4.053 Mul Naeng Myeon

Cycle 4 – Item 53

27 (Wed) February 2013

Mul Naeng Myeon

3.0

at Samwon Garden

-Sinsa, Gangnam, Seoul, Republic of Korea-

with W and DJ

As something of a belated birthday bash for W, we had dinner at Samwon Garden. It’s one of our favorite restaurants, especially for their galbi – DJ’s all-time favorite – but their high prices prevent us from visiting as often as we’d like, so we tend to go only on special occasions.

Though located in one of the choicest neighborhoods in Gangnam, half the real estate is open space, including an expansive car/bus waiting area.

The establishment features 5 additional dining areas as large as this one, plus dozens of private rooms.

We sometimes go there just for galbi tang, which is both relatively cheap and absolutely so good.

Same with the mul naeng myeon. Whereas most barbecue establishments offer MNM as a perfunctory accompaniment to the meat, Samwon Garden makes it a dish respectable in its own right. It’s a good example of the emergent “Seoul style.” A bit too sweet for my tastes, as I’m partial to the more austere Pyongyang style, but very well-balanced, an excellent mainstream MNM. 11,000 won, pricy but worth it. I now prefer my MNM up front, a practice that I started for health reasons but it also helps with the budget, filling me up so that I don’t eat too much meat. This time, the chill perfectly suited my somber mood, the special occasion notwithstanding.