Bargain Bite! - Dotori

It's not normally the best idea to eat directly around Finsbury Park station (best to wander further along Stroud Green or towards Highbury). But there is a saving grace. Just at the end of Stroud Green Road, right by the bus station, is a modest Korean restaurant called Dotori.

I've tweeted about this place a fair bit - and it was 5th place in my Top Ten London Restaurants of 2010 - but it warrants a spot on the blog for three very simple reasons:

1) The flavours in the dishes are beautifully balanced.

2) The portions are very generous (if you have the chilli calamari you'll know what I mean).

3) It is great value for money.

At first the menu looks a bit ambitious because of the amount of options they offer. But each time I've been they have delivered gorgeous food without fail. Dotori do the traditional stone pot Bibimbap dishes, a huge selection of sushi plates, bento, soups, noodle dishes and stews.

The king prawn and vegetable tempura is comforting, sizeable and the batter on the king prawns is so light and crispy it makes the dish filling but not stodgy.

The restaurant is quite tiny. I think they take bookings but if there's two or three of you, you can usually get a table pretty swiftly. Or if you're going solo - even better. There's some stalls to perch at by the window. The staff are friendly, efficient and happy to help. There's also an added bonus of fresh orange segments to cleanse your palette when the bill comes. Nice touch!

Go and visit Dotori if you're stuck for somewhere to grab a bite near Finsbury Park, you'll be pleased when you do!