This is Guk’s Eedaero Gamjatang, a casual Korean dining venue specialising almost exclusively in gamjatang, or spicy pork bone stew. The broth is simmered for more than five hours using pork neck and spine bones, producing a deeply flavoured base centred on pork richness and perilla.

A selection of side dishes accompanied the meal. The radish kimchi offered a satisfying crunch with restrained heat and gentle sweetness. Mul kimchi provided a savoury, refreshing contrast without spice, while the ojingeo mumallaengi muchim combined soft dried squid with crunchy radish strips, creating an enjoyable textural contrast. Traditional kimchi with sliced garlic and peppers completed the assortment.

Gamjatang ($40.00, small, serves 2)

The stew with the deep red broth dusted generously with perilla seed powder. Once brought to a boil, we stirred together the pork bones, wombok, shallots, potatoes, enoki mushrooms and perilla leaves.

Before the ingredients were incorporated, the broth displayed considerable depth, delivering rich pork flavour supported by earthy perilla and subtle starchiness from the potatoes. The flavour profile was robust, savoury and highly satisfying.

The small serving contained approximately five pork neck and spine sections. While flavourful, the bones carried relatively little meat, making the experience dependent on extracting connective tissue and smaller pockets of meat from the bone itself. Accompanying ingredients were similarly restrained, consisting of several potato slices, a single cluster of enoki mushrooms and a modest quantity of wombok. The accompanying cham sauce (mustard, soy and mirin) cut through the rich, savoury broth and enriched the flavour of the pork.

Although the broth itself was excellent, the overall composition felt calibrated towards encouraging additional purchases from the extras menu. The quality of the core components was difficult to fault, but the portioning of both meat and vegetables left the meal feeling somewhat sparse relative to the strength of the broth.

Bokkeumbap (+$7.00)

Prepared tableside after the stew ingredients had been consumed, the fried rice incorporated fish roe, onion, carrot, sesame leaf, sesame oil and seaweed flakes.

As expected, this proved to be one of the highlights of the meal. The sesame oil contributed a fragrant nuttiness, while the seaweed added sweet umami depth throughout. Small pieces of vegetable introduced gentle crunch and freshness, and the rice successfully absorbed the remaining flavours from the stew. Rich, aromatic and highly satisfying, it demonstrated why fried rice remains such a popular conclusion to a gamjatang meal.

Overall, a casual dining experience defined by a deeply flavoured and consistently executed broth, strongest when allowed to focus on the stew’s rich pork and perilla character rather than its relatively modest ingredient quantities. The fried rice served as a particularly strong finish.

Guk’s Eedaero Gamjatang is located at Shop 202/62-80 Rowe St, Eastwood NSW 2122.