50 Best Korean Restaurants near Emeryville

“What a great surprise. The food was delicious, and the service was great. We look forward to trying the rest of the menu. I highly recommend the Loco Moco.“

“I finally got to try the dishes here and I am not disappointed.
I got the soup and it was just right amount of jalapeños for the spice. I lobe the simplistic it had, but it was still tasty ?
I also tried the island poke dish and it was very delicious as well.
I like how you have options for the rice or a salad base, or both.
Very flavorful and right amount of sauces.
I am looking forward to trying more dishes as time goes by.“

“Flavorful food & good customer service“

“A good place to taste Korean and Japanese cuisine with a twist.“

“Daeho is hands down my favorite Korean spot. The kalbi jjim is the best, and it’s the main reason we keep coming back. There’s always a line here, so definitely try to get on the waitlist if you can, otherwise be ready to wait. The vibe is pretty noisy and bustling, but the food makes it all worth it. Great spot if you’re craving amazing Korean comfort food.“

“썰 was an memorable experience. Every dish was beautifully executed. For a Korean American, the ingredients were an emotional process. While each dish focused on/showcased the high quality of ingredients, the flavors were a nuanced balance between Korean and Western cultures. Choosing quality over local at each crossroads, many evoked memories of my Korean childhood.

The lynchpin for this beautiful evening was when the chef unexpectedly spent time with us; shared a rare insight behind the scenes. At our table, few were from the East Coast or not Korean American, thus not realizing the backstory to arriving to this moment. I so appreciate the honesty as validated the constant struggle between balancing Korean/American expectations, especially in this time/place. To tie such a diverse audience, the chef executes well.“

“Such a refreshing and delicious lunch spot! The set comes with different fresh and pickled dishes made daily using seasonal ingredients, including fresh tofu. Acorn noodle was really flavorful too. Since it is plant forward meal and portion is just right, I always feel good and satisfied afterwards, and not heavy.“

“We had a very nice lunch. We sat in the courtyard, which is very inviting. The portion of the dishes are huge, with lots of meat. It is a unique place where they also sell groceries and the groceries line up of the walls of the restaurant. When you enter the building, you don't realize that they have a very nice seating area with the groceries in the back. We also bought some homemade Kimchi and snacks to take. We live in the Peninsula and we will definitely go back to Berkeley to eat here again.“

“We had late night dinner reservations elsewhere and needed a little snack to hold us over. We got the bulgogi kimbap and boneless KFC with the sweet and spicy sauce. While waiting for our food, we were pleasantly surprised when they served us each a hot cup of broth. The chicken was delicious and they were big pieces of breast meat that weren’t overly breaded, but still very crispy. The kimbap was also great. The man who helped us was very nice and the restaurant was clean.“

“We ordered the rose tteokbokki, soy garlic chicken, and seollangtang. It was SO GOOD!!!!! The soy chicken came out really hot but after it cooled down, the sauce was incredible. The seolltangtang was super fresh and clean, very light. The rose tteokbokki took the cake and the portion size is HUGE! Overall an amazing experience, will be back!“

“This place is the epitome of comfort food. Located where all the medical offices seem to be - this is an unassuming mom and pop cafe with no frills but has warm and friendly energy. I always order off the Korean menu and the dolsot bibimbop is absolutely delicious and in the same leagues as your typical Korean restaurant. This is definitely a local's joint and I look forward to coming here after my doctor's visits.“

“Picked up dinner twice this week. Delicious.“

“Enjoyed the different meals thoroughly. Have had the Chicken Curry Rice Bowl, the Spicy Chicken Ramen Bowl, Bulgogi, and a few other dishes. Easy to become a repeat customer“

“Two words: seafood pancake. This place nails the seafood pancake - it’s thin, crispy, not too oily, large, and yes; loaded with seafood!
The soups here are nourishing on a cold day. We got the ox knee soup which tbh was a bit bland, it’s only got ox knee in it. But the rice cake soup was delish.“

“We got the Supreme Set A for three people a bit to much food for 3 but go figure it feeds 4-5 people. But overall food and sides were hella good kimchi sour level was great and meat well seasoned. The staff were very attentive and even cooked all the meat for us. Definitely gonna be coming back“

“Great little friendly, locally owned Korean take out place. The meals are good - “lunch boxes”, kimchi fried rice, sandwiches - and for mine are usually best with beef bulgogi. They’re also big enough to share between 2. The fried chicken is addictively good! Soy garlic and cheddar are favorites. Plus as the name suggests they have a wide selection of tasty banchan.“

“We love Mugunghwa, their food is delicious & authentic. It’s a privilege to have such well established, family owned Korean restaurant around, something that is not always given. All the main dishes, I believe, come with 6 set of side dishes and please don’t sleep on them - the portions are very generous (& you can ask for refills) and are flavorful. I think they make all their kimchi in house as well.

