake, pickled daikon radish, kimchee Napa cabbage, marinated bean sprouts and pickled jalapenos and carrots. The Koreans are big on cabbage. They’re also very big on vegetables.

Shoh’s delightfully friendly and knowledgeable business partner and longtime friend, Sunny Choi, who she met at De Anza College before they diverged to different schools, explains, “Korea has always been a poor country, and especially after the war. There was very little refrigeration. We had to survive through harsh winters by preserving food.” She says her grandmother, like most homemakers, would bury a big ceramic pot in the ground into which she had submerged cabbage and other vegetables in a spicy brine. “I remember she would bring in icy, almost frozen, bowls of kimchi to have with our traditional meals.”

I asked Choi about the colorful woven and embroidered mats that are set atop each table at the restaurant. “These are from Korea,” Choi explained. “They were used to cover all the condiments to keep flies and dust out. They would be left on the kitchen table, ready to accompany the meal, so you would just have to cook rice, and dinner is ready.”

After Shoh graduated from San Jose State, she immediately dove into the world of food. Her first franchise was a Baskin Robbins. Asked for her favorite flavor, she replied, “Pistachio almond,” which didn’t surprise, as she was wearing a beautiful fan-shaped pendant carved of malachite and edged with diamonds. She then purchased the first of her Togo franchises, which she says have been amazingly consistent performers, due to the quality of the food and strength of top management. “That fresh-baked bread comes in every morning. It’s what keeps people coming back.” And yes, pastrami is the number one seller. 

After De Anza, Choi went to UC Irvine, and lived in southern California for 21 years. Then Shoh contacted her and said it was time to get into business together: they had talked about it for a long time. So now, in addition to the Korean fried chicken restaurant she owns near Pioneer High School, she is proudly serving up her Korean heritage at Danbi. She says Shoh had long been scouting for a Los Gatos location, but all the vacant spaces required the installation of a kitchen. Then, one night, Shoh was scrolling through business listings and discovered this very space. She excitedly called Choi. The next day, Shoh met with former lessee, Yvonne Khananis, saw the place and fell in love. It was perfect. The deal was done quickly, but the ABC license will take a little longer. They hope to be able to offer beer and wine soon. 

As for other items on the menu, there are many signature Korean soups and stews, including Galbi Tang, a beef short rib soup with glass noodles, rice, vegetables and egg. Intriguing and reminiscent of the Korean War, which is still technically ongoing, is the Army Stew, known as Budae Jjigae. This dish contains some of America’s more questionable exports, including spam and American cheese, along with kimchi, ramen, sausage, pork and tofu.  

There’s also a spicy calamari stir fry, to which you can add rice cake or udon noodles. There’s also a Danbi stir fry—with vegetables and a choice of spicy pork, beef, chicken or tofu (over rice, of course). 

I asked Choi the meaning of Danbi. “It’s a Korean word for sweet rain,” she said. “More like that wonderful first rain after a long drought.”