Chatswood wouldn't normally be my kind of place: a shopping centre in Sydney's suburbs. The mission was to buy clothes, my friend having recently returned from the wilderness and needing city garb. My reason for tagging along was purely gastronomic: a quick internet search showed half a dozen Korean restaurants.
On Victoria Avenue, you're surrounded by Asian eateries: Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Thai and Malaysian. The streets smelled tantalizing. We chose at random, the second Korean place we came to: Dukbaegi, near the Westfield mall, between the railway station and Archer Street. I liked the funky soft benches.
The menu was simple, mostly Korean but with Chinese dishes too: Bibimbap, BBQ Hot Pot Rice, BBQ Noodle, Kalguksu (wheat noodles in soup) and a handful of other soups and hot pots, each available with a choice of meats or seafood or vegetarian, served with a couple of side dishes for a very reasonable A$12-A$15 (£7-8).
The food was excellent. As my friends know, I can never resist ordering bibimbap if I haven't had one for a while. I wasn't disappointed: mushrooms, beansprouts, greens and carrot - all prepared well to bring out their flavour; egg and rice freshly cooked and sprinkled with sesame seeds; and a hot sauce that was just spicy enough. My friend was happy that the portions were generous.
My quibbles with the place? We weren't able to order extra side dishes. We couldn't communicate very well with the waitress. And the toilet facilities were non-existent, the nearest being a public one somewhere across the street, near the library... But the food was great, and a bargain - we'd definitely go back.
366 Victoria Avenue, Chatswood, 2067 (between the railway station and Archer Street, near Westfield mall). NB: According to other accounts, the place gets busy at peak times; we got served quickly mid-afternoon.
