Gamja-Tang, Campsie (Closed)

Note: We walked past Gamja-Tang today (07/05/17) and noticed that the premises has closed down

With winter slowly approaching Sydney, we found ourselves at Campsie on a stormy Thursday afternoon looking for food to warm the soul. After a wonder up and down Beamish Street checking out all the local eats, we decided to have some comforting Korean at Gamja-Tang.

Gamja-Tang is Korean restaurant that specialists in Korean stews and hotpot, perfect for this weather, as it was freezing cold that evening. We arrived into Gamja-Tang around 6pm on a Thursday, and it was relatively quiet. The staff were friendly and advised we were able to sit whether we liked. We choose what looked like a booth, but was actually just a table and chairs in-between some partitions, but we weren’t too fussed, as it was nice to eat in some privacy from other tables. The restaurant itself is quite spacious, with these partitioned tables on both sides of the restaurants and also tables in the centre, the back of the restaurant had bigger tables to cater for large groups. Not long after we were seated, the staff bought over our menus to view and table water (I love it when you don’t need to ask for the table water)

The menu consisted of mostly stews, hotpot and rice dishes, but there was also the option of Korean BBQ as well. It was evident what the restaurant’s specialty dishes were, as their photos blown up on the menu. We opted to go for the pork back bone stew (also known as gamjatang) which seem to be the store’s specialty. It came in 3 sizes, small, medium and large. We choose the medium, however the staff suggested that the small would be enough, so we then changed to the small. In addition to the stew, we also went for steamed egg and friend dumplings.

Not long after we ordered, the staff arrived with our banchan or Korean side dishes. These are usually free with your meal and refillable. We were given 5 banchan dishes which consisted of kimchi, beansprouts with sesame oil, creamy peas and corn, wilted spinach and spicy tofu and beans. I love the banchan at any Korean restaurant, it’s free sides so what more can you ask for. The banchan here is a good variety and very enjoyable, with staff consistently offering to refill them as they got empty.

It didn’t take long for our pork back bone stew to arrive in a massive shallow pot and the additional necessities of a ladle and metal tin for the pork bones. The staff turned the gas on, and before we knew it the stew started to bubble away, and boy were we salivating by this time. Along with the stew, we were also given two metal containers of rice to accomplish the meal. Before we even started to dig into the stew, we could visibly see glass noodles, enoki mushrooms, and slices of carrot, onion and spring onions in a rich red porky broth. As we started to move into the stew, there were chunks of tender meat falling off the bones, cabbage and potatoes at the bottom of the stew.

Pork Back Bone Stew (S) ($37)

The stew was very hearty and flavoursome, and not as spicy as the colour of the broth will lead you to be, actually it was quite mild. As we dug into the stew, it seemed to never end, noodles, potatoes, and pork bones, we actually counted 10 whole chunks of pork bones, and this was the small size. We loved this dish, perfect for the cooler weather and definitely value for money. You can opt to add extras to this stew to make it go further such as extra bones, and all types of noodles such as ramen, udon, glass, thin and buckwheat.

As we were digging into our stew, our other 2 dishes arrived, the fried dumplings and the steamed egg. The fried dumplings came in a serving of 8, filled with pork and vegetables, and fried to a crispy perfection, served with a soy sesame dipping sauce. These were piping hot when they came out, and deliciously moorish, a great side dish to the meal.

Fried Dumplings ($12)

The steamed egg arrived at our table sizzling and bubbling away in an earthenware bowl, and we were given a warning to be careful not to touch the pot. It seemed like the egg was bubbling away for ages, before we could dig in. Its texture of the steamed egg was silky and fluffy, with small pieces of onions, carrot and spring onions throughout the dish. We really enjoyed the steamed egg, and at $6, it is the best bargain.

Steamed Egg ($6)

Overall, we had a wonderful experience at Gamjatang, another. It is a great local eat, with friendly service and prices that’s won’t break the bank. We look forward to heading back this winter to try some more hearty stews.

The aftermath

Gamja-Tang

Address: 213 Beamish St, Campsie NSW 2194

Phone: (02) 9789 0116