Restaurant review: Il Mee
7031 Little River Turnpike
Annandale, Va.
703-642-2100

Yes, a buffet truly worth visiting. In fact, more than worth it. Whether you're a newbie to Korean food or a seasoned vet, Il Mee is an delicious (and mostly healthy) choice for dinner.

Korean restaurants are notoriously inaccessible to outsiders. Diners new to cuisine often get little or no help from servers, and the language barriers compound the problem. Il Mee isn't much better, but the servers are friendly and the buffet approach is self-explanatory. And while service at Il Mee has improved markedly over the past few years, it can still be an adventure.

Beware, the restaurant sports a row of heat lamps piled with lackluster Chinese fare; if you want Chinese, go to a Chinese restaurant. The name of the game here is meat and kimchi, with a side order of sushi and soup.

Think of the buffet as being split into four separate areas--the heat lamp zone is off limits!

First, as you walk in, you'll pass by a row of sushi. This isn't the highest quality fish, but the selection is surprisingly large, with eel even making an appearance. Treat this as a side dish, a palate cleanser. Don't use your hands at the buffet: tongs are located at each end of the row.

Second, toward the rear of the buffet, you'll find three very different soup options. A pair of hot soups stand in the corner, but they tend to be thin with little flavor. Next, a pair of cold broths in metal tubs are surrounded by noodles, veggies, and tofu. Fill your bowl with goodies and ladle the slightly vinegary broth over; let it rest a minute before you eat to soften the noodles. Finally, another hot option: clay bowls already filled with ingredients from fish to tofu to dumplings. Grab a bowl and return to your table; a waitress will fill the bowl with water and cook it tableside.

Third, the national dish of Korea: kimchi. An acquired taste for many Americans, the usually-spicy kimchi includes a wide range of fermented vegetables; Il Mee offers about a dozen types. Most include cabbage and radishes with loads of red pepper, garlic and ginger. A few have milder flavors and feature bean sprouts, seaweed or seafood. Eat kimchi before the meal as an appetizer and with your grilled meats.

Finally, the meat. Vast piles of raw nestled in stainless vats. The central component of your meal, Il Mee has about 10 different choices. Avoid the seafood, which is the most difficult to cook. The marinated pork, thin-sliced beef and beef short ribs are all excellent choices. Load up a bowl and head back to your table, where waitresses are usually on hand to load the grill and snip the meat with their red-handled scissors. Go for one animal at a time; too many flavors erases them all.

There's no one way to munch. Large lettuce leaves are piled high near the buffet and make handy vessels for the meat and kimchi. There are also several dipping sauces near the meat that for even more flavor. Don't worry, bright red doesn't always mean spicy. Maybe the best way to enjoy your meal is to spy on your neighbors; Il Mee is usually full of Korean families and groups, and playing copycat is encouraged.

The restaurant is quite large, with a recessed lower level, but late afternoon on weekends find Korean families lined up outside. Best to visit on a weeknight. And make sure you're hungry.

Bottom line: It's inevitable that Korean food will catch on in the United States. Kimchi might be a tough sell, but the grilled meats alone are worth the trip.