Korean BBQ restaurant with ‘gobsmackingly’ cheap wagyu
A new Korean barbecue eatery on Brisbane’s southside has become a hot spot with locals and foodies for its top-notch beef at bargain prices, as well as a terrific array of sides and snacks.
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Along a commercial strip of Logan Rd in Underwood, just a putt away from a golfing store and within a leash stretch of an RSPCA pet shop, a sprawling new Korean restaurant is heaving with diners on a Saturday night.
The sizzle of meat hitting tabletop barbecues and glasses of soju being clinked in celebratory cheers echo throughout the timber-clad open room as waitstaff literally run between burners, adjusting flames and exhaust fans to prevent unseasoned diners accidentally incinerating their meal.
It’s surely not the first place you would expect to find one of Logan’s busiest new restaurants, but it seems word spreads fast around this neck of the woods. And why wouldn’t it when the food is this good.
Daega is primarily a Korean barbecue restaurant, with a focus on top-notch wagyu sourced from southwest Queensland.
Guests can order individual cuts of the beef starting at a gobsmackingly low $37 for 200g; or can do as we did and go for the assorted set for two to three people ($109) with heavily marbled strips of oyster blade, an almost butter plate-sized slab of uber fatty cube roll and a bowl of beef marinated in soy. The set also includes your choice of soybean or kimchi soup – the latter a delicious, mild broth bursting with cabbage and tofu – as well as a plate of traditional corn cheese.
On our visit, however, the restaurant has been so inundated with orders, it has run out of the corn cheese and instead offers us a trio of dumplings.
It’s a winning substitute with the pot-sticker-style parcels some of the best I’ve ever had, with a sweet almost creamed corn mix encased within crispy pastry.
As for the wagyu, it’s sensational. Fatty, tender, creamy and full-flavoured, it’s good enough to enjoy on its own, but even better when paired with the restaurant’s impressive array of banchan (those tiny side dishes accompanying your meal).
Pork is a favourite here too on the barbecue with everything from jowl and belly to soy-marinated skin available; alongside other meats like chicken, lamb cutlets, banana prawns, even German kransky sausages.
But you’d do well to save room for one of Daega’s eight bibimbaps served in hot stone bowls. From the line-up including the likes of deep-fried tofu, teriyaki chicken and spicy pork, we’re told the raw beef version ($22) is a favourite – and it should be.
Inside a scorching hot, black bowl, rice topped with finely cut carrot, zucchini, fungi and sprouts forms a soft nest, cradling a jumble of thin slices of crimson steak like it’s a baby bird. As is traditional with bibimbap, diners are encouraged to stir the meat, vegetables and uncooked egg yolk on top together, with the heat from the stone gently searing the beef with each sweep of the chopsticks.
The result – seriously good – and better than any bibimbap I tried on a recent trip to South Korea.
Also a must-order is the mixed seafood pancake ($19).
Though the seafood is a little hard to detect, the tangle of spring onion and sprouts in a crispy, golden batter is enough to have you booking a returning visit.
Daega is licenced and the solid line-up of sojus seems to be the pick with surrounding tables. There’s also the Korean beer Cass, plus Corona, Stone & Wood and Asahi available; two varieties of rice wine and a very basic list of Aussie wines.
But it’s the food that is the undeniable star here. With top quality ingredients at extremely keen prices, it’s no wonder this unlikely restaurant bordered by carparks and pet shops is drawing in the crowds. And it’s a crowd you’ll want to be part of.
Daega Korean BBQ Cuisine
Shop 7&8, 2922-2926 Logan Rd, Underwood
0423 083 332
Open
Wed-Mon 11.30am-11pm
Must try
Assorted wagyu set
Verdict - Scores out of 5
Food 4
Service 4
Ambience 3
Value 4.5
Overall 4
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