The word “dodam” can mean a child growing healthy and strong. This Brunswick East kid is thriving. A spirit of celebration is threaded through the menu, the main event the shareable “meat feast”. In Korean, it’s hansang, which translates as “table full of food”. The name doesn’t lie.

You choose from various pork cuts or beef ribs and they’re served with cold noodles (eat them first as a refresher), lettuce wraps, kimchi and sauce. The pork jowl is the pick: slow-cooked to melting, it’s tickled with the grill then thinly sliced, the meat’s richness offset by the dancing flavours of the accompaniments. It’s not all meaty.

Handmade veggie dumplings are excellent, their sturdy wheat casings filled with tofu, mushroom, cabbage and spring onion. Anchored in tradition and nostalgic origin tales, Dodam could make you pine for a Korean childhood you never had.

Must-order: Pork jowl hansang.

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