Sunday lunch steak set and white vongole in Dunsan-dong: Plate Dunsan

I'd heard that the fresh pasta place I loved in Seonhwa-dong opened a branch in Dunsan-dong, and kept meaning to go — finally made it happen! Here's my honest review of Plate, a Daejeon restaurant in Dunsan-dong known for fresh pasta and steak.

Hours: daily 11:00-21:30

Where is Plate Dunsan Branch, and where do you park?

Plate Dunsan Branch is on the 2nd floor of the building right next to Galleria.

🅿️Parking is free for 1 hour in the building's basement lot, and if it's full you can use nearby Galleria Timeworld or a public parking lot! There's also an elevator, so it's fine for wheelchairs or strollers 👍🏻

Picking from 12 kinds of fresh noodles at Plate Dunsan

One big strength of this Daejeon restaurant Plate is that you can pick from 12 kinds of fresh noodles! Since they're hand-kneaded in house, they're extra chewy ✨

Sunday 12:30pm at Plate Dunsan: seating and the wait

I visited around 12:30pm on a Sunday, and it seems this place has already become well-known as a Daejeon must-visit restaurant...

There were almost no seats left, and there was even a group table, so the staff looked really busy 🫢

A waiting line started right after I got in, so honestly, lucky timing for me..😅

Even though they were busy, they set the plates, spoon, chopsticks and knife neatly and prettily 🫶🏻

What comes with the 37.9 steak set

🍕Looks like pizza was recently added as a new menu item too, but since I came planning to try the steak set, I decided to save the pizza for next time 😋

Steak set 37.9: pasta + (flat iron steak/pork ribs) + salad + bread + 2 soups. The steak comes medium by default but you can change it~ For the pasta I chose white vongole with tagliatelle No. 4, fresh noodle ✔️

While waiting for the food I looked around and noticed a baby chair and even a dedicated meat aging fridge, which got me even more excited!

Pickles, salad, corn soup and bushman bread

While waiting, cabbage-radish pickles came out first

🥗A salad also came out, good for preventing blood sugar spikes~ The dressing was nutty yet tangy, great for whetting the appetite!

🌽Corn soup and bushman bread came out too, and honestly it had nothing to envy in an Outback meal!

The corn soup was even tastier since it's homemade, and the bushman bread was extra sweet when dipped in the whipped cream~

The flat iron steak and its garnishes

The flat iron steak I was most looking forward to! 🥩

The meat was thick and the presentation honestly rivaled a fine dining restaurant...🥹

Flat iron steak is hard to cook well at home even when it's fresh, but this was truly tender and full of juices — really tasty

You could drizzle on the steak sauce to your taste.

For garnish there was mashed potato, cherry tomatoes, and grilled napa cabbage — the chef at Plate really knows their stuff...👍🏻 How did they know I love grilled napa cabbage salad~

I was tempted by the signature pork ribs too, which looked delicious, but I'm glad I went with the flat iron steak! Still, if the steak is this good, the ribs are probably just as good too...😋 I'll try the ribs next time~

White vongole made with tagliatelle No. 4 fresh noodles

I really enjoyed the white vongole at Plate's flagship location, so I ordered it again~ Last time I went with their recommended squid ink spaghetti, but this time I wanted to try a different fresh noodle, so I chose tagliatelle!

It's a flat, wavy noodle like hand-cut noodles (kalguksu), and just as described, it soaked up the sauce well, so the seasoning came through and it was chewy

It tasted like clam-noodle soup reimagined as a Western dish, in a way — kind of upscale, if that makes sense...? Chopsticks were provided too so you could eat it comfortably, which I appreciated even more 🫶🏻

I revisited this place because I remembered how good the fresh pasta was, and at the Dunsan branch I even got the steak set with a 15% discount, which made the meal even more satisfying~ If you're looking for a great restaurant in Daejeon, I recommend Plate in Dunsan-dong for fresh pasta and steak ✨