Dae Sung Kwan Restaurant

A damn shame this place closed, it had great authentic jja jang myun in huge portions. Marylanders have to drive all the way out to Annandale for any type of decent jja jang myun.

I’ve been eating at this place forever. I mean ever since high school? So that would be close to 15 years. Anyway, they used to be in Silver spring but now at wheaton. I think their quality has gone down since, but maybe my memory is better than the actual stuff. Anyway, I’m going to break down the rest. between Koreans and non-​Koreans.
Non-​koreans– Unless you have tried and like jja-​jjang-​myun, DO NOT order it. You can if you want to try it. Most my non-​korean friends who love korean food do not like jja-​jjang myun. It’s a different taste from korean food because it is not authentic korean food. I would instead try kkang-​pung-​gi, which is fried chicken in sweet and spicy sauce, tang-​soo-​yuk, fried beef in sweet & sour sauce, jjam-​pong if you like hot soup, i do mean hot, etc. I would stick to those 3 at first, but remember those are big dishes, meant for 2+ people, except jjam-​pong.
For Koreans, I think this place is ok. I much prefer dae-​rah-​won near beltsville, but if that’s too far, I guess this place would suffice. Some times, they do not give you hand made noodles. Which is a big downer for me. I guess the chef was sick or something. I was bigger fan when I was younger and the rest. was in Silver Spring. Maybe the owner changed or the chef changed. I don’t know, I wasn’t really paying attention. But I love getting yang-​ja-​pee, and I think this place is little too expensive.

I had to think long and hard about the rating I was going to give this place… and I had to go with how many times I was disappointed versus satisfied. The golden years (as Ina K mentioned) are definitely over. The quality of the food is so unpredictable and the portions have definitely gone down in size. And no more hand-​made noodles and ma-​tang (candied sweet potatoes)…what?!
I hear great stories about the jja-​jang-​myun but I don’t get to taste any for myself when I go and order. I LOVE jjam-​bbong (spicy seafood soup with noodles) but dislike the fact that some of their bowls came with an unpleasant fishy smell and taste. The nu-​rong-​ji-​tang (toasted rice in a soup like sauce) also came with the same smell/​taste. Their yu-​san-​su (seafood and veggie) was unmatched, but now!!! The only thing that I will always go back for is the kkang-​pong-​gi (fried chicken in a sweet, sour, spicy sauce). Call me a masochist, but I’m actually willing to give this place a couple more tries… hey man, I’m Korean and I need a fix every now and then.
Seeing how some people have had a different experience, I’m wondering if I just picked the wrong days to go… maybe the chef was having a bad day. Or maybe I’m mourning for the past and expecting too much out of the present.

steak: steakhouse: jja jang myun: Dae Sung Kwan.
The golden years of Dae Sung Kwan ended when they moved from their White Oak location to Wheaton more than 10 years ago. Since then, there’s been a serious lack of jja jang myun options in MoCo. Dae Sung Kwan would be a last resort when the jja jang myun cravings got too bad. But even then, we’d leave feeling unsatisfied and ripped off. There’s been a game of musical chairs with ownership over this restaurant for a long time, but the quality never really got better.
I went last weekend for the first time in years because I heard that there was new management (yet again) and a promotional deal where they offered jja jang myun for $ 4.95! And what did I find?
IT WAS GREAT. DELICIOUS. YUMMY!
The black bean sauce was just right — not too salty and really flavorful. The chunks of potato, pork and onion were tasty and bigger than usual. The texture of the noodles was good, but my only criticism is that they’re not hand-​made. You can tell by the uniform shape and size of the noodles that they’re store-​bought. But it’s not too big a deal. I still liked it a whole lot.
Our meal ended with a complimentary bottle of «yo-​geuh-​reut» (a Korean yogurt drink), which was a really nice touch! And what better way to end a meal than paying less than what you expect — $ 20 for four people. I checked the menu, and the «regular» price that is hidden under the sticker with the promotional price is only a dollar more — which is still a steal!
Conclusion: Go for the jja jang myun, but not the atmosphere. Fantastic for groups. This is THE place in Montgomery County for high-​quality and cheap jja jang myun! I give my Korean stamp of approval. Here’s to hoping that the current management sticks around.
Check out my pictures!

