Jonga Jip Korean, Eastwood NSW - Revisited



Jonga Jip Restaurant in the north-western Sydney suburb of Eastwood has opened another outlet, this time in front of the rail station along Railway Parade and next door to the Eastwood Hotel.  This is in addition to their original restaurant at 87 Rowe Street. The second place has a homely feel, although with the same press ring bells on dining tables, which are spread out across two shop fronts, with two levels for guests. Above, a potato ball takes pride of place to whet your appetite before the arrival of your mains.




With my first bite, I was agreeable to the sea bream roe mixed with rice and other concoctions (picture above).  This was, all at the same time, crunchy, refreshing and tasty, reminding me of cous cous, but not quite.  The dish turned out to be more veg than anything else, with fresh, pickled and sliced versions all served in a heady and yet subtle sensation.  My friend had a tofu soup.



The collection of entree dishes are what always impresses me at Jonga Jip.  They range from salads
(photo above) to spiced up  potato-based creations (picture below) and are served in smaller flat but round utensils that always have a dash of gravy, spice and garnishing.  Such entrees include tofu, seaweed, jelly pieces (final picture below),  pickled radish, bean sprouts, cucumber slices and more.








The seafood shallot pancakes or Pajeon are still in super size and should serve a hungry family of four right.
Marbled short ribs and Bibimbap could be seen served at other tables when we were there.  What caught my eye was a dish that combined kimchi with mashed potatoes in a heady mix called Ban chan, symbolic of East meeting West.  After Saturday lunch, I was introduced to a nearby cafe, called the Cafe Bom, where I had a filtered drip Dutch coffee and an intensely tasty Italian green tea flavoured gelato served in a Korean contemporary setting of wall papered surroundings with Euro styled tables and chairs.  It had been a most interesting Korean-themed Saturday afternoon.

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