Journey to the land of the morning calm
Published: 03:09 PM,Sep 20,2021 | EDITED : 06:09 PM,Sep 20,2021
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Korean food: a symphony of the tastes of nature, the mountains, the sea and the four seasons. Almost 70 per cent of Korea’s land is covered with mountains and is characterised by four distinct seasons. The diversity and abundance of ingredients provided by the mountains, fields, rivers and sea of its richly diverse geographical features are the starting points and the blessings of Korean food.
The most prominent feature of Korean food is its fermented dishes. There is virtually no country with as wide a variety of fermented dishes as Korea, with not only kimchi and jeotgal (fermented seafood) but also gochujang (pepper paste), doenjang (soybean paste) and soy sauce. The most famous of these is kimchi, and no Korean meal is complete without it.
How could we not want to try all of this goodness? Tucked away in the alleys of Ghubra is Amazing Chicken - A taste of Korea. A cosy restaurant with grey walls and BTS videos playing on repeat. Every other table was taken when we entered this family-run business.
We choose 2 appetisers and 2 mains but alas they had no desserts on offer.
HE SAID: For our appetisers, we picked Gun Mandu and the honey butter chicken, Gun Mandu (pan-fried dumpling) was served with soy sauce and spring onions for an extra flavour kick. The Dumpling shells were soft and crispy at the same time, and the filling was just in the correct portion. The honey butter chicken was very similar to batter-fried chicken fried nuggets tossed with butter and honey. A very well prepared starter as it was crispy from outside and moist from inside, the flavours of butter and honey were spot on.
SHE SAID: The honey butter chicken was delicious, almost creamy in texture. The combination of non-traditional flavours of sweet combined with savoury always does me in. I didn’t enjoy the dumplings as they had a distinct seaweed flavour and a lack of seasoning in my opinion. However, he enjoyed them.
HE SAID: For our mains, we picked the Japchae with beef and Cheese Ramen. Japchae (stir-fried glass noodles) is a dish made of noodles, vegetables, dry mushrooms, beef and is seasoned with soy sauce and sesame. Though this dish is a savoury dish but it had a slight taste of sweetness. The word perfect can explain the experience I had. No wonder japchae is considered as a celebration dish in Korea. On the other hand, I passed on the cheese Ramen as I don’t like this combination from a long time ago and it’s not fair to evaluate something I don’t like.
SHE SAID: I picked the cheese ramen which was cooked exactly how I wanted it. Not too spicy, loaded with veggies and a slice of cheese. I wish they had the option of adding meat/chicken to this plate as it would make the meal complete. I also thoroughly enjoyed the Japchae. The soft yet glutinous glass noodles were tossed with veggies, super soft beef, a hint of sugar. What a wonderful dish.
WE SAID: The service could have been a little better, a smile or a welcoming nature always delights diners. Their portions are pretty large and the condiments served on the side have always been a delight. Definitely looking forward to the Japchae again.
OVERALL RATING
Ambience: 4/5
Taste of food: 3.5/5
Presentation: 4/5
Service: 3.5/5
Value for money: 4/5
Disclaimer: The ORR team reviews anonymously and pays for their own meals. The opinions of the authors do not reflect the position of Oman Daily Observer or its editors.
The most prominent feature of Korean food is its fermented dishes. There is virtually no country with as wide a variety of fermented dishes as Korea, with not only kimchi and jeotgal (fermented seafood) but also gochujang (pepper paste), doenjang (soybean paste) and soy sauce. The most famous of these is kimchi, and no Korean meal is complete without it.
How could we not want to try all of this goodness? Tucked away in the alleys of Ghubra is Amazing Chicken - A taste of Korea. A cosy restaurant with grey walls and BTS videos playing on repeat. Every other table was taken when we entered this family-run business.
We choose 2 appetisers and 2 mains but alas they had no desserts on offer.
HE SAID: For our appetisers, we picked Gun Mandu and the honey butter chicken, Gun Mandu (pan-fried dumpling) was served with soy sauce and spring onions for an extra flavour kick. The Dumpling shells were soft and crispy at the same time, and the filling was just in the correct portion. The honey butter chicken was very similar to batter-fried chicken fried nuggets tossed with butter and honey. A very well prepared starter as it was crispy from outside and moist from inside, the flavours of butter and honey were spot on.
SHE SAID: The honey butter chicken was delicious, almost creamy in texture. The combination of non-traditional flavours of sweet combined with savoury always does me in. I didn’t enjoy the dumplings as they had a distinct seaweed flavour and a lack of seasoning in my opinion. However, he enjoyed them.
HE SAID: For our mains, we picked the Japchae with beef and Cheese Ramen. Japchae (stir-fried glass noodles) is a dish made of noodles, vegetables, dry mushrooms, beef and is seasoned with soy sauce and sesame. Though this dish is a savoury dish but it had a slight taste of sweetness. The word perfect can explain the experience I had. No wonder japchae is considered as a celebration dish in Korea. On the other hand, I passed on the cheese Ramen as I don’t like this combination from a long time ago and it’s not fair to evaluate something I don’t like.
SHE SAID: I picked the cheese ramen which was cooked exactly how I wanted it. Not too spicy, loaded with veggies and a slice of cheese. I wish they had the option of adding meat/chicken to this plate as it would make the meal complete. I also thoroughly enjoyed the Japchae. The soft yet glutinous glass noodles were tossed with veggies, super soft beef, a hint of sugar. What a wonderful dish.
WE SAID: The service could have been a little better, a smile or a welcoming nature always delights diners. Their portions are pretty large and the condiments served on the side have always been a delight. Definitely looking forward to the Japchae again.
OVERALL RATING
Ambience: 4/5
Taste of food: 3.5/5
Presentation: 4/5
Service: 3.5/5
Value for money: 4/5
Disclaimer: The ORR team reviews anonymously and pays for their own meals. The opinions of the authors do not reflect the position of Oman Daily Observer or its editors.