Darumaen

For a memorable finish to a yakiniku meal, try the Konk soup, made with beef tail simmered slowly until tender. The menu describes it as a richly flavoured, thickened soup with softly set egg, and it has been a signature dish since the restaurant opened. Diners have also praised the Konk soup; one ordered a small bowl with tecchan, while another enjoyed it at the end of a meal.

The yakiniku menu offers a choice of cuts, from specially selected premium short rib, praised for its balanced richness, to kainomi karubi, a rare cut with a good balance of lean meat and fat that the menu recommends cooking gently. The menu advises not to overcook zabuton or grilled-shabu premium loin, while bone-in short rib should be cooked slowly around the bone. One regular solo diner recommends premium salted tongue and premium skirt steak, and often orders cheek, heart and premium tripe. Another diner recalled the tenderness of the premium tongue, the deep flavour of the premium skirt steak, and the fragrant, easy-to-eat premium tripe.

For a selection of offal, the assorted platter includes tecchan, akasen, liver, tongue and cheek, and heart. Between grilled cuts, try homemade kimchi with Chinese cabbage, cucumber and daikon, or the three-piece kimchi assortment. One diner wrote that the assortment offered more than just heat and went particularly well with rice. Rice and cold noodles, available in large, medium or small portions, can round out the meal.

Drinks include Les Cinq Vallées, a medium-bodied red recommended with loin served with dipping sauce, and Talo Primitivo di Manduria, a full-bodied red suggested with short rib prepared the same way. Beer, highballs, sake and makgeolli are also available, making it easy to choose a drink to suit the meat. The restaurant welcomes solo diners as well as groups, and reservations are accepted.