OKDONGSIK New York — Restaurant in New York

Okdongsik was a huge hit when it first opened -- definitely one of my favourite restaurants in NYC at the time -- and while I still enjoy my meals here, I fear it has somewhat lost some its allure.

The menu is simple and limited -- other than drinks, you can order the dweji-gomtang (pork broth with pork shoulder and rice) and kimchi mandu (dumplings). The dwegi-gomtang is consistently delicious. You can already smell how fragrant the broth is throughout the small restaurant, and each sip is filled with the light-yet-savoury flavour of the pork, gently cooked inside for hours. Each slice of pork is so thinly cut -- soft, tender, and practically melts in your month. The rice is a lovely textural contrast -- perfectly cooked to a light fluffiness and pairing so well with the savoury flavours of the broth. Such a lovely dish that brings out all the natural flavours with simplicity.

The mandu, I fear, has slightly tempered my overall feelings about Okdongsik. Whereas I felt they used to be an amazing complement to the pork broth, on recent visits they have been much more ... normal? Certainly nothing grossly problematic, but it feels like the quality of the skin (thicker and heavier than before) and the filling (smaller in size and increasingly less flavourful) has been trending in a disappointing direction.

To a certain extent, I think they may have set the bar too high for themselves haha -- expectations were Very High after how impressed I was on my first few visits. I am still eager to come when the chance arrives, but perhaps just with slightly less enthusiasm as a few years ago.

The intimate environment has kept its charm -- seeing your soup ladled over your rice right in front of you while seated at a small countertop with ~10-12 other seats is a lovely experience. Some of the small touches, though, seem to be less consistent -- on my latest visits, we were offered a plate of spicy pickled radishes. While I do like radishes, their kimchi was one of the most delicious I've ever had, and I was sad to see that it wasn't necessarily a given here anymore.

Reservations are of course highly recommended -- although surprisingly for a restaurant of this renown, they are not too hard to come by with a little bit...

Located several blocks south of the main K-town sector in Manhattan, Ok Dong Sik NY is a one of a kind boutique like restaurant. Actually, there's another one in Bayside, Queens. If you're looking for the typical K-restaurant that serves Kbbq & the usual staples + assortment of banchan 반찬, look elsewhere. If there's a K-food niche, this is it. The limited menu includes only Gomtang 곰탕 with pork, which is unusual because it's normally cooked with beef, Kimchi Mandoo 김치 만두 and Naeng Jeyuk 냉제육 (chilled pork). A side of seok bak ji 석박지 and an additional dish with a dollop of gochujang 고추장 (red pepper paste) for dipping the pork were preset. I was instructed not to put the gochujang into the soup. Don't ask for a wine list. The only beverage options were cold barley tea (included), barley soju 보리 소주, Kolsch (German lager), and two non-alcoholic drinks, a fermented Jeju tangerine and Korean plum beverage. Dining is bar style & 13 stools, no tables, chairs or booths; very cozy, intimate, low noise, warm lighting, modern clean interior. Reservations are highly recommended but somehow my family walked in on a whim and there happened to be four vacant spots at the end of the bar. It was meant to be. They bank their success on their signature broth & minimalist approach. It was clear, clean, simple, refreshing & delicious. The thin slices of pork with a bit of fat on the edges were soft & succulent and the gochujang was an appropriate compliment. A scoop of rice was submerged underneath the pork. The Kimchi Mandoo was not overtly spicy and brought an even balance with the Gomtang. The shot of cold barley soju went down smooth with a very subtle bite. This was not what I had expected, but I thoroughly enjoyed every taste & smell. There was a line forming by the time we finished. It's uncomfortable to sit & eat on a stool for too long, so the portion was perfect and the diner turnover worked in their favor. Good luck with NYC parallel street parking. Take the subway, taxi or just walk. Highly recommended. Simple...

We were really looking forward to this place. With 13 seats, it can be a bit difficult to get into (last time we tried we ended up going next door instead because of the wait). We showed up at 11:26 this time (4 minutes before opening) and were the fourth people in line.

What this place really excels at is streamlining the experience and simplicity. You hang your jacket up on the wall and sit down to a dish of fermented vegetable waiting for your arrival. They immediately pour you some tea and you decide upon 2 drink options (pilsner or soju-both were nice and the soju served in an adorable cup) and 2 meal options: pork bone soup (dweji gomtang) or kimchi mandoo. The former is their staple. It's an exquisitely clean broth and in watching it be prepared right before you, you can tell the chefs take a great deal of care in doing so. We ordered extra pork, which I highly recommend. There's a Gochuji dipping sauce which was nice. While simple/clean, we found the overall taste a bit bland. I think you can be a clean soup without being boring and I felt like even with the dipping sauce, it was a huge portion of not a ton of flavor. They do add a skosh of pepper to the dish but even more of this would have been ideal. The mandoo I was surprised by. I'll never be a kimchi convert but these were quite nice in texture and flavor and not overly fermented as I expected.

They are quite streamlined. And by that I mean the second we were done eating we were asked if we wanted anything else, probably in an effort to clear one of the 13 spots. It's probably best to make a reservation for this place (and show up to it on time, as we saw one party who was pretty late and ended up having to wait a while because all the...