I didn’t try the Jjajangmyun, so I can’t vouch for that — I believe you all though! My hubby and I are new to the area and we lived in Korea a couple of years ago, so from time to time, we get a hankering for some Korean cuisine; actually most of the hankering is on my part and he gets dragged along. What is important to him in Korean food is the appetizers! He likes kamja (potato), shigumchi (spinach), kongnamul (bean sprouts), sam gae ip (sesame leaves), and some others; I like all the kimchi. I’m sure you’ve guessed by now that I speak Korean.
Basically, the appetizers here were NOT good. They were leaning towards bad, actually. Disappointing is a good word. I guess we’re kind of spoiled since we lived right around the corner from this awesome Korean restaurant in An Jung Ni outside of Pyongtaek City, South Korea. It was the best ever; we also loved the Korean Grill in Monterey, CA. Since coming back to the states in 2004, however, we have yet to find a Korean restaurant that we are really thrilled with.

We ended up trying some of the Chinese food at this place — we had the Lazogi for two. It was a spicy chicken and veggie dish. It was pretty good, would have been better if we had craved some Korean Chinese food (it is totally different from American Chinese food if you’re wondering why I said that). The portion size was huge though, probably enough for 3… and I’m eating it for lunch today.
We prolly won’t be going back because we will still be looking for something that’s amazing and crave worthy, but if I ever want some noodles with black bean sauce, I may head over there.
It gets 3 stars because the appetizers were notably bad and that is a huge part of the Korean experience in my book, but the meal we had was good. I’m certain this place is good enough to try at least once, just don’t be upset over the ban chan (side dishes).

The lure of jjajangmyun* (noodles with black bean sauce, a Chinese-​Korean hybrid) was strong enough yesterday that that I Google mapped some directions and hopped in the ‘vo and headed to Maryland. I’d read a couple of zealous five star Unilocal about Dae Sung Kwan calling the jjajangmyun there «out of this world». When I pulled up I was extremely skeptical. Let’s just say that the faade of Dae Sung Kwan is not at all visually appealing and leave it at that. Okay? When I entered I found a large lunch buffet but I kept my eyes on the prize. When I refused the buffet and ordered jjajangmyun off the menu instead my server asked, «Are you Korean?» I smiled and explained that I’d developed a love for Korean food while teaching conversational English to Korean doctors on fellowship at UCSF.
Still, bypassing the lunch buffet must be some sort of signal of authenticity for when someone else delivered my noodles she spoke to me in Korean. It caught me a little off-​guard so I bowed a bit from my chair and said «Kamsa hamnida».
The moment I laid eyes on the jjajangmyun before me I knew it was going to be good. The hand-​pulled noodles were fresh and not clumpy. I poured the inky-​colored, onion-​flecked black sauce over the noodles and dove in. Once again, Unilocalers had steered me right and to a place I’d have never found otherwise! I ate and ate until I could not eat another noodle and then took the rest home — the portion was HUGE.
Strangely, the kimchee and other banchan at Dae Sung Kwan is not good. I found the kimchee sour and unfresh — perhaps better suited to a chigae? If that’s any indication of their strength, I suggest you stick to the jjajangmyun. The stuff’s good enough to allow me to overlook the subpar kimchee.
*Say it with me now, JJA-​jang-​myun!

For a korean take on chinese food look no further than this place. This is one of those hidden gems in the Wheaton area. I’ve had the jjajangmyun and the jjampong, both are out of this world. Jjajangmyun is a black bean sauce atop hand made noodles with julienned cucumbers. It’s absolutely delicious The cucumbers add a crispy, refreshing bite to the dish. I’m a big fan of rice and beans, and now I’m a fan of noodles and beans thanks to this place. The black bean sauce is just perfectly salty and savory. It may look a little strange when it arrives at your table, but just dig in. The key is to mix it all really well. Now, on to Jjampong, this is a spicy seafood noodle soup. It really has a kick! It’s packed with shrimp and it’s absolutely delicious. They also have traditional chinese food favorites like fried rice, sweet and sour chicken/​pork etc. But I always get jjajangmyun or jjampong. You gotta try this place!