Yes, it does lean towards sweet but not overly.
Soban also adds more traditional ingredients like red dates and ginkgo nuts.
Soban’s galbi jim is a Beethoven symphony.
Sun Nong Dan’s galbi jim is Metallica’s Kill Em All.
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Just a heads up, Soban has both regular and spicy galbi jjim. I prefer the spicy though it’s still pretty sweet and mild.
I’ve never been to Sun Nong Dan but cheese in galbi jjim just sounds wrong to me.
Regarding the crabs (gegang), they’ve gotten smaller and more expensive over the years, but still definitely worth a try. Someone mentioned there was better gejang elsewhere in K-town now, but I can’t remember where.
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Having had both versions, it sounds wrong, but it tastes fucking amazing.
The owners moved to Colorado?
Who is running the show now? More importantly has the quality of the banchan and the signature dishes been the same?
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Hi @JeetKuneBao,
Wow, sad / important news. I agree, if anyone finds out who’s running Soban in K-Town now, please report back.
Ashamed we haven’t had Jun Won yet. The last 2 cod trips were on sunday when they’re closed. This whole thing was inspired by seeing them on Migrant Kitchen (must see TV)
It’s the next one for certain… unless sunday
Yeah sorry my blog is out of commission now because I didn’t renew the URL. Honestly, it’s fine. Most of the old stuff is pretty bad lol so I’m happy it’s archived away in Blogspot. Soban is still really good despite new owners!
They have new owners that basically kept everything the same. I’ve heard reports of some inconsistencies but I found them to be unfounded when I went recently to record a video. However, I will say that if you’re looking for value-for-dollar, Soban isn’t going to win. But their ganjang gejang is still unrivaled in LA, from what I’ve seen.
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Thanks @matthewkang! Mattatouille to the rescue. 
Good to know Soban is still very good even with new owners. Can’t wait to go back.
while not exactly the same as gaejang, the raw crab rice at master ha is pretty stellar.
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why am i nervous to order raw fermented crab? i eat everything but what i’m picturing this to be is texturally difficult
I’m with you. Conceptually I don’t understand raw crab.
You guys will be fine. It’s delicious. I know both of you eat sushi. The raw crab is slippery, soft and almost gelatinous. I much prefer the raw spicy version over the ganjang which is basically soy souce.
It’s slimy and slippery, understandably may not be everyone’s cuppa.
You just seal the deal for my next visit it will definitely be Master Ha. Scrolling thru the yelp pics that crab rice looks so good!
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comes as a set meal with a couple of raw shrimps as well.
I did not know that. I thought it was a ceviche-style preparation. Thanks for the clarification.
Then again, that video is very convincing.
Yeah, there is no acid cooking process involved. Just basically raw marinated in a spicy or soy sauce concoction. Took me several tries before it began to grow on me.
I always wonder how well restaurants scrub the mud and nasties off the shell before curing…
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