We wanted a quick night out near home, so we chose this place. However, we’re so sad and disappointed that the food and service are just not matching up to the expectation. The servers and waitresses don’t know which dishes go to which tables, and even when the order was right & the kitchen was right, they still somehow managed to give us the wrong dish 🫠 We saw our bibimbap sitting at the kitchen window for a while and the waitress pushed it back to the kitchen, while I had to drink all the water from my cup because the galbijim was SO. SALTY. The waitress apologized and said that the bibimbap would be “taken care of”, but it was still on our bill.
Besides galbijim, the sake clam was also super salty. The salt bread is not structured enough and just looks kinda sad. We finally had our bibimbap, but I think there’s too little fish roe in the bowl. The salmon carpaccio is ironically the best dish of the night. The black sesame brownie was on the house, and it was okay.
Overall, I think the restaurant still needs to train their staff better (even the detail like the chopsticks are not from the same pair? My pet peeve even for chopsticks at home lol) and the execution of the food (actual kitchen food, the front app lady is doing fine) needs to be improved to match up to the vibe. Until then, I don’t think you can charge 18% mandatory service fee ‼️
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 2
Service: 2
Emil Mihov
The ssuk latte is delicious! Chill athmosphere.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
David Borel
Small but tasty dishes. Loved the originality and attention to detail.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Ji Youn Lee
Everything was just perfect! The food, mood, the interior and the vibes were so trendy and Love it.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Danning Sui
Super super aesthetic and food are amazing. The bread on Sake Clam was the hit!! So crunchy thin layer outside and warm soft inside.
The Kampachi is great too. Music was super vibey. Love
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Plumeria From Hawaii
Slow service when ordering to go but great drinks
Atmosphere: 5
Service: 3
Tammy Hsu
Came here for dinner and it did not disappoint. We had the burrata salad, spicy tuna crisps, galbi crunch, chili pasta, and galbijim — and every dish was packed with flavor. Each one was unique, delicious, and beautifully prepared. Can’t wait to come back and try more!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Eddie L
Oh, I really wanted to like the dinner service here. The places were reasonable, and the food looked good. But the quality of cooking was simply not there. The summer tuna dish had three thin slices of tuna with tasteless watermelon and citrus foam. It begged for something sweet and salty mixed with it. The spicy noodles were fine, but the pork was dry and overcooked, and the pasta was obviously boxed pasta that had no texture or bite. And the most egregious was the braised short ribs, the Galbijim. You would expect it to fall off the bone, but instead, it was tight to it and really tough to chew and eat. To me it meant it needed several more hours braising. The flavors were fine but it was severely lacking in cooking skill. Luckily, we only spent $65 a person for these three dishes and a drink, so it wasn’t a complete rip off. But, it is not a good Korean restaurant.
Atmosphere: 3
Food: 2
Service: 5
Yoomi
Excited to experience The Buoy’s new chapter as a Korean bar and restaurant! I tried every dish on the menu except the Galbijjim, saving that one for next time 😌
Great vibe, friendly service, and bold Korean flavors in creative tapas style—loved it!❤️ It was so hard to pick my favorite menu.
Excited to experience The Buoy’s new chapter as a Korean bar and restaurant! I tried every dish on the menu except the Galbijjim, saving that one for next time 😌
Great vibe, friendly service, and bold Korean flavors in creative tapas style—loved it!❤️ It was so hard to pick my favorite menu.
Was visiting family in SF and suddenly really craved Korean food—so glad I ended up here! The place totally reminded me of trendy spots back in Korea. Super clean and stylish, but still cozy.
We got two kinds of mocktails (both were so good), and shared the jjambbong pasta, yukhoe, and galbi crunch. Literally scraped the plates clean—everything was delicious.
I’d been missing spicy Korean noodles lately, and that jjambbong pasta seriously hit the spot. Flavorful, just the right amount of spice. Will definitely be back next time I’m in town!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Min Ji Kim
I was already familiar with this place for its reputation for exceptional desserts and drinks as a café, and my experience at the newly opened bar was absolutely amazing! The food and atmosphere were both fantastic, I’ll definitely be coming back to try more from the menu!!!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Anjali Balamurugan
Super tasty drinks and desserts! The staff was really nice, I wasn’t sure I had gotten the right drink and they made it again super quickly!!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
narae kim
A perfect brunch. The kimchi panini and French toast were both delicious, and the sesame mochi was amazing too. I missed the salt bread again since it only comes out after 10, but hopefully next time! The kind service made the experience even better. Looking forward to trying their dinner menu as well!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Paige Thornton
Buoy is the best! Incredible add to the neighborhood 🙏🏻
We wanted a quick night out near home, so we chose this place. However, we’re so sad and disappointed that the food and service are just not matching up to the expectation. The servers and waitresses don’t know which dishes go to which tables, and even when the order was right & the kitchen was right, they still somehow managed to give us the wrong dish 🫠 We saw our bibimbap sitting at the kitchen window for a while and the waitress pushed it back to the kitchen, while I had to drink all the water from my cup because the galbijim was SO. SALTY. The waitress apologized and said that the bibimbap would be “taken care of”, but it was still on our bill.
