Dining reviewer WENDY JOHNSON enjoys a new Korean experience at the Griffith shops. 

NEW at Griffith shops, Sonamu Korean Restaurant and Tea House is charming in so many ways. 

When you walk in you’re immediately drawn to the gorgeous collection of teapots, hand-drawn cards delicately hung (sayings in Korean) and intriguing artwork. 

Special teas include jujube ginger and quince. Organic, deep-mountain leaf teas are on the menu and drinks include sujonggwa (a cinnamon drink with dried persimmon and pine nut). We’ll return for a cuppa one day, but on this occasion we were visiting Sonamu for dinner.

Sonamu celebrates authentic Korean cuisine and we settled in the warm and cosy room secluded at the back of the restaurant marvelling at the large, stunning piece of ornate wooden furniture that forms a centrepiece.

We shared two styles of vegetarian dumplings to start and both dishes were mega hits. It won’t be long before the weather will be warm enough for us to revisit Sonamu to sit in the outdoor courtyard and indulge in many more plates of these perfect parcels. The light-fried mandu ($15) packed a punch on flavour and so did the steamed mandu, which were super moist and did their job in tantalising our tastebuds.

While not all dishes are truly designed to share, we arranged for additional cutlery and road tested several creations. That included another star of a dish, the chicken light-fried in Korean sauce. It, too, was super moist and full of flavour. It was perfect with rice and green salad ($18).

Intrigued by the description of the jijim, we ordered it to share. The pan-fried, savoury pancake was created with ground mung bean seed, carrot, mushroom and mild, red chilli topping ($16). It looked delicious on the plate but, in the end, we felt it fell a tad flat on flavour. The wagyu beef dish wasn’t our fave either, with the thin slices of beef overcooked ($29). Still, the other dishes shone brightly and were served with a smile.

Sonamu has an impressive array of soups and stews, all authentic Korean ($16). Some feature tofu, dried seaweed, enoki mushroom topping and oh-so-good-for-you veggies.

Side dishes include green seaweed salad ($5), iconic Kimchi ($4), anchovy crunchy seaweed ($5) and radish pickle ($4).

We were too full for dessert but noted the sweet-bean fried pancake and Korean choco-cracker. Desserts range from $7 to $11.

Sonamu, by the way, is the name of the Korean red pine tree (it also grows in some neighbouring countries). Sonamu states on its menu that the tree holds a special status and represents faithfulness, endurance and the Korean spirit.