Dongnae

Bristol’s Chandos Road is fast becoming one of the most talent-packed foodie streets in the country, with Dongnae joining the likes of Wilson’s, Little Hollows, and nearby gastropub The Kensington. For years, diminutive Bokman has been a cult favourite - an ‘if you know, you know’ spot - and now, patrons Kyu and Duncan finally have the space they deserve to spread their wings. The result is nothing short of spectacular.

The dining room has a touch of canteen charm - warm wood, laminate tables, and gleaming white tiles give it a clean, unfussy feel. The minimalist aesthetic suits the Victorian bones of this former butcher’s shop, with surfaces largely left bare save for the occasional wall print, kimchi jar or pot plant. The gentle glow from globe lampshades lends the room some softness, without which it might feel a bit austere.

Behind wooden slats, Kyu, Duncan and their team work with quiet focus, picking through salad leaves and turning skewers on the charcoal grill. First to arrive: monkfish and octopus skewers, lacquered in a cumin-laced gochujang glaze. The roasted spice adds weight and complexity to the pepper paste’s sweetness - a perfect match for the expertly cooked seafood.

The lunchtime menu (a steal at £24 a head) revolves around ssam, a Korean barbecue dish where you create your own lettuce wraps. We go with dayboat mackerel, which is butterflied, grilled with a soy glaze until bronzed, and served with a riot of banchan: kimchi, pickles, tempura vegetables in shatteringly crisp batter, garlic, chilli, and more sauces than you can wave a chopstick at. The DIY nature of the meal is part of the fun, but the flavour combinations, no matter how you assemble them, are uniformly delicious.

Staff are charming and deeply knowledgeable about Korean cuisine, a must, given that the menu may read like Klingon to the uninitiated. Even dessert is a triumph: a dense, elegant cube of black sesame and mugwort cake that closes the meal on a confident note.

Curious, generous, and fiercely original, Dongnae confirms what many Bristolians already suspected: Kyu and Duncan are among the most exciting chefs cooking in the UK today.

Named after the Korean word for ‘neighbourhood’, Dongnae fittingly prioritises a laidback, community-focused approach to authentic Korean dining.

Fans of nearby Korean favourite Bokman will be pleased to know that this new venture is owned by the same British-Korean chef duo and married couple, Kyu Jeong Jeon and Duncan Robertson. In a similar vein to Bokman, this new venture promises an accessible approach to Korean cuisine, while also aiming at a slightly more refined menu inspired by the couple’s time living in Seoul as a young family.

One of the major innovations of the new menu is a greater focus on fermented Korean staples, such as doenjang, gochujang, and makgeolli all made in-house. This focus is mirrored by a collaboration with various local suppliers, such as Rocketman Produce which grows traditional Korean leaves and herbs in a Bristol allotment, and by a wine list centred on low-intervention wines, creating what the owners call a ‘symmetry’ between fermentation in Korean cuisine and natural wine.

In terms of price point, there is truly something here for everyone - the set lunch is excellent value, consisting of a rice bowl, soup, side dishes, and kimchi. At the other end of the spectrum the Hanjungshik (omakase style tasting menu) showcases some of the chefs’ favourites, including Korean beef tartare and wild mushroom dolsotbap. The menu also has a dedicated section for Korean BBQ dishes made on the authentic charcoal grill.

Jeong Jeon and Robertson have a keen interest in art and artisanal crafts, and this is reflected in Dongnae’s precisely curated space. The counter and tables are handcrafted, and handmade ceramics and bulpan (a Korean BBQ grill pan) play a key role in the decor.