Arario Midtown

Amazing food and great service!! Took a relative that lived in South Korea for years and they said “it’s the best kimchi I’ve had outside of South Korea!” Would recommend 10/10.

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

Energetic and modern with a casual, downtown buzz

Pretty big let down. We came here about a year ago and it was great. This time there was no happy hour although it's advertised (10$ beers instead of 5$). The menu is mostly just bulgagi beef so I thought their cheese steak would be good. It came out open face on half a bun and had to eat it with a knife and fork for 18$. Probably not coming back.

Atmosphere: 4

Food: 2

Service: 4

We often order Arario for our office lunch on Fridays for about 15 people. It is one of our favorites!! They do a fantastic job and the food is excellent!! Highly recommend!!

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

We came here because of the good reviews even though I'm generally not a fan of Asian fusion (grew up in and travel extensively to Asia), and I was very pleasantly surprised. We ordered the beef bulgogi fusion and the classic hot pot beef bulgogi, and I really liked both. The fusion was very well done -- it wasn't trying to taste like the original version, but added a good, complimentary twist to it. The hot pot bowl was also really nice, comforting, and authentic. We'll definitely come back to try the other dishes next time. The only thing that could be improved was the service - we must've asked for our drinks (sodas) 3 times, and utensils the same - the server seemed very frazzled and absent minded despite the place being pretty empty at the time we went.

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 3

Charming, cozy, and absolutely delicious.

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

The food was amazing. Came out fast and hot. Service was very good as well. Will be coming back again

The food is great. Bathroom is outside. Would eat there again

Atmosphere: 4

Food: 5

Service: 4

Great food. Service is also good. Only complaint is bathrooms are downstairs and in another part of the building.

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

The staff are friendly, service was great. The lady who served me was very bubbly and friendly. Love that so much.

Atmosphere was ok, restaurant is a little crammed in a tight space.

I have always been skeptical of modernized or fusion dishes of Asian food, I grew up eating my family’s and friend’s dishes which were made traditionally and good. If it ain’t broken don’t change it. I’ve had restaurants who have opened up my idea and taste buds on fusion foods and modernized Asian food. The dishes served to me at Arario didn’t quite make me more delighted to try more fusion Asian dishes. If anything it’s made me want to make my own bulgogi at home after eating what I ate.

I had ordered bulgogi pasta and it tasted like water bland beef pasta. In theory I thought this would be perfect since I love pasta and bulgogi, the blend of the two just doesn’t work well together at all. The poke salad, was just what I should’ve suspected greens and poke. Dessert and cocktails were probably the BEST thing I ate there. I don’t think I’ve been to a restaurant where I said the dessert and cocktails were my favorite.

Fusion has been used a sloppy word in culinary and has been used to describe a chef who opens a restaurant and hasn’t mastered culinary skills in both. I didn’t like the Korean or American aspect of any dish served to me today.

Atmosphere: 3

Food: 2

Service: 4

The food and service are top tier. They were busy but our server was on top of it, and we got our food quickly. We had the beef short ribs and pork bulgogi, both of which were 10/10. The short ribs were delicious and came with some amazing potatoes, the pork bulgogi was the perfect level of spicy. Will be eating here again.

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

Recommended dishes: Bulgogi Bowl, Beef Short Rib Galbi

Our experience at Arario was great! I'm glad that we made a reservation for Friday night because the restaurant was very full. We got seated right away, which was nice. Parking is an issue in the area because you have to find street parking so make sure to get there with enough time to make your reservation. The server was nice and friendly. The ambiance is chic casual so whether you are dressed for a night out or in hiking clothes (like we were), you won't be out of place.

We ordered a Sapporo and a German Reisling for drinks. They have cocktails but I thought they were a tiny bit overpriced for cocktails. For food, we ordered the fried mackerel as an appetizer and the Ikaika bowl and the traditional beef bulgogi.

The food came out pretty quickly and the portions are big. The mackerel was different and interesting. It was fried but the meat was still soft. There were small bones but easy to eat. I liked the crunch skin but my husband thought it was bitter. At times, it got tough after chewing a bit, so I'd say it wasn't perfect. The dressing that came with it was soy based and added a layer of sweetness. If you're in the mood to try something different, I'd give this a go.

The Ikaika bowl was our favorite. They say it their version of a loco moco. It was very very good! The beef patty was medium well and came with a fried egg (sunny side up), black bean gravy, crunchy veggies, pita chips on a bed of rice. I should've asked for the egg to be scrambled because I hate runny yolk. But despite that, this dish was yummy. I think it needed a little more seasoning (salt) than it had. Once mixed, the gravy, the veggies, the chips and the meat really added texture to the rice. Since the portion was huge, we ended making a brunch out of the leftovers the next day.

The traditional bulgogi was decent. They gave the rice separately. The beef itself was good but the rest of the dish needed a wow factor for seasoning. The portion was also quite big and we ended up adding this to our brunch the next day with the ikaika. The table accompaniments - Mac and cheese, sweet black beans, pickled cucumbers, kimchi were very Americanized. The kimchi was not as zingy as we would like. I hated that the black beans were sweet, because a savory flavor would've added a new taste texture to our food overall.

I think for the portions, the prices are ok, but this restaurant is a little on the pricier side. It is worth a try for sure!

Atmosphere: 4

Food: 4

Service: 4

As usual, outstanding experience. Each dish is very different from others, yet all are delicious. Service was also excellent. Definitely one of my favorite restaurants in town; especially fun to take visitors too.

The waitress was amazing. She could tell by my friend's order that she is vegetarian. She asked about it and gave her other suggestions on the menu that could be made for her dietary restrictions. When our order arrived, she made more suggestions what to pair it with and it was spot on. We'll definitely return.

We were in town on a girls trip when we saw a YouTube video recommending this place so we thought we might try it out. It was the best decision we made the entire weekend!! We tried to edamame with garlic and Parmesan and also the Kimchi fries. DELICIOUS! We also had drinks recommended by our server that were phenomenal, saketini and dragon punch. It was such a cute space and the service was excellent. If you’re in the area give it a try. You won’t regret it.

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5