There are only a handful of Korean restaurants in Morris County and while we thought that Seoulville in Somerville provided a finer dining experience and better food, we have put SGD Dubu on our “let’s try to get back here” list especially for the tofu stew.
We were the only Caucasians in this unassuming busy storefront restaurant located in a mall, and we were also the only ones drinking wine. All of the other customers were drinking hot tea, which was constantly being refilled.
Before our meal the following banchan, complimentary side dishes, were served: crisp spicy cucumbers, flat seafood cakes, lightly dressed bean sprouts, kimchi and edamame. We shared a fried seafood pancake as an appetizer that reminded us of a potato latke. It was made with shredded potatoes, scallions, squid and shrimp and although it was messy to handle, it was very tasty.
Dubu is the Korean name for tofu and the silky version here is used in a tofu stew in which you can pick your ingredient such as mushrooms, beef, clams, seafood or pork, then choose your level of spiciness from plain to very spicy, and choose a starch (flat-noodle ramen or hot-stone rice). We opted for vegetable tofu stew, regular spice, which was number 3 out of 5, and ramen. This scrumptious dish, served bubbling hot, would be perfect on a cold winter night. The ramen noodles were not as chewy as others we have previously had but this stew is what we viewed to be the Korean version of Jewish chicken soup.
Bibimbap, a signature Korean dish, was served in a hot stone bowl filled with pork (other options such as beef, chicken or seafood are available), mushrooms, zucchini, shredded eggs, bean sprouts, shredded carrots and onions. The best part of this dish is the rice on the bottom of the bowl, which sizzles and crisps up.
Portions are big and most likely you will have leftovers to take home. The staff supplies containers and a paper bag for you to pack them up yourselves.
Open daily from 11 AM.
SGD Dubu
240 Rt 10
East Hanover
973-386-5959
BYO
Fried seafood pancake
Vegetable tofu stew
Photos courtesy of Lowell Saferstein
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