Dak Galbi @ Uncle Jang Korean Restaurant, Solaris Mont Kiara

After our awesome Korean BBQ meal at Little Korea, I noticed another Korean restaurant called Uncle Jang that has a rather weird sign – a smiling bald uncle. The sign and restaurant name do not explain much but we found out later that they actually serve Dak Galbi – a popular South Korean dish especially for students who are on a low meal budget. Well, I think that applies only for Korean students.
Now if you are wondering what Dak Galbi is, let me explain after researching with my leet Google skills. This dish originates from the city of Chuncheon in Korea and is made by stir-frying diced-chicken, cabbage, scallions, onions and rice cake on huge pan in a chili-pepper based sauce. Since this dish is pretty much Kimchi free (unless you add it in yourself) we thought it should suit us and decided to give it a try.

A huge gas-powered pan heater sits on every table.

A big frying pan being set up for preparing the Dak Galbi, now you could now see the relative size with the staff behind it.

Free ice water and tissues – these will come handy later.

There is a minimum order of 2 pax and you could choose either the non-spicy or spicy portions. For starters I suggest going for the 1:1 ratio (1 part spicy @ RM22, 1 part non-spicy @ RM19) first to gauge your tolerance towards the spiciness. Although I could handle spicy food very well I would still prefer to play safe, rather than having something too spicy to enjoy.
Besides, you need to consider for your dining partners’ comfort too because they will be eating from the same pan you see. And, as it turns out, 1:1 is just the right ratio, as anything beyond that would not be too pleasant for most people. Extra toppings like mushroom, egg, cheese etc are available too.

Sit back and relax and watch the frying process, it takes about 10-20 minutes.

At this point the Dak Galbi is cooked and ready to eat, smells good. We added an egg and Ramen (optional, could be rice) which went quite well with the dish.

Finally, cheese is added on top.

You could have it straight from the pan, or wrap it in the lettuce provided. While it looks promisingly good, taste wise it was really just OK and nothing fantastic. It was a bit bland on the flavor (by Malaysian standards) but at least the chicken and cabbage were enjoyable. With the added cheese, it feels like eating a spicy version of Hong Kong cheese baked-noodle.

If you are worried that spilling might occur during the stir-fry process, aprons are provided. I did not put it on because it looks kind of silly don’t you think? Especially on guys. And lastly, I would not recommend eating at Uncle Jang before an important appointment. Because of the less than adequate ventilation and the absence of hoods above the frying pans, you would smell like a Dak Galbi yourself later.

Uncle Jang Korean Restaurant
No 11-3 & 13-3 (Third Floor), Jalan Solaris 1
Mont Kiara, 50480 Kuala Lumpur
Tel: 03-62112536
Business hours:
Mon : 12:00 pm – 3:00 pm / 6:00 pm – 11:00 pm
Tue : 6:00 pm – 11:00 pm
Wed – Fri : 12:00 pm – 3:00 pm / 6:00 pm – 11:00 pm
Sat – Sun : 12:00 pm – 11:00 pm