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Dae Jang Gum Korean restaurant was actually one of the first Korean BBQ restaurants that I visited some 7-8 years ago. It was always under my impression that I’ve already written a review on it, but that was obviously not the case. Better late than never, so here goes.

Dae Jang Gum Korean BBQ at Seksyen 14, Petaling Jaya

Situated at the other end of the same building that includes Digital Mall in Petaling Jaya, Dae Jang Gum is a pretty old establishment. I suspect that the restaurant probably looked the same when it first opened for business years ago.

The decoration is dated, tables and chairs are old, but at least those BBQ vents still works very well. Then again, we’re here for food, right?

good variety of banchan, and their kimchi jiggae is one of the best

Like most Korean BBQ restaurants, there’s quite a selection of different types and cuts of meat available to choose from (minimum order of 2 servings per table to start the grill).

We chose Dae Ji Mok Sal (grilled pork neck, RM 28) and Bul Galbi (marinated beef spare ribs, RM 62) for the grill, and 2 bowls of kimchi jiggae (kimchi soup) for the four of us.

Service is pretty decent right here, and we were served about a dozen different types of banchan (small Korean dishes) within minutes.

grilled pork neck, fresh and unseasoned

The kimchi soup is really the reason we come here for. They are the thickest and most flavorful kimchi soup that I’ve had in a restaurant (the only thicker version is when we cook it at home). The spicy broth goes very well with the steamed rice provided, and that thick, almost-overpowering aroma and taste, superb!

Grilled pork neck doesn’t taste too different from pork belly, the dipping “sauce” is basically sesame oil with salt and goes well with the meat. Optionally, you can wrap it in a piece of lettuce before chewing em down. Flavor isn’t exactly intense, so if you want something stronger, other marinated versions might be more suitable.

galbi – marinated beef ribs, always rich and delicious

Marinated short ribs, or Galbi, is is one of my favorite Korean BBQ dishes, and the version at Dae Jang Gum did not disappoint. The beef is grilled to perfection and then cut into smaller pieces for your enjoyment. I like to wrap it in a piece of lettuce with some sauce and a piece of garlic to complete the flavor experience. Good stuff.

Yuki, Horng, & Haze

We usually spend about RM 30+ per person for a wholesome dinner here. Expect to pay a bit more if soju is involved, and alternatively you can order single dishes or go without BBQ meat to stay within a more limited budget. Whatever your decision, don’t forget to order the kimchi jiggae.

Address:
Dae Jang Gum Korean Restaurant
20B-2 & 20B-3,
Section 14/20,
46100 Petaling Jaya, Selangor
GPS: 3.110188, 101.635439
Tel: 03-7957 2613

A couple weeks ago we were invited to Goong Korean BBQ Restaurant at Ampang with the promise of a hearty traditional Korean meal.

The restaurant is located at the appropriately named “Little Korea” right across the road from Ampang Point, an area littered with many restaurants, with more than half of them serving Korean food.

Goong Korean restaurant at Little Korea in Ampang

The restaurant itself is located on the first floor, right on top of another restaurant that serves, you guessed it, Korean food.

The interior decoration is best described as minimalistic, or if you’re a little more direct, supremely bare. However, one does not eat tables, chairs, nor the pretty paintings on the wall, so if you’re looking for food instead of an ambiance worthy of that fine date you’re bringing, this arrangement would  suffice. It was clean and comfortable.

wide selection of banchan to go around

Our foods were pre-ordered by the lady boss, Laura (despite the name, she is Korean), who also doubled as the chef.

First to come were the multitude of banchan, or small dishes that always accompany pretty much any Korean meals. This includes kimchi, seaweed, broccoli, and various other types of vegetable with chili pepper seasoning. They were generally pretty good, I like the fact that the kimchi served was quite strong and well prepared.

grilled meat, the main stay of any Korean BBQ restaurant

Since the name of  the place includes the word “BBQ”, they do have classic Korean BBQ dishes in the menu.

We tried Dwaeji Galbi (grilled pork ribs, RM30) and Gochujang Samgyeopsal (Grilled Pork Loin with red hot pepper paste, RM22). The meat were well marinated and tasted pretty decent, but BBQ pork can only go so far, my favorite is still Galbi (marinated beef short ribs), but unfortunately we did not try the version from here.

The point to note is that so far as Korean BBQ pork dishes is concerned, these were more than reasonable.

hot & spicy pork and Mandu (dumpling)

The dish that intrigued us the most was the hot & spicy pork (RM 22) that, according to Laura, required tremendous patient and multitude of steps in preperation, and she also promised that it is a dish you can’t find anywhere within Klang Valley. This is as “traditional” as it gets.

True to her words, it was delicious, and doubly so if you love meat with strong flavor and good dosage of spiciness. I loved it and would not hesitate to order the same thing when I’m there again.

Mandu (dumpling, RM 20) is another home-made affair by the lady boss/chef. While homey and warm, I find the skin a tad too thick for my liking. As far as dumpling goes, I still prefer my siao long bao and sui kao.

