3630 Wilshire Boulevard
Los Angeles, CA 90010
(213) 385-7789

After I found out authentic Chinese dumplings are probably not for many Koreans, I was not in the mood to try any dumplings anywhere. But subconsciously I must have wanted to compensate my disappointing experience in Beijing by finding an alternative place nearby in Los Angeles. All of sudden, I suggested this place Myung Dong Kyoja for Saturday lunch to a friend of mine.

Dumplings, most of them made of pork, are not one of my favorites because of my personal eating habit grown from childhood. But often I have vegetable dumplings that can be purchased as frozen from Korean grocery markets. Getting used to cheap frozen dumplings, I don’t have a sophisticated tongue for dumplings.

But I find Myung Dong Kyoja mandu (dumpling) is just delicious! Their steamed pork dumplings have the perfect amount of every ingredient, pork, vegetable, sauce, and oil. The dumplings that I tried in Beijing from a famous restaurant that has been around over two hundred years were too greasy to me. I know that’s just a cultural difference. Koreans are used to less fatty food in general. We boil, stew or simmer rather than fry.

Myung Dong Kyoja dumplings were perfect in that sense. They are not too greasy but not too plain. It has just enough amount of fat so the taste is still abundant and it’s still healthy. Of course this can be very relative depending on people’s taste bud. A small plate for soy sauce is served for each one.

They are also famous for kalguksu (kal guksoo, kal gooksu), one of traditional Korean noodles. Literally, it means knife (kal) noodles (guksoo), indicating it’s hand-cut noodle. My friends and I ordered one serving of mandu (dumplings, 10 of them in one serving) and a bown of kal guksu.

Their kalguksoo is very good, too. The noodles are sticky enough and soft. The chicken broth is
very tasty and the vegetables in it make me think it’s very healthy as well as add delish flavors. There are at least a couple of mandu (dumplings) in kalguksoo.

I’d also like to say that one cannot miss their signature kimchi. It can be spicier and more garlicky for some people but it’s memorably tasty.

Their kong guksu (kongguksu) is another well-known dish. This cold noodle is a famous Korean summer delicacy. Its broth is cold soybean broth with some sesame seeds. Its taste is uniquely delightful and it’s very rich in protein as easily expected.

I love this dish so much, and can’t believe that I didn’t have it this summer! If you’re not familiar with it, I would recommend that you try it first when someone else orders it. I haven’t found many non-Koreans love this dish.

The restaurant is bright and big. It doesn’t have amazing interior but it definitely looks clean and slick. I noticed some of paintings don’t seem to meet people’s general expectation. For example, they have a Gustav Klimt painting instead of traditional Korean paintings. Of course, I don’t have anything against that. It was just a little unique because I expected Korean flavor in their interior.

The staff were kind to us, and generally that’s what I hear from people. They serve bowl of rice for free when asked and you can refill kimchi or noodles for kalgooku.

Myung Dong Kyoja is a very successful franchise in Korea which has been around quite long years. They are mostly famous for their kalgooso, dumplings, and authentic kimchee. Their menu is very simple. Average price for most dish is $8.

Great Dumplings and Kalguksu Place in Korea Town, Los Angeles

(photo from cbs.co.kr)

Insam (ginseng roots, Panax ginseng)
(photo from prkorea.com)

Dates (Daechu)

Until recently, I wasn’t in favor of insam cha (ginseng tea), or any dish that has insam (ginseng) such as samgyetang (Korean chicken ginseng rice soup). I assume it was my natural reaction against my mother’s forceful(?) feeding of insam whenever I visit my parents in Korea.

She boils down ginseng with dates (daechu) in water and have all of my family eat it with honey. I appreciated her intention and efforts especially when ginseng is not cheap for us. But I just hated eating ginseng like that, or in any other possible way. Honey is not enough to make it eatable. The bitter ginseng wasn’t delightful at all and I didn’t like the lose texture of boiled ginseng.

