Chicago: Joong Boo Market Food Court

Whenever we run out of kimchi, my roommate and I know that it's time for a Korean market run. The closest one to us is Joong Boo, but we still need to find a ride every time we need to make a trip. There's a small food court in the market, but we never had the chance to eat there. On Sunday, the planets finally aligned and we got our chance:

The menu is pretty straightforward. Those who can't speak Korean can order by number. Since my roommate is Korean, I let her do all the talking.

First we got the yook-gae-jang (a spicy beef and veggie soup):

The soup was so red it looked molten. I was quite proud of myself when I discovered that I could handle the heat.

My favorite was the ra-bok-kee or ramen with rice cakes and fish cake:

The spiciness was tempered by sweetness and rice cakes are always welcome.

We also ordered the sul-long-tang, which is beef and honey comb in a beef bone soup:

While the soup was really flavorful and reminded me of home, as with the yook-gae-jang, they were very...um, frugal with the ingredients inside. I had to fish around for meat. The picture menu can be a bit misleading.

Overall, a very good deal. Entree, rice, and panchan...all for less than $10? Definitely can't complain.

Every time we go to Joong Boo, we stock up like crazy because we never know when our next Korean market run will be. This particular trip was no different. Our shopping cart almost overflowed with groceries. It might be a while before we need to make another run, but I'm looking forward to trying the other food court offerings.


Joong Boo
3333 N Kimball Ave
Chicago, IL 60625
(773) 478-5566
http://www.joongboomarket.com