My Tofu House

Rarely do I fall so madly in love with a place that after just one visit I add it to my "Short List" of favorite eateries in the Bay Area {see the right hand column}. But that is exactly what happened when I dined at My Tofu House {website is in Korean, click here for English} this past week.

Our friends who live in the Richmond District casually mentioned that we ought to try this small, always crowded Korean restaurant near their apartment. They told us that the husband and wife owners specialize in just one dish, a spicy stew of soft tofu, vegetables, and a choice of meat or seafood. A light of recognition instantly flashed in my mind.

A year ago, I had enviously drooled over tantalizing photos that accompanied an article in the New York Times which depicted this exact same spicy stew, which in Korean is called
soon-dubu chigae. The photos caused me to fantasize about making my own fresh tofu or, alternatively, to pack up and move to New York. At the time, I had no idea that there was a restaurant in San Francisco that specialized in this dish.

Now that I know, it is not an exaggeration to say that the quality of my life has suddenly improved. Just realizing that I can, on any given day, drop into the quaint little restaurant and order a bowl of this spicy elixir fills me with joy.

As soon as you sit down at your table, the waiter brings a warming cup of barley tea (mugi cha in Japanese) and an array of little dishes (pan chan), which include tiny dried anchovies and various pickled vegetables (kimchee), some of which are spicy.

While there are a few other typical Korean restaurant dishes on the menu, just about everyone in the place was ordering some version of soon-dubu chigae. You can specify whether you want your stew with pork, beef or seafood, if you want kimchee added to the pot, and how spicy you want it. I opted for the medium spicy version with pork and kimchee.

The arrival of the stew is quite an impressive production. The waiter delivers to you a stone tureen full of soon-dubu chigae that appears to have been lifted out of a volcano {pictured at the top of the page}. I quickly cracked an egg into the ferociously bubbling broth and left it alone while it gently poached. While you wait for the molten stew to cool, ladle a little broth and vegetable over some rice in a separate bowl and munch on the pan chan.

Pure heaven on a chilly winter night. If you live in the area and have not yet been, go tonight! I promise, your life will change for the better.

My Tofu House
4627 Geary Blvd.
San Francisco, CA 94118
(415) 750-1818

Food|and Drink|Restaurants|Korean|San Francisco

Comments

[haddock]

I am so there. Next time we're in SF the GM adn will be trying this. Korean food is a near necessity on our trips and this looks great.

[haddock]

I am so there. Next time we're in SF the GM and I will be trying this. Korean food is a near necessity on our trips and this looks great.

[sam]

thanks for the tip Brett. It sounds great. Now I jjust have to persuade Fred to eat outside of the box. His box. Well, you can guess what I mean.

[Brett]

Haddock, you can say that again...oh, you already did;-) I hope you have a good time.

Sam, good luck getting Fred outside of his sand box. Is that what you meant? I have to admit, I always pictured him older than that.

[yoony]

soon dubu is one of my favorite korean dishes. i like it nice and spicy with small bites of beef. its good hangover food too. one of the soon dubu houses in LA open 24 hours for the late nighters and such.

i have an unrelated question... i have a can of sardines but have no idea what to make with it. do you have any easy suggestions?

thanks!

[vanessa]

Yeah, things like soon dubu jigae have been part of the madre's anti-cold arsenal for years. When I was little, I would hate it when she made when I was sick—can't a kid just have a pop tart? Of course, you wisen up with age. And her soups and stews are what I crave. Soon dubu jigae will kill the coodies out of you. I even read an article that says kim chee might even kill SARS. Ha!

[Brett]

Yoony, welcome to IPOS. Checked out your LA blog and love it. You're so lucky down there when it comes to Korean food. You have so many options compared to SF.

Here's 2 quick suggestions for what to do with your canned sardines (hopefully from Portugal). First (from Prune in NY) serve them on Triscuits spread with mustard. Second (from Ferran Adrià by way of Paula Wolfert) marinate the fillets in a vinaigrette of sherry vinegar, olive oil and parsley for an hour. Then serve on toast (ideally grilled) brushed with vinaigrette and topped, in order, with thinly sliced avocado, sardines, and slivered scallion.

Vanessa, if my mom made me soon dubu jigae, I bet I would crave it too. Heck, I crave it now regardless. And kimchee too (I pretty much go for anything pickled).

[yoony]

thanks for visiting my site! :)

i checked the sardines and they are actually from france, and lightly smoked. still okay for the above recipes?

[Marc]

For East Bay readers, or those who like to visit Oakland, the Temescal District in North Oakland has a few "tofu houses" near Telegraph and 51st. I have been to Pyung Chang Tofu House (4701 Telegraph Ave.) a few times and find the tofu dishes to be delicious and warming.

[Brett]

Yoony, I'm sure the French ones are great. I think smoked sardines would work for both of the canapés.

Marc, thanks for the tip. There are so many great restaurants in the East Bay! I'll have to check those tofu places out in Temescal.

[jen]

Okay, Brett - I read you post at about 10 am yesterday and at 11.45 I was out the door on my way to My Tofu House ... I had never been there and never had soon dobu jigae. It was delicious! Thanks for the tip, and for the specific instructions. Had I walked in without reading this post, I would have ordered my old standby bibimbap ... fun to have a new experience. Thanks again!

[missingesseff]

My Tofu House used to be one of the very few restaurants my family would visit regularly (my mom has EXTREMELY picky tastes). Excellent chigae and their kal bi is pretty tasty. Too bad they don't have a liquor license cause beer seems to love Korean food.