50 Best Korean Restaurants near Whittier

“Solid spot for Japanese-Korean food in Whittier. The menu is small but focused which I like. We got the Cheese Katsu meal, Omurice, and Egg Sando. The Katsu was cooked well, not too greasy, very flavorful. The Omurice was my fave, fluffy and the sauce was really good. Another highlight was the Yuzu Panna Cotta we got for dessert. It was citrusy, not too sweet, great texture, we really enjoyed it. Their Matcha Yuzu-ade was refreshing as well. Good service and a relaxed atmosphere. We will be coming back to try some things we weren't able to fit in this time around.“

“I was craving something fast and healthy, luckily this was nearby.

I ordered their steak bulgogi, spicy chicken on the side and kimchi along with steamed vegetables. The quality of the steak was great and it was seasoned perfectly. The chicken was spicy and descent quality. The kimchi was good but wish it were more house made and not in a container. Overall it was a satisfying lunch.

I’d definitely come back again to try their other menu items.“

“First time to my sound chicken with friends the service was excellent , she (the Manager) is very friendly and helpful. The fired chicken are so good crunchy and the french fried so tasty. Definitely will come back highly recommend . A+++++“

“I had an outstanding experience at this Korean BBQ restaurant. The service was excellent and the staff were attentive, friendly, and quick to help with grilling and recommendations. The quality of the meats was truly impressive: fresh, flavorful, and beautifully marbled, making every bite memorable. The side dishes were equally delicious, with a great variety and perfect seasoning that complemented the meal perfectly.
Overall, this spot delivers a top-tier Korean BBQ experience. Highly recommended!“

“If you're on the lookout for an exceptional dining experience that feels like a warm embrace, this charming family-owned gem is a must-visit. The owners are not just figureheads; they're genuinely involved in the day-to-day operations, which adds a personal touch that’s increasingly rare in the restaurant scene today.

One delightful revelation I uncovered is that they prepare all the Banchans—those delightful small side dishes—right from their own kitchen. This homemade approach really shines through in every bite. I had the pleasure of trying their Bibimbap, Galbi beef, and the seafood tofu, and I can honestly say that each dish was a revelation.

The Bibimbap was a colorful medley of textures; the fresh vegetables and perfectly cooked rice harmonized beautifully with the delectable sauce. The Galbi beef was succulent and bursting with flavor, and you could tell it had been marinated with care. The seafood tofu was simply outstanding—rich, creamy, and generously packed with fresh seafood, making it a highlight of my meal.

What really struck me was the freshness of the ingredients. Everything tasted sumptuous and made with love, which is becoming a rarity in today's fast-paced dining environment. It’s clear that this restaurant values quality and authenticity, making it a standout option for anyone craving delicious Korean cuisine.

Without a doubt, this will be my go-to tofu house from now on. If you're in the mood for a home-cooked meal that feels both comforting and elevated, don't miss out on this fantastic culinary experience!“

“This has been a regular spot of mine even after I moved out of the immediate area. The chicken box is a great little meal & my favorite but the grilled bowl is also delicious. Actually everything I've had here is delicious and the evening vibes are fantastic. Low lights & music that doesn't distract from conversation. Did I mention the disco ball?“

“Food was really good! They have lots of interesting and adventurous choices. The presentation of the food was beautiful.

The staff was incredibly friendly and helpful. You can tell that they care about customer experience and their craft.

Everything is super clean!“

“great food and prices, service was awesome“

“Hidden gem, great for lunch and they do catering. I ordered multiple items for catering for a party, and my guest kept telling me how amazing the food was. Three of my guests went to eat at the restaurant the next week and again told me how amazing it was.“

“Excellent and authentic food. Very friendly and informative service. Casual atmosphere. The restaurant was empty at lunchtime on a Saturday, but service was quick and attentive. Meat came out sizzling on cast iron platters. Banchan were very tasty. Refreshing cold chewy buckwheat noodles.“

“Absolutely speechless. This place is perfect.

