Much ado about Mandu

I must apologize for the lack of posting as of late. Between holiday festivities and other going-ons, I've not had much spare time.

This past weekend, Jason and I decided to check out Mandu, a little Korean joint just east of Dupont. (I was originally going to cook dinner for him, since he had just gotten back from Japan, but being so busy, I hadn't had a chance to procure any groceries.) Anyhow, I'm kinda glad I flaked out on the cooking thing, because the delicious Mandu is now officially my new go-to place when I don't have the energy to cook, but am craving a super flavorful meal in a homey setting.

The word "mandu" is actually Korean for "dumpling," so naturally we started the meal with an order of these - the steamed shrimp variety, to be precise. Now I don't know about you, but I take dumplings fairly seriously. In my experience, a really good dumpling is deceptively difficult to come by. Many varieties fall victim to a too-thick and doughy wrapping, which, despite whatever tasty filling may lie inside, has approximately the same appeal of a mouthful of steamed and salted Elmer's glue. Othertimes, the wrapping might be fine, but the filling itself disappoints, usually because it's been overcooked and has morphed into a tough little pebble, so that when you bite through the wrapping, you're rewarded with only a faint hissing noise as the shrunken mystery pellet topples out of the wrapping and onto your lap. I'm not sure whether this is worse, however, than the undercooked dumpling, whose gummy brown innards carry bear an unfortunate resemblance to cheap cat food.

So, a dumpling can fail in any number of ways, which is why it's all the more remarkable to find a great one, even at a restaurant named for said item. Mandu's dumplings fit the bill. With a crisp, yet delicate skin and a nicely-seasoned, perfectly cooked filling, Mandu's mandu were a definite du. The best part was that the dumplings were wrapped in such a way that there were lots of little nooks and crannies to better sop up the addictive ginger soy sauce with scallions.

For the main course, I was in a soup kind of mood, and the Soon Doobu was sounding like the perfect way to ward off the December chill. Billed on the menu as a "spicy seafood stew with soft tofu," the soup came out of the kitchen still bubbling and gurgling in a hot stone bowl. With a fiery red-hot broth that set my mouth ablaze, the overall effect was somehow still soothing, the salinity of the clams, squid, and shrimp mixing with the creamy bits of tofu, creating a prickly, but pleasant, warming sensation throughout my whole body.

Jason ordered the Dolsot Bibim Bap, a hearty rice bowl with assorted vegetables, beef and a fried egg, with a spicy bean paste on the side. I was so enamored with my own soup that I managed only a bite of beef from Jason's dish. The meat was tender and almost sweet, redolent of fragrant cloves and possibly anise. A glass of the Pine Ridge Chenin Blanc Viognier blend was the perfect foil to such spicy food.

Good to know:
Mandu is located at 1805 18th Street, NW. It's a fairly quick walk from the Dupont Circle metro stop on the Red line. From the circle, walk north on 19th Street, then take a right on S Street. It'll be about a block down, on the corner of S and 18th. The atmosphere is casual. Good for dates or quiet dinners with friends.

Photo of Bibim Bap by Flickr user vincentgallegos.

Photo of Mandu by Flickr user brownpau.