Eating like family at Kunjip

After some shopping in midtown, we had worked up quite an appetite so we headed over to K-Town for our evening meal. Kunjip came highly recommended to us by a friend who described it as the type of food your Korean Mom would make. This sounded tempting so we got in line- and yes, it is an actual line instead of a wait list. This place was bustling- everyone was zipping around like mad, which seemed kind of dangerous given there were portable trays of fire cooking food placed hapharzardly around. But they obviously knew what they were doing and the place was running like a well oiled machine.

Finally we were seated and ordered our OB Beers and way too much food. The banchan arrived at our table right away which was perfect because we were starving. We dug in immediately- sooooo good!

OB Beers & Banchan

Steamed egg- literally steaming

Then our ridiculous amount of food started arriving. First came the Ojinguh Bokum- pan fried squid with vegetables and hot spicy sauce. The nice thing about this place being so busy is that all of your food arrives piping hot, direct from the kitchen. The drawback is that the preparation is probably a bit rushed and our squid was a bit chewy. 

Pan-Fried Squid

Then came our kimchi pancake followed by the Mae Woon Gal Bi Jim- spicy stew of prime short ribs with chestnuts and jujube. The meat was super tender and the sauce was thick and sweet, almost like dessert.

Kimchi pancake

Short-Rib Stew

I think I understand the very mixed reviews of this place. Our friend's recommendation was spot on- this place serves Korean comfort food. When you are in the mood for a belly full of home-style Korean this place will have you raving. But if you just went to this place expecting a 5 star meal, you might leave disappointed.  As for us, on a chilly fall night with a huge appetite we left incredibly delighted and satisfied!