Yangyang Chinese restaurant's smoky jajangmyeon: Dongne Oppa

Smoky jajangmyeon that even the kids buried their faces in

My husband, who has the palate of an elementary-school kid, loves hamburgers, samgyeopsal (Korean grilled pork belly), and jajangmyeon (noodles in black bean sauce). After driving three hours to Gangwon-do, we couldn't eat sashimi because the kids couldn't have it, so I was initially sad that we were going out for jajangmyeon instead. But wow, once I tried it, I changed my tune. The jajangmyeon had that smoky wok flavor, so my elementary-school-palate husband absolutely loved it, and of course the kids buried their faces in it too. But! It is smoky and a little spicy, so please be aware that it may be too hot for little ones aged three to five who cannot eat spicy food yet. Our kids are seven and already enjoy ramyeon, so they found this mildly spicy jajangmyeon completely delicious.

Dedicated parking and the restaurant atmosphere

Before visiting Dongne Oppa Dak Jjamppong (동네오빠닭짬뽕), I read other reviews, and someone had written that it had dedicated parking, so you could visit without worrying. I went trusting that alone, butㅠ there is dedicated parking, though it is not especially roomy—only about three to five cars can fit. Luckily, our family tends to eat quickly, so we narrowly managed to park by avoiding the busiest time. Parking may be difficult during peak hours, so it would be good to keep that in mind before coming.

Dongne Oppa Dak Jjamppong is small inside, but tables turn over quickly: customers leave soon, and then it fills right back up. I guess it really is a local Gangwon-do favorite. Customers kept coming in~ And having tried it myself, it really was delicious.

Just three menu items

Dongne Oppa Dak Jjamppong has exactly three menu items. Which means they must be confident in those three dishes, right? I agree. They should be confident. They can sell just these. They are seriously delicious.

Dongne Oppa Dak Jjamppong has high chairs and children's tableware ready, which makes it a nice place to visit with kids.

Side dishes and onions dipped in ssamjang

At Dongne Oppa Dak Jjamppong, stir-fried fish cake came as a basic side dish. What was unusual was the ssamjang (savory soybean dipping paste). In Gyeonggi-do, we dip onions in chunjang (black bean paste), but maybe in Gangwon-do people dip onions in ssamjang instead~ I do not normally eat raw onion, so I do not really know what it tastes like^^;;

Thick jajangmyeon that is not overly sweet

Unlike the intense, very sweet jajangmyeon at typical Chinese restaurants, Dongne Oppa Dak Jjamppong's jajangmyeon has a clean flavor that coats the mouth without the sauce feeling excessively heavy. The rich aroma of well-fried chunjang comes through, and the nicely thick sauce soaks perfectly into the noodles. The noodles are a little thicker than the jajangmyeon noodles I usually eat, and they work so well with the deep chunjang sauce that people of all ages can enjoy them without strong likes or dislikes. It is an excellent partner dish for gently settling your tingling mouth while eating the spicy chicken jjamppong. It is also a popular must-order dish for families with young children, as an alternative to the heat of the chicken jjamppong.

Jjamppong with rice: spicy, but deliciously so

I ordered jjamppongbap (spicy seafood noodle soup served with rice) at Dongne Oppa Dak Jjamppong. True to its name, it uses fresh chicken broth as its base, creating a deep, rich soup with a completely different dimension from ordinary seafood jjamppong. I am not good with spicy food, so it felt extremely, extremely hot to me, but I still finished the whole bowl. It was spicy but deliciously spicy, so even I, someone who cannot handle heat, could enjoy it. The ingredients are stir-fried to order, preserving the crisp bite of vegetables such as onion and cabbage as well as the smoky wok flavor. The generous chicken topping in the jjamppong is tender rather than tough, and it is especially fun to pick up with the noodles.

Just because it is chicken jjamppong does not mean it contains only chicken—there was seafood such as squid too, of course.

If you are looking for great jajangmyeon or jjamppong in Yangyang, Gangwon-do, how about Dongne Oppa Dak Jjamppong?