Suseongmot, Daegu Korean restaurant for weekday lunch: Cafe Dongyi

This weekday lunch, my husband and I finally got our schedules to match and took a trip to the Suseongmot area in Daegu. Since we'd come all the way to Daegu, I wanted a really good meal, so I searched hard and found a place with a neat Korean table setting, a generous lineup and great value. It's Cafe Dongyi Branch 1, a well-known Suseongmot restaurant. Let me share how we ate our way through everything from the mains to the sides.

Where is Cafe Dongyi Branch 1, and how is the parking?

Cafe Dongyi Branch 1 is on the ground floor of the Suseong SK Leaders View building at 95 Dongdaegu-ro, Suseong-gu, Daegu, right next to Coffee Myeongga, so it was really easy to find. For parking, use the Homeplus underground lot, and if you eat here you get up to 2 hours of parking covered.

Hours are daily 11:00-21:00, with a break from 15:00 to 16:30 and last orders at 14:00 and 20:00. Around Hwanggeum intersection and Suseongmot I always worry about parking first, but at Cafe Dongyi Branch 1 there's honestly nothing to worry about!

The ₩7,900 yeolmu bibimbap set on the sign, and free hutgae tea at the entrance

On the standing sign out front, the yeolmu bibimbap set (young radish bibimbap) was just ₩7,900! With prices these days, that's a really good deal.

And the owner's warmth completely won me over. They'd set out toasty hutgae tea (oriental raisin tree tea) so that any passerby could have a cool drink. Amazing, right? T_T

Weekday lunch wait and how to order

Even on a weekday lunch, Cafe Dongyi Branch 1 was packed with customers, but luckily exactly one seat was left, so we sat down right away with no wait. You order on a tablet, and if you join the Naver review event they give you a free lemonade, so grab that perk haha.

What's at the second-floor unlimited self-serve bar?

At the second-floor self-serve bar of Cafe Dongyi Branch 1, you can have unlimited multigrain rice, fried eggs and barley gangjeong (crunchy barley snack). After ordering, I went upstairs to try Cafe Dongyi's very special service, and going up a separate staircase gave it a different, attic-like feel from the first floor.

Multigrain rice, fried eggs and barley gangjeong, all unlimited... this service is amazing!

Upstairs was the unlimited self-serve bar, which you could call Cafe Dongyi's signature. There's lovingly made multigrain rice, and you can have as much of the sweet barley gangjeong as you like.

You can even fry your own eggs. Unlimited too... does the owner seriously make any profit? I love it though haha.

We carried it all to the table, and it was the perfect appetizer for my husband and me before the mains arrived. A fried egg eaten while it's still hot, you all know how good that tastes, right? haha

An open kitchen for peace of mind

Cafe Dongyi Branch 1 has an open kitchen, so you can watch your food being made right in front of you. It felt hygienic and really built trust.

Is pink meat in the bite-size tangsuyuk undercooked?

The staff told us that even if the meat inside the bite-size tangsuyuk (sweet and sour pork) at Cafe Dongyi Branch 1 is pink, that's just a "pinking" phenomenon, so don't be alarmed and go ahead and eat. When I first cut it, the meat was pink and I thought, is it undercooked...? So I'm telling you in case you think like I did. You can eat it with confidence.

While I was looking around the open kitchen, the bite-size tangsuyuk we'd added to the set came out first. It was two pieces, so I thought the portion was small, but eaten together with the mains, wow, it was a decent amount!

What's in the full Korean table set at Cafe Dongyi Branch 1

The full spread has finally arrived! I thought the table legs would break

The set meals at Cafe Dongyi Branch 1 come all at once on one tray: basic side dishes, the main, a stew, and omija tea (five-flavor berry tea) as dessert. While we were eating the tangsuyuk, the mains we'd ordered filled the table. There were neatly plated side dishes, mains with explosive visuals, and a refreshing omija tea to drink as a thoughtful dessert.

Dongyi bulgogi: tender, with seasoning that's neither sweet nor salty

I tried the dongyi bulgogi first. Maybe because the kitchen gives it a full fire-grilled aroma, it smelled delicious the moment it came out. Fresh vegetables and cabbage sit on top of the meat, so it looks tasty at first glance.

I quickly picked up a piece and set it on my multigrain rice, and the meat was really tender with nothing tough about it. The seasoning wasn't too sweet or too salty, just right for my taste. I think kids would eat it well too.

Dongyi fire-grilled jeyuk bokkeum: spicy with a smoky flame flavor

Next I dug into the dongyi fire-grilled jeyuk bokkeum (stir-fried spicy pork) my husband ordered, and unlike the bulgogi, a spicy, deep smoky aroma hit right away T_T I love spicy food, so this one looked even tastier to me.

Same here: I scooped a big spoonful of rice, topped it with a piece of meat, and wow, the spicy seasoning had soaked right into the meat, an totally addictive flavor! The soy-based bulgogi was good too, but since I like spicy food, this one suited me better.

Doenjang jjigae by default, kimchi jjigae for ₩1,000 extra

The set meals at Cafe Dongyi Branch 1 come with doenjang jjigae (soybean paste stew) by default, and for ₩1,000 extra you can switch to kimchi jjigae (kimchi stew). We swapped one of them, and you really have to try it. It came bubbling in a ttukbaegi (earthenware pot), and when I scooped in with a spoon it was full of big chunks of meat! The broth was spicy and rich, and delicious.

I tried the default doenjang jjigae too, and it had lots of tofu and vegetables, so even that stew alone is more than enough to empty a bowl of rice. And since the rice is unlimited too, big eaters could leave really full.

Is the ₩2,900 crispy kimchi jeon worth adding?

The side dish crispy kimchi jeon (kimchi pancake) at Cafe Dongyi Branch 1 is ₩2,900, and it was the kicker of this meal. I ordered it without big expectations, but it looked golden and incredible. True to its name, it's crispy not just at the edges but all over, and the tangy kimchi flavor really comes through, so even though I was full I kept reaching for it. My husband fell for it and swallowed three all by himself! It's delicious, so give it a try.

I finished with the omija tea prepared as dessert, which was refreshing and sweet, just right for drinking.

Don't forget to register your parking when you pay

After finishing your meal at Cafe Dongyi Branch 1, you register your parking yourself when you pay and head out. There were also peanut caramels at the counter, so I slipped one into my pocket on the way out haha.

Is Cafe Dongyi Branch 1 worth going back to?

Cafe Dongyi Branch 1 was a Suseongmot restaurant where you can see why it's full of customers from weekday lunchtime. The self-serve bar with unlimited multigrain rice, fried eggs and barley gangjeong is already amazing, and the smoky fire-grilled bulgogi and the spicy-sweet jeyuk bokkeum were satisfying too. If you're looking for a clean Korean restaurant near Suseongmot with easy parking, definitely stop by. It also seems fine for a family meal out with kids, so I plan to come back soon with my children.