Mo Ran Gak Restaurant

Today is Christmas Eve. It's after twelve o'clock at noon. 11 of us dined in this Korean restaurant. The meat in this restaurant is very fresh, and the restaurant waiter is also very warmly welcoming us, providing us with high-quality services and helping customers barbecue winter meat food! This restaurant is really good👌👍👍👍! All of us are satisfied👍! I will come back again. I will recommend more relatives and friends to come here to experience delicious food!

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

Great spot and service for some authentic Kbbq! Our server Jack delivered excellent service and made our experience even better! It was worth waiting one hour for it ;)

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

Hands down the best Korean bbq spot in Orange County. The service, quality of food, and cleanliness are top tier and you’d expect to pay way more for a non ayce experience. When you eat here they take care of you from the jump by grilling all your meats perfectly and refilling any sides you want. They are always busy so try to come during off hours if you don’t like waiting. I mean what other place can you get traditional Korean cold noodles and they give you a second smaller portion for free? That way you can try both styles or double up on the one you like. They’ve been here for a very long time so that should tell you everything you need to know. Def a must try in Orange County.

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

Was recommended to go here and it did not disappoint! It’s à la carte, so we went with the 2 person “prime non-marinated Korean bbq” combo A which was perfect in serving. I am still dreaming about the spicy cold noodles 🥹🤤🤤 service is excellent. They cook for you in case you come with a diva who doesn’t want to cook. Meat was fresh and very tender. Definitely will come back here again!!

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

It was very good

Atmosphere: 4

Food: 5

Service: 5

My friend and I are not local, but a friend recommended we couldn't go wrong with any Korean BBQ in the area. We chose this restaurant completely randomly, but had a really great experience. Our waiter, who introduced himself as Jack, was so very attentive and so kind. He picked up very quickly we hadn't gone to something like this before and was very willing to explain things as the food came out without us even needing to ask. It was very informative without being patronizing and it made me comfortable despite being out of my element.

I'm sure the food is really high quality, the place is packed with people that I'm sure are return customers! I chose to put the food at 4 stars due to not being familiar enough to judge the quality, this was my first time with most of these foods. Despite that, I enjoyed the food!

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 4

Service: 5

My uncle used to take me here quite a bit when I was a child, but I haven’t been back in about a decade. So when I heard that Mo Ran Gak made the top 6 on Yelp OC’s top places to eat for 2025, I was a bit surprised since my memory of this place was relatively lukewarm. I decided to revisit to see what all the hoopla was about.

We came on a Sunday night around 7pm and there was almost no wait - which was unexpected because I remembered it being longer in my childhood. As we were shown to our seats, I snagged a nice hot cup of black sesame liquid from the machine at the front of the store. It was warm and comforting on a cold rainy day - just like how I remembered it.

Food is served a la carte here with different tiers of dinner combos available as well. The staff grill the meat for you. Our server was very helpful in guiding us through the menu. We opted for the non-marinated premium combo. We also got the naengmyeon combo and an order of beef tongue a la carte.

Our combos came with banchan, which our server generously offered to refill. A standout for me was the jeon. Even if you hadn’t told me it was made to order, the freshness and crispiness of the shell would’ve given it away. The insides were still piping hot and the accompanying sauce was delicious.

Then came the meat. We started with brisket. Since we opted for the premium combo, I was hoping that the meat would be better than what I remembered. However, I thought the brisket was ordinary and, if anything, a little dry. The beef tongue, however, was delicious. It was cooked perfectly. The texture was not rubbery at all and had a springy bite to it. And it was so juicy. Paired with kimchi and the sweet soy, it was heavenly. Compared to the beef tongue, everything that came in the premium non-marinated meat combo felt lackluster. I was disappointed especially because these items were labeled as premium, and I didn’t think they were worth the higher price point. Even the beef tongue was quite expensive - being $37.95 for one order (though if you go, I do think the beef tongue is worth it).

I will give Mo Ran Gak credit for their cold noodles, which are as delicious as I remember. The naengmyeon combo comes with both the “spicy” (not really) bibim naengmeyon and a smaller portion of the Pyeongyang mul naengmyeon. The bibim naengmeyon was full of vibrant flavor and a cool refreshingness that’s perfect on hot summer nights (not this night though, because of the rain. The noodles were delicious, regardless).

Funny enough, I saw that I’d left a Yelp review here 3 years ago in 2022. As I read back what I wrote, I nodded to myself and said, “Mmm. Yes, I still think the same thing.” There’s highlights such as the beef tongue and the naengmyeon, but overall I think this place is ok and perhaps not the best value for the money spent. I wouldn’t mind coming back if my uncle paid for it again though haha

Atmosphere: 4

Food: 4

Service: 5

Nice place 👌 very clean food 👌 was good bathroom 🚻 clean

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

Ordered the bulgogi deapbap several times and they were all sickly sweet to the point that my tongue was going numb and apparent that nobody in the kitchen is tasting their own food. The server didn't care when I provided the feedback and didn't even ask anyone or try to follow up which I thought his arrogance amusing but on brand with the service quality of this place.

Atmosphere: 3

Food: 2

Service: 1

This is one of my go-to spots for authentic Korean food. It is not AYCE, the meat quality is excellent and you can really taste the difference. The staff are always friendly and helpful, and their banchan is really good. Highly recommend the cold noodles—they’re some of the best around.

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

The amount of meat for their combo is not a lot but they will fill you up on noodles and side dishes

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 3

Service: 5

Everything was incredibly good, soooo full!! Highest praises to Angie!! She was amazing!

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

Our favorite Korean BBQ joint. Busy but highly recommended.

Atmosphere: 4

Food: 5

Service: 5

The service is ok , the food isn’t that special and the meat is dry , waiting in line for 45 minutes for this is not worth it . it’s very pricey but the food is not good . Go to sookdal for the best food

Atmosphere: 3

Food: 3

Service: 4

Morangak’s cold noodles are the best I’ve had in North America so far! They are very authentic, and the texture of the noodles is perfect! I would love to go back again!

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5