May 27, 2009
One of the deplorable realities of being a Korean in Singapore is that there aren't any great Korean restaurants around (zippo). I've searched far and wide, looking for that elusive bit of gastronomic Koreana to remind me of my motherland (and mother, if I were to ask too much). I've stumbled onto some truly awful places along the way, including Ju-Shin-Jung, where the prices are ridiculously palatial and the staff appear to have galloped south with the Mongol horde (no English, no Korean... and rude enough to make me dream of building my own Great Wall - I'm referring to the one on ECP, near Longbeach). Another curious episode was the Korean restaurant at the Furama where (I swear to God), the Korean chef lady speaks really weird and makes me wonder if she somehow defected from North Korea (I'm serious). The food is mediocre there, if not radioactive. I've also marched through Jeju (near Raffles Hotel), Auntie Kim's, the one at Novena Mall, Crystal Jade (two of them), Seoul, etc, etc. To date, the closest I've come to the real thing is Hyang-to-gol. As a comparison, Hong Kong (where I used to live) offered a fair number of great Korean restaurants at various price ranges.
Hyang-to-gol's menu is pretty awesome and it reminds me of a place many many Koreans hang out in Hong Kong; Secret Garden (or "Biwon") in the Bank of America tower in the Central district. The food, however, is very hit and miss. What I mean by this is that some items taste close to the Real McCoy and some are bland imitations. I will illustrate.
The Gopchang Jungol, a spicy stew made of beef innards, is actually pretty good. The Soondooboo Chigae (raw tofu stew) is crap. I haven't tasted all the stews, but friends tell me they're all inconsistent. On my next foray, I'm thinking of trying the Boodae Chigae and, perhaps, the Al-tang (fish roe stew). The Chajangmyun was pretty awful, but the bbq Kalbi seemed fine. The selection of Banchan dishes is pretty good and they are kind enough to refill them when asked.
The service is fairly attentive, if not overly cordial (I don't mind at all). The ambiance is as plain and uninspired as if you were eating in Seoul, so I suppose we can chalk one up to authenticity. By the way, I can confirm that the majority of the clientele was Korean each time I went - I guess this is a good sign to many of you. I could also tell because many Korean's have a rude habit of staring at you with a "who the hell are you?" expression when you walk into a restaurant (if you go to Seoul, it's a ubiquitous ugly experience). There was even the archetypal arrogant bastard wearing sunglasses (indoor), masticating on a toothpick and pretending to own the world (remind you of a certain someone in the news lately?... with a couple of nukes?). Now don't get me wrong; many nice Koreans also co-exist in Korea and, of course, in Singapore (though not in the high proportions you see on popular TV dramas).
So there you have it. Pick the right items and you will be rewarded. Pick the wrong ones and you'll be cursing when the bill arrives. I have to try more dishes before I can build a compendium of hits and misses. Given the array of items on the menu, this might take a while.
Postdata: I visited this place a couple of times after this review, and I'm disappointed to report that other items have been very mediocre. The altang (fish egg stew) was awful and the kalbi-tchim (braised ribs) was too sweet and uninspired. The other stew items that my friends ordered were also disappointing. I've adjusted the food rating down to 6 accordingly.
Must tries: Gopchang Jungol
I also recommend this place for: