Myung Dong Tofu Cabin

Myung Dong Tofu Cabin
1484 Halford Ave
Santa Clara, CA 95051
(408) 246-1484

Marina Shopping complex:
2968 S Norfolk Street
San Mateo, CA 94403
(650) 525-1484
www.tofucabin.com

Vitals:
Casual
Kid friendly

When most people say “let’s go eat Korean food”, it usually conjures up images of Korean bbq in my mind. But, sometimes it conjures up images of Korean tofu (Soon Doo Boo or Sundubu), which is a spicy stew that made with soft tofu and can be mixed with different meats ($8.99 for seafood, combination of beef and seafood or beef). I don’t find Korean tofu an accessible dish. It is a spicy (it can be made mild, medium or spicy) stew that is boiling when it arrives at the table and a raw egg is provided so that you can cook it in the boiling stew, but when I need crave something that will warm me to the core, I usually turn to this dish. A bowl of rice is provided and from what I’ve been told, the way to eat this is to scoop a bit of rice in your spoon and then dip it in the stew and pick up a bit of the meat and soft tofu. That being said, I have to say that the tofu at Myung Dong is not that great and it’s only average at best. It’s fine, but for a place that is named for a particular dish, then I expect it to be really good, if not great. The tofu stew seemed a bit watered down to me and it did not have much flavor. If you want good Soon Doo Boo then head to SGD Tofu House, Gaesung or even Manna Tofu House.

One of the reasons why I like going to Korean restaurants is that before your order arrives at your table, a wide variety of Korean appetizers (banchan) are set before you. There is the standard kimchi (fermented, spicy pickled napa cabbage or other vegetable), and an assortment of other vegetables, such as bean sprouts and spinach, and sometimes chapjae is provided (stir fried sweet potato starch noodles with vegetables).

The main reason I come here is because rice dishes are actually pretty good, specifically the Dol Sot Bi Bim Bab ($11.99 - beef, vegetables and egg over rice served in a hot stone pot and pictured below on the left). I guess I could go with the standard Bi Bim Bab ($9.99), but I like the stone pot. It arrives hot from the oven and once I mix the egg and put in the spicy sauce, I like to spread the rice inside the pot so that it can crisp up some of the rice a bit. It’s a nice little treat when I’m nearing the end of my meal. The seafood Bi Bim Bab is average ($14.99, and pictured below on the right). It’s a bit pricey and doesn’t have much of a variety of seafood (mainly squid tentacles) and you can’t really choose how much spicy sauce you want as it comes with the sauce already incorporated into the dish.

Bool Go Gi (broiled marinated beef) is also ok here. The meat comes in a sizzling hot plate and it is well marinated and is flavorful, if a bit greasy.

While the portions are enough to fill most people and if not, then the banchan will probably put you over the top. If you want some more variety, then I would definitely try the Hae Mool Pa Jun (Seafood pancake). It's not like the pancakes served in American restaurants, but looks like a seafood omelette, but yummier (it's make mostly with eggs, flour, seafood and some green onions).

It's not a cheap place to get a bite to eat, but it is different and does provide a different set of tastes, textures and flavors than what I'm used to.