#1. District 2, An Phu Korean Restaurant KUM DAE JI BBQ Review
The Korean BBQ restaurant KUM DAE JI BBQ has several locations in Ho Chi Minh City, including An Phu in District 2 and Phu My Hung in District 7, as well as in famous tourist destinations in Vietnam, such as Da Nang and Nha Trang. KUM DAE JI BBQ has its own unique charm that differentiates it from other BBQ restaurants by segmenting the aging level of each pork cut. Since its opening, it has been popular not only among Koreans but also among locals, as it offers delicious aged pork at a reasonable price.
I visited with two friends on a Thursday evening and sat at a corner table on the first floor. The restaurant interior was quite luxurious with a combination of black and gold, and the high ceiling and large chandelier in the middle of the hall made the tables quite far apart, creating a sense of openness and also having the effect of not being able to hear conversations at other tables, allowing for a somewhat private meal.
The side dishes served salad, pickled vegetables in soy sauce, seasoned green onion, japchae, kimchi, sweet potato salad, sliced pickled radish, and ssam. There were no special side dishes, but the taste was good overall and went well with most meats.
Pork is divided into aging levels: Bronze(aged for 3 days), Silver(aged for 15 days), and Gold(aged for 21 days). To compare the taste, I ordered one serving each of pork belly Gold & Silver, and pork neck Gold & Silver. Silver is vacuum-packed and aged for 15 days, and Gold is dry-aged for 21 days in an aging refrigerator.
When I ordered meat, they put various salts & salted anchovies sauce on the grill. From the bottom, it's Himalayan pink salt, salt and pepper, and shrimp salt. I liked the combination of wasabi and pink salt on the meat the best.
They also served wasabi and various sauces in front of each person. From the left, in order, there was breadcrumb salt, tteok-kkochi sauce, and ssamjang. Putting wasabi on the meat and dipping it in the special breadcrumb salt of KUM DAE JI BBQ, which is made by mixing breadcrumbs, dried pollack, and salt, was also quite tasty.
There is a set menu that comes with steamed eggs and kimchi stew(or soybean paste stew), but I ordered only the meat, so the owner gave me steamed eggs for free. It was a well-made steamed eggs with a soft texture and salty, and savory flavor.
Usually, kimchi stew at Korean restaurants costs over 120,000VND, but at KUM DAE JI BBQ, it was quite cheap at 90,000VND. I ordered it without much expectation, but it came out in a large earthenware pot.
The dish was generous with ingredients such as sour kimchi, tofu, and pork, and the taste was quite good. In particular, there was more pork than I expected, so I couldn't believe the price of only 90,000VND.
I asked the staff to grill the GOLD and SILVER pork belly together so that I could compare their flavors. The SILVER, aged for 15 days, had a light pink color, while the GOLD, aged for 21 days, had a cloudy red color and the moisture had evaporated, making the meat look relatively thinner.
As the meat began to turn golden brown, it was difficult to tell the difference with the naked eye, but there was a clear difference in taste. SILVER was tender and juicy, while GOLD had a chewy texture and a concentrated meaty flavor.
I put wasabi on top of the pork belly and ate it dipping into breadcrumb salt as recommended by KUM DAE JI BBQ. It was very nice as it cut down on the greasiness and added flavor. Personally, I liked GOLD better than SILVER because of its moderately chewy texture and strong meat flavor.
I couldn't help but order a drink while eating delicious meat. The combination of pork and beer was also quite good. Just looking at the visual of the Sapporo draft beer filled in a cold glass made me feel refreshed.
After grilling all the pork belly, staff started grilling the pork neck Gold and Silver. Just like pork belly, it grilled and started to get golden brown, so it was also difficult to tell the difference with the naked eye.
The owner said that the signature of KUM DAE JI BBQ is the pork neck, and I couldn't help but agree when I tried it myself. The pork neck is usually a bit tough, but the SILVER, aged for 15 days, was quite soft and juicy, and the GOLD had a moderately chewy texture and a rich flavor that was quite attractive.
Lastly, I ordered my favorite, the Flesh Under One's Ears Gold. It is a part of the pig's back head that has a chewy texture and is charming. Unlike other meat restaurants, it was cut quite thickly.
It's a fatty part, so it has a chewy texture and a strong, rich flavor, and the unique aroma of aged meat, nuts, and cheese adds to it, which is really good. I can say that it tastes completely different from I ate before.
After eating all the meat, we had to finish it with cold noodles, but since the three of us ate so much, we ordered only one Cold Buckwheat Noodles(Small) and split it into two bowls. Even though we split it in half, it was still a generous portion. The broth with with thin ice was very refreshing and stimulating.
After paying and leaving the store, I was able to finish my wonderful meal at KUM DAE JI BBQ by eating soft ice cream located next to the meat aging refrigerator at the entrance. I visited KUM DAE JI BBQ without much expectation, but I was much more satisfied than I expected.
#2. Korean Restaurant KUM DAE JI BBQ Menu
The Korean BBQ restaurant KUM DAE JI BBQ serves a variety of grilled meats, stews, soups, and other Korean dishes. It is an attractive restaurant because it sells pork cuts at reasonable prices by dividing them by the degree of aging. The prices of alcoholic beverages are similar to or slightly cheaper than other Korean BBQ restaurants, and the combo menus are well-organized, making it a must-visit restaurant while staying in Ho Chi Minh.
I visited with two friends on Thursday evening and ordered as follows:
Pork Belly(GOLD): 270,000VND
Pork Belly(SILVER): 220,000VND
Pork Neck(GOLD): 270,000VND
Pork Neck(SILVER): 220,000VND
Flesh Under One's Ears(GOLD): 280,000VND
Kimchi Stew: 90,000VND
Cold Buckwheat Noodles(Small): 80,000VND
Sapporo Draft Beer: 60,000VND x 6 EA = 360,000VND
The total amount was 1,790,000VND, it was good, and three men were able to eat their fill. Unlike dozens of other Korean BBQ restaurants in downtown Ho Chi Minh, KUM DAE JI BBQ is an attractive restaurant where you can taste aged pork cuts at a reasonable price. I think I will be visiting this place for a while when I crave pork belly.
#3. Korean Restaurant KUM DAE JI BBQ Hours and Location
The Korean BBQ restaurant KUM DAE JI BBQ has several locations in Ho Chi Minh City, including An Phu in District 2 and Phu My Hung in District 7, as well as in famous tourist destinations in Vietnam, such as Da Nang and Nha Trang. The location we visited that day was in An Phu in District 2, Ho Chi Minh. Click the Check Location button below to check the detailed location on Google Maps.
Address: 22 Song Hành, Khu đô thị An Phú An Khánh, Quận 2, Hồ Chí Minh
Phone: 0862030300
Hours: 11:00 ~ 03:00
Comments