Dak Galbi @ Chuncheon

I am not a fan of Korean drama series. But of course, almost anyone who heard of Korean drama series have heard of  Winter Sonata which was one of the hit series that brought Korean drama series to fame. The famous romance series started off with the male lead, Joon Sang moving to a rural city of Chuncheon.

Chuncheon is the "gateway" city to Nami Island. We were very fortunate that our Korean friend, Romeo and his gf had so kindly offered to bring us to Nami Island. On our way, we stopped by for Dak Galbi lunch. Dak Galbi was originated from Chuncheon. Dak Galbi is a popular Korean dish, made with stir-fry diced chicken in cabbage, sweet potato and Ddeokbokki  (Korean rice cake), mixed in chilli pepper paste.

As we could not take too spicy, Romeo instructed them to prepare it less spicy. The ingredients are prepared in a large hotplate and you have to fry it for 10-15 minutes before they are cooked. The taste was delicious and it was not too spicy for us.

We also ordered Pajeon - Korean pancake and cold noodles. Of course, every meal comes with the sides dishes - Kimchi and the rest. The cold noodles may look spicy, but it is just sweet sauce. Very yummy as well.

Just outside the restaurant, we saw the lettuce growing on empty plot of land. Perhaps, that's where the restaurant get their vegetables! Just like any barbequed meat, dak galbi can be eaten, wrapped in the lettuce.

Lastly, we reserved some dak galbi to be fried rice. We order plain rice and just pour it in to mix it with the leftover dak galbi, and it turns out to be another dish - Fried rice!

Snew's Rating: 4.5 / 5

We were very grateful that our Korean friend drove us there. I am not sure how to get there by public transport as it is a very localised eatery. However, I saw some tour groups stopping there for lunch as well. I was told that this is the place that started the original Dak Galbi. No wonder it is so yummy.

There are many Dak Galbi restaurants just outside the Nami Island ferry terminal. However, they are very touristy and doesn't look authentic. I read somewhere in the internet that there's a Chuncheon Myeongdong Dak Galbi Street. I am confused if this is a street in Chuncheon, or in Myeongdong itself. If you have the answer, do drop me a comment.

Details of Restaurant:
(Apologies, I do not have the details in English). But I do hope that this business card do provide some help.

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Food in Myeongdong - Jjimdak & Gomtang

There are numerous eateries at the Myeongdong shopping street. However, for good and popular shops, you need a local, or at least someone who has stayed in Seoul long enough to introduce you. Otherwise, check on blogs for recommendation.

Our friend, Mr KH, brought me to this Jjimdak place during my previous business trip and it was yummy! So I went back to Myeongdong and look for it. There were two similar shops selling, but I couldn't remember which was the one that he brought us. So, I just stepped into one, hoping that it is the correct one. Turns out to be not the one he brought us. However, this Bongchu Jjimdak, is also a very popular one, where many bloggers have recommended.

Jjimdak, or Andong Jjimdak is braised, or stewed chicken in soya sauce. Andong is the place where the dish is originated. The taste is slightly different from the one that our mum cooked in Singapore, or the Chinese-style one. This one is cooked with Korean glass noodles, carrots and potato, and the taste is really good. I love Korean glass noodles, the thick chewy type.

You can choose from different portions - Small, Medium or Large according to the number of pax. This restaurant only serves this dish. I was told that in Korea, if the shop only serves or specialised in one particular dish, it must be good.

There are a few other branches of the Bongchu Jjimdak as well. We saw one at Hongdae area. It could be a franchise store.


Snew's Rating:  4.2 / 5
After all the BBQ and spicy stuff, it's good to try something that is comforting to the tummy, and a dish that is close to home.

Bongchu Jjimdak, Myeongdong

25-2, 2-ga Myeong-dong,
Chung-gu, Seoul, South Korea
Opens: 11am to 11pm

Directions:
Exit at Myeongdong Station (Subway Line 4), Exit 8. Walk straight and you see a small street with eateries on your left. Turn in the street. Walk straight ahead for 5 minutes and you will reach the shop.


The one that Mr KH recommends was another Andong Jjimadak. For a foreigner like me, I think that both are equally good. This is just a few shops next to Bongchu Jjimadak.

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On our last day, we met up with Mr KH. I told him I wanted to have something simple, no more of those spicy stuff and BBQ before our flight home. I ask him if he could bring us to the Seolleongtang - Ox Bone Soup as I came across a blog on this and I have always love Ox Bone or Ox Tail Soup. Hence, he brought us to this place - Hadongkwan which has been around for the decades.

Hadongkwan - 河东馆 is truly a very traditional Gomtang restaurant. The name of the restaurant is in Han language, which is our Traditional Chinese. Places with Han language in Korea usually means that they have been around for very long time. A search in the internet shows that this shop has been operating for 70years.

Gomtang or Seolleongtang are both brewed from Ox bones for hours to get the flavour. I am not sure what is the difference between the two though. Do drop me a comment to enlighten me if you know.

Mr KH was surprised that I have suggested to have Seolleongtang as he says that most people have this after a night of heavy drinking. This is probably the usual treat for hangover for the Koreans. For me, I need to detox after nights of BBQ meats and spicy stuff.

We have to pre-pay when you order your food before it is served. We get to choose between the normal at 10,000KRW or the "special" at 12,000KRW, which has more slices of beef. We ordered only the beef strip (slices of beef) as we are no fan of beef tripe. Beneath the soup is the rice, which is served in the same bowl. This reminds me of Teochew Porridge. You may also ask for a refill of soup.

As with most Korean meals, Kimchi is also served here. I was told that you can also mix the Kimchi into the soup to get the Kimchi spice taste. Wouldn't that defeat the purpose of detox, and overshadow the flavour of the beef broth? Instead, I use the salt to taste as it was pretty bland.

Snew's Rating: 3 / 5
I would recommend this for breakfast or a light meal. Even though we order an upsized portion at 12,000KRW, it was not really very filling. Papa Snew was hungry when we reach the airport.

Hadongkwan Gomtang

10-4 Myeong-dong 1-ga,
Jung-gu, Seoul, Korea 100-021
Opens: 7am - 4.30pm

Directions:
Exit 5 from Euljiro-1ga Station (Subway Line 2)
or Exit 4 from Myeongdong Station (Subway Line 4)
Check on Hadongkwan Gomtang for map directions


Initially I thought that Mr KH would bring us to the Sinseon Seolnongtang which has a number of branches. However, he brought us to the Hadongkwan. We would try it the next time we are in Seoul. If you have tried this before, do let me have your comments.

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