Nongbu Korean Eatery
June 21, 2015
Good vibes and good food at any eatery always equal an unforgettable experience. That was the case when I went to Nongbu Korean Eatery earlier this month. It’s located just right off the main street on Whyte so it’s not as far south as most of the Korean places in YEG. Nongbu isn’t your average Korean restaurant, you won’t expect to find bibimbap or any of those traditional Korean dishes here. Instead, you’ll find a Korean tapas bar. The atmosphere is very hip and modern with a sleek interior. The pricing wasn’t that overpriced since the food is shared and if you go with more people, you’ll be spending less. Definitely worth the moolah though.
The menu is VERY small; it’s a one sided card. That’s not a bad thing at Nongbu though, you’ll probably end up finding at least 1 thing you want to try. The menu consists of mainly shared plates and snacks to be eaten with Korean alcoholic drinks. Food is divided into four sections: snacks and street eats, kalguksu (fresh hand-cut noodles), ssam (lettuce wraps), and dessert. Our waitress was super friendly and informative. My friend and I were a bit confused on what to order at first but she recommended sharing a street eat and lettuce wraps. We were actually going to order 3 things but good thing the waitress told us to lower it down otherwise it would’ve been too much!
The street eat that we decided to share was the seafood pa-jeon for $8.50. I found it to be a very nice complement with the lettuce wraps. I would consistently switch between taking bites of the pa-jeon and my lettuce wraps. The seafood pa-jeon is a Korean pancake-like dish that consists of shrimp, squid, onions, and sesame seeds on top. It’s similar to banh xeo in Vietnamese cuisine. It was slightly crispy and there wasn’t a lack of seafood cooked into it.
We also shared one of their popular lettuce wraps ($16/individual, $32/shared) with the dbukgalbi ssam. Translation: beef ribs and rice cakes. All of the shared lettuce wraps are accompanied by rice, soup, and the usual Korean side dishes (in metal bowls of course!). It also came with a dipping sauce that was slightly tangy but not spicy. The beef ribs were marinated in a Korean soy sauce. It was tender and definitely savoury. I consistently switched between eating the ribs wrapped in salad and with just my rice. The small rice cakes were soft and a nice addition to the plate. I would come back for another one of these ssam sharing plates for sure.
Cool washroom art
Overall, I really enjoyed my meal at Nongbu! I can see a bright future for them and I hope that similar spots around the city will pop up. It’s a great place to hang out with friends or even for a date night. I recommend checking out this unique Korean eatery if you happen to be around Whyte Ave.
Address: 8115 104 Street
