As you can see from our restaurant name ‘So Gong Dong Tofu & BBQ’, Tofu Soup is our signature dish. Many customers, regardless of nationality, love this savory and hearty soup. Today, we would like to introduce how to enjoy 200% of Tofu Soup for first-time visitors to our restaurant. So shall we begin?
1. Choose one of 16 types of ToFu Soup
As you can see in the menu snippet below, you wiill have an option to choose Tofu Soup & Noodles, but if you want to try the classic way of enjoying Tofu Soup, please choose Tofu Soup & Hot Stone Rice. It comes with house-made side dishes of the day and an egg to crack into the soup.
So Gong Dong offers as many as 16 different types of soft tofu to suit different tastes of our customers. One of the most popular types is No6. 섞어 (the mix of seafood and beef). We recommend trying a different type each time you visit for a new flavor experience!
For reference, here’s a list of vegetarian options for Tofu Soup.
- No2. Kimchi
- No9. mushroom
- No11. plain tofu
- No13. vegetables
- No 18. Perilla w/vegetables
- No 19. Perilla w/mushrooms
2. Crack the egg into the boiling soup.
There’s an egg that you can crack into the soup while it is boiling hot. The key is not delaying the time to add the raw egg so that it can be cooked inside of the soup while it’s hot enough. No worries! The heat will let down soon.
You can skip this if you don’t like an egg, but see how fun it is!
3. Transfer the rice into an empty bowl.
After cracking the egg into the soup, we are going to make Soong-nyoong (숭늉, Scourched Rice Soup) to enjoy after you finish the Tofu Soup. To get started, check if you have an empty bowl to contain the rice. If an empty bowl has not been served, please kindly ask your server for an empty bowl to make ‘Soong-nyoong’.
Scoop out all the rice out of the hot stone pot and transfer it into the empty bowl.
At the bottom of the pot, you’ll see the scorched rice that’s hard to scrap out. Do not scrap it out! Using the service button, call your server and ask for ‘hot water’ for ‘Soong-nyoong’.
4. Ask your server to Pour hot water into the scorched rice pot.
Your server will bring a jar of hot barley water and pour it into the pot for you. Let the water sit there while you enjoy the Tofu Soup.
5. Enjoy the tofu soup with side dishes and rice.
Great job! Now it’s time to relax and enjoy the warm tofu soup with toasty white rice! If you are new to a traditional Korean restaurant, here’s an important tip! You can get your side dishes refilled! If you liked kimchi or cucumber salad, ask your server for more.
6. Enjoy your Soong-nyoong after finishing the soup.
When you are half way done with your Tofu Soup and , it’s time to check your Soong-nyoong (scorched rice soup). Slightly scrap the rice off the wall of the hot stone pot, and you’ll see it comes off very easily. Break the scorched rice down into small pieces and bring a spoon of Soong-nyoong into your mouth. Yum! Can you feel the warm and toasty flavor that completes the Tofu Soup journey?
FAQ
Some part does. Lunch Tofu Soup comes with an egg and a regular rice (not the hot-stone rice). However, if you want hot-stone rice for Lunch Tofu Soup, you can totally order so!
There are three spiciness level you can choose from. Spicy, Regular, and Not Spicy. If you are not sure, we recommend ordering your Tofu Soup with ‘Not Spicy’ level and see how you like it.
Our to-go Tofu Soup will consist of freshly cooked tofu soup, cooked rice, and a couple of side dishes of the day. For a hot-stone soup & hot-stone rice style you can enjoy them only for dining.