Dongtan pork gomtang restaurant, broth like Okdongsik's: Baekok

It's summer and hot out, but when you've been sitting in an icy, blasting air-conditioned building, you start craving something warm. Eat something hot and it feels like a real meal, a proper meal! So today I'm introducing the gukbap (rice soup) I had at Lotte Department Store Dongtan: Baekok Dongtan.

Where is Baekok Dongtan in Lotte Department Store?

Baekok Dongtan is on the B1 food court side of Lotte Department Store Dongtan, roughly in the middle. It's near a select shop and the escalator, so it was easy to find!

I hadn't planned anything. I was just wandering and going to pick whatever caught my eye, and the Baekok (백옥) sign stood out, so I thought, "Huh? What is this place?" and went closer. I figured it was a gomtang (beef bone soup) place, but looking closer, it was a pork gomtang place. Gomtang is usually beef, right? I'd never had a gomtang made with pork, so I decided to try it.

Inside, a clip keeps playing of Ko Kyung-pyo on a TV show eating with great gusto, haha. Watching someone eat so happily already makes it look tastier.

Kids' menu, event and takeout

Baekok Dongtan also has a kids' gukbap for ₩7,000. Anyone bringing a child would hesitate to order a full bowl, so a kids' menu like this is nice! When I visited, there was also a Naver review event that gave you one cabbage dumpling.

Takeout is available too, and a classy takeout bag just puts you in a good mood, doesn't it? Baekok Dongtan's takeout gets full marks.

What we ordered at Baekok Dongtan

We ordered two dishes, a pork gomtang and a cabbage dumpling soup, and shared them. I spent ages deciding over the menu; if I'd come alone I'd have eaten just one, so I was glad to be with someone and try a bit of everything.

The menu has photos, so you can roughly tell what you're getting before you order. Nice.

Is there enough seating at Baekok Dongtan?

When I visited, Baekok Dongtan had plenty of seats for a department store basement food court and was quieter than I expected. We could sit right away, which was great. Maybe turnover is just fast in a food court!

One nice thing about the Lotte Department Store basement food court is that the place to wash your hands is close. It's right next to the dining area!

Pork gomtang ₩12,000: how was the broth?

Baekok's signature pork gomtang is ₩12,000. The broth is the clean style, yet the flavor was deep.

Before eating I worried it might be greasy, but after the first spoonful it was cleaner than I expected. There was almost none of that gamey pork smell, and the meat was cooked so soft it pulled apart with chopsticks. I put rice in, topped it with a piece of kimchi, and it just kept going down. It's a great dish for filling your stomach. I once had Okdongsik's gukbap in Hawaii, and Baekok's pork gomtang was a similar style and taste!

Cabbage dumpling soup ₩13,000: dumplings wrapped in cabbage

Next was the cabbage dumpling soup (₩13,000). Baekok's version has dumplings where cabbage is used like a dumpling wrapper around the filling. I was curious from the name alone; at first I wondered if it was just a soup with dumplings and cabbage together, but the photo looked healthy, so I ordered it.

The dumplings were bigger than I expected. They were so large that eating one in a single bite felt like too much, so I cut it in half, and the filling was packed in, which felt substantial. The broth had a faint cabbage aroma, so it was clean and mild. The dumplings are spicy-style like kimchi dumplings, but not actually hot.

Putting rice in at the end makes it even more filling!

Baekok Dongtan side dishes, prices and overall verdict

The side dishes at Baekok Dongtan were simple: kkakdugi and pickled vegetables. Nothing excessive, just right for gomtang and dumpling soup, and since the main dishes are filling, I didn't miss having more sides.

I expected department store food court prices to be high, but pork gomtang at ₩12,000 and cabbage dumpling soup at ₩13,000 seem reasonable. It's a good place for a hearty meal when you're worn out from shopping. It's the kind of taste I'll probably crave again when the weather turns chilly, so I'll likely stop by next time I'm at Lotte Department Store Dongtan. If you like gomtang, it's worth a visit at least once.