Chicken sheek kebab at Durga

By Han Sang-hee
Staff Reporter

It is easy to find exotic Indian restaurants around Seoul nowadays, and yet another one has caught the eye of busy and picky office workers in the busiest streets of Gwanghwamun.

Durga, located near Jonggak Station, is affordable, tasty and cozy, but because of its reputation it's hard to find a seat during the busy lunch hour.

The restaurant first opened in 2006 and has been a popular space among office workers and students on a budget.

Like any other Indian restaurant, Durga serves a variety of curries, barbecues and snacks, and during lunch it offers special set meals for one, two or four customers to share.

We ordered the Durga set for two (36,000 won) which includes nan or rice, a small side salad, dal fry, four pieces of tandoori chicken, a curry of your choice between mutton (lamb), chicken or vegetable and two drinks. We ordered the chicken curry.

Along with the set meal, we also ordered the chicken sheek kebab (14,000 won), the beef chili curry (12,000 won) and the palak paneer, a spinach curry (10,000 won).

The tandoori chicken was soft and tender and the curry was delicious, and though the nan was a bit thick compared to other places, it was still moist, chewy and buttery.

The chicken curry had many thick chunks of chicken, but it was a little too watery. The chili curry, which was made with fresh beef, onion and a special chili sauce, was spicy yet tasty. Some of our guests had to stop and drink water to quench the heat, but most went back to it when they cooled down. The waiter advised that it is a good idea to order two different types of curry ― one mild and another spicy ― to appreciate the full aroma and taste of both dishes.

The chicken sheek kebab (14,000 won) was basically barbecue made by roasting minced chicken seasoned with various spices. It smelled and tasted like sausage, and also resembled Korean ``sundae.'' The spices were quite strong, and the bright green sauce also made the kebab a bit stronger, but it was a unique dish that made our meal more interesting.

Along with the nan that came with the set, we additionally ordered garlic nan (2,500 won), but it was hard to taste the difference between the two.

One of the nice things about Durga was that they have many different dishes to choose from. For those who want to enjoy rice, order the biryani (9,000 won), which is a fried rice dish with different toppings such as vegetables, chicken or both. For appetizers, try the samosa (4,000 won) which resembles Korean ``mandu,'' but has more richness in its vegetable filling, or the chicken chili (11,000 won) and vegetable pakoda (8,000 won) which is a deep fried vegetable recipe.

The final course of our meal was the masala chai (3,000 won). The small cup looked like it contained coffee, but as soon as we took a sip, we could feel the rich and unique aroma of chai tea. It was a perfect finishing touch.

Be sure to leave for the restaurant early or make a reservation as the seats fill up fast.

To get to Durga, get off Jonggak Station on subway line 1 and go out exit 1. Walk straight until you find the entrance to Durga on your right. The restaurant is on the second floor. There are also two other branches near line 4 of Jonggak Station and also in Euijeongbu. For more information, visit www.durga.co.kr or call (02) 733-4786.

sanghee@koreatimes.co.kr