Cho Dang Tofu House
Sometimes, a hot bowl of love is what my stomach needs to be happy. Southern California is blessed with so many different types of restaurants, but one of my favorites is Cho Dang Tofu House in Artesia.
Known for its soondubu – a stew made with soft tofu and spices- Cho Dang Tofu House offers 14 different types, from the popular beef stew to the adventurous tripe stew. Vegetarians can indulge in a veggie stew with broccoli and cauliflower, or my personal favorite, the mushroom stew loaded with enokis and sliced shiitakes. Before your soup arrives, a selection of banchon will be delivered to your table. Banchon, which are Korean side dishes, include whole fried fish, various kimchi and bean sprouts. I tend to munch on kimchi and bean sprouts while I wait for my meal, but if you wait for your meal to arrive, these side dishes are excellent palate cleansers.
I’m not going to lie – the process of eating tofu soup took a minute to learn, but I’m so glad I took the time to figure it out as it really makes the experience so much better. You’ll receive your soup (boiling, so be careful!), a stone pot of steamed rice, and a small bowl. To start, scoop a small portion of rice into your bowl, and then scoop some tofu soup over it. You don’t want to scoop too much because you want the rice to still maintain a little bit of its stickiness. This is why: included in your banchon are strips of dried seaweed. The seaweed is used to carefully scoop the rice and tofu soup (kind of like a sushi roll, but soupier). It adds just the right amount of saltiness to each bite – party in yo mouth!
If you still have room in your belly, you can finish off your meal with complimentary soft serve ice cream or a hot beverage. I usually go with the hazelnut cappuccino, but you really can’t wrong with the mocha or hot chocolate. This meal always pleases the tastebuds, so if you’re ever in the area, you should definitely check out Cho Dan Tofu House.
There are two locations in SoCal, both of which are listed below. Happy eating!
Cho Dang Tofu House
12245 E. Artesia Blvd., Artesia, CA 90703
1155 S Diamond Bar Blvd., Diamond Bar, CA 91765