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Book Chang Dong Tofu House
Rating Details »
- Price Range:
-
$$
- Accepts Credit Cards:
- Yes
- Parking:
- Private Lot
- Attire:
- Casual
- Good for Groups:
- Yes
- Good for Kids:
- Yes
- Takes Reservations:
- No
- Delivery:
- No
- Take-out:
- Yes
- Waiter Service:
- Yes
- Wheelchair Accessible:
- Yes
- Outdoor Seating:
- No
- Good for:
- Lunch, Dinner
17 reviews for Book Chang Dong Tofu House
Banchan was above average here and I had some really good stuff. The service was prompt and friendly.
I came here for the korean short ribs which I always do when I try out new korean places.
I didn't think it was as good as places I had been before but I have had better as it was a bit more rubbery then usual.
I have been to this place so many times that it's almost like an old friend now. The tofu soup is great, the nyeng myun is great, the service is friendly, and the free side dishes are delicious, especially it's salad and fried fish.
However, the last time I went after not going for a long time, the tofu soup didn't taste as good as usual. I'm hoping that it was a one time thing, or that it was because of my own mood or lack of hunger. On behalf of it's place in my heart as an old friend, I will give it a few more chances before I make further judgment.
Our family came here for Father's Day. I originally planned on cooking a fancy meal, but one thing lead to another and I didn't have time to make the meal. I assumed all the nicer restaurants were probably booked. So, we just decided to eat here.
I ordered the cold noodles. I don't even like them, but that day I was in the mood for them bc it was so hot outside. It was delicious! There was sliced pear, cucumber, egg, radish, and meat all in a broth with buckwheat noodles. The broth was so tasty. I ordered the combo that came with the gal bi. The gal bi was very good as well. You get a pretty good sized portion. My finance and mom ordered the seafood tofu soup. My dad ordered a cold noodle dish. It was grains and beans that were grounded up to a powder added with noodles. So his meal was like a grainy noodle soup. He is a health nut, so he enjoyed it. I can't remember what the Korean name for it. His dish was the cheapest out of our dishes. It was $5.99. I was thinking, maybe it was an app portion. For the 4 of us to eat, it was around $50 which also included tip.
We had pretty good service for a Korean restaurant. I don't like eating soon du bo on hot days, so I'll be eating the cold noodle soup to cool me off in this Atlanta heat!
Looks and feels like So Kong Dong, small, simple, and clean. Small menu but offers a few more items than SKD. Even the banchan dishes are similar, always with the fried fish and chapchae (stir fried vermicelli). I've had tofu bowl, cold noodles, and bi bim bop here. All were good, and comparable to SKD. Ever since I had the noodles at Abaee though, the noodles at other places just don't compare.
Service is very good. Lots of families come here it seems.
This is an above average tofu house that is far from where I live and close to a bunch of other good Korean restaurants. In other words, it's difficult to pick Book Chang Dong for a meal when I am in the area. Every time I've been I was going to H Mart with people who wanted to go here. Therefore only 3 stars, and not 4.
The food here is pretty good, though no one ever listens to me when I say I want it hot. I have this problem just about everywhere though. The service here is great, and everyone was incredibly nice. I guess it doesn't hurt when you have an adorable baby with you though. The kimchi beef soon dubu is very good, and even better when you add extra kimchi to it, but I'm just a kimchi whore anyway. I also love the whole, fried fish they give you as part of the meal.
I probably won't go out of my way to eat here, but if I'm in the area and feel like soon dubu, then I wouldn't think twice about eating here.
The food is good, the price is reasonable and the services are also excellent. I will come back for the real Korean food.
Went here on the way to Super H mart as it was recommended by a friend. The space is nice, I love the large tables, but the servers weren't all that friendly to us.
I got the tofu soup/bbq combo for $12 or so. The meat was a poor cut, but it was cooked/flavored well. The soup was so damn hot I couldn't eat it for 20 minutes and even then I burned my tongue.
The banchan was average, but not bad.
A pretty good value for what you get, though the servers really didn't seem to like us and I had to wait 15 mins to get our check.
We came here last night with a few friends- we originally wanted to get So Kong Dong ITP, but since they're closed on Tuesdays (evidently, we weren't the only ones who didn't know that- plenty of people came by the So Kong Dong parking lot while we waited for our friends, and left disappointed), we decided to make a trek up to Duluth, since most of the newer, and perhaps better Korean places are there.
