Jeju Tofino has been on the top of my list to try ever since I’ve seen their delicious dishes on Instagram. Unfortunately for me they’re located several hundred kilometers away so I have never had the chance to go (yet). Luckily enough, this week they’re doing a 3 day pop up at Torafuku. Tickets sold out within hours, and I can definitely see why after trying their food. Let’s just say, during the meal I was already scrolling for ways to get myself to Tofino ASAP. Note, this review is based on the food that I had from the Jeju Tofino menu as it was prepared in Vancouver. Chef Dylan did mention that it is even more incredible in person at his restaurant. Which blows my mind to think about because the food was already stunning.
Jeju Tofino – Pop Up at Torafuku (Appetizers)
For this very special pop up, Jeju Tofino prepared a beautiful 5 course set menu ($85). On the menu:
To start we had the most stunning Spot Prawn dish plus a few additional goodies not listed on the menu. The spot prawn was sweet and went really well with the orange! We were treated to mini versions of Jeju Tofino’s Scallop (yuzu vinaigrette, herb oil, pickled radish, marinated kelp, kelp salt), Octopus (seaweed perilla oil vinaigrette, lime, kimchi, dill), Wagyu Tartare (gochujang glaze, garlic, chive, egg yolk, sourdough) and Corn (onion, carrot, egg, mushroom, aged parmigiano reggiano, arugula).
I definitely had my reservations as I don’t generally think of seafood and oranges together, but this was a very light and refreshing start to the menu. The dill oil really packs a bunch and goes really well with the pickled jalapenos and garlic aioli. To make it extra special there is a very generous dollop of caviar on top.
Next we had a very visually interesting dish of Eggplant. This was served on a bed of rocks and I believe the intention was to invoke the image of the volcanic terrain of Jeju Island in Korea.
The exterior was light and crispy and the prawn filling had a lovely bounce.
Jeju Tofino – Pop Up at Torafuku (Mains and Dessert)
Moving into the heavier portion of the meal we had Bulgogi. This is not your grandma’s bulgogi. This dish is elevated with the earthiness of truffles on the dish and a fantastic truffle sauce. It pairs perfectly with the housemade seaweed crisps.
The shining star of dinner has to be the Galbi. If there is one dish you need to eat in this lifetime it is this. This beautiful dish features Korean BBQ CAB short ribs that have been aged for 35 days and it’s served with some of the freshest accompaniments I have ever had.
The kimchi, in particular, was fantastic. It’s crunchy and spicy and I could honestly eat the entire container. A lot of the ingredients used at Jeju Tofino come from the family farm and you can really taste the quality. The short rib literally melts in your mouth, it’s so tender and the charcoal flavour is just unbeatable.
Also just a moment for the lettuce. It looks like it came straight out of a drawing.
To end of an incredible meal we had a lovely shaved ice Persimmon dessert. It was so light and refreshing and just the perfect way to cap off one of the best meals of my entire life.
Worth a Try?
Absolutely, 100000000% YES. This meal was incredible and I’m still dreaming about it. You can feel the love, care and attention to detail in every dish that you eat. The food at Jeju Tofino is a tantalizing symphony of traditional Korean flavors with a creative West Coast twist. I cannot recommend checking out this restaurant enough, and I can say without a doubt, it is very much worth the trip out to Tofino. Please make a reservation here and thank me later.
JEJU Tofino
Address: 120 Fourth St #101, Tofino, BC V0R 2Z0
Website: https://www.jejutofino.com/menu