And as a Korean, I grew loving sotbap which is basically a rice cooked in a pot where you can take out the cooked rice to a side bowl and let the rice stuck to the pot simmer in broth which makes a nutty nooroongji. So I got pretty excited when I heard they have sotbap.

Our current favorites are: Sellongtang, galbijjim and bone harjangguk. But honestly all of their stuff is great in my opinion so try whatever sounds interesting to you!!“

“3.5 stars, rounded up to 4 stars.

Kimcheese Smashburger: Patty has a decent texture, but may be too mushy for some people. Not very tasty and a bit plain - definitely did not feel like I was eating a Korean food item.

Fries: Good texture, although a bit hard. Under-seasoned.“

“The food was excellent and the service was superb. We didn't realize that our theatre tickets were 30 minutes earlier than we thought. The staff responded and made sure we were done in time. We plan to go back again when we don't have to rush.“

“I went there on Thursday evening, and the female staff serving was so kind. I filled my beer glass with ice and mixed lemon with soju, and she brought me lemon with a kind smile. The food is quite palatable. I didn't have a parking space, so I had to park somewhere else and walk, but I think it will be a good memory.“

“9/10
- golden toast with sashimi on top 9.5/10: so good. the best avocado toast my bf has ever had. it was a perfect combination of crunchy / soft textures. the avocado mixed with the crispy and buttery toast, with a slight kick to it that i can't even place.
- galbi crunch 6/10: lackluster. great concept, poor execution. the batter tasted like tempura chips which was weird. the meat was a bit overcooked; would've been better if it was more tender. the peppers were good. the red flakes on top tasted like hot cheetos.
- soondooboo 9/10: they wouldn't give us white rice!!!! we asked twice!!! would've been a 10 with rice. best soondooboo we've had. it had a thicker consistency than normal. was on the spicier side so rice would've saved us. given that there was no rice, we wish there was more content in it (ie. meat, tofu). we're taking it home to eat with rice lol
- bossam 8.5/10: the kimchi like thing and soybean paste were a good combo with the meat. no lettuce though, which was weird. the bossam felt less cooked than normal, but not complaining lol. solid but not the best i've had
- mochi brownie 8/10: had little bits of mochi in it... kinda weird. but the black sesame cream was a great addition! the brownie as a whole was the perfect amount of sweet. and they gave it to us for free for our anniversary!“

“This is my go to place for takeout when im sick or hungry/lazy past 930pm. I always get the kimchi soup with pork belly, seafood pancake, kimchi cold noodle, and more pork belly. Their banchan also includes a crunchy mustard seaweed noodle that is so addicting.

This may be my favorite korean restaurant in the city.“

“Loved it! Ordered the stir fried gopchang and steamed egg. The gopchang was super juicy and delicious! The steamed egg was also great. Those two are the perfect size for 2 people. I especially loved the different types of side dishes they serve! The eggplant one was my favorite! I can see this place becoming popular since the food was so good!“

“My foodie coworkers have nothing but praises every time you guys cater for us. Impressive how you pull off such tasty AND healthy food. Thank you!“

“We returned to this restaurant twice during our visit to SF, it was that good. Very much enjoyed the garlic soy chicken wings, salmon eggs benedict, kimchi, bulgogi, pimped up ramyun, and of course the bacon.“

“I got the gan-jang beef bowl for $16.53 after tax. I think the beef flavor was good, but the beef texture itself was inconsistent. There were tender/fatty portions, but parts of the beef were quite tough & hard to chew. It came with a soft boiled egg, rice, sesame, and seaweed flakes.

They charge $2.50 extra for kimchi. I feel like if you order the meal without kimchi, it lacks veggies & something to help you finish the rice. If you were to compare that experience to sit-down korean restaurants with free kimchi/banchan, it’s stingier. I would feel better paying this price if it came with kimchi, which seems like a necessary part of the meal.

The owner was nice enough to offer me extra beef/free kimchi as a one-time service, and I took him up on that.“

“I visited Mugunghwa on a Saturday evening and was pleasantly surprised to find no wait time. The restaurant immediately gave off a calm and welcoming vibe — clean, well-organized, and spacious, with soft pop music playing gently in the background. The ambiance strikes a nice balance between modern and comfortable, making it easy to relax and enjoy the meal.

