Moobongri Soondae

A guy walks into a soondae restaurant and doesn't order soondae. Don't judge him too harshly. 😅

Soondae is a Korean blood sausage that is typically made of pork blood, rice noodles, and seasoning. I have nothing against eating blood sausage, but today it did not appeal to me. Perhaps next time.

Moobongri Soondae is fairly popular chain-restaurant with locations across the United States.

Food

Flavor and Texture - 45/60

I am going to rate the two side dishes out of 15 points each with the main soup dish out of 30 points.

I ordered the Beef Rib Soup with glass noodles. I meant to order the Ox Bone Broth Soup with brisket, but honestly there was a decent selection of options. They all seemed like good choices. While the beef was tender, the issue I have with beef rib is the cartilage and tendon. Sometimes it falls off the bone, other times not so much. Half the bones I was able to pick clean, the others proved more difficult. The broth itself was rich but light. The soy sauce for the meat had slices of garlic and onion that complement the beef well. I give 22 points for the soup.

I give the Kimchi 10 points as it had a solid chili flavor that I love, but it was not as briny as I would prefer.

The Kkakdugi (cubed radish) on the other hand, I give 13 points. Each cube had the perfect amount of salt-to-chili ratio with a nice crispness.

Quality/Skillfulness - 6/10

The ingredients tasted fresh, no complaints. There could have been more consistency between the rib tenderness but that comes with the territory.

Value - 7/10

The portion to price ratio is fair.

Dining Experience

Service and Setting - 4/5

Service was excellent. I was offered multiple refills on my side dishes. Inside was clean and orderly. Plenty of parking outside.

Presentation - 3/5

Similar to most other Korean restaurants. Nothing out of the ordinary.

Legitimacy or Creativity/Uniqueness - 3/5

My dish was pretty good. However, I should come back and try the Soondae as that is their main specialty.

X-Factor/Memorability - 3/5

This place opens at 8:30 am. Let me repeat that...8:30 am! I could easily find myself coming here after a morning work-out and ordering a collagen rich soup. #breakfastgoals

Total - 71/100

4 Stars - I enjoyed my main dish along with the sides. This may not be the first Korean restaurant I recommend to people, but if you are familiar with the cuisine it is definitely worth the trip.