22 Best Korean Restaurants near Pinole

“I'm a big fried chicken person so I decided to try this place as it's new to me.

I got the half original fried chicken which was pretty good. Skin batter was crispy, meat tasted fresh and was well seasoned. The dark meat I was better than the white meat as it was a little dry. That was because they cut the breast and thigh in pieces which I'm not fond of. This means quicker frying but odd pieces that make the meat not moist. Would go back to try the other flavors and wings.

I also got the tteokbokki which I did like. Large portion and great taste. I do like that they put a lot of vegetables and fish cake with the rice cake. However I wish it was more spicy as I found it very mild.

I ordered for pick up, food was hot and ready when I got there. Ladyat the counter was very nice. Overall traditional korean taste and food was good. My son and I both rated each dish a 7.5/10 which is good but we've had better korean fried chicken and tteokbokki elsewhere. However I would go there again to try other dishes.“

“Such a fun unique place to dine and shop! It’s a small set up and the walls are lined with shelves and freezers to shop for food. Need to run in to the market? Suuuure thing. Wanna have a cute date night? Cute spot. The garden area is such a vibe too! Not to mention the food is yummy. I love coming back here whenever I’m in the area!“

“😍 양이 아주 많고 맛도 있어요 어서들 오세요 감사합니더“

“Good Food and Outstanding Service! it satisfied our Korean food craving. Portions were big and it's so delicious. we even ordered Togo to try their fried chicken at home. we'll surely be back when in the area.“

“Absolutely amazing. ❤️
This place was first recommended by a Korean friend, and it’s now easily the restaurant we’ve visited the most in the entire Bay Area. When we lived in Berkeley, we came at least every other weekend—and even now, we still happily drive for it. We’ve been here 20+ times.

I’ve brought many friends here, and every single one wants to come back. It always comes up whenever we talk about fried chicken.

The food:
• Fried chicken — heavenly
• Tofu soup — rich, comforting, and deeply delicious
• Kimchi pancake & seafood pancake — both excellent
• Banchan (Korean appetizers) — so good we often pack them to go

The food is comforting, addictive, and consistently outstanding. We clean our plates, scrape every last bite, and take leftovers whenever possible.

The service:
Warm and attentive, even when the place is packed and everyone is clearly working hard. It genuinely feels like eating at an auntie’s place—welcoming, caring, and full of heart.

We will absolutely be back again and again and again.

(Attached: photos over the years, the quality never changes)“

“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!!“

“This place is amazing. I love every time me and my family are out in Vallejo. OMG this is amazing. I love the green corn dogs, the radishes that’s my favorite and also they have a really nice inside place. They’re really clean. They always have someone cleaning the tables not really much people but really good food. I love the Korean corn dog too. Also, my older brother works there. I love this place. Check it out if you’re in Vallejo!!!!!🤩🤩🥳🥳😊😊“

“Great local Korean restaurant - it has that cozy Korean mom and pop feel with great food. We ordered the combo sundubu and it really warmed us up on a cold rainy day.

Menu is a little limited, but what's there was really good quality and delicious.“

“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.“

“Food Very tasty 🤤 authentic Korean food delicious friendly staff decor trendy modern nice clean.“

“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.“

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

“人生吃過最好吃的士林大雞排，竟然不是在士林！是在柏克萊！好吃到爆炸！爆汁！皮超脆粉超好吃！瘋掉！ 葡萄柚綠茶裡面有葡萄柚本人！超好喝！它們家是用有機茶～成本比一般的飲料店貴兩倍～烏梅汁也超好喝很濃～ 旁邊的貢茶不只奶蓋是我喝過美國最好喝，裡面賣的雞蛋仔超級好吃！滿滿的紅豆抹茶 日本麻糬鬆餅好吃到，回台灣開都會爆的那種！“

“This is the gem of the city of Hercules. The food is always solidly good. The bi bim bop is my favorite, but it is hard to find anything I don't like. The service is efficient and friendly. I really enjoy this neighborhood restaurant!“

“Very good food and great atmosphere“

“A little overpriced, but what isn't. The food is always good. Portions are hit or miss. I was full on my last visit, and I like that they have a low carb option. I've had the pork, beef, and chicken and it's all good. Need to try the seafood some time. Self serve water is always a nice touch.

Parking: Good luck finding parking.“

“I grew up in KTown Los Angeles this spot in Berkeley reminds me how lucky I was to learn about how excellent Korean food is. We love going here. Try it all. I introduced my Wife and kids to Korean food now they Love it too. For decades. Amazing staff too.“

“ton katsu rice bowl: amazing!!!
spam rice bowl: not good.
kimchi fried rice: pretty good
beef kimbap: good
japchae: not good, too oily and soggy
beef bulgogi: good
pork belly: good
dumplings/potstickers: good!
corndogs: decent

croffles: not really that good
mochinuts: very yummy
drinks: all very yummy, my favorites are ube and horchata“

“Great food and quick service! A must try place if you’re in the area!“

“There’s nothing authentic about this place. The bbq is a 100% americanized version of real Korean bbq. With that being said the food itself overall was still good and the service was good as well. The bonchon wasn’t bad and the kimchi was pretty decent. The steamed eggs were sweet when they’re suppose to be savory and the kimchi jiggae wasn’t bad. Being Korean I’m gonna be more critical than the average reviewer.“

“The food was pretty good, though from what I've seen the prices are pretty high. GBO gave us an item included, but otherwise, even though the food tastes good and has great portions, it's very expensive.

Also, for any GBOers who see this, the spicy rice cakes (Tteokbokki) is not portioned for a full meal!

Otherwise the dine out area is quite nice!

Vegetarian options: There is the miso tofu ramen and maybe one other option, so vegetarians won't be left out!“