I came here for Dine Out 2026 so you know the quality etc is sometimes little varied and is not always the best representation of the restaurant under normal circumstances so take this review with that into consideration.
But honestly it was just ok. I see the intent they had and I was curious since I’ve heard some good things about this place food was average. I had the tartare (which was not bad, I think the better than the tempura), the lingcod (huge portion which I loved! But bland, side dishes were amazing), and in substitution for their sorbet I got green tea cheesecake (which was low mid, kind of grainy - would reco the vanilla ice cream more).
Overall I think it was just average. Great vibes for a date and the servers were nice but the food was mid. For the price it was worth it but that’s about it. Unsure if I’d come again based on the food.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 4
Service: 4
Sitong Liu
Loved their food quality! Will definitely come back again!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Spicy Seafood Stew
Lamrick Bleyz
Food is decent, for me was maybe too salty, especially beef tartare. But atmosphere is good! They have happy hour, so we came in right on time. Oh in happy hour menu they have really nice mocktails 🤩
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 3
Service: 4
Christopher Mayes
Had the Ssam Bap lunch tray. Everything was delicious and generous portion size. Will be returning in the future.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Grishya Dhingra
I enjoyed their dine out menu, esp the mushroom salad and the matcha cheesecake!! I got the lingcod for my main and it was v soft and filling. My friend got the steak (she said it was one of the best she’d had). After Zoomak, Korean might’ve entered my go-to top 7 cuisine list👀
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 4
Service: 5
Lauren Malito
Best Korean food hands down! Amazing flavours, great prices and huge portions :) very friendly staff as well.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 5
Service: 5
NP
One of my fav korean restaurants in downtown (gastown). Crispy pork bossam is good just like the hk shaorou, fried chicken is yumm with our fave crunchy chewy texture and well seasoned sauce, jjamppong is real good, food for soul during winter time
Atmosphere: 3
Food: 5
Service: 4
Anthony Giang
After walking around Gastown for a while, my partner and I stumbled across this really pretty but empty storefront called Zoomak. Curiously we decided to give it a try, but were confused because on Google it said they were closed. It turns out the restaurant’s info had not been updated and it actually has lunch hours with a whole lunch menu. We decided to order the pork cheek hansang, and it was insane. It comes with a ton of banchan and every component of the tray was delicious and cooked well. If I lived in the area I think Zoomak would be a place I frequent a lot and for the variety and amount of food you get, this is a great deal.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Peter van Stolk
Had a fantastic experience here with two friends. The food was excellent, but the service was next level. One of my friends forgot his boxed kimchi for his daughter, and our server literally ran two blocks in the cold to catch us and return it. That kind of care is rare in Vancouver, and it says everything about how Zoomak operates (food Service atmosphere). We’ll be back.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Sonja Li
Our visit to Zoomak was a major disappointment. After seeing so many positive reviews online, we decided to give it a try, and it honestly did not live up to the hype at all. We went on a Saturday evening and made a reservation the day before for a 5:00 pm seating.
We ordered the Ban Chan Trio, Korean Fried Chicken (Sweet Soy), and Gabli Ssam.
The Korean Fried Chicken arrived first and was immediately off-putting. The sauce was aggressively salty, and the batter was excessively thick and greasy. The dish also came with rice cakes, which were not mentioned anywhere on the menu. This was not a pleasant surprise — the rice cakes had absorbed a ridiculous amount of oil and were heavy and unpleasant to eat. The accompanying pickled radish and carrots tasted under-marinated and barely seasoned, more raw than pickled.
The Gabli Ssam was mediocre at best. The meat was just okay, but the dish came with sesame leaves in addition to lettuce, which neither of us eats. While the staff did provide extra lettuce when asked, this should not have been necessary in the first place.
The Ban Chan Trio was the biggest letdown. For $8, we received three tiny portions: raw octopus, spicy cucumber, and bean sprouts. Raw octopus was completely unexpected and honestly quite uncomfortable to eat. Charging for ban chan is already questionable, but charging $8 for minuscule portions of cucumber and bean sprouts — dishes most people can make at home — feels insulting. The bean sprouts were drowned in sesame oil and white pepper, making them overly greasy, while the spicy cucumber had a thick sauce but no real flavour, likely because it wasn’t marinated long enough. To make matters worse, the ban chan arrived last, which makes no sense as these dishes should already be prepared.
