Hong Dae Pocha

We order a few things and they let you chat without rushing you. We like that!

The garlic fried chicken was yummy.

Food is excellent here - the seafood pancake is super crispy, and the spicy cheese chicken was flavorful and cheesy.

I had a really bad experience with the service at Hongdae Pocha. The waitress with short hair had a terrible attitude and made us feel very unwelcome. When we ordered just the combo, she repeatedly questioned us, saying, “Only the combo?” in a rude and dismissive tone. It felt disrespectful, as if we weren’t allowed to order less or didn’t deserve proper service because of it.

This was honestly one of the worst dining experiences we’ve ever had. We were a group of four, but the receipt falsely listed us as six guests. I even have a Boomerang video showing there were only four of us. On top of that, they added a 20% service charge ( just for 4 customers) without any warning—no mention of it on the menu, and the staff never informed us. It felt dishonest and sneaky.

What really ruined the night was the service. The Korean waitress with short hair completely ignored us. We tried multiple times to politely get her attention just to ask for a spoon, but she looked right at us and went back to scrolling on her phone. The restaurant wasn’t even busy—only a few other tables were occupied—so there was no excuse. When she brought our food, she spilled water all over the table, didn’t apologize, and didn’t even try to clean it up. It genuinely felt like we weren’t welcome there.

We came to celebrate a friend’s big achievement, and instead left feeling frustrated and disrespected. The food didn’t help either. The seafood pancake was overloaded with onions and barely had any seafood. The corn cheese was watery—the worst I’ve ever had—and the rice cakes were limp and overcooked. Worst of all, I ended up with diarrhea later that night.

This place is overpriced, overrated, and seriously disappointing. We will not be coming back.

My friends and I used to love going here but after last night’s experience—NEVER AGAIN!

We came in with a party of 4 and noticed a few empty tables but were told there would be a wait. A few minutes later, the owner came and told us she’ll give us the big table for parties of 6+ and “HAPPY FRIDAY!” with a big smile.

We were excited and sat down for 5 minutes but were not given menus nor cups. I flagged down a waitress for help and when I asked for water cups, she rudely pointed to the pitcher that was there. To which, I made a hand signal for a cup. She gasped and left after realizing her mistake.

The owner came to us after a few minutes and we placed orders for drinks to get started. She stared at us and asked, “Is that all? Are you going to order more? We gave you this big table,” blatantly implying we had to order more. We potentially were going to order more food and drinks later, but our initial order wasn’t enough for her.

She left, came back, and lied about how they have a reservation coming in so we’d have to get up from the table SHE SAT US AT.

We left and went to Pocha K down the street—vibes are better, drinks are cheaper, and the owner isn’t the type to go back on her word and kick you out after seating you.

This evening, my friends and I visited a restaurant that we have frequented many times in the past. Prior to tonight's incident, it was my favorite Korean restaurant on El Camino. The four of us arrived after 10 PM and were seated in a corner. If the owner were to review the security footage, it should be clear that we were all seated at the same table.
The dining experience began pleasantly — the atmosphere was enjoyable and the food was excellent. However, the entire evening was marred by the behavior of a Korean woman, who had short hair and was wearing a black YSL T-shirt. When she brought us the bill, she began asking each of us our ages and persistently questioned one of my friends about whether he was single, commenting that he looked very young. She then leaned her body against another friend and touched the other friend’s head with her hand.
I am not certain whether such behavior is considered culturally appropriate, but it made us all feel extremely uncomfortable. I asked the woman if she was the owner, to which she replied that the owner is her cousin.
I would like to respectfully suggest to the owner of this establishment that allowing relatives to behave inappropriately toward male customers is unacceptable. This used to be a restaurant I held in high regard, but after tonight, I will no longer be returning, nor will I be recommending it to others. Unfortunately, my positive impression of this place was completely ruined by the actions of this Korean woman in the black YSL shirt.

Worst place for dinner. Pajon was very greasy, and this place is more for bar and drinking and not a family Korean restaurant. We could not find typical menu such as Yukgaejang or Danjangchigae stew. They gave us steel plate looks like metal dog bowl and i asked for another dish they refused to give to us. Please stay away from this place if you are looking for Korean restaurant.

It's open late.

good food good staff i really like the atmosphere very authentic korean food

Very good place for late night alcohols. good Korean foods and nice prices! Kimchi bossam and Korean style chickens

Nothing to complain about service but talk about foods, this restaurant has worst foods compared to other Korean restaurants I’ve been to. The sort ribs were too sweet and the tofu soup was plain with 3 pieces of tofu and mostly was udon noodles. Probably not come back again.

Atmosphere: 4

Food: 2

Service: 5

More like a bar, not a restaurant. Food is cheaply made. Light is so dim you cannot see what you are eating. The waiter only show up when I order the food and asking for check.

Atmosphere: 1

Food: 2

Service: 2

This is a good place to drink Soju and beer with korean food.
The best point is the close 2:00 AM
I love this place with soju.:)

Atmosphere: 4

Food: 4

Service: 4

Recommended dishes: 오뎅전골 fish cake soup, 홍합탕

restaurant. A lot of young people come

Atmosphere: 4

Food: 5

Service: 5

Excellent service and delicious food. Their soy garlic wings are top notch and their seafood pancake is so good.

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

Recommended dishes: Fried Chicken, 해물파전 Seafood Pancake Pancake