Gimhae Chinese restaurant with tender tangsuyuk: Dongbaek

I had an errand in Gimhae today and wanted Chinese food for lunch, so I looked up a good nearby spot. Dongbaek happened to be close by, so we went straight there.

Dongbaek in Dongsang-dong, Gimhae: location and parking

Dongbaek, a private-room restaurant in Gimhae, is near Hwalcheon Hill in Dongsang-dong, Gimhae, across from Handeok Apartment.

It has its own parking lot, which made parking easy. For easier access to the entrance, set your navigation destination to 514 Gaya-ro, Gimhae-si. If the lot is full, use Dongbaek Parking Lot 2 (Dongsang-dong 114-2).

Spacious, upscale private-room atmosphere

Once inside Dongbaek, the restaurant was much bigger than I expected. The atmosphere was clean and upscale! There were lots of private rooms too, so it looked suitable for gatherings and even formal family meetings. Wouldn't it be nice to have a place like this close to home? Haha.

There may be a wait at lunchtime, so it might be worth checking the Tabling app before you visit.

What is at the self-service bar?

Dongbaek in Gimhae also has a self-service bar. There are onions, danmuji (yellow pickled radish), zhacai, scissors, tongs, and even warm jasmine tea, which I love!!! 👍

A broad menu, from courses to individual meals

Most Chinese restaurants only offer individual dishes and meals, so the choices can feel limited. But Dongbaek had lunch-special courses, family set meals, various dishes, and meal options, so there was a really wide selection. I loved that you can order according to your group size and preferences!

• Seafood jjamppong
• Fresh-meat ganjajang (extra-large)
• Fresh pork loin tangsuyuk
• Steamed rice

Seafood jjamppong, fresh-meat ganjajang, and tangsuyuk

After we ordered, they brought out utensils and refreshing jasmine tea~ I think they serve it cold in summer, haha.

This is seasoned zhacai from the self-service bar~ You can only enjoy this when you come to a Chinese restaurant, haha. It had more onions than at other places, with a nice crunchy texture, and it was so tasty that I kept picking at it before the food came out, haha.

The tangsuyuk came out first, then the jjamppong and ganjajang followed shortly after~

Fresh pork loin tangsuyuk (small)

The fresh pork loin tangsuyuk came fried in a thin batter, and the sauce color was unusual, haha. The pink sauce was memorable.

And the truly amazing part!!! The meat in the tangsuyuk was soooo tender!!! Seriously, one of the best ever, haha. It was tender enough to make me wonder if they age the fresh pork loin?? Crispy outside, moist inside, and the meat was genuinely tender, so I thought it would be easy for everyone from little children to older adults to enjoy.

How generous was the seafood jjamppong?

Next up was the seafood jjamppong! It was Yuni Papa's pick. True to its name, it was loaded with seafood such as mussels, clams, and blue crab. It may not look that way in the photo, but the bowl was quite large in person and there was a good amount too!!

The noodles were chewy and springy, and the broth had a lightly spicy kick that was delicious.

Fresh-meat ganjajang (extra-large)

One dish I really hope you try at Dongbaek is the fresh pork loin ganjajang. As a signature item, it absolutely did not disappoint.

We ordered the extra-large size and were shocked by the portion, haha. There was so much that it felt like we mixed it forever lol.

The glossy ganjajang had springy noodles as a given, and the sauce soaked beautifully into them, coating the mouth so nicely~~~ The moment I tried it, I thought, isn't this exactly what classic ganjajang should taste like?

There were also plenty of big pieces of meat, making it fun to pick them out as you ate.

Seriously, every pick that day was excellent!!!

The child slurped it all up and ate really well too^^

Thinking the portions might be small, we ordered the extra-large size from the start and even added steamed rice, so we were really full. My husband had a total feast that day,,,, He even mixed rice into the ganjajang sauce^^;;;

They also had coffee ready for after the meal, leaving a pleasant impression right through to the end.