Happy Noodle Korean Restaurant
Near train station
Victoria Avenue, Chatswood
$$—
We were in Chatswood after spending the morning cleaning my old apartment (handing the keys back on Monday) and were going to try out Toraya again, but realised we’d been eating A LOT of Japanese food lately. So randomly decided to go to Happy Noodle Korean Restaurant instead.
Nonsensically-named, it’s actually quite pricey for a dodgy little place tucked into a corner. Dishes approximate around $9 each, whereas food courts are around $8 and even so this place would’ve been cheaper than a food court. Their sole reason for being pricier? MONOPOLY! They’re pretty much the only authentic Korean place in the area.. so authentic that awhile back, they didn’t even had English names on their menu, and the people working there basically speak no English – I learned this when I realised that despite ANY question you ask them, they smile and say “Yes!” Haha.
We ordered 2 mains which we realised were almost identical, except one came on rice and one came with noodles 😉 So much for creativity! Their Korean-style gyozas (dumplings) were fantastic though, moist and delicious. Annoyingly, however, they kinda play favourites. We noticed that the Koreans sitting nearby got larger portions of Kimchi, like double the size. And our mains had small portions of beef, whereas the others had mega portions. Blah!
Their food is good, but I wouldn’t say it’s spectacular. And certainly not as refined and delicate as good Japanese food. What would make it get a higher rating? If their prices were slashed by 50% to reflect the quality and quantity of the portions. That would be perfect!
Happy Noodle Korean Restaurant
Pictorial menu
Kimchi
Bi-Bim-Bab
..With the egg pushed aside
Dumplings
Korean-Style Noodle Soup
oohh, i love korean food! my bf is korean so when we go, he knows what i like and orders the nicer things off the menus and all i have to do is eat. haha…
Ahhh taht’s what I need a local Korean to help me out 😛 We were like blundering tourists there, haha!
korean dumplings are called mandoo (mandu) and have a similar but different filling from japanese gyoza.. they’re pan fried in more oil than gyoza, which obviously results in more grease.
i’m not korean and i’ve realised that they give more (and sometimes different kinds of kimchi) to koreans over non-koreans. i think that they often assume that non-koreans don’t like kimchi, since i suppose that its an acquired taste and many non-koreans are often offended by the smell. but every korean restaurant i’ve been to has been happy to oblige when i asked for more.
YES that’s right! It was listed at Man Du on the menu but I forgot the name :X
That’s a good point about the kimchi, not everyone likes it.. I wish they hadn’t also skimped on the beef/ingredients in the mains we ordered though. D’oh! But if everything was half price, then it’ll be well worth it 🙂
oohh, i love korean food! my bf is korean so when we go, he knows what i like and orders the nicer things off the menus and all i have to do is eat. haha…
Ahhh taht’s what I need a local Korean to help me out 😛 We were like blundering tourists there, haha!
korean dumplings are called mandoo (mandu) and have a similar but different filling from japanese gyoza.. they’re pan fried in more oil than gyoza, which obviously results in more grease.
i’m not korean and i’ve realised that they give more (and sometimes different kinds of kimchi) to koreans over non-koreans. i think that they often assume that non-koreans don’t like kimchi, since i suppose that its an acquired taste and many non-koreans are often offended by the smell. but every korean restaurant i’ve been to has been happy to oblige when i asked for more.
YES that’s right! It was listed at Man Du on the menu but I forgot the name :X
That’s a good point about the kimchi, not everyone likes it.. I wish they hadn’t also skimped on the beef/ingredients in the mains we ordered though. D’oh! But if everything was half price, then it’ll be well worth it 🙂
oooooo kimchi!!!!!!!!!!!~~~~
when i was in perth, my next door neighbour’s a korean and she made ALL her kimchis! and she gave me whenever she have fresh ones. thats REALLY veryyy yummys.
the gyozas look like they are exploding outta their skins!
I like kimchi too, only started eating it really recently. I also like that Singaporean salted veg that you get at bak ku teh stalls :)~
its healthy too! :))
ahhh, ya thats nice. actually its VERY cheap. but the stall owners usually up it to like 1-2bucks to sell.
the gyozas from Asagao Rest in your previous post look a wee bit yummier and less oily. i lurve gyozas btw!
Yeah I agree, Asagao’s version was better!
i love korean food!
my new favourite restaurant is “Seoul-ria” in the city, ontop of Fujiya japanese restaurant!
Oo I’ve never ever heard of that place, thanks I’ll keep a look out for it!
oooooo kimchi!!!!!!!!!!!~~~~
when i was in perth, my next door neighbour’s a korean and she made ALL her kimchis! and she gave me whenever she have fresh ones. thats REALLY veryyy yummys.
the gyozas look like they are exploding outta their skins!
I like kimchi too, only started eating it really recently. I also like that Singaporean salted veg that you get at bak ku teh stalls :)~
its healthy too! :))
ahhh, ya thats nice. actually its VERY cheap. but the stall owners usually up it to like 1-2bucks to sell.
the gyozas from Asagao Rest in your previous post look a wee bit yummier and less oily. i lurve gyozas btw!
Yeah I agree, Asagao’s version was better!
i love korean food!
my new favourite restaurant is “Seoul-ria” in the city, ontop of Fujiya japanese restaurant!
Oo I’ve never ever heard of that place, thanks I’ll keep a look out for it!