Delicacies off Campus: Tofu Home is definitely worth the journey

“Delicacies off Campus” opinions meals close to Stanford’s campus. We think about what issues to varsity college students: How shut is the restaurant? How costly is the meals? And, most significantly, how tasty is it? We hope that will help you discover your subsequent favourite spot!

So Gong Dong Tofu Home on El Camino Actual is unassuming. Packs of individuals ready exterior sign that there’s something pleasant behind its plain facade, however a look inside reveals what seems like a highschool cafeteria: vibrant white partitions and sterile flooring. 

Venturing into the unassuming spot reveals a menu stuffed with scrumptious surprises. The ramen mushy tofu — a dish of boiled tofu, instantaneous ramen and greens — arrived on the desk in a stone bowl, which stored the dish scorching during the meal. When ordering, patrons are given the selection of a wide range of spice ranges for the dish — for ours, we selected medium. The kick of the spice was complemented properly by the assorted greens all through the dish. The tofu, shortly falling aside within the mouth, was silky and soaked in broth.

Tofu Home isn’t all tofu, although. Dropped at the desk nonetheless scorching to the contact, the pork bibimbap was a unprecedented textural expertise. Crispy rice was complemented by the uncooked egg yolk that cooked up proper within the bowl. The bibimbap sauce had a salty spice that elevated your entire dish. 

The dumpling yook gae jang was the one disappointment from the number of objects we ordered. The dumplings on this beef soup had been nice, however the remainder of the bowl lacked taste, tasting like a plain meat broth. To be truthful, this might have been an ordering mistake. We selected a low spice stage for the soup, and it might need been higher with extra of a kick. After we added among the spiced bibimbap sauce immediately into the broth, the soup did achieve much more dimension.

Most fundamental programs had been round $20 — an affordable worth for such giant parts. Including onto that worth, orders include a complimentary assortment of toppings and sides. A spotlight from this assortment was a cucumber vinegar salad, with simply the suitable concord of candy and savory.

The tofu buchim, a fried tofu pancake, was a tasty savory aspect to accompany our different dishes. The tofu had a pleasant salty taste, with an ideal stability between a crispy exterior and mushy inside. We particularly loved the tofu together with the broth from our soup dishes. 

With scrumptious meat choices and artistic tofu mains, the menu was huge and diverse, which we appreciated since one among our tasters prefers to eat vegetarian.

After such a fantastic meal, we might be recommending Tofu Home to our associates and readers. The one caveat comes from the restaurant’s environment. The barren setting felt depersonalized, particularly since orders had been processed by way of a QR scanner. Sound ricocheted simply within the house, making it laborious to listen to your tablemates. The ambiance isn’t all the things, however when going off campus to eat, generally you lengthy for one thing that feels extra distanced from institutionalized consuming. 

Tofu Home is a 12-minute drive or a 20-minute bike experience from GovCo. From EVGR-A, it’s nearer — solely 10 minutes by automobile and 14 minutes by bike. 

Editor’s Word: This text is a evaluation and consists of subjective ideas, opinions and critiques. If in case you have restaurant solutions for this column to evaluation, electronic mail arts ‘at’ stanforddaily.com.