Soondubu Jjigae Soup -- Cho Dang Gol
Cho Dang Gol
"I'm concerned about the drink options at this place."
This, ladies and gentlemen is the perpetual story of our lives.
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| Our Booze Choices Always Remain Our Number One Concern |
We are on our way to Cho Dang Gol to consume something we
don't know how to pronounce (soondubu jjigae soup), which
Judy Joo
featured on the
AS GOOD AS MOM'S episode of
Best Thing I Ever Ate, and
we are preemptively hostile. Generally speaking, Asian restaurants are
the homes of some things we love (namely
noodles) and other things we
hate (a terrible cocktail menu, if such a menu
exists at all).
Upon arriving at the restaurant, Ginger texts Vodka a
picture of Cho Dang Gol's drink menu, featuring such gems as "plum
wine," and even worse, the highly dreaded "
rice wine."
 |
| Well, THIS Will Never Do |
"Let's eat the stupid soup and then go drink," is all Vodka
texts back, and minutes later, when she is lost in Koreatown, she is
heartened to find an Irish Pub located just down the street, a place that she is certain will ply us with gin, or at the
very least, normal wine.
When she finally manages to stumble into the correct
restaurant, Vodka finds a solitary figure in the corner, drinking
stoically out of a large wine glass.
"They have red," Ginger says by way of greeting. "It's just labeled as 'red.' But it serves the purpose."
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| If Nothing Else, We Appreciate the Relatively Large Pour |
We quickly become overwhelmed by the menu, and set our
sights on words we understand ("dumplings" and "noodles").
 |
| They Spend A Lot of Time "Distressing" The Menus at This Place.... |
There is
some confusion about the soup we're supposed to be consuming, as it is
called by a different name on the menu, but we are assured that it is
the soft tofu stew we are after (and we order the seafood variety,
because, why not?).
 |
| In Truth, This Decision Was Made Like This: "Fish?" "Sure." |
We also choose the dumpling appetizer and the jap
chae (again, merely because it has the word "noodles" in it).
 |
| Look, We Know What We Like |
All of our food arrives within minutes (we know this only
because our wine is barely gone), and it is all hot. Not just spicy
hot (although it is that, too), but
HOT. So hot that the soup is
actually boiling. Never one for patience, however, we dive in.
And are promptly spitting out our food onto our plates while fanning our tongues.
 |
| Sorry, We Forgot to Mention, Cho Dang Gol, That We Like Our Food COOLED OFF |
First
things first, the tofu stew is, besides being scalding, quite
spicy.
"Unbearable," in the words of Ginger, until we decide to stop eating it
as a soup at all, and begin ladling it on top of white rice as if it is
General Tso's Chicken.
 |
| We Make Korea So Proud |
With the rice cutting down both the temperature
and the spice level, we find the flavors of the stew itself rather
pleasing -- the tofu itself, which neither of us is a particular fan of,
is especially appealing. Soft and mushy in texture, it has succeeded
in taking on every taste inherent in the soup.
 |
| In Truth, This Is Just About the Only Tofu Vodka Has Ever Enjoyed |
The seafood in this
cauldron is a bit of an afterthought, and when we are halfway through the
serving, Vodka asks Ginger what she would rank it.
"4 stars?"
"We didn't even eat it like a soup."
"But it tasted good with rice."
"I would never order this again."
"Right, me neither."
"3 stars."
Sorry, Cho Dang Gol, but we really prefer our food "tepid" to "lukewarm."
 |
| Excellent Rice Though. Truly Superb |
The
dumplings, which are among the largest varieties we have ever seen, are
good if unremarkable (and come with barely a thimble-full of
accompanying sauce. Look, people, we only eat for the
condiments --
you're going to have to serve up more than that).
 |
| How Exactly Are We Supposed to Fit THESE... |
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| ...in THAT?! |
The jap chae is by far our favorite item on the table,
featuring a large pile of glass noodles sprinkled with assorted
vegetables and beef.
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| In General, Stuff Noodles In Our Mouths, and We'll Stop Complaining |
Our entrees also come with an array of
assorted side dishes, which the waitstaff does not bother to explain to
us (they're obviously quite aware that all such descriptions would be
lost on two fools whose main concern in this place is how high their
wine glasses are filled).
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| So Many Sides, So Little Idea What We're Eating |
When our table is cleared, we are presented with two
(paltry servings of) ginger tea, which may just be our favorite thing on
the menu, meaning it is a shame that there is so little of it.
 |
| One Swallow's Worth of Tea |
By the
time we each make our way to the walk-through-the-kitchen bathroom
(note: not the best restroom set-up we've ever seen, being that we are
almost run over by various trays of boiling stew), the place is a flurry
of activity with each and every table full, and a few guests lingering
at the door.
 |
| Maybe We Could Ask Some of THEM to Explain the Side Dishes to Us |
And at this point, Cho Dang Gol has clearly decided it is time for
us to go. As Ginger spends all of thirty seconds tapping at her phone
in order to determine where her train is, we are accosted by a host
mumbling something about "needing the table."
"Yeah, yeah, we're going," Ginger dismisses him, still
poking at her phone, and we make not-so-pleasant faces at the waitstaff
as we mosey out on our own terms.
"I believe we were
just kicked out," Vodka says to Ginger when we hit the sidewalk, and for
this reason alone, we have no plans to make a return trip to Cho Dang
Gol any time soon. Instead, we'll frequent the places that will serve
us gin, blow on our soup, and allow us to linger at our bar stools for
however long we please.
Cho Dang Gol's Soondubu Jjigae Soup: 3 stars