Besides galbijim, the sake clam was also super salty. The salt bread is not structured enough and just looks kinda sad. We finally had our bibimbap, but I think there’s too little fish roe in the bowl. The salmon carpaccio is ironically the best dish of the night. The black sesame brownie was on the house, and it was okay.
Overall, I think the restaurant still needs to train their staff better (even the detail like the chopsticks are not from the same pair? My pet peeve even for chopsticks at home lol) and the execution of the food (actual kitchen food, the front app lady is doing fine) needs to be improved to match up to the vibe. Until then, I don’t think you can charge 18% mandatory service fee ‼️
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 2
Service: 2
The ssuk latte is delicious! Chill athmosphere.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Small but tasty dishes. Loved the originality and attention to detail.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Everything was just perfect!
The food, mood, the interior and the vibes were so trendy and Love it.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Super super aesthetic and food are amazing. The bread on Sake Clam was the hit!! So crunchy thin layer outside and warm soft inside.
The Kampachi is great too. Music was super vibey. Love
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Slow service when ordering to go but great drinks
Atmosphere: 5
Service: 3
Came here for dinner and it did not disappoint. We had the burrata salad, spicy tuna crisps, galbi crunch, chili pasta, and galbijim — and every dish was packed with flavor. Each one was unique, delicious, and beautifully prepared. Can’t wait to come back and try more!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Oh, I really wanted to like the dinner service here. The places were reasonable, and the food looked good. But the quality of cooking was simply not there. The summer tuna dish had three thin slices of tuna with tasteless watermelon and citrus foam. It begged for something sweet and salty mixed with it. The spicy noodles were fine, but the pork was dry and overcooked, and the pasta was obviously boxed pasta that had no texture or bite. And the most egregious was the braised short ribs, the Galbijim. You would expect it to fall off the bone, but instead, it was tight to it and really tough to chew and eat. To me it meant it needed several more hours braising. The flavors were fine but it was severely lacking in cooking skill. Luckily, we only spent $65 a person for these three dishes and a drink, so it wasn’t a complete rip off. But, it is not a good Korean restaurant.
Atmosphere: 3
Food: 2
Service: 5
Excited to experience The Buoy’s new chapter as a Korean bar and restaurant! I tried every dish on the menu except the Galbijjim, saving that one for next time 😌
Great vibe, friendly service, and bold Korean flavors in creative tapas style—loved it!❤️ It was so hard to pick my favorite menu.
My top picks:
✔️Halibut Crudo
✔️Yukhoe
✔️Galbi Crunch
✔️Charred Brisket & Perilla Pasta
✔️ Soju Einspanner — Cocktail
Excited to experience The Buoy’s new chapter as a Korean bar and restaurant! I tried every dish on the menu except the Galbijjim, saving that one for next time 😌
Great vibe, friendly service, and bold Korean flavors in creative tapas style—loved it!❤️ It was so hard to pick my favorite menu.
My top picks:
✔️Halibut Crudo
✔️Yukhoe
✔️Galbi Crunch
✔️Charred Brisket & Perilla Pasta
✔️ Soju Einspanner — Cocktail
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Restaurantji Recommends
Was visiting family in SF and suddenly really craved Korean food—so glad I ended up here! The place totally reminded me of trendy spots back in Korea. Super clean and stylish, but still cozy.
We got two kinds of mocktails (both were so good), and shared the jjambbong pasta, yukhoe, and galbi crunch. Literally scraped the plates clean—everything was delicious.
I’d been missing spicy Korean noodles lately, and that jjambbong pasta seriously hit the spot. Flavorful, just the right amount of spice. Will definitely be back next time I’m in town!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
I was already familiar with this place for its reputation for exceptional desserts and drinks as a café, and my experience at the newly opened bar was absolutely amazing! The food and atmosphere were both fantastic, I’ll definitely be coming back to try more from the menu!!!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Super tasty drinks and desserts! The staff was really nice, I wasn’t sure I had gotten the right drink and they made it again super quickly!!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
A perfect brunch. The kimchi panini and French toast were both delicious, and the sesame mochi was amazing too. I missed the salt bread again since it only comes out after 10, but hopefully next time! The kind service made the experience even better. Looking forward to trying their dinner menu as well!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Buoy is the best! Incredible add to the neighborhood 🙏🏻
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
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