I heart heart heart heart Goshen. Authentic hot and spicy Korean food, lovely presentation, a calming interior of dark wood and delicate stencils on green-tea walls and super-friendly smiley staff. It’s easily my favourite cheap eat in Melbourne and the sole (Seoul – guffaw) reason I want to visit Korea.
I could just leave the review there, but I guess I should at least describe the dishes that Kimberley and I ordered. Two of my favourites: a pottery bowl of chewy sweet potato noodles with sliced beef and vegetables and a bibimbap (mixed rice in a hot stone bowl) topped with a colourful array of vegetables and lightly fried tofu and a whole lotta chilli paste to kickstart your metabolism ($18.50). Just goes to show that Korean food isn’t all about kimchi.
For dessert, Goshen’s famously creamy black sesame icecream (even better than the version at Wabi Sabi Salon) topped with a sort of honey sesame/puffed rice brittle which reminded us of the Chinese sweets of our childhood ($6). The waitress said that you can’t get that dish anywhere else in Melbourne, which is just one of many reasons to go to hot hot HOT Goshen.
- Goshen, 189 Smith St, Fitzroy +61 3 9419 6750
Yes — definitely one of the more under-rated restaurants on Smith St. Not trendy enough, I guess, but the food is great and cheap and the service is excellent. A decent amount of vegetarian stuff on the menu, too.
They have a second store — with identical decor — in Glen Waverly.
Hi Ruth
I remember a time when you couldn’t get a table at Goshen (when they won The Age’s Cheap Eats in 2005). Fortunately for me, the hype has now died down so that it’s become an easy local dinner spot.
Thanks for the tip on the Glen Waverley store – I never knew.
Jetsetting Joyce