Overall, the food was excessively salty and heavy. It felt like the menu was designed to make customers thirsty — possibly to push drink orders — rather than to deliver balanced, well-executed Korean flavours.
I would absolutely not recommend this place to anyone who actually enjoys Korean food. If you’re looking for authentic or well-balanced Korean cuisine, this is not it. Only go if you’re curious or have very low expectations.
Side note: The location is awkward, slightly off Gastown, with limited parking and inconvenient access. It’s about a 10-minute walk from Waterfront Station or the edge of Chinatown. The washroom is also extremely small, barely enough space to turn around, let alone use comfortably.
I really enjoyed my experience here with the service staff being all so friendly! The dolsot I ordered was too tasty and my friends loved their orders as well! Will definitely return!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Claire
This experience left me thinking, “I could run a restaurant too,” which says more about the lack of professionalism here than anything else.
Atmosphere: 1
Food: 1
Service: 1
K Bob
Came for dinner tonight and it was SO good! We had the soft tofu seafood soup, bossam and makgeolli clams. The seafood soup was one of the best jambbong I've ever had (it's 짬뽕 with tofu instead of noodles not 순두부찌개). The bossam was also incredible! I loved their sides and the perilla leafs! The makgeolli clams were a little ocean-y and alcohol-forward for me.
Service was so attentive and so kind!
Atmosphere was also so nice and the corner spot we had was so warm - loved it!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
X Z
We were really looking forward to trying this place, but it didn’t turn out as we hoped. There were many empty tables, yet dine-in was not allowed and only take-out was available. We were traveling with our child and just wanted to sit down together for a warm meal. It was a bit disheartening, especially after a long day. Hopefully they can be more accommodating in the future, especially for families.
Atmosphere: 1
Food: 1
Service: 1
taureandragon76
Was working outside here today and decided to not eat the lunch I brought from home and got their kfc rice bowl. So glad I made that decision all of us who grabbed food from here found it very delicious filling. So good forgot to take a pic.
I came here for Dine Out 2026 so you know the quality etc is sometimes little varied and is not always the best representation of the restaurant under normal circumstances so take this review with that into consideration.
But honestly it was just ok. I see the intent they had and I was curious since I’ve heard some good things about this place food was average. I had the tartare (which was not bad, I think the better than the tempura), the lingcod (huge portion which I loved! But bland, side dishes were amazing), and in substitution for their sorbet I got green tea cheesecake (which was low mid, kind of grainy - would reco the vanilla ice cream more).
Overall I think it was just average. Great vibes for a date and the servers were nice but the food was mid. For the price it was worth it but that’s about it. Unsure if I’d come again based on the food.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 4
Service: 4
Loved their food quality! Will definitely come back again!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Spicy Seafood Stew
Food is decent, for me was maybe too salty, especially beef tartare. But atmosphere is good! They have happy hour, so we came in right on time.
Oh in happy hour menu they have really nice mocktails 🤩
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 3
Service: 4
Had the Ssam Bap lunch tray. Everything was delicious and generous portion size. Will be returning in the future.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
I enjoyed their dine out menu, esp the mushroom salad and the matcha cheesecake!! I got the lingcod for my main and it was v soft and filling. My friend got the steak (she said it was one of the best she’d had). After Zoomak, Korean might’ve entered my go-to top 7 cuisine list👀
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 4
Service: 5
Best Korean food hands down! Amazing flavours, great prices and huge portions :) very friendly staff as well.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 5
Service: 5
One of my fav korean restaurants in downtown (gastown). Crispy pork bossam is good just like the hk shaorou, fried chicken is yumm with our fave crunchy chewy texture and well seasoned sauce, jjamppong is real good, food for soul during winter time
Atmosphere: 3
Food: 5
Service: 4
After walking around Gastown for a while, my partner and I stumbled across this really pretty but empty storefront called Zoomak. Curiously we decided to give it a try, but were confused because on Google it said they were closed. It turns out the restaurant’s info had not been updated and it actually has lunch hours with a whole lunch menu. We decided to order the pork cheek hansang, and it was insane. It comes with a ton of banchan and every component of the tray was delicious and cooked well. If I lived in the area I think Zoomak would be a place I frequent a lot and for the variety and amount of food you get, this is a great deal.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Had a fantastic experience here with two friends. The food was excellent, but the service was next level. One of my friends forgot his boxed kimchi for his daughter, and our server literally ran two blocks in the cold to catch us and return it. That kind of care is rare in Vancouver, and it says everything about how Zoomak operates (food Service atmosphere). We’ll be back.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Our visit to Zoomak was a major disappointment. After seeing so many positive reviews online, we decided to give it a try, and it honestly did not live up to the hype at all. We went on a Saturday evening and made a reservation the day before for a 5:00 pm seating.