There was no working excuse that could have saved me from my mother’s ginseng feast. My excuse was pretty reasonable, that is, ki (qi in Chinese, 氣, energy flow) of my body, eum ki (cold energy), doesn’t go with ki of ginseng, yang ki (warm energy). Well, that was always ignored. I know why she insisted it so much. She wanted us to get healthier! However annoyed I was, I was still very thankful to her that she would cook it for us.

In Korea, ginseng is typically considered as one of the best nourishing stimulants (or traditional medicine, hanyak). There are many Korean parents, just like my mother, cook ginseng for their children to improve their immune system and make them stronger.

It is believed among Koreans that it would do good to prevent people from catching minor illness just like all other functional food. That’s where my mother was at when insisting it that I should finish my portion (usually three or four roots of insam (ginseng)).

It was only recent that I started to be more open-minded about medical benefits that ginseng may have. Simply, I’ve started to have ginseng without complaints. Insamcha (ginsengtea) is one of easy ginseng food that I can get here in Los Angeles along with samgyetang (Korean chicken ginseng rice soup). I haven’t had samgyetang here yet, but I’ve been waiting for a chance.

When it gets cold starting October, some nights I make insam-saenggang (ginseng-ginger) tea with honey for my husband and myself. (What I mean by ‘making the tea’ here is that I boil water, mix ginseng and ginger tea with perfect amount of honey. =))

I don’t know how much it does to prevents us from catching a cold or other slight ailments which usually comes around this time of the year, but I think that definitely helps immune system. Instead of having a night snack, a warm insam-sanggang cha (ginseng-ginger tea) is a much better choice for us. It’s very soothing at winter nights especially when the pungent taste of ginger is almost neutralized except its refreshing taste.

Koryu Insam (Korean Ginseng Tea)

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It’s generally said that ginseng is good for people who have eum ki (yin qi, cold energy), or people whose hands, feet or boy itself is generally cold because it is yang ki (yang qi, warm energy).

Neighborhood: Manhattan Beach
33rd & Bell Ave.
Manhattan Beach, CA 90266

However perfect your gym is, at least once in a while, you’d feel like exercising outdoors. At least it’s true for me. Actually I’d rather exercise outside most times except those days when it’s either brutally hot or cold.

Sand dune in Manhattan beach is one of the best alternative (cardio) exercises that I have found in this area.

When you arrive at Sand Dune Park in Manhattan beach, located on 33rd and Bell Ave in Manhattan beach, you would be impressed by its size. As the name describes itself, the 100-foot high sand dune will greet you.

Looking at the dune, people would soon feel they’re challenged by its height and its steepness. However, many people find it difficult to conquer it. Climbing or hiking steep heels can be challenging itself. Well, they’re about to climb a hill of sand.

Sand makes you sink into the sand again as you step up. That’s the frustrating part. The moving is slow, people become out of breath soon and their leg muscles get tired so easily. Often, they stop in the middle to catch their breath. But sinking sand can also be a challenging part. It puts more pressure on your leg muscles, which, I believe, eventually strengthens them.

The most important thing, I believe, is that you should keep your pace and try not to take a break in the middle. Start slowly because it won’t take that long for you to realize that it’s not going to end soon. Yes, 100-foot hill is that long! Especially it’s true when you have to step on sand. Probably in the middle of the sand dune, you may feel your muscles are burning up. Try not to stop there. Keep moving slowly. Also try not to take a long break on the top or at the bottom. To make it a good cardio, keep moving up and down.

When I went the dune first time, I climbed up pretty fast, overestimating my physical condition. On my fifth trial, I was almost on the verge of losing consciousness. That wasn’t a good feeling at all. Ever since then, I take the first steps pretty slowly and try to keep that pace all the way to the end.

These days, I usually climb it ten times at once. It takes a little over an hour for me. I try not to take a break inbetween. I consider walking down as a break to catch my breath. Just a few sips of water at the bottom, I climb it again. And I usually feel it’s a pretty good cardio with less pressure on my joints.

I usually go there after work around 5:30pm and 6:30pm with work friends. I guess it’s a kind o peak time but that’s the time that works for me. One good thing about that time, it doesn’t feel that hot because the sun is setting the other side of the dune in the residential areas.