Bulgogi jeongol (beef) and Samgyetang (ginseng chicken)

Bulgogi jeongol (beef hot pot,RM 50) is just as what you’d expect from some of the better Korean restaurants. Sweet and flavorful, goes well with a bit of Korean steamed rice and some tea.

The Samgyetang (chicken ginseng soup, RM 30) is a good comfort food perfect for those rainy nights, and one that would probably help my runny nose right now as I’m writing this article. You can also ask for the version with rice stuffed in the chicken’s cavity. This dish was actually my first Korean experience, and I still like it as much after all these years.

bibimbap, Kimchi Jeon (pancake), Kimchi Jigae

If you come alone and prefer something ultra healthy, Goong does serve bibimbap. I was never a fan of one, but this version does taste okay to me.

the Kimchi Jeon (kimchi pancake, RM 25) is, if you would, Korean pizza that tastes like a cross between pancake and pizza but with a strong flavor of kimchi. I find it easy to eat, and would love to have one delivered to my house while watching those late night NFL games.

Last but not least, Haze gave her seal of approval to the most important dish of any Korean restaurant – Kimchi Jiggae (kimchi soup, RM 17). The version here is the first one that she actually liked after we started making our own kimchi soup at home.

This one is strong, spicy, sour, and everything that you’d expect in a top quality kimchi stew. If you like it strong and don’t want to have to cook it yourself, come here, it’s cheaper than the ingredients you’d need to make an equivalent tasting pot too.

owner, daughter, and an enthusiastic Korean customer

We were also fortunate enough to be joined by one of Laura’s friend, a Korean lady who decided to teach us a Korean custom when it comes to drinking – when you empty your glass, place it over your head to indicate that you actually finished the glass.

We had a good time over the session, and Goong Korean BBQ restaurant, while not perfect, did deliver what it promised – a wholesome, hearty, traditional Korean meal. I think it is a place worth checking out for yourself.

Address:
Goong Korean BBQ Restaurant
B 3-2, Jalan Ampang Utama 2/2,
Ampang 68000
Kuala Lumpur
GPS: 3.15553, 101.75202
Tel: 016-309 1160

For whatever reason, it has taken me this long to write about Kangsane Korean Restaurant in Ampang despite having been there numerous times since more than a year ago. In fact, this is the Korean restaurant I most frequent in recent times, and there is a reason for it: simply the best Galbi (marinated beef ribs) anywhere!

nice ambiance, illustrated menu

Kangsane Korean Restaurant is situated right in the middle of Little Korea at Ampang, that interesting commercial square where you can find dozens of Korean restaurants, grocery stores, and even optical shops. This place is to Korean like Brickfields is to Indian. Parking is usually not an issue here.

kimchi jjigae (soup), samgyeopsal (pork belly), and Galbi (marinated beef ribs)

Just like most other Korean BBQ restaurants, Kangsane serves various BBQ meat, stews, bulgogi, and of course, all these comes with plenty of Banchan (side dishes) that is the signature of Korean food. The must-order dish here would be the Galbi, I just couldn’t get enough of the succulent and perfectly flavored beef ribs.

I suggest that you always give them a call to make sure that the supply of Galbi is ample before heading there. We had to go for pork galbi on the last visit as the beef version ran out of stock, while it was still very good, the beef ribs is simply irreplaceable.

the many banchan (side dishes)

The other commendable dish is the samgyeopsal (pork belly), do start with this dish first if you also order galbi as the pork carries a more subtle taste that might be overpowered by the beef if you reverse the order.

Of course, a good Korean restaurant must also serve good banchan (side dishes), and the good thing about Kangsane is that they always have different banchan every time we go there. From anchovies to tofu, kimchi to some funny looking vegetables, they are always very delicious and accompanies the main dish very well. I also absolutely love their kimchi jjigae (kimchi soup)

good food is to be enjoyed with friends: Kim, Kelvin, Pinkpau, ST, Kenneth

Price wise, this place is pretty much in par with similar Korean restaurants. Some BBQ meat dishes, stews, and maybe some dumplings will usually cost around RM 40-50 per person for a table of 4-5. Very worth it though.

Kangsane is situated in the Little Korea at Ampang, KL

Address:
C5 Jalan Ampang Utama 1/1
One Ampang Avenue
Kuala Lumpur
GPS: 3.155283, 101.751364
Tel: 03-4251 2598

Korean house is one of the newest restaurants at the very competitive diner’s district that is PJ SS2. I drove past the restaurant quite a number of times before decided to head in and have a look just a while ago. After all, the place does look pretty busy, and a busy restaurant is usually not bad.

very nice and clean indoor/outdoor set up

Now, there are 2 ways you can have Korean food, the cheap way (like at Mu Gong He, Haeun Khon) or you can have a feast with the Korean specialty, the BBQ. Fresh meat don’t come cheap, but sometimes the urge on my taste buds overcome my financial brain cells. Like this particular meal.