The restaurant is impeccably clean, the food is delicious, and the atmosphere is both upscale and cozy. They have private, small rooms available, making it the best spot for a quiet meal and conversation. It is truly the ultimate venue for spending precious time with a cherished guest. Highly, highly recommended.“

“Place is amazing with great food and wonderful food! The bowls they have here are outstanding and give you so much food for the price you pay per entree. Highly recommend this to anyone in the area and/or visiting the plaza and want to get a glorious meal.“

“I recently visited Jang Ga Nae for gamjatang, and as expected from a place specializing in it, the gamjatang was excellent. But what really surprised me was how good their bossam and Squid Stir-Fry are — it’s definitely another standout dish. If you come here, I highly recommend ordering both the gamjatang, the bossam and Squid.

The flavors are very clean, and you can really feel the care and home-style quality in the cooking. This is one of my top Korean restaurant recommendations in the Lorena Heights area — highly recommended!

One last thing: I hope to see the owner smile a little more often — it would make the experience even better.“

“Korean fusion sandwich shop located inside the mall. The spicy chicken sandwich was good, as expected, but nothing amazing. I guess it hards to find good food that's consistent since the other high reviews? Either way, I'd be back to try the other stuff if I was in the mall“

“My first time and very satisfied. I ordered pork soup with rice and it is soooooo good!“

“The best korean BBQ i've tried ever ! The meat is perfect and not too much fat, the ambience is catchy, the service is 5⭐️! Very fast to bring the meat, change the grill plate and to refill the side dish either! How lovely this place, i hope they can open at lunch... for sure i will recommend this place and be back asap!“

“The service was so friendly, it felt like you were eating at aunties house. We had the short rib soup and the brisket soup. Both were so clean and flavorful! The real highlight is the banchan. The radish kimchi and the fish cakes were my favorite. This place will definitely be in our weekly rotation!“

“Great food priced right! One of our favorites places to eat at’“

“I got BiBim Nangmyeon (Spicy Cold Noodles) and Soondae (Blood Sausages). The sides were great. My favorite were the fish cakes since it was peppery (something I’ve never tried the way they made it). The tomato and cucumber salad was great, sour and refreshing. Kimchi tastes homemade, more on the gingery side of flavor. The only thing I would have preferred would be a stronger cold noodle broth. Prices were reasonable.“

“Great experience and reasonable price“

“My family & I love this place! The food is delicious & they have kim chi fried rice & other items some place don’t offer. The staff is also super nice & you get free delicious ice cream! We’ve eaten at other places & it doesn’t come close to here . The price is so good in comparison too!“

“The seafood pancake was incredibly delicious. Such fresh ingredients. The green onions were crunchy and thick. The octopus, fish, and shrimp flavors were the right combination of salty and sweet. The egg batter just perfectly seasoned. And that outside crunch...it spoke to my soul.“

“No fancy looking photos, good tasting soups for dinner. We did a take out, and was amazed how they packed the food. It was so sealed, good thing i have scissors during our trip. Then later found out they provided a plastic cutter for the film.
We really enjoyed the beef rib soup. Kimchi was really good too. I know their pork belly soup was popular too, but its not much to our liking. The seafood pancake probably had too much egg on the batter, it became more omelette. But its still tasty.“

“Didn't know they had more than one restaurant in the L.A. area. This is the second one we tried and it didn't disappoint, it was just as good as the first time and second times we visited the Koreatown location. The service, the food, everything is great.“

“All the side dishes and main menus here are hands-down the best among all Korean restaurants in Orange County.
The neat and heartfelt side dishes,
and the main dishes made without skimping on any ingredients, are all truly delicious.
Our family is sincerely a loyal regular at Hanmi Restaurant.“

“If you’re craving authentic Korean comfort food, Gamjagol is the place to be! We indulged in their signature Gamjatang—​a hearty pork bone soup with tender meat that falls off the bone, rich broth, and perfectly cooked potatoes.

We also enjoyed the Bossam, which are pork slices boiled in a flavorful brine to perfection and served with cabbage. The combination of the tenderness of the meat and strong flavors was delightful!

The generous portions and authentic flavors combined with the amazing service truly made our dining experience memorable. If you’re in the Buena Park area, don’t miss out on this cozy hidden gem!​“

“Ordered for the first time from their and it was great. Many more choices than other delivery apps and great prices too. Even had a call with the restaurant on items ordered. She was very helpful, kind, and supportive. Great food and great service! Thank you so much!!“

“Excellent service ! We ordered the large beef combo for 2 and it was more than enough. Very good quality.“

“Food was amazing and service was too“

“Finally we came to this Korean restaurant tonight and knew that we had made the right decision. We tried their Bossum and Seafood pancake and it turned out they were really delicious. Our server was very friendly and professional. Their pricing is very reasonable. We will definitely be coming back and highly recommend this restaurant!“

“I came here for lunch because I thought they had kimbap, but they don't have it anymore lol. Instead of kimbap, they sell yubus. It's also one of those places where you can pick a pack of instant ramen and cook it there. It's pretty cool tbh and places like this where you cook instant ramen and eat there are trendy now. I think it's because those videos where people eat at Korean convenience stores are going viral haha.

