MELBOURNE | Paik Jong Won is a South Korean entrepreneur, TV celebrity, and chef, and the man behind several successful global Korean food chains. One of his most popular is Paik’s Noodle / HongKong Banjum 0410, which has over 2,000 outlets worldwide. The first Australian location opened last month, and I was invited in to check it out.
The focus is on noodles, served fast and at an affordable price. When I visited, I asked what was recommended, and was pointed to two of Paik’s signature dishes, along with a third recommendation to try ‘if I liked spicy food’, I went for all three.
First up gochu jjamppong, a noodle soup featuring a chilli broth slow simmered with vegetables, kimchi, mussels, squid, and dense, chewy noodles. I really enjoyed the richness of flavour and texture of the noodles in this one.
Next up, the signature jajangmyeon. This one’s those same dense chewy house made noodles, topped with a pork a rich vegetable black bean sauce. Finally, another signature dish, tangsuyuk. It’s a plate of deep fried pork, with an almost prawn cracker-like coating, served with a thick, gelatinous sweet and sour sauce an vegetables. Some really unique textures going on with each bite here, that I’m a fan of.
Pickles are served while you decide what you want to order, and a drawer under each table is filled with condiments like vinegar, soy sauce, and chilli powder if you wish to season your food further.
To drink, it’s a small selection of soju, Korean beer, non alcoholic Korean drinks, and soft drinks.
Paik’s Noodle / HongKong Banjum 0410
470 Little Lonsdale Street
Melbourne
Victoria 3000
Australia
Telephone: (03) 9583 3999
E-mail: n/a
Website
Open
Tue – Thu: 5:00pm to 10:30pm
Fri – Sat: 5:00pm to 12:00am