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2009-06-27
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My family and I used to come here pretty often a few years back - my brother liked their barbecue meats (bulgolgi beef, short ribs and skirt steaks); been going to other Korean restaurants lately so haven't been here for a while - came back 8 months ago for a dinner party with 18 people, from my memory the food wasn't particularly good - generally the stir-fries were saltier than average, I certainly remember that my favorite stir-fried spicy octopus did not taste sweet at all. Anyway I wanted t
Anyway I wanted tp give Go Gu Jang a second chance - after so many childhood memories I still want to give it some credit. So I came back for lunch yesterday.
The banchans are impressive, generally of better than average quality. I especially like their braised eggplants and glazed potatoes which is slightly sweet with anchovies. They also have a cooked white cabbage kimchi with a dash of sesame oil in it.
The tea served was green tea, not barley nor rice tea.
Then came the mains - ordered several lunch sets, all very reasonably priced at around $85-100.
1. Noodles with beef shank ($80/.85)
Thin wheat noodles in a clear broth served with an assortment of julienned vegetables. Broth is mildly sweet and refreshing.
2. Seafood stone pot rice ($85)
This is the disappointment - the portion size is quite meager but it is cheap. "Seafood" consists of chiefly conpoy (dried scallops), cuttlefish and dime-sized shrimps. The rice is premixed with a soy-based sauce that is slightly oily and no crust was formed - big disappointment #2! It did however come with a small dish of even more homemade soy-oil mixture dipping sauce which really is not necessary - the rice is seasoned enough to begin with. But it deserves an E for effort!
And for the veggie lover - this is not the usual dolsot bibimbap; no rainbow of vegetables as I expected, or as displayed on the menu! Don't recommened this.
3. Grilled bulgolgi beef ($85)
The usual. Beef can come cooked (they cook ti for you) or you grill yourself. I ordered it premade. Marinade was a bit on the salty side, and the metal plate was a bit greasy.
4. Seafood pajeon ($100-110, a la carte, not a lunch set)
Pretty good - golden crisp on the outside, chewy soft and thin, generous fresh seafood (squid and shrimps) - not bad! I have tried other pancakes here, forgot which one but they are generally reliable.
Perhaps their lunches are of not as good quality. But still from these past 2 recent experiences I am still not that impressed generally - I will give it another one chance some time for dinner, for a la carte items...but that will have to wait another while.
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