Service was prompt and professional. I was seated right away, and the staff handled everything efficiently and courteously. My dishes — Galbi Tang and Bulgogi — arrived impressively fast without compromising quality.

The food was the true highlight. The banchan (side dishes) were especially memorable — fresh, flavorful, and clearly prepared with care. Each small plate added a vibrant contrast to the main dishes, showing attention to authenticity and balance. The Galbi Tang was comforting, with a clean, rich broth and tender beef that fell apart easily. The Bulgogi was tasty and well-seasoned, though the rice on the side was a touch too moist; a drier texture would have made the dish even better. Still, the quality of ingredients and consistency of flavors stood out.

Overall, Mugunghwa delivers an impressive combination of fresh flavors, attentive service, and a peaceful atmosphere. It’s the kind of place that makes you feel taken care of without any pretense. Despite a minor flaw in the rice texture, I’d gladly return for another meal — especially for those wonderful banchan.“

“A good Korean restaurant in Albany, close to Berkeley in a safe neighborhood. What more could you ask for?

The banchan is plentiful and fresh (especially the kimchi). The food is on the sweeter side and not as spicy as similar Korean restaurants and that’s okay. It is what makes it special and unique. I would recommend going one level up of spice level to what you’re normally accustomed to.

Portions are big, so I’d recommend sharing family style and expect to take leftovers home.“

“Tell me why when I first opened the delivery box of galbi boneless chicken and stabbed what I thought was a French fry with my fork, I literally did a chew double-take and removed the tteokbokki from my mouth because my taste buds were so thrown off from what I was expecting. I really should’ve known better, but I’m accustomed to seeing tteokbokki drenched in a gochujang based sauce, so they deceptively resembled fries. To be fair, from this experience, I learned they taste way better dry and seasoned, but I digress.

Onto the main part of the review…

As I’ve written in a couple other reviews this week, I’m “researching” the best Korean fried chicken spots in San Francisco to determine which to order from for an upcoming Friendsgiving. I looked up a ton of options in the city and narrowed them down to a shortlist of 3 spots, this place included. A few things I examined to create my short list were varieties/flavours of chicken, quantity to price ratio, other customer ratings, images of the chicken, and proximity to my neighborhood or deliverability to my friends’ neighborhood where the Friendsgiving will be hosted.

When I took the first bite of K Soul chicken, I knew I’d found a winner. I’m very particular about KFC having spent the last few years living in LA and Orange County, home to copious dedicated KFC restaurants. K Soul’s chicken tastes the most similar to my favourite spots in SoCal. It has the perfect texture and crunch, the meat is neither dry nor greasy, and the umami flavor is on point. They’ve created a perfectly balanced KFC, and that’s why I’ll be taking this to Friendsgiving.“

“Love this spot, we’ve been going for years. All the renovations they have done really cleaned the place up.

Our favorite dishes jajangmyeon and the fried pork. Their noodles are so good!!! Big portions also. There’s no other place like it in the bay, would highly recommend.

Staff is also very attentive and always so welcoming and nice.“

“everything is freshly made. very good. 💯🔥“

“Called in for takeout late on a Saturday night. It was 11:30 PM. Surprisingly, the restaurant was completely empty. I thought there would be more people hanging out here! Not too familiar with Oakland, but maybe it was a location issue? Anyways, we called and had an estimate of 25 minutes, but our food was ready in 15 minutes. Going inside, paying and checking out was easy.

We specifically wanted bossam. We also got the tteokbokki.

Service was quick and friendly.

At home, when we started to eat, we wish the bossam had more cabbage than the portion of steamed napa cabbage they gave us. The sauce flavors were good though and they gave us some banchan. The tteokbokki was tasty.

We were also able to takeout some makgeolli since the H-Marts and other Asian grocers were closed at this time.

All in all it got our bossam fix taken care of.“

“Just incredible Korean contemporary fusion cuisine. Kept the fundamentals of the Korean authenticity with unique broad appealing western gastronomic desires. Well done!!!👍“

“My foodie coworkers have nothing but praises every time you guys cater for us. Impressive how you pull off such tasty AND healthy food. Thank you!“

“Love their marinated meats, pickels and fermented vegetables. Their Kimchi is my favorite.“

“I knew exactly what I wanted as I walked in. I smelled the Bibimbop and my tummy was already smiling. the service was great! and the food was delicious! our 3 year old approved the Chicken Cutlets with their special sauce! we're definitely coming back the next time we're in town!“

“I've been here more times than I can count. I've eaten at multiple KBBQ spots to find a place that can best this one...can't find it!

