What’s a “restaurant VC”?
Venture capitalists.
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When Domo first opened there was a lot of criticism re: certain dishes and pricing.
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the take-a-number deli counter setup and order-from-the-kitchen menu really reminds me of a korean gjusta, or gyangban society if you will.
highlights were the incredible honey walnut carrots, twice fried magic myrna potatoes and soft serve, must orders.
twice fried magic myrna potatoes - smash and fried, seasoned with brown butter, fish sauce caramel, cilantro, fried shallots, lemon juice, scallions
honey walnut carrots - garlic, soy and honey glaze, gochu-candied walnuts
black bean “jajang” bolo rice - ragu of ground beef and pork, red and white wine, served over rice with cucumber and scallions
kimchi “ppang” - baked in a cast iron pan with california olive oil and kimchi marinara
beef “galbi” back ribs - brandt beef back ribs marinated and grilled over charcoal
seasoned kale and chicken salad - chopped kale, sesame oil, toasted sesame seeds, raw garlic, soy/dashi seasoning
mushroom “namul” with bracken fern - mushrooms and bracken fern roasted in doenjang oil
chilled “dotori” acorn noodles - roasted korean seaweed, fried garlic, scallions, pickled perilla seed, shirodashi vinaigrette
blistered snap peas - everything bagel seasoning, soy, lemon
soft serve from double 8 dairy - buffalo milk from petaluma, ca, doenjang caramel
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lmao
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That Double 8 soft-serve is worth seeking out. I guess they’re the first place in SoCal to have it?
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Thanks so much for the report! Can’t wait to hit it Next FriYay! 
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JFC even the scraps I grabbed from the deli case before closing were bangers. Or Yangban-gers. Ok, I’ll go now.
The carrots were unbelievably chewy and fantastic, the egg salad is killer, and damnit if the kimchi ppang doesn’t make you rethink pizza.
It’s a great addition to the neighborhood, especially formatted with a deli system like @PorkyBelly points out.
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During this time, we have been hitting the Arts District quite a bit. It still hasn’t recovered from the pandemic/civil unrest exodus. People forget how many businesses were down there. Similar to Playa Vista… it has this slightly eerie abandoned vibe.
But things are looking up, new places opening (as much as I love bread lounge, I can’t wait for Hi Bakery and Hanks produce!), people on the streets. We’ve been taking advantage of more available parking, so as soon as we could we headed to Yangban.
As posted above… I was super excited from the menu, but to see it all in person. I instantly wanted a OOE order! But with just me and P… we decided on just an initial sampling…
Egg Salad and Snap Peas from the Deli
OMG. This egg salad. It reminded me of that Japanese tartar sauce that is actual weak egg salad. but this was not weak. It was super lucious and eggy. We got it to top the potato bread.
The Snap peas were perfectly cooked. Crisp but not raw. Wonderful dressing.
And the aforementioned Potato Bread…
Two lovely little pancakes… fluffy and tender. Perfect accompaniment for the egg salad. The only thing was that the leavener perhaps left a slight bitter taste.
SPECIAL: Curry and Biscuit.
One thing we noticed right away was that they had several specials offered for the evening. The menu is plenty large so for them to also offer specials is a real nod to their kitchen. This one I had to order because these are my two favorite things. The dish was a lot better composed than I expected. The curry was nuanced and quite meaty. The Biscuit was absolutely buttery and flakey. The one quibble was that the curry was a bit salty. But I’m sensitive to it.
Beef Ribs
Excellent! Especially when you add some egg salad.
We also ordered the Kimchee Pozole to go and had it the follow day with some left over $5/lb Chinese Food from the Nabe…
We were not sure what to expect but it was indeed pozole with kim chee mixed in. The pork used was pork belly, which was tender and rich! The pozole kernels just made me so happy and balanced the soup well. Still I’m glad to bring it home! The broth was THICK and like the curry, salty to my taste. So I mixed in a little water and it brought it to a nice balance.
