This blog has moved to Twitter! Check out my twitter feed for the latest restaurant, retail, and cultural news in the neighborhood.

At first glance, the newly opened Naru Tofu House at 2nd and Alameda wouldn’t seem to put up much of a fight against its more established rival, BCD Tofu House.

But in contrast to the dark and quiet Honda Plaza outside, Naru beckons hungry guests into a brightly lit space splashed with red, orange and green walls trimmed in dark wood.

It needs to beckon harder, however, as the restaurant was virtually empty save for one other party, after being open for approximately three months.

Once inside, service was efficient and courteous. We were quickly offered a small salad doused in a tasty sweet soy-garlic dressing, an easy way to intensify what is normally a restaurant afterthought.

Upon ordering the seafood tofu soup, kimchi-beef tofu soup and the bulgogi entree, we waited for the customary banchan (or side dishes) that accompany Korean meals. A whole fried fish; cabbage, cucumber and radish kimchi; bean sprouts and rice were eventually served.

The shining star of the constellation of sides was the potato dish, boiled in a miso-mirin-garlic broth with sauteed red peppers, sesame seeds and scallions. The sweetness of the mirin was absorbed by the potatoes and mixed nicely with the miso and scallions.

Our bulgogi was served on a sizzling platter, piled high on the plate. A more than adequate serving, though unfortunately this dish is not the restaurant’s strong point. The marinated beef was tough and tasteless, the classic quantity over quality recipe.

But the beef isn’t what we came here for. I craved the soon dubu — a traditional Korean dish of delicate tofu in a simmering spicy broth, served in a burning hot stone pot. The soup came out piping hot — so hot, it was nearly boiling over onto the table. After giving it a few minutes to cool down, I carefully sampled the taunting stew.

How does it compare to BCD, world famous for its soon tofu?

Even though is lacks the extreme spiciness to which I am accustomed (even the soft orange color implies less of a kick than the bright-red madness that is the hallmark of BCD’s perfected version), the tempered concoction was spicy enough while still carrying a full-flavored punch. Bits of clam and whole shrimps (with shells, legs, and tails) boiled in the soup provided a savory additive to the well-seasoned mixture.

So does Naru Tofu House live up to the tough standards set by BCD? I’d say so. And here, one doesn’t have to find the patience for seating queues that can run 30 people deep… at least not any time soon.

Naru Tofu House
432 E 2nd Street (in Honda Plaza)
Los Angeles, CA 90012
213-626-0006
Open 10:00 am - 10:00 pm