AUTHENTIC SOONDAE GUK!!!

First, I need to get this out of the way—this is probably the first and last time Korea House will ever prepare Soondae Guk for anyone. The ingredients (to get it perfectly right) are very hard to find in Austin. Because I am Korean myself and a regular at Korea House, I begged the owners to put an end to my search (4+ years) for authentic Soondae Guk (my favorite dish) in Austin by specially preparing it themselves. They were kind enough to prepare a Soondae Guk feast for me and my friends (a group of ten). It was also pretty pricey ($25/serving, which is higher than their usual $16 – $20/serving for their guk dishes on the menu). I also asked if they would put it on the menu, but they told me that it would hurt the business, most likely because less people would get it for its higher price and the profit margin is probably much lower than the dishes they offer, which I totally understand.

It was perfect. Best Soondae Guk I've tried in the USA and holds its own against the ones in Korea. From the first smell, I knew this was the real deal (oh, how much I had missed this wonderful smell). The blood sausages was cut by the chef herself (you can tell that this wasn't some cheap factory Soondae) and tasted great, the intestines and liver (and other mystery pork meat) had the perfect bite and was full of flavor explosions, the bone broth was rich, and they provided all the essential garnishes and seasonings (chopped green onions, toasted ground sesame seeds, dadaegi seasoning paste, and salted shrimp). They also served it with rice (of course) and plenty of their usual side dishes, which I always love (except one of them). They checked in with us a few times to see if everything was great, and we had no complaints. Best dinner I've had in a while. 10/10 highly recommend if they serve it again (which they won't for now). A good idea would be for them to add it on their menu as a special request or a preorder item and let people make reservations for it… just an idea.

Their other dishes are great too, so be sure to check them out if you haven't already… and remember, the first Wednesday of every month is FREE (within their condensed menu).