Restaurant Review: Don-kasu Jiro (돈까스 지로)
By Gabriel Ward
Quite some time ago, I went to Don-kasu Jiro (돈까스 지로) with a co-teacher. Admittedly, I am not the biggest don-kass fan and don’t eat it very regularly, however I remembered enjoying this particular restaurant. I’d forgotten entirely about Don-kasu Jiro, but recently noticed it again while walking past and made a mental note to go and check it out some time. I found myself downtown hunting for some lunch and decided to go there again.
I walked in the door and was delighted by the fact that it was pretty busy, with a lot of people happily chowing down on variations of don-kass for lunch. The first thing I always look for when I go to dine somewhere is whether there are people in a restaurant or not. A busy restaurant is a good sign, as it generally indicates that the food will be at least half-decent. It also means that the ingredients being used are probably not too old. More customers means a high turnover of ingredients used to make the food that is served.
There was only one waitress taking orders when I entered the restaurant. She was in the back taking someone’s order, so I showed myself to a table, on which there was already a menu. I was impressed by the range of don-kass available. It was so large that I can’t actually remember all the variations that were on offer. I went with the chicken don-kass. Once I’d decided what I was ordering, I called the waitress over and she took my order. She then promptly brought me some water and kimchi.
I didn’t have to wait too long before she brought my meal. As I mentioned, I’m not a huge don-kass fan, but as far as I could tell, this was pretty good. It came with rice and some coleslaw, and on the side was a small bowl of sesame seeds. You put sauce (similar to BBQ sauce) in the bowl and mix it in with the seeds. You can then dip your don-kass in this. The chicken was nice and tender and the batter was crunchy, and I found the contrast in texture between the two to be delightful. I got three decent sized pieces of don-kass.
Prices range between 7,000 and 9,000 won. As far as don-kasu goes, I’d say this is a good place to go next time you need your fix.
To find Don-kasu Jiro, start at the Megabox downtown on your right. Walk towards the main intersection, where there will be a Baskin Robbins on your right. Go straight across the four-way intersection for about 20 meters and Don-kass Jiro will be on your left.
Address: 19 Hwanggeum-dong, Dong-gu, Gwangju
Phone: 062-224-3727