Are you a dumpling fan? If so, visit Bulkogi and Sister Liu’s Kitchen the next time they stop at 300 Swift Apartments or next to Wannamaker dorm. According to students, they offer the best dumplings on campus.
Duke Dining recently added these two eateries to their food truck program, which runs between 5 and 7 p.m. Mondays through Thursdays. Bulkogi serves a variety of Korean-fusion barbecue items, while Sister Liu’s Kitchen serves traditional Chinese food in the form of dumplings, Chinese burgers and noodle bowls.
Bulkogi offers a three-step ordering system, allowing students to customize their own dishes to satisfy their Korean BBQ cravings. First, students choose a Korean BBQ base. Bulkogi offers beef, chicken, pork and tofu for vegetarians and vegans. Students then choose from a wide range of dishes including tacos, burrito bowls and quesadillas. They can lastly include add-ons such as fresh kimchi, fried eggs and rice.
Senior Dakota Douglas’ go-to order at Bulkogi is the chicken bulkogi BBQ tacos and goon mandoo, Korean pan-fried dumplings. “This is only my second time, but I think it’s very good and has a lot of good options,” Douglas said.
In comparison to other food trucks, Douglas explained that Bulkogi has a shorter wait time.
“Some of them have a bit of a longer wait, but I think compared to other schools, we have a lot of diverse options, so I don’t think that’s anything to complain about.” Douglas said that Bulkogi is “better than [the Brodhead Center] and on par with Thrive.”
Some students, such as junior Leona Lu and sophomore Dominic Martinez, are drawn to Sister Liu’s Kitchen due to its variety and authenticity.
“I am from China, and their dumplings are really good, and their burgers are really good. [The Brodhead Center] has dumplings, but they are fried and more Americanized, so it is nice that there is authentic food available at Sister Lui’s,” Lu said.
Martinez has a similar order to Lu: “The beef burger and the dumplings are both great,” Martinez said.
“It’s about variety. I go to [the Brodhead Center] all the time, and you know sometimes my Ginger + Soy poke bowl for the fifth day in a row gets a little boring. Food trucks offer some nice variety because it is usually stuff that you can’t get at [the Brodhead Center].”
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