I've not had the chance to cook much with it but have eaten it plenty of times, especially in Chinese resturants.

In Japan it's called Goya and is a speciality of Okinawa (and commony cooked with pork/tofu/spam as Chanpuru - google for recipes) - it's good with strong flavoured sake.

Appearance wise it's similar to the elaborate kind you tried. Try stir frying it with garlic, sesame oil and ... better still, here's a simple recipe http://vegetarianjapan.blogspot.com/2007/07/goya.html - add spam or pork if you like.

I'm a big fan of Goya crisps/chips which are sold in packets in Japanese convenience stores. I also like Bitter gourd/melon tea which is available in Chinese grocery stores - this is definitely an acquired taste!

Chanpuru, and those chips, never seem particularly bitter to me - I'd put them on a par with many beers as well as campari.

I've just had a thought, as artichokes have some property that makes bitter tastes sweet, perhaps pairing bitter melon with artichokes (or Cynar, the artichoke based aperatif) will help those who balk at bitterness.