These days I’m deep into Korean soups and stews. Living abroad you can manage to eat most things, but soups and stews are the one category where it’s impossible to find anywhere that does them as properly as Korea does. I haven’t been able to get around much lately, so I’d better hurry up and start making the rounds. Daesungjib is awfully far away for someone living in Gangnam like me, but it sits near the top of my list of places I want to try, so I set aside time on the weekend and made the trip.
The front entrance
This is the original dogani-tang (beef knee cartilage soup) house, with over 50 years of history and even a registered trademark. It’s tucked away in a back alley, so finding it wasn’t all that easy. Right next door, in a spot visible straight from the main road, there’s another place doing dogani-tang in a very Daesungjib-like way, and I nearly mixed the two up. (Luckily the knock-off dogani-tang place was closed the day I went.)
The spread
As expected, very simple. The kkakdugi is delicious. The rest is so-so
Dogani-tang
The broth is clear. Rather than a hangover cure, I thought it would suit breakfast better. It would go well with drinks too, of course.
Dogani
There are a fair few places that do a tasty dogani suyuk, but this house has a charm all its own. Dip a generous piece of dogani in soy sauce and the flavour shines even brighter. There was more of it in the bowl than I expected, too – nothing like the amount of meat you get in a 10,000-won dish at Hadongkwan in Gangnam.
With this, one long-standing wish is finally off the list. The haejangguk looked good too, but I didn’t get the chance to try it this time. I’ll have to aim for the next visit. Though whether I’ll ever have reason to get blind drunk and make it all the way to Seodaemun is another question..