At first, I was only going to try the yubus. They were really good - I'm glad they had these instead of kimbap. I had the crab meat ubu, the creamy spicy tuna ubu, and the fresh salmon ubu. The fish was very fresh and delicious. And they pile the fish on so much too. I liked all three so much that I can't choose a favorite. The prices are a little higher than at Atoyubu, and they have less variety. But I think that Ubu Ubu yubus are just as good if not better. If anything, I like the sashimi ones better than at Atoyubu because Ubu Ubu gives you more fish. Also there's much less of a wait.

I couldn't resist also trying an instant ramen too. I picked out a Cream Carbonara Buldak ramen with a raw egg as a topping. The lady working there was so nice and helped me use the machine to cook my ramen. She gave me advice on how to best cook the carbonara and even drained the water for me. The cream carbonara Buldak ramen was very yummy. It was spicy and creamy and the raw egg made it even creamier. I will say that all the ramen packets are $7 here, which I think is high because you can go to Hmart or any store and buy the same thing for like $1-2. I don't think eating it in the store really added much. Sure, you can add toppings but you have to pay extra for the toppings too hahaha. It was fun though, so maybe that's the appeal? And they did give me a free drink on the house so maybe it was kinda worth it. I lowkey might pay for it again though hahaha it really was fun. And the yubus are really good.“

“i like the food, big serving & it’s worth the price, i hope they willnot increase the price or lessen the service.“

“Went in today !! Gotta say the food was great .. had spicy beef soup and my wife had bulgogi and dumplings … was completely satisfied with this place !! Also we were the only 2 customers there .. which was shocking after having tasted the food … very delicious… how is this not a popular place ???“

“I really love this place. From the banchan to the tofu soup, everything was cooked and seasoned perfectly. The fishcake banchan was the best I've had from a restaurant, smoky and savory. I got the intenstine tofu soup and the intestine was cooked just right, cleaned and so tender. Spouse got the seafood hand cut noodles and the broth was wonderful. Cannot recommend this place enough!“

“The best Gob Chang restaurant in the Buena Park area. Food comes out already mostly cooked and is kept hot on small burner, so no bbq smell after eating. Meat quality is great, and their side dishes are the best combination of the meat. Their pork belly is great also. And definitely try their cold noodle.“

“Excellent food and friendly staff!!“

“good food and staff friendly with always attentive to us customers. very quick always ready to replenish your plates“

“Great service, accommodating servers even with a packed place of people“

“Absolutely phenomenal ! And the food is absolutely delicious I couldn't believe I spent under $20 for such a wonderful design of takeout box it was beyond expectation like seriously, the only problem is probably the portion is not as much as I want . But overall it is worth it ! I would definitely coming back soon“

“Came here recently and really enjoyed the hearty, flavorful soup—it had the perfect amount of spice and richness, with fresh ingredients like tofu, green onions, and tender shredded meat. It felt like true comfort food and was definitely the highlight of the meal for me.

I also tried the bossam (steamed pork with tofu and veggies). While it was presented beautifully and came with generous portions, the pork itself was on the dry side for my taste, so it didn’t quite hit the same level as the soup.

Service was friendly and attentive, and the overall atmosphere was warm and inviting. I’d definitely come back for the soup again!“

“I recently dined at Sun Nong Dan on a Sunday for lunch. Although it was quite busy, there was no wait time at 1:30! The koh galbi jjim with cheese was absolutely delicious - savory and flavorful. We had a large group and were worried about the serving size not being enough, but ended up having way more than enough food, which is definitely a good problem to have. Our server, YH, was super attentive and helped us navigate the menu, making the whole experience seamless. Highly recommend Sun Nong Dan for great food and service!“

“This is my nostalgia almost like my 2nd home because of how much I love the food here. When I was a kid, I went to the one in La Palma and then the one that burned down in Rowland Heights and eventually had to close. So eventually my family would roll over to here since it was the closest to us.

