2512 Walnut Ave
Tustin, CA 92780
(714) 734-7789
Tustin, CA 92780
(714) 734-7789
General:
I got a couple of recommendations
that Ye Dang would be good. That's for the La Habra location, though.
However, I thought I gave this location a try as I was in the area. Except for the Galbi Tang, the stews were very good. I could tell that
they came from good recipes. However, I felt that the finish was a bit
sloppy: they needed more love and attention to be great although I think this
is the best place for Korean stews in the area. I couldn't help but
thinking if the La Habra location would be better. This is actually the
first Korean stews restaurant that interests me to come back (though to the La
Habra location). I noticed that a lot of patrons here ordered the seafood pancake and cod stew.
Ban chan was quite simple. Notable ones were the pasta salad and napa
kimchi.
Service was really lacking, even for Asian establishment standard. Ban chan came 20 minutes after seating and we had to flag staff couple times to get our ban chan and drink refilled.
Service was really lacking, even for Asian establishment standard. Ban chan came 20 minutes after seating and we had to flag staff couple times to get our ban chan and drink refilled.
Details:
Al Jigae: fish roes stew. A gochujang based stew. Two different types of fish roes. Zucchini, tofu, daikon, inoki mushroom, and raw Tang-O. Very fresh fish roes with no fishiness at all. Soup was on the light side yet had a nice depth to it. Flavor profile was medium saltiness with mild sweetness and spiciness. Very good but need some more attention to be great. I couldn't pinpoint it but finish tasted sloppy and broad. 4+ stars.
Agwi Tang: monk fish stew. A gochujag based stew. Everything was identical to Al Jigae except this stew used monk fish instead of fish roes. Hence, it suffered from the same issue: it needed a bit more attention on the spicing to be great. Yet, I had to commend anybody who managed to cook monk fish without any hint of fishiness whatsoever. The monk fish tasted very fresh with a great chewy texture. 4+ stars.
Doenjang Jigae: fermented soybean and anchovy stew. This stew was delicious yet quite hardcore. The aroma of anchovy and fermented soybean is an acquired taste or else it would smell like and old sock. Taste profile was medium saltiness and fermentation depth, quite similar to miso but coarser, richer, and deeper. Inside the stew was tofu, zucchini, daikon, inoki mushroom. Lovey but again needed a bit attention on adjusting spicing to have a better finish. 4+ to 4.5 stars.
Galbi Tang: beef ribs soup. Milky/cloudy soup with minimum salting. Inside the soup it was mainly vermicelli and beef ribs. Beef was high quality but it was also the soup's downfall. For its own good, the ribs were too fatty. So beef fat dominated the nose and palate making the soup very gamy and losing the balance. Would be a great cut for BBQ but not for soup. Not the best galbi tang I have ever tasted. 3 stars.
Al Jigae: fish roes stew. A gochujang based stew. Two different types of fish roes. Zucchini, tofu, daikon, inoki mushroom, and raw Tang-O. Very fresh fish roes with no fishiness at all. Soup was on the light side yet had a nice depth to it. Flavor profile was medium saltiness with mild sweetness and spiciness. Very good but need some more attention to be great. I couldn't pinpoint it but finish tasted sloppy and broad. 4+ stars.
Agwi Tang: monk fish stew. A gochujag based stew. Everything was identical to Al Jigae except this stew used monk fish instead of fish roes. Hence, it suffered from the same issue: it needed a bit more attention on the spicing to be great. Yet, I had to commend anybody who managed to cook monk fish without any hint of fishiness whatsoever. The monk fish tasted very fresh with a great chewy texture. 4+ stars.
Doenjang Jigae: fermented soybean and anchovy stew. This stew was delicious yet quite hardcore. The aroma of anchovy and fermented soybean is an acquired taste or else it would smell like and old sock. Taste profile was medium saltiness and fermentation depth, quite similar to miso but coarser, richer, and deeper. Inside the stew was tofu, zucchini, daikon, inoki mushroom. Lovey but again needed a bit attention on adjusting spicing to have a better finish. 4+ to 4.5 stars.
Galbi Tang: beef ribs soup. Milky/cloudy soup with minimum salting. Inside the soup it was mainly vermicelli and beef ribs. Beef was high quality but it was also the soup's downfall. For its own good, the ribs were too fatty. So beef fat dominated the nose and palate making the soup very gamy and losing the balance. Would be a great cut for BBQ but not for soup. Not the best galbi tang I have ever tasted. 3 stars.
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| Assorted Ban Chan |
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| Monk Fish Stew |
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| Galbi Tang |
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