BBQ beef and pork, Kimchi stew

For 2 person, we ordered a serving of Joomooluck (marinated beef, similar to Galbi) and a serving of Samgyeopsal (pork belly), Kimchi jjigae (Kimchi Stew), and some rice. Of course, the Banchan (side dishes, 9 types in this case) comes free. On top of that, we got a corn on hotplate and an egg dish on the house. Plenty of food for two fellas.

egg, corn, kimchi, and tofu

Service at this place, and in fact as most other Korean restaurants I have been, was pretty good. The servers were attentive and they grilled the meat for you, so you don’t have to worry about getting your hands dirty. Though the portion of the meat dishes were actually slightly smaller than other places, the taste was good, and the variety of Banchan makes up for it.

The side dishes too, were of decent standard. We were given kimchi, tofu, clams, bean spouts, vegetables, potato salad, anchovies, and a few other things i can’t name. As with many other Korean restaurants, Korean House serves free wheat tea (cold), the taste is a cross of wheat and tea (what else), a bit strange at first, but I actually enjoy it.

Korean House is located at the far side of SS2, away from LDP

This rather lavish meal costs around RM 100 for the two of us, including 5% government tax and another 5% service charge. Price wise this is in line with most Korean restaurants.

Address:
185, Jalan SS2/24
Petaling Jaya, Selangor
GPS: 3.116916, 101.622763
Phone: 03-7873 0031

It was almost one year ago when I went to any Korean BBQ in KL, the Woo Ga Chon at Ampang, own by fellow blogger Hayanna‘s mom. I’ve been to the same restaurant several times when my tongue is itchy for some Korean BBQ. However, Ampang isn’t exactly nearby where I stay, so when I was informed that they have just opened a branch in Puchong, I was delighted.

nice environment with informative menu

While the Ampang branch is much less refined in terms of decoration and furnishing, Dae Jang Gum at Puchong is nicely decorated. There are also exhaust funnels built on top of every table to channel away smoke from the charcoal grill lest it gets on your clothings. A very nice set up. As a side effect, this is also advantageous for smokers’ friends as the funnels works just as well to put away any second hand smoke.

Since Kelvin the expert in Korean food was with us, we let him did the ordering. Afterall, my limited knowledge in Korean food would have meant that we would always only stick to the server’s recommendation.

the Samgyeopsal (pork belly) and Yang Nyum Kalbi (marinated beef ribs)

We ordered Samgyeopsal (pork belly), Yang Nyum Kalbi (marinated beef ribs), beef bulgogi, Kimchi Jigge (kimchi stew), Dwenjang Jigge (bean paste stew), and of course, Korean BBQ always come with lotsa panchan (side dishes) like kimchi, vege, tofu, mushroom and so forth. The friendly owner (Suanie’s hometown friend) also brought us a bottle of soju, Pajeon (Korean pancake), and some very nice imported Korean canned drinks.

Before you ask, yes, it was a lot of food for just five of us.

beef Bulgogi, Pajeon (pancake), kimchi jigge (kimchi stew), and panchan (side dishes)

The waiters did the griling for us, and service was pretty brisk. We had the Samgyeopsal first, and since this is a grill, you can choose to have it as cooked as you like. For example, you might want to leave it a few minutes longer to have the crispy texture like bacon. The pork belly goes well with some sesame oil + salt sauce and wrapped in the fresh lettuce.

We had the beef Bulgogi and Yang Nyum Kalbi next. While the two beef dishes were different (one cooked and the other grilled), both are equally tasty and tender. The Bulgogi slightly sweet and was good with some rice. The grilled marinated beef though, is best served wrapped in lettuce with some green chili, sliced garlic, and the special sauce.

soju (Korean liquor), and various imported Korean canned drinks

Pajeon is the Korean pancake made with egg and flour and topped with lotsa green onion, imitation crab meat, and squid/octopus. Best enjoyed while still sizzling hot. The The two types of stew we ordered provided the contrasting texture taste, differing from the grilled main dishes.

The side dishes were good compliments to the main course we had, the restaurant also serves the more traditional fermented Kimchi that is more sourish and spicy, but you will have to specifically ask for it. For the average diner, usually the fresh Kimchi is served.

The same shop lots with Citibank, right next to Giant Puchong

It was a very satisfying and complete meal. As for price, meat costs a reasonable RM 30-40 per portion, you can have a good Korean BBQ dinner for RM 25-40 per person depending on how luxury you want to go. Of course, there are also the ala carte menu to choose from if you are slightly low on budget and yet want to have a taste of the far east that isn’t Japanese.

Dae Jang Gum Korean BBQ opens from 11am to 11pm daily.

Address:

15 Jalan 1/4, Bandar Puteri Puchong,
47100 Puchong, Selangor
GPS: 3.026334,101.61669
Tel: 03-8061 2160

The Star’s article.