The Bulgogi + Dukuhbee Noodle — Restaurant in Portland

To say that the noodles were good would be like saying Niagara Falls is kind of pretty. There is that tentative moment before you bite into a dish, if you pay attention where your heartbeat goes up a little and you experience a kind of culinary suspense. You kind of cast yourself into an intimate relationship with your tastebuds like a first date when you are lonely.

A moment filled with trepidation where you have been hurt before. It’s why so many settle for a safe marriage instead of a passionate one, why people go to the same restaurant for years instead of reaching for the sublime.

Those beef noodles are tremendous! They are substantial without being fat, they are chewy and real. The sauce was exactly right, a hot and savory blend that hit the tongue like a long lost child returning to their mother. It just fit, right there with the noodles like a horseman wearing the perfect winter’s coat, safe and comforting.

The beef was beyond tender and melded into the dish like music melds into a passionate and earthy dance.

Can you tell I am impressed? It was honestly one of the best noodle dishes I have ever had. I was brought to the floor and as an old grappler, I can tell you it ain’t that easy to take me down! It was so good.

Do I have a beef? Other than the gentle succulence of the meal I had, well yes. I prefer fountain drinks or real iced tea to cans of soda. This, I feel is a short cut that many creative restaurants are taking, it saves time and work, but it takes the edge off a perfect meal. The owners have forgotten this, the beverage is an important product… just “Give them a Coke” is a wasted moment, a pat answer. And beyond that, no ice in the house.

But does it take away points? No. Because the food really is that good! I find myself thinking about that dish, it’s kicking around in the back of my mind, like old memories of baking bread, or the look in the eye of a stranger you wished you had spoken to.

I love doing reviews, but I am like that Lothorio who never rests, must always seek perfection. There are too many new experiences and it’s hard to look back, hard to go backwards instead of the forward hunt!

But even adventurers need a really safe place, an excellent and safe harbor for when they need a little culinary love.

And this is one of those places. I will go again and I will...

I think some people are getting this mixed up with the Korean place that's next to the convenient store a couple blocks farther north. The decor here is certainly not run down. It's beautiful and very Korean Modern.

The bathroom was clean and I appreciate the self service for water and tea. It was too hot to not have ice for the water, though. Ice please!

You order your food at the counter and then they deliver it. The counter guy (owner?) was super polite and very fast. Prices are reasonable, especially for the large size of the dishes.The bibimpap was huge and tasty. Nicely done. I was surprised by the egg being "shredded" and noodle like instead of sunny side up on top of the dish. But it was delicious. At 630pm there was a decent crowd of all kinds of people.

Korean food is traditionally eaten with stainless steal chopsticks and a tablespoon. Koreans use the tablespoon because some food, like rice, will slide off stainless steel chopsticks. I would never expect metal chopsticks because they would get stolen, but it was a nice surprise to have quality metal spoons and a help-yourself area with sirachi, mild sauce and a sweet garlic sauce. All very tasty.

MY ONLY PROBLEM was that it was stifling. Well, maybe not stifling, but way too hot. I won't go back again until the weather cools off. (It's August and it was about 81° outside so not super hot.) I mean I can't recommend it until it's maybe 65° outside. I think the very hip looking lights they have are too hot? A higher ac setting of just a few degrees and a ceiling fan would really help. This is the only thing keeping me from...

If you are an Ubereats delivery driver, AVOID THIS PLACE. The owner and his front staff act all nice and stuff but behind your back they place reports and negative feedback on driver profiles(thumbs down, report for “professionalism”), they do this I was told for various reasons, if you don’t come inside with a hot bag, they’ll hit you with that, I have a large catering hot bag that I don’t take out of my car everytime like a clown, but they expect you to do that or negative review BEHIND your back instead of saying something like a MAN to the person directly. If you give them any attitude or they sense any, NEGATIVE report.

I have always been respectful, nice, I always say thank you and have a nice night. I never give attitude for wait time. And these A-holes still reported me twice in 1 week. I had to get an Uber eats supervision to tell me which merchant left me the negative reviews as I had a smooth week as usual, until these scums brought me down.

Never as a driver pick up orders here. They are worse than the Seinfeld shows “soup na*i” character. Bunch of two faced scums. I hope your business which serves basically dumpster water food goes under and you go bankrupt. Nasty dirty kitchen too if you ever seen it before, I think I’ll open a ticket with the health authority.

So yeah you’ll never seen me or anybody I know doing any business with this establishment.

Next time me and my homies are in the area chillin, keep that same energy, karma comes around in...