Friday, April 8, 2011

Gung, Gurgaon

[Rated: 5/5]


Acknowledged. I am not an authority in Korean cuisine. But I still wanted to write about my experience at Gung, the Korean restaurant. Two reasons – One I Could not find any earlier review of this place on the net through which I could get an idea of the food and ambiance of Gung, and Secondly, I believe most of the people who will read this review would be experimenting with Korean food for the first time and they would like to read the review from the eyes of a person who (like them) is an amateur in this cuisine.


Gung (pronounced ‘goong’) is an experience in itself. No sooner you enter the restaurant you are awed by the beautiful décor which is done in traditional Korean setting which oozes elegance. The words can not do justice to convey the efforts that have gone behind putting up this beautiful place, hence do have a look at the enclosed pictures. As they say, picture is worth a 1000 words. Gung, Gurgaon has a huge cover of over 200 guests with area demarcated for private dining rooms, kids play room and 2 Karaoke rooms. On a Thursday, Gung was already full with Koreans, Japanese and Indian guests by 8pm. The private cabin has the traditional style of seating on the floor, for which one needs to take off the shoes. But this is not uncomfortable as one may imagine. As you sit, you notice the floor is at least 2 feet below the table where one can sit normally, like on a chair. This is very innovative and a clever blend of tradition and comfort. Press the small bell on the table and a server wearing a beautiful smile would come in a jiffy. A spread of complimentary accompaniments was kept on the table, which included Kimchi Salad, dried fish pickle, egg roll, and crisp potato tikki amongst others with unlimited refills. I am sure one can have a treat on these items itself.



The menu was quite extensive, with each dish explained along with the photograph on the menu. This really helped first timers like me to get a feel of what all is in offer. I was still baffled with all the choices, when Jin Bum Kim, the director of Gung came to our rescue. We ordered for food along with some Korean wine, Soju (Rs800), and Makroli (Rs400). Makroli is a very sweet wine and people with a sweet tooth are going to love it. Soju is a rice wine and it tasted like a slightly sweeter version of vodka. These white wines complemented the food fairly well, contradicting the theory of red wine for red meat.




The first dish that came to our table, which had a grill on the centre, was Beef Stew Barbeque (Rs1200). Hostess dressed in traditional Korean outfit barbequed the beef on central grill in front of us. The cabin was soon filled with the lovely aroma coming out of griller building up our appetite. Barbequed beef taste was further enhanced by the chilly paste dip kept on the table. My friend wanted to try the raw Beef Sashimi (Rs1800), and Jin told us that currently Gung is the only Korean restaurant serving this dish in the NCR region. I was petrified on the idea of eating raw beef, but still ventured into trying the dish. Raw beef, mixed with raw egg, and thin strands of apple for some strange reasons tasted good.
Beef Stew


Beef Sashimi
Pork Galbi (Marinated)


Other dishes included Korean Seafood Pancake (Rs700), Kimchi Tofu Casserole with Pork, served with rice (Rs1600) and Pork Galbi (Rs1000), which is marinated and barbequed pork ribs. Pork Galbi was marinated well and was an absolute melt in the mouth. Though we enjoyed all the dishes but Pork Galbi was clearly the show stealer.



Well I carried an impression of Korean food to be bland, but was pleasantly surprised to note that the food tastes very similar to Indian food. In fact, Kimchi Tofu Casserole was quite spicy for my taste. It would be noteworthy to state that since most of the dishes were grilled the food never left us with a bloated feeling in spite of us hogging on to as many dishes.

Gung follows the traditional Korean culture and does not have any desserts in its menu, but they do offer complimentary fruits, coffee, and green tea, if you have any space left.

Post picking up some tit-bits of Korean culture from Jin (which can not be replicated in this forum), getting pigged, and still in awe with the ambiance we tried some Karaoke, and was surprised to note the singing skills of my friend who accompanied me. And yes, we did wear back our shoes which already had a complimentary shine.

One may find Gung to be expensive as a stand alone restaurant but it fully justifies its prices by large portions of the dishes, great service, an innovative and comfortable layout, and more importantly the imported meats and spices it uses in the food preparation.

My verdict for Gung: When you like to feel special, when you want to be pampered, when you want to have a hell lot of a time with colleagues and friends, do try Gung for the food, and MUST try it for a great overall experience.

- Pawan Soni

P.S.: Missed trying chicken dishes this time, but Gung offers many options in Chicken too. The restaurant has vegetarian items too, but Gung remains a non-vegetarian paradise.

Meal for Two: Rs3500
For Reservations Contact: 0124-438101
Address: Plot No. 27-28, Sector-29, City Centre, Gurgaon (Behind Crowne Plaza Hotel/ infront of Bikanerwala)

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