It was my first time to try Ye Dang Korean restaurant today and was I enthused to try EVERYTHING that was laid on our dining table. Thanks to my NFF (newly-found friend), Mariel Lee, for taking me there and advancing her delish birthday treat for me!
Not only did I feast on great Korean food but also had a wonderful time with all the chit chats that went with it.
Okay, what did we pluck out from the menu? For starters we had the Korean appetizers. Kimchi was on top of my list.
Strangely, the first few years that I have been trying this dish, I wasn’t sure if I really liked it. I mean, fermented pickled cabbage with all the Korean spices just did not tickle my fancy. I thought the strong taste plus the out of this world flavor just turned me off! But the Koreans are crazy about this! They even have a kimchi-flavored pizza!
Fast forward to today, the tart, mildly-sour and spicy flavor of kimchi finally made me a convert. I’ve developed a strong liking for it— no, a LOVING for it!
The other appetizers included the spiced raddish slices–
The fishcake that I so liked–
Not to forget my fave Korean dilis in sweet and spicy blend–
And, the bean sprouts that I gobbled up like I do with lapid’s chicharon! Hahaha! So addicting!
Yes! And, we’ve only just begun!
The appetizers came with a bunch of iceberg lettuce and sesame leaves. The leaves were supposed to be wrappers for the starters and the main dishes. The concept just got me excited. I made several of these wraps one of which was this:
I raved about the rawness of the leaves that made perfect combination with the filling. The sesame leaves rendered a nutty-crunchy taste and texture that left me going for seconds.
The novelty in the dining experience here was in the fact that we were given the choice of having our food cooked before us, yes, on our table (similar to shabu-shabu) or in the kitchen.
The cooking on the spot began with a flaming-hot bunch of charcoal–
I couldn’t look away from the charcoal because of two things: curiosity and hunger. Arg, bring it on!
Finally, the dak-kui (grilled chicken) and the kalbi (sweet beef ribs) were on board!
My eyes were as big as my plate when our serving of kalbi jim (beef shortribs stew) was laid before me. I was actually settled with KIMCHI restaurant’s beef stew already until this came along.
Fall off the bones and totally scrumptious– this was today’s dining superstar, hands down.
The chapchae tasted okay but my top pick in this category remains to be the version of Sorabol which we used to frequent in Greenbelt.
On the whole, I was more than delighted swinging by this Korean restaurant. The ambience, food and feel totally felt Korean! I swore to return with a bigger appetite and more friends to bring.
The Eating Room 
Glad you liked it Caren!!! As of now Ye dang is my benchmark for good tasting Korean Dish 🙂 Not too spicy, not to sweet-but a perfect combination of both that compliments my palate. I may forget the name, but how the food taste and the experience will always be in my gastronomic memory ;p
Oliver and i are going through a korean food phase right now. Try namin tong Ye Dang.
THIS IS MY FAVORITE KOREAN RESTAURANT!
My Panget and I always go here when we crave Korean!
For me, this has got to be the BEST for me. All other Korean restaurants cannot compare to Ye Dang!! 🙂