Gyodong, Daegu noodle shop for sharing two kalguksu: Donggok Jemyeon

My wife and I have really been eating well lately... my list of restaurants to review on the blog just keeps piling up, so let me introduce them one by one.

Today's restaurant is Donggok Jemyeon in Gyodong, Daegu! Gyodong is full of Western restaurants and bars, so this savory, steaming-hot kalguksu (knife-cut noodle soup) spot feels like a ray of light in the neighborhood!!

Where is Donggok Jemyeon, and where do you park?

Donggok Jemyeon is located at 629 Gukchaebosang-ro in Gyodong, Daegu, right before Daegu City Center and clearly visible from the road, so it's not hard to find at all!!

One of the perks of Donggok Jemyeon is that they offer parking support — since parking is scarce around Dongseong-ro and Gyodong, being able to use the 'Dongseong-ro parking lot' with support is a real advantage, right?? You can comfortably drive over and have your meal!

Donggok Jemyeon menu and why to pick thin noodles

As the name suggests, Donggok Jemyeon is a restaurant centered on kalguksu! There are four kinds: 'beef bone kalguksu,' 'yukgaejang kalguksu,' 'super-concentrated chicken kalguksu,' and 'chogye mixed kalguksu' — plus tasty pairings like gabrisal pork suyuk (boiled pork), seafood chive pancake, and shrimp-minari pancake!

There was also seasoned chicken as a side, and a famous makgeolli called Donggok makgeolli. We ordered the two main dishes — beef bone kalguksu and yukgaejang kalguksu — plus the seafood chive pancake. Note that rice is free at Donggok Jemyeon too, so if the noodles aren't enough you can have rice as well!

Something unusual when ordering was that you could choose the noodle thickness — thin noodles or regular noodles. My wife and I both like thin noodles, so we ordered thin!

A bowl of kimchi on every table

At every table at Donggok Jemyeon sits a bowl of kimchi — the most essential companion for kalguksu — and you just help yourself to as much as you like. The kimchi was slightly spicy and delicious, a perfect match for the noodles! Besides kimchi, they also gave us seasoned chili, which was tasty too.

Korean beef bone kalguksu: savory broth, springy house-made noodles

The food finally arrived!! First up is the beef bone kalguksu. Do I even need to describe how good sagol (beef bone) kalguksu tastes? The warm, savory broth and the chewy homemade noodles were really excellent.

There was also plenty of meat in the soup, which I loved, and it was tender and easy to eat. If you're not too full, it's also great to finish off with rice stirred into the broth.

Yukgaejang kalguksu: spicy, bold and easy to share

Second, the yukgaejang kalguksu! Opposite of the beef bone version, this one was all about the spicy, bold flavor — delicious yukgaejang (spicy beef and vegetable soup) with chewy noodles in it made for a great bowl of kalguksu.

If you want the savory flavor, I recommend the beef bone kalguksu; if you want something spicy and bold, go for the yukgaejang kalguksu!! The yukgaejang kalguksu was also loaded with meat, which made it great to share.

My wife ordered the beef bone kalguksu but kept stealing bites of my yukgaejang kalguksu haha. If you go as a couple, order one of each and share — both are delicious!

Seafood chive pancake with big pieces of squid and shrimp

Lastly, the seafood chive pancake! You can't skip this when you're having kalguksu — the squid and shrimp inside were nice and chunky, which made this pancake really great.

Can you tell from the photos?!! The big chunks of seafood and spicy chili were pan-fried together beautifully, and it was genuinely delicious! It's a flavor too good to miss, so I recommend using the set menu to try both the kalguksu and the pancake at a lower price!!

Free rice in the yukgaejang broth, plus yogurt on the way out

We were already really full, but the yukgaejang broth was so good that I asked for a little rice and stirred it in haha. The inside of Donggok Jemyeon is clean and spacious, so I recommend everyone come try it!! The location isn't too far into Gyodong either, so it's a good, easy walk!!

After finishing the meal, there's yogurt waiting by the door, so be sure to grab one each! I really love yogurt so I ended up stealing my wife's too haha. Starting with kalguksu, moving on to the chive pancake, and finishing clean with yogurt!

And that's Donggok Jemyeon, the kalguksu and jeon (savory pancake) spot in Gyodong, Dongseong-ro!! Hot kalguksu for lunch, or pancake, gabrisal pork suyuk and a glass of makgeolli for dinner — how about it!!