Where and Wear: Daebak
Located in the bustling central street of Chicago’s Chinatown, Daebak has been quietly advertising its “soft opening” since February. The restaurant specializes in Korean barbeque, and the name translates to “awesome” in English, and it certainly lives up to it.
The restaurant gleams with shiny stainless steel tables equipped with barbeque areas. Located on the second floor of the building, Daebak offers a view of Chinatown. The real highlight of this layout is the giant TV screens. Projected on both the front, back, and many TVs around the restaurant are various K-Pop singers and their music videos. It offers a more authentic vibe, making you feel more surrounded by Korean art and culture while enjoying the food.
image via
The restaurant offers separate platters of meat–mainly pork or beef–as well as combination platters that include sides. We opted for the beef combo, which came with a set of thinly sliced brisket, a slab of marinated boneless short ribs, and a bowl of seasoned prime boneless short ribs. The combo was served with an assortment of side dishes–which taste pretty good eaten alone too–such as bean sprouts, potato salad, fish cakes, kimchi, kimchi radish and turnip, squash, and soybeans. I would highly recommend one of the combos, as it is a better deal than individual orders.
Image courtesy of Andrea Li
