Masichina, the Chinese restaurant in Sangsu-dong that always has a line. It seems to have become famous through Rainy’s blog, but the name was so corny that I never had much interest from the start. One weekend I was looking for a Chinese place with good jajangmyeon and went to Yeomyeong, which everyone says is the hot spot these days, but it turned out they are closed on Saturdays. Deflated, I was wondering where to go instead, and moved on to Masichina, which is not that far away.
The table
I had avoided the lunch rush so the line was not that long, but the seating is a bit cramped. This kind of concept, turning tables fast and keeping prices low, is not a bad thing. Right in the middle of Hongdae at these prices, after all. Still, with seats this tight I thought it would not be great for a group of guys coming to drink. I have no desire to drink shoulder to shoulder with anyone.
Zha cai and pickled radish
For zha cai, Jinjin is still the best
Tangsuyuk
They had a tangsuyuk plus cream shrimp set, so I ordered it, and it was fried with more care than I expected. On the way in I saw them frying the tangsuyuk, and they were doing it the labour-intensive way. When you put that much effort in, this is the kind of tangsuyuk you get. Not just the frying skill, the quality of the meat was decent too, with almost no off flavours. The sauce was too sweet, but since it comes on the side for dipping, that was not a big problem.
I think I have seen posts calling this place’s tangsuyuk the best, but I would say it comes down to taste. Their style is not the traditional tangsuyuk style anyway, so I do not see much point in a head-to-head comparison. If it is this good, that is enough. That said, some people reported off flavours, so the quality apparently is not always consistent.
Cream shrimp
Good-quality shrimp, nicely fried and set on the sauce, but the sauce was way too sweet. Eaten while dodging the sauce it was not bad, but hmm.. do places with lines outside inevitably end up sweet and spicy to match the mass palate?
Barbecue fried rice
Not as intense as Cheung Kee Noodle House, but the wok smokiness was there. I enjoyed it a lot.
Egg drop soup
Surprisingly, the egg drop soup, which comes with free refills, was really good. It was my favourite thing among everything I ate that day. I tried putting the fried rice into the egg soup and eating it ochazuke-style, and for the first time in a while it reminded me of Chinese food in Japan. In Japan there is a menu item called soup chahan, where fried rice comes with a soup, but I do not think I have ever seen it in Korea.
Jajangmyeon
The jajangmyeon was more properly done than I expected. It is a bit pricey (about what ganjjajang costs elsewhere?), but it had that savoury jajang flavour that comes from proper ingredients cooked properly. I really did not expect to find jajang at this level in Hongdae.
Because it is such a popular place, it is too crowded, you feel self-conscious just placing an order, the seats are cramped and you have to wait, but there are not many places in Hongdae that do this well, so it is a good one to know. They even stay open late. Next time I would like to keep it light and focus on the rice and noodle dishes rather than the a la carte plates.
After eating this well, there is no way I could skip a second stop, right? Off to Bread Lab in Yeonnam-dong. It is a fair distance, and with all the window shopping on the way it took about an hour.
Cookie
It was fine, but a little sweet. I have put on a lot of weight lately, so I am avoiding sweet things..
Coconut mousse mango cake
A new cake at Bread Lab, and oh, this one is seriously good. Who knew coconut and mango would go together this well~ I polished it off in no time.
Jeju carrot juice
Hmm.. tastes like getting healthier..
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