Aaren Prody
Audio By Carbonatix
Korean culture in Dallas was budding in the late ’80s; hundreds of Korean restaurants dotted the intersection of Harry Hines and Royal Lane. Now, a new epicenter has developed in Carrollton. Many of the restaurants that helped define the original commercial district have since closed, but a sprinkle of original spots are still kicking in the old digs.
Dallas, Seolleongtang. Seolleongtang, Dallas.
Doma Seolleongtang embraces tradition and innovation with two locations: one in Old Koreatown, off Harry Hines, and the other in New Koreatown in Carrollton. Both locations specialize in a snow-white, ox bone soup called seolleongtang.
Seolleongtang made properly requires a love affair between time and patience. Traditionally, only bones are simmered until the milky white broth is achieved, but these days, cooks will toss in feet, pieces of head, brisket and shank for a little more flavor. Recipes vary, but expect a day to be set aside at this pot.
It’s laborious, and while it isn’t the sole menu item, it’s what most people come to Doma for.
The Best Meal $15.99 Buys
Our No. 2, the chadol seolleongtang, is the classic soup with brisket. For $15.99, it comes with a full pitcher of barley tea and five different types of banchan: white rice, kimchi green onion, kimchi radish, regular kimchi, a pile of green onion and this jalapeño and onion mixture that the server adds spicy mustard to.
They will warn you right off the bat that the soup is boiling. Trust them. We had to wait at least five minutes before we could even try to slurp the broth, but it’s worth the wait to taste the full broth flavor. Adjust accordingly with salt, pepper and green onions on the table.
We did two scoops of salt, a few generous sprinkles of the black pepper and all the green onion, of course. Some people like to dump the white rice in the bowl with the soup, but we kept ours on the side.
Now, you’re ready to eat. That tangy onion-and-jalapeno mixture is for dipping the chunks of meat in. The vinegar-and-sugar brine helps cut through the meat’s fatiness and gives it a little kick, too.
The soup itself is not a flavor bomb, and that’s the point. The bold flavors come from the different kimchis and the jalapeño-onion combo.
Our favorite of the banchan was the radish kimchi, which was crunchy and tangy, with just a little bit spice. We liked to alternate between bites with the soup and noodles, beef with the tangy sauce and then alternative chopstick-fulls of each kimchi. Any heat kick is eased with the pretty much bottomless (for one) pitcher of tea.
The nourishment the soup gives is exactly why this place opens at 9 a.m. every day of the week. We couldn’t think of a better spot to stumble into on a weekend morning.
Doma Seolleongtang, 11441 N Stemmons Freeway, Monday – Sunday, 9 a.m. to 9 p.m.
Doma Seolleongtang, 2640 Old Denton Road, Monday – Sunday, 9:30 a.m. to 9:30 p.m.