I love their soups and the simple side dishes. It’s a very humble and simple place.

The day this place closes will be the end of an era, but I know this place will outlive me 🥲“

“Eat there only if you want to be treated like dirt. I am sick and tired of their way of treating their customers. They don't do reservations and their wait system is unforgiving and insane. 1. Long wait times like 1.5 hours 2. But with that long wait time, they only give you 10 minutes to "all be there" when they tell you table is ready. 3. That's not even the worst. They put a "wait time" estimate near their check in table. So you would think that is a solid guideline right? But no. The REAL wait time can swing a good 30 minutes both ways. Say they put "Current Wait time is 1.5 hours" you could get a call at 1 hour mark. And then they give you 10 minutes to get your party to be there. And they give you hell if your party can't make it like it's your fault that you don't have crystal ball to tell that your table will be ready in one hour’s time. I have tolerated it coz their food is actually really good. Meat quality is good etc etc. What broke the camels back today is. I checked in at 5:45 today. Wait time is 1.5 hours. So estimate sit time is 7:15 right? When I get the text that table is ready at 7:05 I thought all is awesome. AND THEN they told me that are actually having a staff party tonight and last call is at 8. That leaves my party less than an hour to do an AYCE dinner. I was furious. So I question them, “Why didn't you tell your customer that when they checked in?” "Well, we put the notice on the door. You didn't see it! So… 🤷🏻‍♀️” 1. There are a bunch of white and black notices all over the door and check in area. 2. And yes. My eye sight is not awesome. I didn't see it. But shouldn't it be THEIR JOB to let customer know VERBALLY when they check in that they are shifting the last call time an hour early? That’s basic decency. I wasted almost 2 hours there and by then it’s like lines all over the place for any place. I am never going back again for a restaurant that treats their customer like dirt so they can make money off me any more.“

“All the banchans (free) were delicious and they gave at least 6 different kinds! They do not skimp on ingredients. The main dishes were absolutely delightful and huge in portion. It feels like your at your aunt's home with warm service and loving care. Such a wonderful heartfelt experience!! Not a fancy interior... more of a soulfood atmosphere!“

“There are only so many Korean spots in Monterey Park, so I come to Lee's every now and then for some Korean comfort food. Even though the menu prices are a little higher than your average Korean meal, the service and taste never misses. I love the tofu soups, kimbap, cold noodles, and ban chan. Also can't go wrong with any of their meats or variety of entrees they have!“

“The staff was so incredibly kind! We had such a lovely time dining here. The bossam was fresh, the samgyeopsal was perfectly crisp, and the lettuce was crispy!!

I would definitely recommend for a nice week night dinner because it's super affordable!“

“Had a great experience here last week with my family! Staff was very helpful and generous with food servings. Price is good for the food! Meats were delicious. They take reservations which is a plus! only thing lighting was a little dark but maybe some people like that.“

“My friends and I love meeting up here for authentic Korean food. The service is efficient and friendly. The food is delicious. Parking may be a challenge, but we always manage to find parking. Food is reasonably priced. We often come back because the food is delicious!“

“Nice spot in Cerritos. Great selection on the menu. The food taste original and comes with larger than regular sized bowl or plate. We tried jajang myeon, donkatsu, spicy squid over rice, fried dumplings and teriyaki bowl. This place is worth coming back.“

“I was going back to the yard to part my semi and I thought I’d get something quick to snack on at the corner store but it wasn’t open. The next thing open beside it was LUCKILY Tokyo Grill! I was hungry and I was going to wait til I got home but I decided to get the chicken bowl because I saw it was 9 bucks. I didn’t expect much as I took it to my truck and man was I blown away. The flavor of the chicken was so delicious and the amount of ingredients they put into the bowl is unbelievable. It had green beans pineapple carrot slices cabbage and some other vegetables. I was amazed for how much food they gave me for the plate only being 9 bucks and they put a lot of chicken in there which was a big plus. I didn’t have to dig around for any chicken.That’s why I’m writing this review, hopefully it helps anyone thinking coming to eat here. Oh and I also had really dirty hands and the lady at the cash register which I believe was part owner, gave me some wipes and was really nice. I’m pretty sure their other dishes are great too. I didn’t take a picture of my food because I was really hungry but it’s worth each penny I wasted.“