SoonDae Ya Korean Restaurant, Ampang Putra – for Korean dishes that’s out of the ordinary!

The primary reason I wanted to share about this place was because of the out-of-the ordinary dishes offered. I’m a bit jaded with the typical fare of Korean BBQ, bimbimbap and bulgogi, of which I’m sure most of us here share the same sentiments.

Here, a 3 page menu depicts all SoonDae Ya has to offer. Yes, options are few and straightforward. So are the furnishings and food.

Getting lost for more than an hour past my lunch time was horrible, but thankfully the food was worth the trouble. My mood lifted considerably after lunch.

Work was bad that week, and spirit was down. But good food always rejuvates the soul…no?

Let’s start with what’s free, since we are all accustomed to free-flow bachan (small dishes of food served during the meal and replenishable during the meal) whenever we sit down at a Korean dining establishment.

Unfortunately, there’s no complimentary bachan here. There’s free plain water though.

Ok, that was a joke. :DD

There was 2 complimentary bachan; versus the usual number of 6-8 types that most Korean restaurants serve . The Kkakdugi/Radish Kimchi is pretty good, as it was sour and spicy enough. Same goes for the Kimchi/Nappa Cabbage Kimchi. It can easily be stamped as one of the best I have tried so far. And this is coming from me, a non-kimchi lover!

Kkakdugi/Radish Kimchi.

Kimchi/Nappa Cabbage Kimchi.

We bought a Voucher for this so we enjoyed all of the below for a mere RM45, 50% of the value of RM90. 4 of us shared:

• 1 main dish – choose from 3 choices (4 pax)
• 1 Korean pancake (regular size)
• 2 side dishes (Kim Chi and Kkakdugi)
• 4 bowls of rice
• Soup (refillable)
• Korean Tranditional Tea – refillable twice (Cold Ginger Cinnamon Tea, Rice Tea, OR Korean Coffee)

Our chosen main was Bo-Ssam – pork belly boiled with Korean ginseng, bay leaves and bean paste.

Though it looked really plain, each slice was subtly infused with flavour and wonderfully tender.

“Ssam“, by the way, means wrapped. Our Bo-Ssam set consisted of steamed pork, sweet kimchi and lettuce.

So the correct way of savouring this was to wrap the pork belly together with special Sweet Kimchi with the lettuce. Pop into your mouth and enjoy the conmingle of spicy sweet kimchi with tender pork belly and the crunch of lettuce.

We literally ignored the rice.

Which after a while we thought to be a waste, since the rice was nice and sticky, as how it should be. From their website, we found out that their ingredients – even the chefs – are all imported from Korea.

So we added an order of King Donkatsu, which we presume the “King” refers to the portion.

Not bad right? For RM20, we thought it was pretty worth it; and even more so after we tasted it. SoonDae Ya’s King Donkatsu; essentially Pork Cutlet with a special brown sauce and sesame seeds has a crispy coat yet retaining the moisture of the meat within. The sauce was additively delish as well.
Needless to say, the 4 bowls of rice wasn’t wasted.

This came with a nice side salad; not very Korean no doubt, but much appreciated anyhow.

I love Korean pancakes and SoonDae Ya’s Pajeon is very good. “Pa” literally means green onion in Korean, and that’s the main ingredient in this dish.
It’s best eaten when it’s hot, since it is a pan-fried pancake made from a batter of eggs, flour, rice flour, green onions and other additional ingredients like beef, pork, kimchi, shellfish or perhaps seafood.
When it cold, it gets soggy with oil and definitely not as appetizing as it was when it’s crispy hot. Anyhow, I must say that SoonDae Ya’s version is still one of the better ones I have had so far, and good enough to eat on its own. It’s served with  an accompanying special sauce should you require more flavour.

So is there any meaning behind that name SoonDaeYa?
Soon Dae(Sundae) is a Korean dish made by boiling or steaming pig’s intestines that are stuffed with various ingredients. Apparently, the restaurant’s specialty is this particular creation.

And they are believed to be the FIRST in Malaysia that offers Soon Dae (Sundae) on the menu. 3 types of Soon Dae are available; Meat Sundae, Vegetable Sundae and Kimchi Sundae. (Pic above credited to http://www.everyday.com.my)

Told you that this place serves out-of-the ordinary dishes right? We were stuffed that day and didn’t manage to try the Soon Dae. Guess I have to make another visit soon! Anyone here game for it?? 😀

Below: Rice Tea (I like it) and weak Korean Coffee.

All pictures (unless otherwise stated) credited to fellow foodie Ulric (KC Wong) .

Restoran Soon Dae Ya