My wife suspects that the owners of this place may be the same as that of So Kong Dong- the decor is similar, the quality and taste of the food is similar (except NO jalapenos! PTL!). And per my ever so keen observation, they both have 3 syllables and a 'Dong' in their name. (please, don't take me seriously on that)
Anyway, we each ordered the following tofu soups-
Oyster- You couldn't expect fresh oysters...so yea, just okay. Score: 3
Vegetable Dumpling- This was mine- I really liked their vegetable dumplings, which were pretty big- alas, you only get 3 of them (otherwise there'd be no room for tofu). Tofu was silken, and the broth was adequately flavorful (still really happy about no jalapenos!) Score: 4
Our friends ordered kimchee beef and seafood tofu soups- the seafood seemed to skimp on shrimp. Understandable, but boo.
Three of us ordered kalbi (short rib) combos with our soups. Flavor was spot on, and the meat was not overcooked. Good stuff. Score: 4
The kimchee panchan were better than most places (except for Abaee Noodle's kimchee), and it was nice to get the fried fish, though mine was a bit overfried. Score: 3.5
I agree with several reviews here that this place will not blow you away- but it's solid. Overall score: 3.75
The nengmyun (cold noodles in broth) + galbi (marinated short rib) combo that they offer is what I normally order. Good stuff. Occasionally, I get the seafood or mushroom soon doo boo (tofu soup) which tastes just alright. The only reason it gets a 3 as opposed to a 4 is because I got food poisoning after eating here one evening - and so did my friend, who I was with.
I was really sad to find out So Kong Dong was closed on Tuesdays, after anticipating having tofu stew for most of the day. Thankfully I remembered that this place is eerily similar (decor, menu). I think this place offers solid tofu stews. The soup is rich and flavorful. I got the "spicy" version, which was delightfully red and had a good kick (but I was still able to eat it). There's about 7 side dishes or so, which is a lot more than most Korean places these days. Too bad this place is far away from home, or else I'd come more often.
So far, this is the best soon du bu place I've found in the ATL area. The kalbi here is pretty good too but I noticed the bones were a bit osteoporitic and I would get itty bitty bone crumbs stuck between my teeth sometimes. The side dishes are pretty good and you each get an enormous pot of rice. Since this is in the Super H Mart center, I like to go have a nice tofu dinner and do some Asian grocery shopping afterwards.
If you come here during peak hours, expect to wait in line for some time. If you're already eating here at peak hours, don't be surprised if they nudge you out the door as soon as they see that you're done with your food.
I go for the galbi which is very tasty here, and a huge portion. The galbi is basically short ribs (but cut differently) marinated in soy sauce, garlic and sugar. Aside from the galbi there are many side dishes (called banchan) which is an assortment of kimchi, radishes, roots among other things that come with your meal (you can get "refills" if you choose). You also typically get rice, soup, barley tea/water and some different hot sauces to use for your meat.
I know a lot of people suggest Hae Woon Dae and I guess this would be a good first choice as well for introduction, but Hae Woon Dae is overrated and there are many better Korean restaurants in the area (sooooooooorry Creative Loafing but you need to do better homework).
Now...I'm a huge galbi fan so this is what I suggest but obviously there is so much more to try. Tofu is big here as well. This is in the Super H parking lot, first restaurant on the left if you are driving in through the front entrance.
For whatever reason, I've been here more than my fair share. It seems to be the default place we go to when we're in the mood for Soon Tofu and nobody in the group wants to make a decision. I'm not sure if anyone of my friends actually LIKES it since the conversation usually goes like this:
"Hey, make a decision on where you want to go, or else we'll end up going to that tofu place near H-Mart" (as if it is some big punishment for indecisiveness)
The food isn't anything to write home about, but it is consistent. I've never been disappointed here, but I've never been wowed either. The place is fairly clean, service is quick, and the prices are reasonable. The place is also usually busy (good sign) but you'll rarely have to wait for a table.
Would I recommend this place? It isn't something that really stands out in my mind, but if you're in the area and you're in the mood for soon tofu, it is a safe bet.