We ordered the Ban Chan Trio, Korean Fried Chicken (Sweet Soy), and Gabli Ssam.
The Korean Fried Chicken arrived first and was immediately off-putting. The sauce was aggressively salty, and the batter was excessively thick and greasy. The dish also came with rice cakes, which were not mentioned anywhere on the menu. This was not a pleasant surprise — the rice cakes had absorbed a ridiculous amount of oil and were heavy and unpleasant to eat. The accompanying pickled radish and carrots tasted under-marinated and barely seasoned, more raw than pickled.
The Gabli Ssam was mediocre at best. The meat was just okay, but the dish came with sesame leaves in addition to lettuce, which neither of us eats. While the staff did provide extra lettuce when asked, this should not have been necessary in the first place.
The Ban Chan Trio was the biggest letdown. For $8, we received three tiny portions: raw octopus, spicy cucumber, and bean sprouts. Raw octopus was completely unexpected and honestly quite uncomfortable to eat. Charging for ban chan is already questionable, but charging $8 for minuscule portions of cucumber and bean sprouts — dishes most people can make at home — feels insulting. The bean sprouts were drowned in sesame oil and white pepper, making them overly greasy, while the spicy cucumber had a thick sauce but no real flavour, likely because it wasn’t marinated long enough. To make matters worse, the ban chan arrived last, which makes no sense as these dishes should already be prepared.
Overall, the food was excessively salty and heavy. It felt like the menu was designed to make customers thirsty — possibly to push drink orders — rather than to deliver balanced, well-executed Korean flavours.
I would absolutely not recommend this place to anyone who actually enjoys Korean food. If you’re looking for authentic or well-balanced Korean cuisine, this is not it. Only go if you’re curious or have very low expectations.
Side note: The location is awkward, slightly off Gastown, with limited parking and inconvenient access. It’s about a 10-minute walk from Waterfront Station or the edge of Chinatown. The washroom is also extremely small, barely enough space to turn around, let alone use comfortably.
Atmosphere: 1
Food: 1
Service: 3
Restaurantji Recommends
I really enjoyed my experience here with the service staff being all so friendly! The dolsot I ordered was too tasty and my friends loved their orders as well! Will definitely return!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
This experience left me thinking, “I could run a restaurant too,”
which says more about the lack of professionalism here than anything else.
Atmosphere: 1
Food: 1
Service: 1
Came for dinner tonight and it was SO good! We had the soft tofu seafood soup, bossam and makgeolli clams. The seafood soup was one of the best jambbong I've ever had (it's 짬뽕 with tofu instead of noodles not 순두부찌개). The bossam was also incredible! I loved their sides and the perilla leafs! The makgeolli clams were a little ocean-y and alcohol-forward for me.
Service was so attentive and so kind!
Atmosphere was also so nice and the corner spot we had was so warm - loved it!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
We were really looking forward to trying this place, but it didn’t turn out as we hoped. There were many empty tables, yet dine-in was not allowed and only take-out was available. We were traveling with our child and just wanted to sit down together for a warm meal. It was a bit disheartening, especially after a long day. Hopefully they can be more accommodating in the future, especially for families.
Atmosphere: 1
Food: 1
Service: 1
Was working outside here today and decided to not eat the lunch I brought from home and got their kfc rice bowl. So glad I made that decision all of us who grabbed food from here found it very delicious filling. So good forgot to take a pic.
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