Luii a restaurant run by Yeo Kyung-rae, one of Korea’s celebrity Chinese chefs (the power-four are Lee Yeon-bok, Yoo Bang-nyung, Jin Saeng-yong and Yeo Kyung-rae). Yeo, which translates to ‘woman’ is pronounced in Chinese as luii, hence the name of the restaurant.
Although you might believe that dining at a restaurant run by this power-Chinese chef would result in draining your pocket and leaving the place with a slightly empty stomach, you need not worry. With this restaurant, Yeo tried to bring high quality Chinese dishes at extremely affordable prices (upon getting a meal here, you may even compare Luii to a fancy Chinese restaurant at a five star hotel, food wise at least).
Luii’s specialties are Shark’s Fin and Fo Tiao Qiang (Which poetically translates to “Buddha Jumps Over the Wall”), but their Sweet and Sour Pork (Tangsuyuk) and Pal Jin Chow Mein are also scrumptious. They used to have the Sweet and Sour Pork fried once and refried right before it’s served, but because it resulted in a hard crust the chef decided it was better to fry it just once, right when the order comes in. The fried bits are light and fluffy, with an enjoyable chewy texture. The brown sweet and sour sauce that comes in a side bowl is quite strong in flavor and almost very aromatic with all the fruits and vegetable that went into making it.
Our other favorite, Pal Jin Chow Mien, is something you can’t try elsewhere in Korea. As its name suggests, (‘pal’ meaning ‘eight’) there are 8 different ingredients that go into this noodle plate: Catfish, cuttlefish, beef, baby bok choy, bamboo shoots, 3 types of mushrooms and shrimp. The fried noodles have nice crispiness to them, while the cooked ingredients are so soft they just melt in your mouth. One downside was that the chow mien only had about 3 to 4 small pieces of each ingredient, making the dish mainly noodles and sauce.
Considering the price point, however, perhaps it was expected. At the end of the meal, you will be provided with persimmon sorbet, which is very refreshing.