mandoo korean dumplings.

Mandoo (which means dumpling in Korean) is a really small shop on Bank Street, just off of North Terrace and Hindley Street.  The dumplings are hand-made daily by the chef and can either be served as fried dumplings with salad or cooked in broth.  On previous occasions I had always ordered the dumplings, but my Korean teacher (whom I was eating with) recommended the bibimbap.

Bibimbap

Bibimbap, which is a mixture of rice, vegetables and meat, normally tastes the same to me.  I've eaten it a lot before, both in Adelaide and in Seoul, but this one was actually really good.  I'm not sure whether it was because of the ingredients they used or something else, but it tasted a bit different to the others.  There was a lot of meat and vegetables in my bowl and when mixed with the chilli paste it was amazing.  It's also a pretty healthy option for lunch since there are so many vegetables, and you can always substitute the white rice for brown rice.

Pork Dumplings

 My teacher ordered the pork dumplings and couldn't finish them all.  It smelled really good and probably, if they were anything like the ones I've had before, tasted really good as well.

Home-Made Pickles

Home-Made Kimchi

One of the best things about Mandoo is that they serve home-made marinated pickles which are slightly sweet but tangy at the same time.  They are so yum that I could eat a whole bowl of them.  Their kimchi is also home-made as well, but they don't normally serve it unless you ask for it.   Kimchi can be a bit of an acquired taste, but once you try out a few you'll know which flavour you like.

For dumpling lovers you should definitely give Mandoo a go.  The dumpling shape is pretty different to what most people are accustomed to and the dumpling skin is a bit thicker as well.