The pork belly at Jong Ga house might be the best quality I've ever eaten. It just melts in your mouth(assuming that you cook it right, of course).

I can't praise this place enough.“

“This is our local, “go to” place whenever we’re craving Korean food. It never disappoints. At night, they generally project K-pop music videos onto a large wall, which brings the whole room to life. Lotsa fun!“

“Ban chan was nicely packaged and tasty. The Fried chicken was greasy & nasty and had a bad smell. I really wanted to have fresh fried chicken but the oil/grease/lard was not fresh. I ate one piece of a wing out of six in the $20.00 order. $20.00 for six wing pieces….so basically it was 3 wings…each wing cut in half. Pretty expensive. For that price at least use fresh oil.

The short rib cabbage soup was not remarkable nor worth the $29.00 price.

The delivery orders were all 10% higher than a pick up or dine in order. I guess to cover delivery fees?“

“Hankki (previously T-toust) has been a STAPLE in my Berkeley experience. Amazing food and staff is always welcoming and sweet. I can't even count how many times the food here made me feel right at home!! The pork kimchi stew is my favorite ❤️“

“So glad to find out they reopened after being closed a while during the pandemic. Currently you have to pre-order a day in advance for pickup so it takes a little planning but so worth it.Their fried chicken is so crispy. I ordered it with waffle fries and they say they only fire up the fries just before your pickup time so that they're fresh. When I went to pick up my order, they let me know it would just be a few minutes because the fries were finishing and when he came out with my order, he said he accidentally made the salad but included both the fries and salad and threw in a vanilla pudding. Everything was so delicious. Even the bonus pudding had flecks of vanilla bean and tasted so much better than the instant stuff. The chicken and fries were enough for 2 meals.“

“I recently revisited Valencia Street after a few years and decided to try out a new restaurant. I was impressed by the excellent customer service. I visited on Sunday, May 19, 2024, after 5 PM. The restaurant was pleasantly quiet, which was perfect since I have a toddler who likes to run around.

Although it wasn't my first time eating Korean food, the meal was outstanding. I had the Spicy Pork Bowl, and it was absolutely delicious. If you enjoy spicy food, I highly recommend it!
we will be back :)

Kid-friendliness: yes !

Wheelchair accessibility: yes,“

“We saw so many korean restaurants and were unsure which to pick. We figured the high prices of others would make them better but we were looking for something that was more reasonable in price and found Jin Mi. We were SO glad we did. The food was phenomenal!! We got a bimbimbap bowl, Ramen, and tofu soup and all of it was just delicious. The service was fast, the employee was so friendly. The best place we ate at in SF this trip! Thanks so much.“

“Came here with some friends and overall had a good time. The chicken was on the dry side, but the seasoning powder had great flavor and definitely helped. Tried the seafood pot too — contents were fine, pretty standard taste, nothing that stood out but it hit the spot.

The real highlight here is the vibe. Fun atmosphere, good energy, and a nice place to just hang out for a while. Service was friendly and the space felt lively without being too overwhelming. Not perfect on the food, but I’d still come back for the overall experience.“

“Tbk was not spicy enough, but I suspect they might have lowered the spice level to accommodate the majority customers who aren't used to the spice level.

Overall, taste was great, but the price is a bit high since you don't get that large of portion.“

“Love this place, I go about once a week. All the meats are really good and seasoned especially when paired with the spicy mayo or even extra teriyaki sauce which isn’t needed in just a big back. The stars of the show is the short rib triangle, and the buldock and unagi are ok too.“

“The banchan were the highlight of the meal, the stewed potato, seasoned fishcake, and sprouts with seaweed--all delicious and fresh. The mushroom tofu stew was nice, and the galbi tang was good but not my favorite. It was savory, meaty, and salty, but too simple for my taste. The mung bean pancakes were bland, even with dipping sauce. Overall I wished I'd ordered other food--with such good side dishes the bibimbap is probably great. The prices were very high, though to be fair, the most expensive dishes serve multiple people.“

“Came here quite often but first time writing the review. This place is neat and clean with good service and yummy food. I like the tofu soup the most. The combo for two people can easily feed four if you are not big eaters.“

“Came here with some friends for a pre Halloween night out.

First-time and I am very impressed. Bandhan was great with some that you don't normally get at other places.

Ordered the Kimchi pancake, kimchi fried rice, tteokpokki, bulgogi and spicy pork. All great and very filling.

Staff was very attentive and warm. They had the World Series game on. Overall great experience.

Will come back to try the kimchi jiggae.“