Yeodongsik — Restaurant in Sydney

I hope the instagram hype of this place dies down soon as it's not worth it. I visited this Korean restaurant for the first time and I made two mistakes: 1) following a social media/instagram hype of this restaurant and 2) going as a family of 5. They have a notice outside the window that a) they make a certain amount of food each day so may run out; b) they do not take bookings; c) they do not do takeaway.

Went on a Saturday at 5:30pm (opens 5pm). Waited exactly 1 hour to be seated (and got some hot chips from crazy brothers across the road). As we got closer to the entrance the owner/manager advised "it will be hard to seat 5 people" so we decided to split as 3+2. Zero effort was made to accommodate us as a group. Early in the course of being seated, we asked if an adjacent table empties can we move and be seated together. Various reasons by the wait staff - if food is already served hard to move; this particular table of 4 cannot have 5 people because it will block movement of wait staff (understandable). Before we were seated we saw two men leisurely enjoying their meal and drinks (1hr) and frequently leaving their seats empty to go vape/take long phone calls outside. Owner/manager of course did not say a word to them, despite the two dozen+ people waiting outside. Somewhere with such a long wait needs to set a time limit to accommodate for those waiting.

육개장 and 순대국밥 was good but not great. 비빔막국수 was average - not spicy, not tangy. 뼈다귀해장국 was bland (but they do give ++ meat). 수육 was good but small serving for $28 (dozen pork pieces, 4 순대), noodles of 순대 was dry. The 육전 was decent.

Service was not good and inconsistent - the lady bringing out the banchan didn't realise the table was not fully cleaned, so she placed the tray on the seat, then sprayed with detergent and didn't wipe properly, then picked the plate back up from the seat and placed in on the unwiped table. We were not given a pot to put empty bones in (unlike other tables). Again, small things, but sadly the food was not great enough to compensate for the series of shortcomings.

My recommendation:

1. Go at opening time
2. Go elsewhere if there is a queue - you can get similar food at many other korean restaurants, it is not worth the 60 minute wait
3. Go as a pair, maximum as a group of 4 4)...

Finally, I got to try the viral Korean restaurant that's been blowing up all over social media. We visited on a Saturday night, so I expected long waits. Indeed, we waited for one hour to get in. The restaurant staff gave us some hot tea while we waited, which was a nice gesture.

I didn’t have super high hopes, as my previous experiences taught me that long lines often do not equate to good food. The restaurant is really small, with only 8-9 seats, which explains the long wait. The overall vibe was cozy and homey, which I liked.

We ordered the famous perilla oil buckwheat noodles. We wanted to order the pork bone soup, another of their famous dishes, but it was sold out, so we opted for the thick beef soup instead.

The side dishes came out first, and they were one of the highlights of the meal. I usually don’t comment on or pay much attention to them, but these were different. There wasn't a big variety, but you could tell everything was homemade or made with care. The kimchi was extra fermented, which I liked, and the radishes were brined to perfection. I also really liked the marinated squid, which is quite rare to see in side dishes. Their side dishes were a good representation of their focus on craft and specialization.

The perilla oil buckwheat noodles were great, just as I expected. They struck a perfect blend of sweetness from the crushed seaweed and the aromatic perilla oil. I was a bit worried that the perilla oil would be overpowering, but they have definitely mastered the balance. The buckwheat noodles were cooked to the right texture, not too firm nor too soft.

The thick beef soup came next. Honestly, it was just okay. They gave us extra condiments like salt and pepper, and we had to use them generously to bring out the flavors. The soup was a bit too bland for my liking, and the beef came in very small chunks; I wished there was more meat.

Overall, I really enjoyed my experience here and would definitely revisit to try their pork bone soup! Even though the menu is small, you can tell the restaurant is trying to master its craft and specialize in what they are good at. I hope they keep improving and maintaining the quality, as it is one of the few Korean restaurants I...

What a wonderful experience!

My son and I visited Yeodongsik on Friday night after seeing the recent article on the Guardian website - we usually eat out at Korean BBQ restaurants but were intrigued by the article so thought we'd check it out and were NOT disappointed

Everything about the experience from the food, to the atmosphere and the service provided was outstanding - we arrived a little after 5pm and got the only free remaining table (a testament in itself to how good the restaurant is)

We ordered the Pan-fried with chives and prawns and Boiled pork slices as starters, and I had the Pork sausage soup with rice and my son had the Thick beef bone soup with rice

Super fresh and delicious banchan along with some excellent barley tea were served within moments of sitting down, and the starters arrived very soon after ordering - the suyuk was superb, and the pancake was simply the best I've ever had - so light and incredibly crispy

The highlights however were the soups - the richness and depth of flavour was amazing and both were served with a tray of spices and seasonings and we were guided on what is traditionally added

Despite the restaurant being full (with tables being taken as soon as they were vacated by new diners) the staff were so friendly and stopped to chat with us - the owner in particular was very polite and friendly asking us about our day and where we'd eaten before, and half way through the meal gave us free glasses of home made makgeolli (which was also superb)

I can highly recommend Yeodongsik to anyone (not only lovers of Korean food), and am already planning a return trip and have recommended it to several friends who are also...