PHXfoodnerds

My kid and I hopped down to the Mesa Asian District to hit up The Stone Korean Tofu House today, so I figured I'd get a thread started on this place.

This has become a fairly regular fixture in our rotation. Definitely one of my favorite Korean joints in town, and not just because it isn't the usual trendy stuff. It's much more in the vein of a more modern version of the old stalwarts like Hodori and Chodang, right down to the emphasis on soondubu.


Or, more precisely, fresh tofu, which they make in-house daily. There's usually a little demo video running on loop in the dining room to show the process. So naturally, anything utilizing fresh tofu is a strength.


This is my go-to... the L.A. kalbi combo with whatever soondubu is grabbing me that day. Today it was the classic seafood with shrimp, mussels and clams. A whole raw egg comes on the side. You know what to do. Beautiful, clean flavor on this and the highlight, of course, is some super slurpy silken tofu. The kalbi isn't why you're here, but it's juicy and tender and has some nice flavor. The whole thing comes with a little pressure pot of rice, as well.


Hey, seasonal rice! I love that little bits of steamed squash have made an appearance lately. I just wish I'd noticed that the bottom had a KILLER crust on it before I'd finished the rest of my food. Next time.


Speaking of which, my kid's go-to is the bulgogi dolsot bibimbap. They *usually* get a really nice crust on the rice (today was the exception) which, IMO, is half of it right there.


Also, I'm not sure when they added this to the menu, but there's a seafood pancake now, and it's very nice. This one is of a thicker variety. I'm not getting any spring or stretch out of it, so I don't think there's any rice flour involved. It's super vegetable heavy and while I probably shouldn't frame dishes this way, it almost plays kind of like Japanese kakiage.


Whoops, a little close for good focus. It's also fairly thick, but it plays light. Not a ton of seafood, primarily little bits of octopus and perhaps squid. It's more vegetable-forward. You'll know from the photos whether or not it's a style you prefer, but it's a great example thereof. Very carefully made, as is everything at The Stone.


See? Very carefully prepared. The banchan is unusually good. That fishy fella doesn't make an appearance very often, but it's always a treat when he does.


They also do a mean corn cheese here. It's the usual — canned corn, mayo, onions, cheese. But this one's particularly good. I think a heavy hand with the sweet onions does it.

I'd love to hear some intel on the rest of the menu if others have gotten there. Hard to break away from your favorites. You know how it is.

The Stone Korean Tofu House
www.thestonetofuaz.com
1870 W. Main Street
Mesa, AZ 85202

The Stone is one of my favorite places in the Mesa Asian District. I like restaurants that define their own niche and debunk stereotypes. The Stone does both by showing people unfamiliar with the nuances of Korean cuisine that it's not always about endless parades of grilled meat and that tofu isn't merely a meat alternative. The restaurant has plenty of meat on the menu, often alongside tofu, but the tofu is the star here, and there is a selection of vegetarian options. Aside from the H Mart food court, it's the Korean place that can best keep everyone in the family happy.

We usually start with two appetizers: the sesame tofu and the mung bean pancakes. The former is a simple showcase of the restaurant's signature product. The latter have a smoky essence and texture almost like corn cakes.


In terms of entrees, I usually go for either the bulgogi or the spicy chicken in combination with one of the soondubus like mushroom or kimchi.


They also have hot pots. This photo is of the single hot pot they serve for one with bulgogi, noodles, mushrooms, and vegetables. All of the others, meant for two or more to share, come with a burner underneath and cover nearly the entire table.


At the end of the meal, customers are typically served what the servers describe as porridge. It's basically just rice that has stuck to the bottom of the pot with a little warm water. Apparently, it's a ritual derived from times of scarcity during and after the Korean War. Mixing a little water with the remaining rice was a way of not letting any grains to waste. I usually have a bite or two as part of the ritual and then head to one of the nearby boba tea, ice cream, or bubble waffle places in the Asian District for a proper dessert.

Does anyone know the deal with the second location? The one in Mesa Asian District is The Stone Korean Tofu House and the one in East Mesa is The Stone House. They share a logo/signage, but I'm not sure how related they are.

I've been to the East Mesa location a few times, and I'm guessing they don't focus so heavily on the fresh made tofu dishes. Maybe 6+ months ago they made a shift to AYCE KBBQ, but they weren't doing that when they first opened. They have a Naengmyeon with Kalbi I've had a couple times that is decent (but nowhere near Ga Hyang, RIP), and the KBBQ is pretty solid.

The dolsot bibimbap at the Stone Tofu House is prepared with the proper ingredients, and those ingredients come in the correct proportions. Their gojuchang is also properly sour without being bitter. In that facet, the Stone Tofu House is superior to any other Korean place we have visited.

The one downside is that the dishes that they serve it in are not stone dishes, but ceramic. As a result, I think that the final cooking or baking process that should take place in the stone bowl is sometimes incomplete, and that is when the dolsot bibimbap itself can be less than ideal. The really top-notch bibimbap served in a stone bowl always "wastes" some of the food that is cooked to a hardened crust against the bowl, but the 90% you can eat is superior to anything served in a non-stone bowl.

The Stone Korean Tofu House in Mesa is also on regular rotation for my husband, sister-in-law, and me...ever since we probably heard about it from Dominic a while back? We haven't really gotten past the seafood pancake appetizer, either. I keep thinking one day I'll just order one for myself as my main course, but then I really like fresh tofu (which we hadn't had since living in Japan eons ago) so I usually get the vegetarian tofu bibimbap - which has always had a nice crust for me but then again we don't make it there as often as I'd like. If you ever get to meet the woman of the couple who own it, she's delightful!

immersivemachine wrote: Tue Nov 14, 2023 10:06 am Does anyone know the deal with the second location? The one in Mesa Asian District is The Stone Korean Tofu House and the one in East Mesa is The Stone House. They share a logo/signage, but I'm not sure how related they are.

I think this was some kind of a family split, but that's hearsay. As you say, it's a different menu, and I've been meaning to get out there to give it a try.