Feb 2010

Dwit Gol Mok (DGM) – Los Angeles (Koreatown)

DGM SIGNAGE

Dwit Gol Mok,* better known as DGM, is literally and figuratively a hidden gem. While its address reads Wilshire Boulevard, the entrance is actually tucked far behind the main drag. The Astronomer and I probably would’ve never found it had our friend Danny not provided us with detailed instructions. “Try to locate parking near Vermont,” he advised. “Then head down Berendo and through the parking lot.” We did what we were told and found ourselves in a dark and unassuming alleyway. There wasn’t an English sign in sight, but we followed the wondrous smells of smoky barbecue and pungent gochujang and made our way through the old wooden building blaring K-pop.

DGM INTERIOR

Once inside, we headed up to the second floor to locate Danny and the rest of our party, including the Two Hungry Pandas and the Starry Kitchen duo. Walking through the restaurant, I couldn’t help but notice the artful doodles covering every surface. I was kicking myself for not bringing along my collection of Sharpies to the restaurant. Next time around, I’m totally scribbling ‘Cathy+Vernon 4-Eva’ on the wall, surrounded by lots of little hearts.

DGM INTERIOR

The specialties at this two-story graffiti palace are a killer combination of Korean bar food and potent soju. The crowd is young, mostly Korean-speaking, and always seem to be having a rowdy time.

DGM MENU

No one in our group was actually Korean, but fortunately Danny grew up on Korean fare and was more than capable navigating the wooden slab menu. DGM offers a 50% discount on all food ordered before 8 PM every day of the week as long as alcohol is ordered as well. We took advantage of this deal to the fullest on our visit. According to Danny, food is only discounted 25% if no booze is ordered.

YOGURT SOJU

To start off our meal, we ordered two copper pots of soju, one yogurt and another peach. I was warned to sip slowly because soju tends to hide behind a curtain of sweetness and attack when one least expects.

PORK STRIPS

The marinated pork ribs were the first dish to arrive. The thin strips of meat were coated in a sweet glaze reminiscent of food court Chinese food.

MILITARY STEW

Next, a bubbling pot of budae jigae came to the table. Known as “army base stew,” this dish was invented following the Korean War when Seoul faced a meat shortage. Budae jigae was designed to make use of surplus foods from U.S. Army bases, including prepackaged ramen noodles and ready-to-eat hot dogs. The bulk of the soup’s flavor comes from a heavy heap of spicy Korean red pepper paste—it made me sweat.

INTESTINE SOUP

The spicy intestine soup with udon noodles packed some heat as well, but was milder than the budae jigae by several notches. The intestines benefited from the roaring fire beneath them and were very tender and supple.

FRIED OYSTERS

The fried oysters pleased the crowd with their crisp and crunchy breading and briny hot innards.

CHEESE CORN

Nguyen of Starry Kitchen made a special request for cheese corn, which arrived on a sizzling platter. Even though I love both cheese and corn, I wasn’t so sure that they’d meld together well. While the combination was far from offensive, the corn’s saccharine-like quality was overwhelming. A little less sweetness and I would’ve been on board. I did enjoy the delightful sear that the platter imparted on the kernels.

SEAFOOD PANCAKE

The hamul pajun (seafood pancake) was seriously good. I was taken by the tender and plentiful squid.

RABUKEE

I made a special request for rabukkee (spicy dukboki with ramen noodles) because I have an inexplicable affinity for cylindrical rice cakes smothered in hot gochujang. The ramen noodles added a unique and welcome touch to the dish. I find that additional carbs are rarely a bad thing.

WINGS

Lastly, an order of ton dak (spicy chicken wings), which was served with a side of Thousand Island-dressed cabbage and a bowl of tangy sauce for dipping. The Astronomer was impressed by the wings and their accompanying sauce, which tasted like a blend of of tamarind and Sriracha.

Our party of seven racked up a $93 tab when all was eaten and sipped. Considering our grand spread, the total was a pittance. I’m excited to return to DGM to practice my Korean food pronunciations (currently, they are atrocious) and to introduce a newbie to this hidden find. Joints like DGM are what make living and eating in Los Angeles so awesome.

* Word on the street is that dwit gol mok is Korean for “back alley.” How appropriate.

Dwit Gol Mok (DGM)
3275 Wilshire Boulevard
Los Angeles, CA 90010
Phone: 213-382-8432

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27 thoughts on “Dwit Gol Mok (DGM) – Los Angeles (Koreatown)

  1. That looks like the best kept secret in all of LA. You had me at “seafood pancake.” 🙂

    When I was just out of college, we used to hang out at this small hole-in-the-wall dive bar in Anaheim that had writing all over the walls in the bathroom (yes, just the one). In a drunken stupor one night, I wrote a filthy limerick that disparaged the place right over the sink. Then I signed it. My friend went in right after me and wrote my phone number underneath it (obviously, he was drunker than I was). Needless to say, that didn’t go well.

  2. Phil – Your story cracked me up! You gotta stick to declarations of love and little hearts! Naughty limericks will get you nowhere. “There once was a man from Orange County…” 😉

  3. yeah, this place is one of the most “authentic” experiences of Korea you can get in LA. I’m afraid that many people who aren’t familiar to the way it works will get a little turned off by it. I’d recommend going with someone that’s Korean or someone like Danny who can navigate the menu and service.

  4. So there are no english translations on the menu? I guess I’ll have to make some Korean friends if I want to check it out!

  5. Hi, I’ve been an admirer of your blog for quite some time. I’m Korean but had budae jigae for the first time this winter in Korea and I’ve been craving some since I’ve been back. I have not yet been to DGM, but it’s definitely on my to do list now. The rabukkee looks really good too! Keep up the great posts and recipes.

  6. Doh, why am I seeing this post now! WOW, those pics turned out AWESOME too. Great job!

    Agreed, that cheese corn wasn’t as good as it normally is (we gotta take you guys somewhere else to get this uniquely Korean-American dish). haha

    And I liked the “word on the street” quote at the end. 🙂 Seriously, we’re still in LOVE w/ DGM after going here for almost 5 years now. Good times!

  7. Dwit Gol Mok is good, but I actually prefer the place down the street from it. On 6th and Berendo is dan sung sah, same style of pub and food….but better for me. Especially their fried gizzards.

  8. I’m gonna let the racist cat out of the bag on this place: DON’T BOTHER GOING UNLESS YOU CAN PASS FOR KOREAN.

    I used to love this place, but last night fixed that delusion. This place is exercising some f-ed up racist bull to systematically weed out non-Korean customers. I, myself, am Korean and am embarrassed by this. I was there with two peeps. One is Asian and passes for Korean. The other is Caucasian. Immediately, I sensed the vibe wasn’t right- the usual warm greeting and hurried ushering to our tables were totally absent. While other parties that were all Korean were getting ushered in, we were asked to wait since there were no tables for us. At this point, I shrugged off the weird treatment as just bad service.

    Once we were seated there was practically no service; our table was completely ignored. We probably should have just left, but I didn’t want bad service to ruin an otherwise fun night out. I should have followed my instinct. Later on that evening, while waiting for the restroom, I commented to one of the wait staff that it’s interesting that there were no white people. His response, I kid you not, was: ‘we like to keep our environment pure’ That confirmed the racist bullshit I had experienced. We left after finishing the two beers and a soju that were ordered. This morning I learned that those racist jerks ripped off my friends and charged more than double for a bill that should have been no more than $20.

    DGM ought to be ashamed of themselves. It’s just unacceptable and truly disgusting behavior.

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