Korean Eatery Sorimmara Opens Next To Smoothie King In Highwoods Preserve! 

Photos by Charmaine George

If you’ve never heard of Sorimmara, which just opened next to Smoothie King at 17501 Preserve Walk Ln., off Bruce B Downs (BBD) Blvd., you’re probably not alone. 

Sorimmara is a fast-casual chain based in South Korea, where it has more than 200 locations. The only other U.S. location is in the Koreatown section of Los Angeles, CA. 

Despite its Korean roots, most of the menu at Sorimmara is made up of Chinese dishes that have been given a Korean twist. Confused? Just what until you visit! 

Sorimmara offers a large variety of raw meats (beef, pork, lamb, chicken, etc.), seafood (shrimp, clams, fish, etc.) and veggies (everything from broccoli and collared greens to Napa cabbage, baby corns, a variety of mushrooms & much more). 

You wait to be seated, but you’re immediately invited to grab a bowl and fill it with as much “stuff” as you like — but you’re told you need to have at least 1 lb. of ingredients in your bowl because the restaurant charges by the pound ($14.99-$18.99) for its six main entrĂ©e options, including malatang, which is a spicy broth cooked similarly to the popular Chinese hot pot soups, except the restaurant’s kitchen cooks it for you and brings it to your table in a metal bowl placed on top of a lit burner. 

Charmaine enjoyed her malatang (top photo), but we both included way too many ingredients because we didn’t know until the restaurant weighed our bowls how much “stuff” we had. There’s also creamy rose malatang available. 

I also liked my tomato xiang guo (below left), or “stir fry dry pot,” which is like a stir-fry dish at a Korean or Chinese restaurant. 

When I visit Sorimmara again, I plan to try the guobaorou, which means “fried pork” in Chinese, but also is available in crispy, sweet- &-sour chicken, shrimp, cream shrimp and mala mayo shrimp varieties. There’s also four actual Korean street food options called tteokbokki, which features tube-shaped rice cakes that are described as a blend of sweet, spicy and savory. 

One piece of good news for less adventurous diners is that all of the dishes at Sorimmara are available in five levels of spice, from mild to super-spicy. There’s also a sauce bar with pre-made options like a delicious creamy sesame sauce and make-your-own options where the restaurant provides you with the recipes! 

There also are Chinese standards like egg fried rice and egg rolls, as well as unique spicy mala and mala mayo fried rice, mala and mala mayo rice balls and flying fish roe rice balls. 

Sorimmara is open Mon. & Wed.-Fri., 11:30 a.m.-3 p.m. & 5-10 p.m. It’s open Sat. & Sun., 11:30 a.m.-10 p.m. Closed Tues. For info, call (813) 252-6643 or visit SorimmaraTampaBay.com. — GN