Hae Ran Lamb Skewers: A Culinary Gem in Konkuk University District
Hae Ran Lamb Skewers: Lamb Skewers & Authentic Chinese Cuisine in Konkuk University Area
Today, I'm introducing my go-to lamb skewers restaurant in the Konkuk University ( 건대 - Geon-dae) area, which I visit at least once a month. I brought a friend from out of town here to treat them to something special, and once again, this place did not disappoint.
This restaurant has been a mainstay in the Konkuk University lamb skewers alley for 20 years. It's about a 5-minute walk from Exit 6 of Konkuk University Station, and you can park in the public parking lot right next door.
The operating hours are from 11:30 AM to 5:00 AM, so keep that in mind.
Address: 73, Dongil-ro 18-gil, Gwangjin-gu, Seoul, South Korea
Hours: Daily 11:30 - 05:00
This place is famous enough to have been featured on various TV shows. Not only are the lamb skewers delicious, but also the various Chinese dishes are amazing and reasonably priced, making it a great spot to visit anytime.
Despite being a 20-year-old establishment, the interior is very clean. There's plenty of seating, so many people come for gatherings or company dinners. However, it's a popular place, so it's often full. It's best to make a reservation before visiting.
I visited with two friends, so there were three of us in total. Since my friends were hungry, I ordered a generous amount of dishes, focusing on the ones I had tried before. They offer a variety of skewers, from lamb skewers to lamb rib skewers and beef skewers, as well as many different dishes, so there's plenty to choose from.
For those who have trouble deciding, they also have recommended menu sets. These sets are composed of popular dishes, so you're unlikely to be disappointed, and they even come with a discount, making them a great value.
We ordered a generous amount of skewers and dishes. While waiting, we chatted and started eating the side dishes. They serve savory peanuts, crunchy radish salad, and pickled mustard greens (jjahai) as a standard. The pickled mustard greens have a chewy texture and a salty flavor that's very addictive.
Seasonings, including cumin (쯔란 - Tze-ran), are provided in glass bottles on each table, so you can enjoy them to your liking.
Soon after, the charcoal was set up, and the dishes we ordered started coming out one by one. Both my friends, who didn't know the taste of Konkuk University lamb skewers, and I, who did, started swallowing our saliva.
Lamb skewers grilled to a golden brown over charcoal, along with sweet and sour pork (꿔바로우 - Kkwoba Lou), stir-fried eggplant, cucumber salad, and, of course, Tsingtao beer and Kaoliang liquor, were all set out. Just then, my friend sitting next to me's stomach rumbled very loudly, and we all burst out laughing.
The main dish, lamb skewers, from this renowned Konkuk University restaurant, looks high-quality at first glance. There's no gamey smell at all, and the ratio of fat to lean meat is perfect, so every bite is bursting with juice.
Grilling it over charcoal until the outside is crispy and the inside is moist makes you crave beer. That's why I end up drinking more than I expect every time I come here.
It's more delicious than any other lamb skewers place I've been to, so I visit often. My friends, who were here for the first time, said it was so delicious without any gamey smell and ate really well.
Even after being grilled over charcoal, the lamb skewers were still chewy and full of juice. So, the more you chew, the richer the savory flavor becomes, and with the subtle charcoal aroma added, you can truly feel the clean and savory taste without any gamey smell.
Dipping it generously in cumin adds a spicy and salty flavor unique to the spice, making it even more addictive. It's a perfect match with cool and refreshing beer.
Eating refreshing cucumber salad in between cleanses your palate, so you can eat even more lamb skewers. It's a dish I always order whenever I come to this restaurant.
The crunchy cucumber salad is sweet and sour, with a subtle garlic flavor added. It's also slightly spicy, so it cleanses your palate in a different way than beer.
After finishing the lamb skewers, we enjoyed the lamb rib skewers. This is a fatty and tender cut that allows you to better appreciate the flavor of lamb.
This restaurant enhances the unique meaty flavor while eliminating any gamey smell, so you can enjoy it without any hesitation. And usually, lamb ribs are eaten in the form of racks attached to the bone, but here, they come as skewers, so you can easily pick them out one by one without getting your hands dirty.
The taste was, of course, very satisfying. It was a taste that fully reflected the 20 years of experience.
My friends were so impressed with the taste that they ordered Kaoliang liquor because beer wasn't enough. Fortunately, it was Saturday evening, so we could relax and enjoy the drinks.
The clean yet heavy aroma of the Kaoliang liquor harmonized well with the savory lamb rib skewers, creating a perfect balance.
Normally, we would move on to the second round at this point, but my friends liked this place so much that we stayed and ate a lot. We ordered sweet and sour pork (꿔바로우 - Kkwoba Lou), which everyone loves, and the visuals were impressive.
Unlike sweet and sour pork, sweet and sour pork has a thin and chewy batter as its key point, and this place implements that point well. So, you can feel the crispy exterior, the moist interior, and the texture of the tender meat.
I also highly recommend the stir-fried eggplant. Many people dislike eggplant because of its mushy texture, but this is made by frying the eggplant once and then coating it in sauce, so you can enjoy it crispy and moist.
The golden and crispy eggplant is as juicy as meat, making it really attractive. The sauce also has a deep flavor that makes you keep reaching for it. In the end, we scraped all the dishes clean until our stomachs were as big as mountains.
I wanted to treat my friend who came all the way to Seoul to a memorable meal, and thanks to this restaurant, I was able to fulfill that wish. I took them there because I said it was delicious, and I was proud that my friends were satisfied. It definitely made me think once again that there's a reason why they've been in the same spot for 20 years.
Source :https://blog.naver.com/sonbogong
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