Monday, 18 April 2005

• Buk Chang Dong Soondooboo Dolsot Bap Restaurant Review

  Book Chang Dong Soondooboo Dolsot Bap
  Bloor West & Clinton
  
  it's been a while since i last blogged about korean spicy tofu soup ..it's probably been a full year since the previous posting, and theexact location wasn't very clear last time, so i plan on addressingthat shortcoming in this post ..
  
  so near the west end of koreatown (for the uninitiated, koreatown runsalong Bloor West, between Bathurst and Christie), there's a relativelysmall restaurant, devoid of english signage outside -- i won't even tryto give this place a name .. someone who knows korean, please enlightenus and post a comment re: the pronounciation for this place ..
  
  
  it's at Bloor & Clinton, on the south-east corner of theintersection .. there are often line-ups at lunchtime and dinnertime,but the quick turnover ensures you will have a seat within 15 minuteson most nights (on a busy Saturday night, we waited 30 minutes, butwell worth it)
  
  you'll notice there isn't room for very large groups -- don't try to book a birthday gathering for 10+ people here ..
  
  
  the menus are on the wall -- there are only ~8 items, over half ofwhich are different types of the spicy tofu soup -- with dumplings,seafood, vegetarian, or mixed .. the appetizers are brought out free ofcharge ..
  
  there's traditional kimchi, but i've also been introduced to akimchi-like "root" .. doesn't have that cabbagey taste, and is mildlysweet (and spicy) ..
  
  the signature dish is the Spicy Tofu Soup -- a bubbling stone bowl oftofu in a spicy soup (yea, that's the name of the dish .. that's what icall it .. ), with some mushroom, green onions, and choice of seafood,meats, or dumplings .. you can ask for spicy or mild, for those who areheat-averse .. i find the dumplings to be especially tasty,particularly when they soak in all the spice from the soup ..
  
  
  the soups come with bowls of special rice .. regular rice is cookedwith other grains and peas, giving a purple hue to the rice with addedflavour .. i've had trouble finding restaurants uptown that havesimilar rice .. the rice is scooped out of these bowls, then water ispoured into the almost-empty bowls to make a porridge ..
  
  
  the other staple is bibimbop -- Stone Pot Rice .. a stone pot filledwith rice,  topped with beef, bean sprouts, shredded vegetables,and an egg .. when eating, let the rice sit for a while .. the StonePot will continue to char the rice, crisping it to the point ofcrunchiness, which adds a contrasting texture to the dish ..
  
  
  on this occasion, we decided to order bulgogi for variety .. my gf andi tend to shy away from ordering this when the two of us eat here,preferring to keep our meal to the essentials -- the tofu soup, and onoccasion the bibimbop .. i can't complain about the bulgogi, butthere's nothing particular different about the offering here comparedto other restaurants ..
  
  

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