Myung Dong Bon Ga

Look, I grew up in Los Angeles, where they have some of the best Korean food in the world, so I’m not going to expect these GA places to knock my socks off.
I’d say this is a pretty decent restaurant. Given my experiences, I wasn’t expecting a whole lot, but I was pleasantly surprised by their dishes. Their dolsot bibimbap is a real throwback to how I remember it growing up, which is saying something as I don’t think many places get it right anymore. Consistency is a problem though, as I’ve found often times they don’t get the water levels in the rice done properly, which is very important. One time the waitress said they don’t put egg in the dish, which is absolutely ridiculous – it’s almost like saying there’s no egg on eggs benedict. We convinced her to put it in.
Their restaurant name comes from a well known district in Seoul called Myung Dong, where they have fantastic kalguksoo and mandoo (dumplings). I’ve eaten there, and this is not the same thing. It’s not bad, and it’s the best I know of in ATL, but the noodles are a bit thin and always overcooked which to me is like a cardinal sin. The broth was done better than the noodles. If you try the kimchee version of the kalguksoo, just remember it won’t have that starchy potato texture and really comes across like a thinned out kimchi chigae. It’ll taste a lot better if you get the traditional kalguksoo and then add some of the kimchi they bring to the table. That way you get the broth the way it should be, plus you can control the amount of kimchi and spice you want in there.

closed.

Maybe my expectations were too high due to all the positive reviews, or maybe the food just wasn’t that good. You can be the judge. The hubs and I ordered the kal guksu and the wang mandoo.
Am I the only one who didn’t get handmade noodles in their kal guksu? The noodles in my soup were not handmade, they were definitely store bought. Handmade noodles are usually a little thicker and more chewy in texture, and not uniform in length and size. These noodles were very uniform, soft, and thin (approx the size of thick spaghetti noodles). Very disappointing!
The wang mandoo was fairly tasty, nothing to Unilocal about, but tasty. You’ll definitely need to dip it in the sauce they have on the table otherwise it’ll be a little bland.
Overall, I didn’t think too highly of this place. In addition to the mediocre food, the service was super slow. I don’t think I’ll be visiting this place again.

I am *not* a korean noodle expert. But I will say this place made me a believer in open dining. I loved kal-​gook-​soo, along with the shabu-​shabu and the king-​sized dumplings! The english spoken wasn’t perfect, but the service is always with a smile. Who knows — as I try more korean restaurants, I may be bumping this to a 5!

Wang mandoo kalguksoo. King-​size dumplings with handcut noodles in a hot (temperature-​wise) soup. Very tasty.
Great service. Friendly. Clean, well-​lit space.

I love their homemade noodle soup & king-​sized dumplings so much I decided to upgrade my review to 5 stars. My parents & I love their noodles. We came here for lunch today b/​c it’s my mom’s birthday — and eating noodles on your birthday is a Korean tradition where eating noodles = long life :) Doesn’t matter if they’re Udon noodles, Jja Jang Myun noodles, or spaghetti — any noodles work :) But if our family is celebrating a birthday in Atlanta, we’re going to Myung Dong Bön Ga :)
FYI — the $ 3.99 promo is no longer available.

It’s been a while since I had kal-​gook-​soo (homemade noodle soup), so it was a nice treat.
FOOD: I had the kal-​gook-​soo, which might be enough for two girls and also I had the man-​doo (king size dumplings). You can tell the noodles and the dumplings were homemade and not store bought. The kal-​gook-​soo was in a tasty broth. The dumplings came 6 to a serving and tasted like my mother’s dumplings. It’s very reasonably priced and fast service. The kimchee was very good too.
TIP: Everything is written in Korean, so you may need a translator.

I looooove this place. So do my parents. My parents love kalgooksu and so this is their go-​to after church «date» spot (it’s cute!).
The kalgooksu is definitely top notch. The broth is excellent and so shiwonhae (refreshing), so if you’re a hardcore kalgooksu person, you must try it at Myung Dong. The noodles are plentiful and phenomenal in texture as are the ingredients in the broth. Lots of scallion stalks, seafood, etc. Just keep boiling the broth and it’ll get more and more savory.
I also had the shabu-​shabu which is very good. I don’t think it’s as good their kalgooksu, but if you’re into something more flavorful and spicy and not as subtle as kalgooksu, get the shabu-​shabu. They will serve the dippers (ingredients) on a wooden tray and they are displayed beautifully and are so colorful (various fresh greens, wood mushrooms, giant enotitake, butternut squash, beef, etc.).
Lastly, everyone should know that the BEST DUMPLINGS ON EARTH are at Myung Dong. I’ve had out-​of-​towners get the larger-​than-​life steamed dumplings at Myung Dong and they’ve repeatedly said they’re the best they’ve ever had. I’ve never had better mandoo anywhere. If you’re not a gooksu/​shabu-​shabu person, go just for the dumplings. I promise you’ll love it!