Shandong Mandu 산동만두

Reservations open in six-month blocks at this small Chinese dumpling house tucked behind the Garden Hotel in Gongdeok, and walk-ins often wait more than two hours. Gunmandu are fried hard so the wrapper shatters, while jjinmandu come in a thick, soft steamed skin; both hold a juicy filling of cabbage, chives and meat. Dishes that avoid overlapping with the dumplings include ilpum-gaji, fried eggplant tossed with vegetables, and the four-item cold platter with five-spice pork and jellyfish. Deep-fried pork comes without sweet-and-sour sauce unless you add it. Groups larger than six are not taken, and the kitchen closes early once ingredients run out.