FINALLY… The Water Buffalo Soft Serve with caramel and puffed rice…
This is one of the items we were mostly looking forward to. We are soft serve fiends (We have often gone to Bob’s Freeze after dinners in the Arts District) and not surprisingly this one blew us away! The initial taste is strong… cheesy. But it’s so creamy. It melts clean and really amped up the cinnamon in the puffed rice topping. The caramel drizzle was absolutely delicious. Could taste the Doenjang which added a wonderful richness. If anything we felt the drizzle was too light. We may ask to go heavy or double it next time.
Overall, especially for the price, we loved it. We will certainly be back as their chicken wing special looked great and they have a Panzanella salad with the Kimchee Bread in addition to so many other awesome things to try… I just wish they did a sampler plate like Clementine (Actually something I asked about before I ordered). Then I might even sneak away for lunch on occasion…
–Dommy!
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This place is awesome. The carrots, potatoes, ppang and acorn noodles were delicious even for my little baby who devoured every bite I put in front of him just like I did. The bolo rice was delicious even without the fried egg that I ordered. I went back to the counter and took home a couple additional portions of the deli stuff and the rest of the family enjoyed it for dinner. The soft serve is outrageously good too. I don’t live close, but will be heading back as often as I can.
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Chef Kat’s famous hot layered taco dip with seasoned ground beef, salsa crema, cheddar and mozzarella cheeses, tomatoes, chopped black olives. Served with house fried tortilla chips.
https://yangbansociety.square.site/?location=11ec1028028584a38214ac1f6bbba82c
Gyangban Society indeed @PorkyBelly lol
This place is damn near a carbon copy of Gjusta but Korean inspired with a lower ratio of man bun presence.
My favorite items tried were the pea shoot and chive and the congee pot pie.
Pea Shoot and Chive
Congee Pot Pie
Blistered Snap Peas
Baked Sea Bream
Bang bang with Mariscos Jalisco after
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I have to go against the ftc intelligentsia. I had a pretty ho hum experience at yangban. None of the panchan really stood out as next level delicious that I ate at the restaurant. Maybe the best thing was the double crispy potatoes
Their cooked dishes were better, I really enjoyed the biscuit w/ kare, but I would eat curry with a shoe lol. The kimchi fried rice was well cooked with some crispy nurungi and great herb flavor from the sesame leaves.
I brought home some egg salad and that was the best of the bunch of the cold plates. I like the idea but I find the execution and flavors to be lacking for me doesn’t compare to gjusta.
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I had the same experience. It kind of feels like Gjusta, but the quality isn’t on the same level at all.
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Weird place conceptually, so difficult to figure out how to compose a meal, and there’s like no guidance or convenience. With that being said, I thought the plated dishes were really damn good.
I’d return and I will return, but my gosh it’s hard to be excited about this place in its current state.
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I really want to like Yangban Society—I see the potential—but I’m struggling with how I can work it into a regular rotation given the price tag 
I’ve brought a handful of people now, and all of their eyes have gotten wide when they see how much they’re rung up for.
Biscuit and Kare Gravy
The best thing I’ve had from the kitchen. The biscuit is giant and has some really phenomenal layers.
Gwangjang Market Rice Bowl
Actually probably the most cost efficient item because the rice can be filling. The dressing is pretty great, but if this is the only thing you’re getting it might just be a little one note.
Potato Bread
Pretty damn good, and necessary for egg salad or smoked trout schmear.
Coal Roasted Cabbage Slaw, Honey Walnut Carrots, Snap Peas, Egg Salad, Hot Smoked Trout Schmear
The carrots are still the standout, though everything here is good it just adds up so damn quickly.
Soy Eggs, Marinated Tofu
The eggs aren’t exactly as jammy as I’d like, but still solid. The marinated tofu was fine—I was looking for a bit more punchiness.
Bring your check book 
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where’s the soft serve? 
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So how much was all this food?