GAJA signature chops. Korean food is one of my favorite cuisines — the pantheon of flavors in its canon are so unexpected and delicious, and the dishes range from sweet to sour to salty and bitter. While I’m skeptical of more modern variations, any word of a new Korean joint will have me excited. Reading about Gaja Korean Kitchen, I was slightly dubious; it seemed like a refined take on Korean classics, which I believe should be untouched.

JOKBAL or simmered pork leg. The restaurant is located along Kalayaan Avenue, a little more commercial and a little less charming than its Poblacion neighbors.

TWICE-COOKED dakijim or roasted chicken. You’ll be disappointed if you come here looking for the popular Korean barbecue; this is not the place to get the more ubiquitous samgyupsal and galbi. Instead, the chef behind Gaja has taken Korean ingredients, techniques and flavors, and turned them into embellished plates of food. For example, a fine starter of Korean bulgogi kimbap is covered with Japanese aburi, a rich, cheesy, torched river of sauce.

KOREAN chili lava cake. Mains are hefty and made for sharing, and while there are some things that need work, a lot are pleasant, and extremely well-cooked.

The jokbal, simmered pork leg that is served cold, has everything you need in this sort of dish: fatty and gelatinous bits alongside tender meat, but needed to be cut thinner, and was let down by a limp dipping sauce.

‘RIBIMBAP’ is Gaja’s take on the popular bibimbap which has a generous serving of rib eye cubes. Elsewhere though, flavors were punchy, and exciting. Twice-cooked dakjjim revealed extremely juicy roast chicken with a thin, crispy skin that was as clear as glass. Although untraditional, the gravy it was served with was deep and flavorful, and complemented the chook incredibly well.

Gaja signature chops were a little thin, but it did not detract from the glaze, and the fact that the brine had permeated the meat made every little mouthful succulent. Best of all was the osam, which is just as good as its English homonym. On the plate was a whole tiny squid stuffed with bibimbap. While these tubes can become rubbery easily, Gaja’s version was delicate and on the right side of chewy. Beside the squid laid a slow-braised, then pressed pork belly slab with the crispiest skin, and both were tied together by a sauce that embraced both sweetness and heat. It was seriously delicious.

KIMBAP aburi. While desserts are generally good (lava cake is always a pleaser, and theirs is no exception), but also sort of forgettable–end your meal with drinks in their hidden bar instead.

Called The Old Seoul, you can access it by pressing down on a soju bottle that reveals a door leading to a darker room lit by neon. The drinks menu is crazily inventive, and are made really well. The Kimchi Sour is a really commendable version of the classic, and the kimchi lends a sour-sweetness to the whole glass, without it ever being too funky.

I’m glad that I made a trip to Gaja Korean Kitchen. Despite my initial reservations, my first trip there proved to be a welcome surprise. The place keeps things simple, but the flavors bold: with a few tweaks, it has the potential to be really great.

Second Floor, 8445 Kalayaan Avenue, Poblacion, Makati City 1407