NOVEMBER 2018 MARKETPLACECONTRACOSTA.COM 31
Eric Kim learned many
of his culinary skills from
watching and assisting his
mother cook Korean meals
for the family as he grew
up. When he became an
adult, he pursued a nonculinary
career; but, after
working a traditional “9 to
5” job for a short period
of time, he realized it was
definitely not for him. Eric
decided to go into business
for himself leveraging his
cooking skills. When he
moved to Hercules from
Orange County seventeen
years ago, Eric opened
Mongolian Barbecue
restaurants at two local
malls, including the one at
Hilltop Mall in Richmond
which he still owns and
operates. Gradually, Eric
realized that there were no
Korean restaurants in the
local community where
he lived, which meant that those
seeking authentic Korean cuisine had
to travel to Oakland, San Francisco
or Concord. Knowing his passion and
skill and business acumen for running
food establishments, Eric’s friends
and family encouraged him to open
a local Korean restaurant. Persuasion
prevailed, and approximately 18
months after embarking on his
venture, the Jumping Spoon restaurant
became a reality.
Jap Chae
So how was the name of the
restaurant selected? Eric explained that
Korean utensils include chopsticks
and a long-handled, shallow metal
spoon. The spoon is traditionally used
for eating rice and soup, while the
chopsticks are used for eating most
everything else. When people are
happy, they often “jump for joy”; Eric
explained that he expects his customers
to be ‘jumping with happiness’ over
their dining experience. Hence, he
chose the name “Jumping Spoon!”
On the Sunday evening we
visited the restaurant, a prominent
exterior sign boasting the name
Jumping Spoon assured us that we had
successfully reached our destination. As
I was taking a photo of the sign and
entrance, Eric welcomed us, and after
introductions, he showed us to a table
by the front window facing Sycamore
Avenue. He provided us with sturdy,
colorful menus, complete with photos
of many of the dishes and descriptions
in both English and Korean. We were
initially served water and hot wheat
tea (which was delicious!) to enjoy as
we looked over the menu. Eric asked
if we would like something else to
drink from the menu, and suggested
that we might like to try the Korean
beer. Though we are not huge beer
drinkers, we agreed to try it, and soon
were served two different bottles of
Korean beer. The first one we tried
is named “Kloud” which was the
darker and heavier of the two beers.
The second is named “Hite”, a lighter
beer. We shared both bottles and
were pleasantly surprised at how much
we enjoyed the beers! The beers are
imported from Korea, and
they are available in both
small and large bottles and
are sold for $3.99 and $6.99
respectively. Two other
beers, Sapporo and Asahi,
are also available; but, we
highly recommend the
Korean beers based on our
taste test!
Jumping Spoon’s
menu is fairly extensive
and listed many unfamiliar
dishes. Having had limited
exposure to this type of
cuisine, my guest and I
were uncertain of what
to order. We wanted to
try a variety of items;
however, dinner entrees
are large and are served
family style for sharing.
The appetizers pictured on
the menu also appeared to
be quite large and suitable
for sharing among several
people. The lunch menu
includes individual “box” lunches,
similar to Japanese Bento boxes, but
these are not available in the evenings.
Ultimately, we left our meal choices
up to Eric, asking him to bring us
shareable samples of some of the most
popular entrees for us to try.
While waiting for our entrees,
we were pleasantly surprised to have
a tray filled with small bowls of “side
dishes” brought to our table. We
learned that these side dishes are served
to all customers ordering from the
dinner menu. When asked, the server
explained what each bowl contained:
• Jap Chae (Clear yam noodles
with vegetables and beef)
• Fried Fish (2 whole Croaker
fish)
• Kimchi (Traditional Korean
vegetable dish pickled by natural
fermentation)
• Picked Radish Kimchi
• Steamed Broccoli
• Bean Sprouts
• Macaroni Salad
• Potato Salad
Sunday through Thursday: 11:00 AM – 9:00 PM | Friday – Saturday: 11:00 AM – 10:00 PM | Closed on Tuesdays