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The BC day long weekend passed in the blink of an eye and it’s back to work for CL and I on this gorgeous Wednesday Tuesday. We drove down to Portland for shopping last weekend with a couple friends and managed to sample some delicious American cuisine along the way. My next post is going to be a compilation of all the memorable dishes we had in Portland so please stay tuned. In the mean time, here’s a review of Dai Jang Kum in Richmond, the last restaurant we visited right before we left for Portland.
Dai Jang Kum is one of the few Korean restaurants located in Richmond, where Chinese food is king. You may ask then why am I eating Korean food in Richmond? Simply because CL has been raving about this place for it’s delicious salads and I was craving Korean food very badly last week. Dai Jang Kum is a strange name to say the least… (hehehe), but it’s actually based on a popular Korean drama about a girl who cooked for the Korean royal family hundreds of years ago.
The restaurant was deserted when we arrived at 11:30am but that was expected since we were having an early lunch. We ordered the BBQ Beef Ribs and Tofu Soup lunch combo to share because CL had a big breakfast. At $10.95, this combo was a great deal in my opinion. Our food arrived pretty quickly and was accompanied by an array of Banchan (side dishes). Everything tasted pretty good, with our favorites being the potatoes and the fish cakes.
The beef ribs arrived sizzling hot on a cast iron skillet on top of a bed of sliced onions. Overall, the ribs were pretty tender except the few pieces attached to the large bones. The meat was under seasoned in my opinion and the marinade didn’t penetrate the meat enough.
The tofu soup on the other hand was delicious! Arriving in a heated bowl, the tofu soup was bubbling furiously when we dug our spoons in. The broth tasted very rich and flavorful, and the addition of a little spice elevated the soup to a higher level. Even though there was no seafood in the soup, I tasted a deep seafood flavor in the broth itself with little to no MSG. The tofu pieces were silky and smooth and the veggies were crunchy and sweet. This soup completely satisfied my craving and validated Dai Jang Kum as a legitimate Korean restaurant.
Dai Jang Kum is a pretty good place for Korean food considering it’s location, but it’s not up to par compared to the more established Korean restaurants I’ve been to in Vancouver and Coquitlam. Their lunch combos are fabulous in terms of value and the tofu soup is pretty tasty. Their BBQ on the other hand is lacking in flavor and is not worth the dinner price. You should give this place a shot at lunch if you were in the neighborhood.
Atmosphere 6/10
Service 6/10
Food 7.5/10
Overall 6.5/10
