Goryeo Korean BBQ Restaurant – We seldom order a la carte dishes from a Korean restaurant. However, we wanted to try Goryeo Korean BBQ Restaurant’s other dishes to see how authentic they are and we know we’d be doing it again when we visit Okada Manila in the future.
We have tried Goryeo’s unlimited BBQ a couple of times already, so now, we want to try out its a la carte dishes for a change. And we brought along a friend to let her try the dishes too. Thankfully, the restaurant didn’t disappoint us.
When we went to Goryeo there were not so many people. However, when we placed our reservation, there was a long queue! Thankfully, we weren’t that hungry that time, so we waited for our turn to get seated.
The server called us in when it was our turn. And as usual, she led us to our seats. We checked out the menu and found lots of choices to choose from. We ordered our usual fried chicken and jjajangmyeon.
Our friend wanted seafood pajeon so we ordered that one, and added an order of kimbap and beef bulgogi. We’ve ordered that much not knowing how big the serving Goryeo has. And when the food arrived, we were all shocked by the generous servings!
Gimbap
Gimbap came first with a small bowl of doenjang soup. Twelve pieces of gimbap was plated nicely and alongside it is a salad drenched in so much thousand island dressing. The gimbap was made perfectly and did not have too much rice.
The Korean rice roll was packed with beef strips, crabmeat, egg, julienne carrots, cucumber slice, fish cake, and pickled radish. Now, I understand why gimbap is the go-to food of Koreans! A whole roll is enough to satisfy your hunger.
The doenjang soup that came with the gimbap has tofu, and a bit of seafood in it. Just enough to make you feel full even if you only ordered kimbap. Thankfully, we were 3 adults so we didn’t get too full for finishing the gimbap.
It would be a waste to take the rest out as keeping gimbap in the fridge will make it stale. You wouldn’t want to heat the gimbap over water as the steam might soften the seaweed wrap. On the other hand, heating it in an oven hardens the rice. So, it would be better to finish the whole thing on the day it was made.
Haemul Pajeon
A few minutes after, a big wheel of Haemul Pajeon arrived. Immediately, we devoured the square slices of Korean seafood pancake. It wasn’t a mistake ordering Goryeo’s seafood pajeon as you get to taste shrimp with every bite.
It was also topped with an egg so you get more protein with the order. And since we love scallions, the pajeon will surely be one of our most ordered when we go back to Goryeo next time.
Chicream Dak Gangjeong
We had a hard time choosing which fried chicken variant to order. Okada Goryeo lets you choose between plain fried chicken, soy chicken, chicken with milk cheese powder, chicken with sweet and spicy sauce, and chicken with tomato cream sauce.
Everything looked delectable but then I finally suggested we try out the fried chicken with milk cheese powder. So we told the server to add Chicream Dak Gangjeong to our orders.
When the chicken fillet arrived, my toddler immediately asked me to “blow” a piece for him as he got excited upon the sight of it. He already knew it was still hot and needed “blowing” since the chicken fillet was fresh off the stove.
Klook.comWhen I tried a piece of Chicream Dak Gangjeong, I traveled back in time to when we went to South Korea! It tasted just the way the chicken tasted in a restaurant in Myeongdong! It is definitely a must-try for kids and kids at heart!
A salad also came with the dak gangjeong so you’d be less guilty upon finishing the whole plate. And I assure you that you can finish that one big order in one sitting because you wouldn’t notice you’d be chomping on every piece because it seriously is so good!
Jjajangmyeon
Since hubby started watching Korean series, I hadn’t had trouble inviting him to eat Korean dishes. The actors surely do a great job at endorsing the food they eat, and we couldn’t help but try out what they were eating.
And Jjajangmyeon is one of the dishes that we were convinced to try despite being color black. Knowing that the jjajangmyeon is made of bean sauce, I wouldn’t want to try it had I not seen it in Kdramas.
And since our favorite restaurant that serves good jjajangmyeon had already closed down, we were determined to find another one that would tickle our tastebuds. We’re glad that we tried Goryeo’s jjajangmyeon because it didn’t fail us.
The big bowl of black bean noodles was enough to make 2 or 3 people full. It was seasoned so well that the extra black bean sauce on the side was left untouched. Of course, I also ate the pickled radish that came with the jjajangmyeon.
The side dish was great at cleansing your palate after you had too much of the noodles. The sour and a bit sweet pickle was very refreshing that makes you want to gobble the rest of the jjajangmyeon!
Another thing that other restaurants don’t have is a fried egg on top of their jjajangmyeon. Even though the egg was fully cooked, we found it blended so well with the black bean noodles. Not only that, but the egg also adds a nutrient boost to the noodles.
So Bulgogi
Goryeo’s So Bulgogi arrived and it came with a big bowl of doenjang soup. Thin beef slices marinated in bulgogi sit on a bed of white shimeji mushrooms. The sweet beef dish is sauteed along with onion slices and garnished with leeks and scrambled eggs.
Finally, a sprinkle of sesame seeds adds more charm to the So Bulgogi dish making it more delectable than ever. Goryeo’s Bulgogi is best enjoyed with a hot cup of white rice, so you might want to order a bowl or two.
Klook.comThe doenjang soup that came with the beef bulgogi was a different variant. It had beef stripes in it instead of seafood, and I liked it better. I have been in loved with doenjang soup ever since my first try and was able to enjoy them that night because both my company didn’t like it.
Koreans usually add a cup of rice to their doenjang soup. I’ve tried it once and it was indeed a great combination! However, since we follow a low-carb diet, I don’t usually order rice to add to my doenjang soup, but I enjoy the soup alone.
Conclusion
We love Goryeo’s unlimited samgyeupsal, but we love the a la carte menu just the same! If you’re gonna ask me, I’d choose Goryeo over the others as the restaurant can be enjoyed by both unlimited and a la carte diners.
Have you tried dining at Goryeo? Tell me about your experience in the comments section below! Happy eating!
