Without  any advertising, the Korean restaurant Sorabol opened at CITIC Plaza two months ago and is already a success.

Its name, with its strong flavor of Korean history and culture, vouches for the restaurant's authenticity. Sorabol was the name for Seoul during the Shilla Kingdom more than 1,000 years ago.

The two Sorabol restaurants in Hong Kong attract enough big names - from former chief executive Tung Chee-hwa and his successor Donald Tsang Yam-kuen to South Korean pop star Rain and actor Jang Dong-gun and Hong Kong actress Cecilia Cheung - that Sorabol has been nicknamed "the stars' canteen." The Tsim Sha Tsui branch opened in 1993 and the Causeway Bay branch opened in 1995.

The first Sorabol opened in Seoul 25 years ago and now includes seven branches in South Korea, 14 on the Chinese mainland, and one in Singapore.

"Even former South Korean President Kim Dae-jung is a regular customer," said Kim Ki-soon, the Shenzhen Sorabol's general manager, who came from Seoul with some 17 years' experience in the business.

Kim is the omnipresent manager, greeting customers, giving hands-on guidance to the staff, and getting diners' suggestions.

The decor is traditional Korean style, while the atmosphere is warm and the staff is friendly.

The place is usually packed with Japanese, Korean and Chinese customers as well as a few Westerners sampling kimchi for the first time. "About 20 to 30 percent of the diners are Koreans, 70 percent are Shenzheners while another 5 percent are Japanese or people from Western countries," Kim said.

Many of the staff are of Chaoxian ethnicity whose grandparents' generation emigrated from the Korean peninsular to China decades ago.

Although focused on Korean-style barbecue, Sorabol offers dozens of choices. Waiters are more than happy to help.

A Sorabol specialty is the Korean-style barbecued beef imported from Canada and Japan. Priced at 162 yuan (US$20) per order with two marinated Canadian top-grade short ribs, the finely marbled beef is well prepared and juicy. Unlike most restaurants, Sorabol staff will prepare the barbecue for you.

Each dish is accompanied by small side dishes of kimchi, spinach, anchovies, onion, radish and salad.

Don't forget to accompany the paper-thin beef with the South Korean barbecue sauce. Wrap the beef in fresh lettuce with cucumber, garlic slivers and chili sauce, and it's ready to eat.

Barbecue choices starting at 60 yuan per order include pork, chicken, lamb and assorted seafood.

The 98- to 108-yuan hot pot is one of the best-selling items, according to Kim. Waiters will cook the hot pot in front of you, ideal for a group.

Mixed stone pot rice is priced at 68 yuan and rice with ginseng chicken soup is 88 yuan per order.

For appetizers, Sorabol serves rare roasted prime beef from Canada, fresh oyster pancakes and assorted pan-fried seafood.

The current promotion includes complimentary pumpkin soup and eight dishes of homemade kimchi.

Kimchi maniacs can get take-away kimchi packages priced from five to 38 yuan. Cabbage, cucumber and radish are the most popular.

Spicy buckwheat noodles with ice cubes are designed for summer weather, although they are also popular in South Korea during the winter. Perfect for lovers, the dish is presented in a heart-shaped bowl of ice.

South Korea-imported sweet potato or herbal liquor, soju (distilled spirit), plum wine, rice wine and ginseng wine add an intoxicating touch.

Editor: Yan