The sand dune welcomes all levels of people including kids whose exercise skills are different. Actually, the sand dune is divided in two sections, one for kids and one for adults. It’s just a recommendation and totally okay to climb it in either section. But kids tend to do more fun things such as running, sliding, or racing one another. So you might as well stay where you’re supposed to stay.

It’s always nice to watch kids having fun, which makes this exercise more interesting. Seriously, it’s a lot more lively for me than running on a treadmill however nice monitor I have right in front of me.

The sand dune is located in beautiful residential areas, only a few blocks away from the ocean. Because the park is very frequently visited by people, every day of a week, every hour of a day, the residents had asked the authority to curtail access, which was not accepted. The park has operation hours as follows:

Hours Open
April - October (Daylight Savings Time) 6:00 AM - 9:00 PM
November - March (Standard Time) 6:00 AM - 8:00 PM
Quiet Hours 6:00 AM - 8:00 AM, 7:00 PM - Closing

Facilities
There are picnic facilities for about 20 people including two picnic tables, rest rooms and water fountains. The park also includes a children’s play area equipped with swings, climber, and merry-go-round.

Facility Reservations
The facilities can be reserved 10 business days in advance. (310) 802-5410.

Overall, it’s a great alternative cardio workout for me. I enjoy feeling the fresh air, looking at kids having fun, and having a nice view including the ocean at the top. Ocean is actually a hidden peek (?), but it’s still nice to have it. =)

Chung Ki Wa (Chung Gi Wa) in Los Angeles, CA

Chungkiwa is a kind of a restaurant where I take non-Korean friends, families, or relatives. It’s not a fancy restaurant as Chosun Galbi, but it is agreeable, it definitely has the taste and look of Korea, service is attentive, and food is very tasty.

Their menu selection is not huge unlike some of Korean restaurants in Korea town. They must know a few popular dishes of theirs keep the reputation. Some of the loved dishes are Korean BBQ, Galbi, naengmyun (cold noodle), dolsot bibimbap (stone pot mixed rice) and pajeon (spring onion Korean pancake). Of course, plenty of their tasty side-dishes are a big attraction. Side-dishes (banchan or panchan) are free and refillable.

The most popular deal here is probably BBQ / nang myun or Galbi / naengmyun combo. I remember it costs somewhere between $12.99 ~ $14.99 depending on what time you go.

Even though I like Korean BBQ, I don’t have it that often because I usually want something else such as dolsot bibimbap. However, when I go to Chunggiwa, I have BBQ or Galbi / naengmyun combo for sure. Their beef is almost always juicy, chewy and tasty. Their cold noodle (naengmyeon, nang myun, naengmyeon) is definately one of the best in Los Angeles Korea town. They know how to make yooksu (beef broth) and don’t forget to add refreshing Korean pear pieces.

Their front parking lot is tiny, accommodating only 6 or 7 cars. But they have another one, a much bigger one, right across the street. it’s not valet parking and their parking guard (ahjussi, ajeossi) is very kind! When I’m lucky, I just park on the street right next to the restaurant. But expect some crowds on weekends!

A couple of minor things that I’d like to point out is their tree trunk chair in the west section of the restaurant. They certainly look good and match with the interior, but if you want to sit there a little longer, it’s a good idea to get a table in the other side with regular tables. Also, it’s said that the English menu is not very descriptive.

Chungkiwa accepts caredit cards, takes reservations, casual attire is fine, it’s good for family, take-out is okay, there’s no outdoor sitting, and they serve Korean beer and wine.

It’s located on Olympic Blvd. just a few buildings west of Wilton.

3545 W Olympic Blvd
Los Angeles, CA 90019t Directions
(323) 737-0809

BTW, I love how the name sounds. Chung kiwa means blue Korean tradictional roof tile. Kiwa (giwa) refers to a traditional Korean roof tile that we don’t really use any more. So, it gives me that nostalgia reminiscence . =)