Damotory

It’s been a hard week at work and B decided I needed mid-week drinks. Go figure. Naturally, I am not one to argue (heh) and he did not have to do a lot of persuasion.

We got to Robertson Walk at a work-life-balanced 8.45pm (“early”, relatively) and were just about to auto-pilot direct ourselves to Orihara for some sake and oden when Damotory (I can't find the address online but it's right in the middle of the courtyard you can't miss it) caught our eye. The banner screamed “opening 50% discount for WINE & BEER” – it was quite the no-brainer for two thirsty and hungry people to be drawn into the restaurant.

Damotory was almost full house but lucky us, we scored a nice tatami mat table in the corner . The clientele seemed to comprise a fair number of local Koreans – always a good sign.

The food menu was simple – about 15-20 items on a small flipboard with pictures, we quickly settled on 3 items for sharing. The drink menu, on the other hand, was quite challenging – so many types of rice wines, shochu, medicinal wines! I was tempted to order the chrysanthemum wine but B wanted the maggeolli (rice wine) instead.

There was a bit of a wait for the food since it was full house but we comforted our stomachs with the free banchan (small dishes) first. I loved the sautéed onions. The kimchi radish was pretty good too. B was very pleased with the maggeolli. Yes that white shoulder in the picture belongs to B.

When the food came, I was personally pretty stuffed on banchan. But I have to say, it was, for the most part, worth the wait. First up, the Gibijjim – traditional korean style braised short ribs $20. This came sizzling in a stone pot and the meat was so tender that it was falling off the bone … The “sauce/ soup”, though a tad too sweet for my liking, provided warm comfort. The radish soaked up the sauce nicely, I polished off most of it.

Next came the Nakji Bokeum - spicy stir-fried octopus with vegetables and noodles $20. Wow this packed quite a spicy kick. I really liked the thin cold noodles this came with, perfect with the spicy sauce.

By the time the Gyeran Malee - folded-over omelette with cheese came $15, we were really, really stuffed. It’s a simple dish, but I thought they did it well. The egg was moist and I loved eating it layer by layer. Too much of a good thing though, we had to pack the remainder home. “Bet it’ll taste even better cold”, B says.

A much needed respite from a crazy work week at a neat price of $65++ for the 2 of us. I am definitely returning to try the exotic (Korean ginseng?) wines and more food items. Hmm, I wonder when the 50% discount ends.