Daejeon pasta restaurant for meatball Bolognese: Plate Dunsan

I was in Dunsan-dong for the first time in ages when I suddenly got the biggest craving for pasta.

A pasta meal I found in Dunsan-dong

So I looked for somewhere to have pasta in Dunsan-dong and ended up at Plate Dunsan Branch (플레이트 둔산점).

Plate Dunsan Branch is on the second floor at 34 Dunsan-ro 31beon-gil, Seo-gu, Daejeon, and is open daily from 11:00 to 21:30.

Plate Dunsan Branch was on the building's second floor, and when I stepped inside, it had a clean, modern feel.

We took seats by the window, and the overall calm atmosphere looked nice for a date or a family meal, too.

How do you order the pasta shapes?

Plate's ordering system was a little unusual, too.

Instead of looking at the menu and telling a staff member what you want, you mark the order sheet yourself in pencil, like at Kimbap Cheonguk. But from this point on, I was already a little drained...

A place where you have to choose your pasta shape first

At Plate, you do not just choose a pasta dish—you can choose the pasta shape yourself, too.

There were no fewer than 12 types of pasta, and after choosing your dish, you write the number of the shape you want beside it. Rather than each pasta dish having a fixed shape, you can eat it with whichever one you like. Risotto is available, too! But as a first-time visitor, even choosing the menu felt a little difficult.

What we ordered and the set starters

This is what we ordered.

We ordered the Classic Meatball Bolognese as a set, so it came with bread, soup, and salad.

Yum, starting with the appetizers

After a short wait, the bread, soup, and salad included in the set arrived first.

There was Bushman bread, and it was delicious sliced open and spread with whipped cream. It seems like nothing special, but the soft bread and sweet cream worked surprisingly well together.

Personally, the soup and salad were simply decent. They were nice and light before the pasta.

Why the pasta came out three times

A little later, the pasta came out. It looked quite appetizing, so naturally I started enthusiastically taking photos first.

I had been snapping away for ages when a staff member suddenly came over and took the pasta back, saying the menu had been changed. ...Huh...? Meanwhile, I was the person who had already happily taken a whole bunch of photos...

Then the pasta came out again shortly afterward, and while I was taking photos again, another staff member came over. As it turned out, neither dish was what we had ordered...

After three eventful attempts, we finally received the dishes we had actually ordered. Seeing them again, they were definitely different from what had first arrived. (One of those moments when I wondered how I had failed to notice...)

How was the Classic Meatball Bolognese?

I started with the Classic Meatball Bolognese. Tender, moist meatballs sat on spaghetti, and the meatballs themselves were quite soft, but honestly, the sauce was not to my taste.

It felt somewhat different from the familiar Bolognese sauce I usually imagine, and I kept thinking it had a mysterious flavor as I ate. I even wondered whether it contained cilantro, though I could not pinpoint exactly what flavor caused it. So personally, this one was not for me 🥲

The tastier Chicken Leg Buldak Rosé Pasta

The dish I enjoyed more was the Chicken Leg Buldak Rosé Pasta. The word buldak—fire chicken—in the name worried me at first, but it was spiciness at just the right, easy-to-eat level.

The creamy rosé sauce had a little heat added, so it was not heavy and was quite nice. I chose tagliatelle in particular, and the sauce clung well to the wide ribbons, making it a great match for the rosé sauce. And the chicken leg was honestly much tastier than I expected.

The chicken was not dry, and it was delicious with the sauce, so of the two dishes, I preferred the Chicken Leg Buldak Rosé Pasta. It was fun choosing the pasta shape, since even with the same dish, the texture and the way the sauce comes together would feel different depending on what you choose.

It was disappointing that pizza was unavailable

I wanted to try ordering pizza that day as well, but they said pizza orders were unavailable. I did not hear why, so that was a little disappointing. I really wanted to try the pizza, too.

If you are craving pasta in Dunsan-dong

Overall, Plate Dunsan Branch was a nice place to have pasta in a clean, modern setting.

More than anything, it was fun that, unlike at an ordinary pasta restaurant, you can choose your own pasta shape.

Since you can choose among 12 pasta shapes, I think this ordering system would be quite fun for anyone who is usually interested in different types of noodles. Even with the same dish, the texture and pairing with the sauce would change depending on the shape, so I would like to order a different one next time.

There were families there that day, as well as lots of couples. High chairs were set up in one corner, so it looked suitable for eating with children, too.

Above all, it is located in Dunsan-dong, so it is in a convenient spot to stop for a meal after shopping or a date. It is a decent place to visit when, like me, you find yourself in Dunsan-dong after a long time and suddenly want pasta. I especially recommend it to anyone who wants to pick a pasta shape that suits their taste from several options.

Personally, the Chicken Leg Buldak Rosé Pasta was my favorite of what I ate that day, and if I visit again, I would like to pair it with another pasta shape 😆