TaKorea – Spiciest Dish in Columbus Series

Fusion restaurants can be great, but from time to time they can try to do too much and not fully capture either of the two sides they’re blending. TaKorea attempts to do this with Korean and Mexican spices, but the blend causes a bit of taste bud confusion, leaving me wanting it to be stronger stance on either side.

The Lady of the Farm went with a selection of tacos (hard and crunchy shell inside!). With options like Bulgogi Burritos and Birria Quesadillas, TaKorea holds an interesting mix of its two food genres on its menus.

A mystical fusion of Korean barbecue and the spices of Mexican cuisine, TaKorea holds a few “spicy” items on their menu. Torn between them, we ended up trying the Spicy Pork Burrito, Korean Fried Chicken, and both salsas. First up, the Spicy Pork Burrito, with pork marinated in sweet gochujang, with red bell peppers, jalapeños, garlic, and onions. Uncomfortably large slices of pork (the kind that all pulls out when you get one bite) and a pasty gojuchang didn’t do much for me in the heat department. Any flares of heat were quickly covered by the other ingredients. Even pouring salsa roja on a few layers did little to increase the heat as the thinness of the salsa roja prevents any real spicy bois from shining through.

Hoping for some capsaicin redemption in the Korean Fried Chicken, I peered into the box. “That’s a lot of nuts,” I whispered to myself. The double-fried chicken coated in house-made spicy Korean sauce stared back through the nuts and whispered, “I’m spicy, promise.” First bite, the spicy sauce hits more like a paste again, with a drier, almost gritty feel to it. Getting past the texture, a bit of heat began to poke out, but it took several pieces of chicken to notice it much.

Comparing the heat levels to other Korean barbecue spots or Mexican spots, TaKorea falls below most of them from a spiciness perspective. All of this in mind, we’re placing TaKorea at #124. Great spicy concept, but doesn’t fully execute on the potential for generating sweatiness.

While the heat may not have been too high, some folks swear by TaKorea noting multiple trips per week!

More From Our Quest To Find The Spiciest Dish