Ambiance: Book Chang Dong is conveniently located in the same shopping plaza as Super H Mart. Inside even has a little roof that juts out. They have metal spoons and chopsticks at every table.
Food: When I come to Atlanta, this is the place I have to go for my fill of the soon du bu jigae. I'm a huge seafood lover so I always order the Seafood Tofu Soup. Mmmm... They also give you lots and lots of side dishes. It always comes with a salad, fried fish, and kimchi. There are usually at least 3 other side dishes that you can get unlimited refills.
The menu is mostly filled with tofu soups. It also comes with the standard fairs of Kalbi, Bulgolgi, Dolsot Bimbimbop, Paejun etc.
Service: Asian restaurants are pretty notorious for their service, or lack thereof. However, this place is actually decent. If you ever feel that the service has ignored you, there's a little button that you can push and a waiter will come to your table.
Food: Yummy! You get the traditional banchan (side dishes to eat with rice) - around 10 little plates of cabbage kimchee, radish kimchee, yellow tail fish (fried), fruit salad, some kind of lettuce salad, seasoned cucumbers, roasted potatoes with korean peppers, etc. Free refills. It's a lot of food in addition to your entree. I ordered the vegetable dumpling tofu soup - spicy. Basically it's a kimchee soup (jigae) with 3-4 dumplings, tofu, and various veggies. This also comes with a giant bowl of rice.
I'm vegetarian and as far as vegetarian options that soup is the only one but you can order a rice dish without the meat. There's plenty of banchan that's vegetarian so you can get your fill even if you aren't a meat eater.
Atmosphere: very clean, comfortable, lots of tables - some big enough to accomodate for large groups.
Prices: very reasonable - total of whole meal average $10, and it's a lot of food.
Service: It's actually really good! I thought all Asian places are supposed to have bad service. They even have a button at your table that you press and someone comes right over to you. How cool is that? All the waitresses were very nice and allowed for appropriate time interval to check up on you.
Parking: Hmart parking lot.
Location: facing Hmart the left most restaurant on the bottom level.
Hours: I know they open 10 am everyday but not sure of closing times.
Summary: I've been here 3 times, and it's been a good experience each time. Will probably be back again!
Their menu is pretty simple. You can order different versions of tofu soup (seafood, beef, pork, mushroom...etc.) and request different "levels" of spiciness. They serve each order with an individual-sized pan-fried fish with each order, along with hot steamy rice. Their kalbi portion is HUGE and a great deal. If you go when it's crowded, service can be on the slow slide.
Went last night, thought everything was very competent, but what I actually went for--the soondubu jigae--was one of the more 'meh' parts of the meal. I like my seafood tofu soups to be a little richer, stew-ier. Er, or more "stew-like"...stew-ier makes it sound like it's some sorta reference to Family Guy. Which it's not. I love Brian, by the way.
The soondubu here tasted like it hadn't been simmering very long, especially since the tofu, though silken, was still in large, very intact clumps, as opposed to them falling apart, as I like mine to be, since usually by then, the tofu has been cooked long enough to soak up all the flavors of the orangey broth. Ah well, again...it was still competent. Overall taste of the broth was good, just not as rich as I like would have liked.
Panchan was all fine, although nothing out of the ordinary. Bummed that there was no kkakdugi (seriously, the closest I can intonate that word for the non-Asians is "cock-dookie", it's pickled daikon, my favorite kimchee variety...yeah, it is ;) and I dare those of you non-Korean speakers to ask for it by name). Asking for another fried mini mackeral costs $1, but hey, with this economy, I totally understand. The surprise of the evening was the galbi, which was really very good, considering this was a tofu house. It's LA-style galbi (meaning it's sliced on the ribs' cross-section), which I like more than the lengthwise cut. I feel like the marinade coats more of the meat...or maybe I just like what I grew up with. But the quality of the meat was good, and the marinade was tasty without being too sweet or overdone. I kinda wish I had gotten a bigger order, as opposed to just the combo order. The seafood bimbimbap (the rice casserole with seafood) that my dinner companion got was also yuuummmmy! I kept stealing burnt/crispy rice from the edges of his clay bowl. Plenty of seafood and everything tasted fresh.
I might not come here especially for the soondubu, but the bimbimbap and galbi could merit a return visit.
