South Korean chef Paik Jong-won leads a Korean food empire, with more than 2,000 restaurants, 5 million YouTube subscribers and several TV shows under his belt. Melburnians have already been treated to a taste of Korean barbecue at Paik's BBQ, but now punters can slurp up saucy and comforting Korean noodle dishes at Paik's Noodle.
The menu, which features just nine dishes priced as low as $11, highlights fermented Korean flavours and Paik's famed sauces. All dishes work well as mains or as shared plates if you're eating with friends, and some dishes can be sized up or down.
Start with an order of Paik's signature tangsuyuk, a platter of deep-fried pork and vegetables served with a jelly-like sweet and sour sauce. For those who prefer things on the savoury side, there's a drawer in the table with soy sauce, vinegar and chilli powder that you can mix together for a dipping sauce.
The noodles are handmade in-house daily, immediately obvious from the springy and almost meaty bite and mouthfeel. Get them coated in stir-fried vegetables, seafood and oyster sauce (the bokkeum jjamppong) or with stir-fried pork, black bean sauce and vegetables (jajang-myeon).
If you can handle the heat, there are several chilli-spiked options to choose from. The gochu jjamppong is like a Korean version of seafood gumbo with noodles, or you can keep things simple with the ogchu jajang, the spicy version of the jajang-myeon. Relieve the burn from the spice with Korean soju, beer or soft drinks.
Craving more Korean food? Check out our round-up of 11 of the best Korean restaurants in Melbourne.