Korean restaurants, step aside because there is a new kid on the block! GoroGoro is the latest release (It opened on 15th February 2016!) from 77th Street, the same establishment behind other well-known restaurants like I'm Kim and Kokomama. The new restaurant is a Korean Steamboat-style buffet that features a wide variety of broths, fresh meats, veggies, drinks and Korean delicacies. You can expect up to 50 selections for weekday lunch sessions and over 70 for dinner and weekend dining!

The inspiration behind the name 'GoroGoro' is an interesting one - It is onomatopoeic, meaning that it imitates a certain sound or noise, the first being the grumbling sound our tummies make when we are hungry; and secondly, the magical bubbling sound produced when the broths are boiling! 

My sister, ever the reliable source for great deals, caught wind of this new restaurant in town and asked me if I wanted to join her for lunch some day. She showed me some promotional posts they had uploaded onto their Facebook page:

Credits: GoroGoro Facebook Page

Beauty Collagen? Ginseng Chicken?? And only for $9.90++??? My mouth was watering at the thought of these broths, so we grabbed the phone receiver and immediately booked the next available slot of a table for two. Before we knew it, I was in front of the restaurant, having finally found my way after consulting the helpful video GoroGoro had considerately uploaded to help confused patrons like myself find their way.




I had arrived slightly earlier than my younger sister, who was making her way down from school, so I used the time to take in the surroundings and observe the people around me.

Elevator landing

Benches at the other end of the corridor for patrons to wait for all guests to arrive

As you might have read from the FB post above, there are six main types of broths: Spicy Mala, Beauty Collagen, Ginseng Chicken, Tom Yam, Tomato & Vegetarian. From the get-go, I knew Spicy Mala was going to be a hot favourite (no pun intended), and my guess was confirmed when I stepped into the lift to get to the fourth level - The aroma of the Mala spice was wafting around in the lift, and the smell only got stronger when I exited and found myself right at the entrance of the restaurant. As someone who can appreciate a bit of spice, I found myself contemplating ordering the Spicy Mala broth as it seemed to be very well-received. At this point of time, my sister had arrived so we were quickly ushered into another waiting area (GoroGoro does not let you be seated until all guests have arrived)



The staff offered us a seat on their couch while they prepared our table for us. We were also handed the list of broths and asked to choose two flavours so that they could prepare it at the same time. After some thought, we decided to stick with our original plan and ordered Beauty Collagen and Ginseng Chicken. I was quite amazed at the size of the restaurant, which did not look its size from the outside.






Our assigned table was by the window, which should have been a call for celebration because most of the time that meant 1) good sunlight for photos; and 2) a good view. As you can see, the view is nothing to shout about, but I really appreciated the bright light coming in as it helped compensate for the lack of a professional camera. Armed with just my phone camera, I began snapping away while my sister attacked the food first.




In this section, we have the ready-to-eat dishes that some of us like to take while waiting for the broth to boil/ingredients to be cooked. To the best of my memory and with the aid of photos, I recall the following:
Finger Food
Ngor Hiang
Chicken Nuggets
Potato Wedges
Gyoza
Chicken Wings
Korean Snacks
Kimchi Pancake
Japchae (Glass Noodles)
Kimchi




I had no idea what to call this specification of foodstuff, but recalling that we being Asians almost always require a carbohydrate as our diet staple, I labelled it as thus. The selection of carbohydrates is surprisingly refined, catering to a wide range of preferences.
Rice
Plain Rice
Chicken Rice
Noodles
Ee Mee
Tang Hoon
Mee Sua
Instant Noodles


The selection of steamboat ingredients you can take is simply too large for me to list out. I hope the photo suffices... Otherwise, think 酿豆腐 and project the ingredients onto the counter - that's what you can find in the buffet, and that, is a lot!


Although I am not a vegetarian, I do always take note of how vegetarian-friendly a restaurant is because it is usually a good indicator of how much effort its owners put into their customer service. The introduction of a vegetarian broth option is something I applaud, and the large variety of vegetables available only serves to support the idea that GoroGoro is indeed vegetarian-friendly!



Finally, what everyone has been waiting for - MEAT! I like that the restaurant makes an effort to provide a variety of meat, and at least two forms of each meat. In this visit, my sister and I definitely returned to this counter the most!
Meat
Pork Belly
Pork Collar
Pig Liver
Marinated Chicken Breast
Chicken
Beef (two types, I forgot what)


Condiments

Because what is a Korean restaurant without condiments, right? The condiments counter caters to different palates, ranging from the savoury to the spicy, to the tangy...
Condiments
Sesame Oil
Chilli Padi
Thai Green Chilli
Vinegar
Soy Sauce
Sesame Sauce
Garlic

~



After 'feeding' my phone, I returned to our table and was greeted with the very Korean-looking soups (the red dates, maybe). We consolidated the food that we had taken for a shot as we waited for the broths to boil.




It wasn't long before the broth started boiling, and we immediately got to eating as we were famished.


Perhaps due to great reception, our meal was limited to only 90 minutes, ample time for us to finish our meal and leave with our tummies stuffed. I'm not a big fan of steamboat, but GoroGoro's steamboat buffet is one I will continually revisit in the next few months!

WHAT IS DIET?!

Credits: GoroGoro Facebook Page