Dong Yang Oriental Foods

735 45th Ave NE
Minneapolis, MN 55421
763-571-2009

Category: Korean, Food Market

Rating (Scale 1-10, with 10 being the highest):
Food: 7
Service: N/A (self-service)
Ambience: 5

Recommendation: Very Good. Dong Yang is a Korean/Asian grocery store with a small deli style restaurant tucked in the back serving Korean food. The restaurant is bare bones but the food is authentic, freshly made, and delicious.

Located close to the northern edge of Central Avenue, Dong Yang is not necessarily convenient but is worth a stop. The grocery store stocks primarily Korean food with a few items from other parts of Asia (try the Red Bean Ice cream sandwich). But the main attraction for us was the little deli tucked in the back that serves Korean food. It reminded our Korean friend of mom’s cooking, enough to want to make him call mom after the meal. The counter takes orders only until 7:30pm Mon-Sat and until 5:30pm on Sundays. The experience is pretty bare bones…plastic everything and we had to eat in small Styrofoam take out containers because they didn’t have any plates. Thankfully, the food made up for what the rest of the experience lacked. The menu has a large selection of traditional Korean dishes...ranging from Soups to Meats to Fish. We enjoyed Dong Yang as much as Hoban in Eagan.

Once we placed the order, the food started coming out relatively quickly. The meal started with Banchan of course, the small side dishes that accompany every traditional Korean meal. We were served six different types and the variety changes each day. We had two types of Kimchi (fermented cabbage seasoned with chilies and salt)…the traditional one and one with Squid and Cucumbers. We were also served a Fish cake, Bean jelly, and a spicy preparation of pickled Bean sprouts. While the Banchan was good, it did not stack up to the one at Hoban. We ordered a variety of entrees, with one of our favorites being the Kalbi – (#12 Short Rib Grill $13.99), often referred to as Korean BBQ. The ribs were meaty, had a nice char to them and beautiful flavor. Another favorite was the Bulgogi – (#11 Slice Beef Grill $10.99). The strips of marinated beef, served on a grill were tender and had a nice sweet flavor to them. As Korean food is primarily centered around meat, with the above two dishes, we thought we had hit a home run. The #34 Kimchi Stew $8.99 got mixed reviews at our table. Some of us really liked the spicy and tangy flavors (sort of like Sriracha) and thought it was perfect to warm you up on a cold winter day. The #18 Mackerel Grill $11.99 was ok. The strong sea-like smell is somewhat of a put off but the taste was good. Our least favorite was the Jajangmyeon – (#16 Noodles with Black Bean Pasta $8.99). It was a giant bowl of pasta along with a black bean sauce and other vegetables…the flavors were mild and it didn’t taste like much – our Korean friend however said that it tasted very authentic.

$$. Most dishes are $10-$15. Bring Cash – no checks or credit cards accepted.