FOOD

Korean Food Craze: Kimchi

Update: This restaurant is already closed.

I have tried every Korean restaurant here in Davao City. I believe that they’re incomparable to the restaurants in Seoul, or maybe in the Southern and more remote areas in Korea where the natives claim the best and most authentic Korean dishes can be found. However, I now proclaim that I’m already loving the Korean dishes that the restaurants here in Davao serve.

We Filipinos love salty. Most of us are used to putting flavors or to be specific, monosodium glutamate (magic savor, ajinomoto) in our dishes. Albeit that fact, it’s amazing that Korean and Japanese restaurants actually sell here. Well then again, it’s because they actually differ from the authenticity of food being served in Japan or Korea. An acquaintance of mine who recently went to Japan told me that the food there is really far from what we have here. My Korean friend Yonghwa also told me that the kimchi being sold here sucked and people in her hometown Yeosu serves it best.

The Korean restaurants in Davao have their own things to offer and also cater to different audiences.
If you can’t stand insipid food, then I suggest you go to the Korean restaurants in Victoria Plaza’s parking lot (Korean Town and Korean Barbecue) or Manna (they have branches in Lanang and C5 Roxas). If you’re in for more authenticity, I suggest you go to Kimchi restaurant (former Somang), fronting Victoria Plaza. Kimchi is actually the most visible among them. I heard that this is the most favorite restaurant of Koreans in Davao City because it’s more similar to what Seoul, Daejeon, or Yeosu offer.


This is me way back in 2010 in front of Kimchi. Credits to Chrissy Yap for the picture. This was the only time that I pose in front of the resto even after coming back there several times.


This is Kimchichige. That was my first time eating at a Korean restaurant and I didn’t know what to order. The closest one I thought I could handle was this dish. Thanks again Chrissy for the picture.


Me enjoying Bibimbap. Or did I? Honestly, I didn’t like all the vegetables mashed up in the dish.

More recent pictures from my latest visit to Kimchi. These I took with Instagram:


Japchae. So-so (mimicking Koreans).


My favorite Korean dish. I can’t do without this dish whenever I’m in a Korean restaurant, so I can compare how it actually tastes in the several restaurants here in Davao. In Kimchi, they call it Daeji Bulgogi, but in the other restaurants, this dish is called Jaeyookbokeum (peppered pork). I’m not sure, but I think the ingredients are the same. Someone please correct me? Kimchi’s version is the less-flavored one (that’s why it’s the fave of Koreans).

That’s it for now. I’ll post more Korean restaurants soon (where the best side dishes are and where the best customer service is).

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