First Look: Yeodongsik’s Hangover Soups and Perilla Noodles Arrive in Eastwood

Let’s talk about the line at Yeodongsik. At its original Lidcombe location, the queue can cross rows of shopfronts and stretch to two-and-a-half hours long (you could rewatch Parasite and still be waiting).

When the restaurant opened in 2023, its under-the-radar status meant it was easier to slip in and out, but as more people heard about its haejang-guk (Korean hangover soup) and perilla noodles, crowds started forming. Yeodongsik’s queue became a background character in the restaurant’s story, and owner Justin Shin would regularly appear with soothing barley tea – serving cups to customers to ease the shuffle towards the front.

Yeodongsik’s just relocated to a bigger location in Eastwood, and guess what? So has the queue. “Every day, there is a line,” says Shin.

Even at 12.23pm on a Tuesday, which is when I turn up with a friend.

Ahead of me, someone scrolls Instagram and watches an influencer declare their qualification for admittance to Yeodongsik’s fan club: they went twice in a week and believed it worthy of the hype. We make it inside the restaurant after 30 minutes – a short wait by Yeodongsik standards.

Shin says the Eastwood site has the same queue dynamic as the previous location. It’s mostly an older crowd that waits at lunch. At dinner-time, younger people turn up. “The lines get longer,” he says.

The new Yeodongsik has greater capacity than Lidcombe’s 25-seat room, but Shin has chosen not to cram diners into every corner – he’s even removed tables, so staff aren’t overburdened as he fine-tunes things. His new chairs have finally arrived (some borrowed furniture from family members helped seat diners in their absence). Shin only got Eastwood’s keys in September, renovating the site in a few whirlwind weeks. “Once everything is comfortable, I’m going to add more tables.”

Walk into the space and you’ll notice a moon jar on museum-like display: its curved shape is an iconic symbol of Korean pride. Just as eye-catching is the duru-duru jumeoni – adding beans to these bags is a new year ritual. “Legend had it that if the pouch filled too quickly, quarrels might follow – so the gift was as much about harmony as it was about prosperity,” says the plaque beneath the display.

These objects are important, because Yeodongsik isn’t just about feeding diners. “We want to show them some Korean culture as well,” Shin says. It’s apt given Eastwood’s K-Town status: the suburb is home to over 150 Korean businesses. “This is where we wanted to start originally – Eastwood.”

You might recognise jars of perilla powder, prawn sauce and chilli on tables: just like at Lidcombe, they’re there so customers can customise their pork-rich hangover soups. The roasted salt and Gaban black pepper are for seasoning gomtang (thick beef bone soup with rice).

Yeodongsik Lidcombe was well-known for its 11-item menu. In Eastwood, Shin has added new dishes. He’s maximising his two kimchi fridges with salad and a wonderfully crisp and light jeon (pancake) flavoured with the spiced Korean condiment. The jeon is inspired by customer requests and the fact his team already made an ace version for staff lunches.

Then there’s dry bibimbap, which will hit the summer menu once a shipment of preserved vegetables arrives from South Korea. It’s temple food – served with rice and two sauces (likely soy-based and chilli-based) – that Shin learnt about from wife Kristene Park and mother-in-law Won Moon. Both women have been instrumental to Yeodongsik since its start as a pandemic-era home-delivery service in 2021.

Yeodongsik 2.0’s addition of dry bibimbap fascinates me. I’ve never seen this vegetarian dish on a menu before – and for Shin, that’s exactly the point. “We don’t want to do something … that you can get at every Korean restaurant.” 

Yeodongsik
15 Railway Parade, Eastwood
0478 969 140

Hours:
Mon to Sat midday–3pm, 5pm–9pm 

jkbc.com.au
@yeo.dong.sik