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Authentic Korean cuisine, served by polite and professional
staff.
Delicious bbq beef and chicken. Kimchi is also great.
Mmmmmmm yummy for lunch. Never came here for dinner since the area is kinda sketch but their lunch "bento" boxes are good.
I've actually never had Korean food before this, and when we walked by it just happened to be the only restaurant we could find that was open. The service was decent, the food was decent, and portions were generous. Menu was pricey (no dinner options less than $10), the ambiance sucked (paintings of celebrities, not even cheesy photos but paintings of the cheesy photos), and the chairs were god awful uncomfortable. Let's just say that if I hadn't been STARVING I wouldn't even give it this great of a review.
Came here for lunch in a group of 10. Luckily they had a free table for all of us. Seemed like a popular place b/c the restaurant filled up quickly shortly after noon. Perhaps that's why service was a little slow.
DECOR: Virgin Mary and Jesus paintings + landscape muras + Marilyn Monroe w/ a Tiger. Very hodge podge "decor" with plastic and vinyl chairs and tables.
FOOD: Traditional offering of Korean fare. Bento specials of bbq meats (bulgogi, spicy pork, kalbi, chicken, chap chae), soon du bul and bi bim bap. The bentos were $8.95 and came with a little pan chan in each box. I ordered the dol sot bi bim bap that came w/ its own variety of 7 pan chan. Huge portion that left me carrying half home. $11.95. But I've had better. May it was too much rice but something wasn't quite right.
SERVICE: They were definitely short staffed for a full restaurant. One order was forgotten in our group and had to be reminded. But to they did come and chase after us when I forgot my doggie bag. That was nice and likely only to happen in Asian restaurants.
They were at least fairly authentic. Quintessential ending - melon gum that last holds flavor for 1 minute. Gotta love it.
I ordered the bulgogi lunch special to-go during a slow afternoon. The place was clean and the waitresses were courteous. Great value for under $10 since I'm used to paying ~$15 for Korean lunch.
I'll be back
A hot pot of spicy soft tofu casserole was the perfect remedy for a cold winter night. Dinner price for the soft tofu bowl is $9.95 (comes with beef and clams) and is served bubbling hot and as spicy as you can take it - I just had mine medium spicy. 11 side dishes served, and I would say that all but 2 or 3 of them were really good.
I also tried my friend's barbecued pork and it was very good.
Bottom Line: It was an excellent meal!
I've become a fan of Korean food ever since I was introduced to this hot and spicy stuff back in the '80s. This place is one of those mom and pop Korean places with clean and comfy interior but I wasn't really thrilled about those old painiting of celebrities on the wall like other yelpers mentioned. When it comes to Korean food it's all about the flavor and they didn't let me down. My friends orderd bulgogi and Kalbi-tang and I got my usual spicy soft tofu soup and Spicy Squid Bokkum which were flavorful and Especially their kimchi was spectacular I had to pack some home. The servers treated us nicely, always refilled my water(yeah the food was bit spicy but I love'em) and they always paid attention to our table even though the place was packed. If you love Korean food don't hesitate to come check this place out.
We went here last week and I tried the Bibim Nang Myun. Never had this dish before, but it was tasty and cool, perfect during the heat wave we had. Noodles were cut tableside, and the gochu jang derived sauce had a nice balance of sweet and tart. It came with cold slices of beef, pear and radish slices, and half a hardboiled egg.
My friends had the regular Nang Myun and Bulgogi. One didn't really like his Nang Myun, but the Bulgogi was good, not too sweet with good balance.
What I found lacking was the panchan. There were about 6 total, half were marinated greens, only 1 of which I liked. Cabbage kimchi was not the best, but the radish kimchi was decent.
It's pretty crowded during lunch.
It's the best Korean you can have in the East bay.
One of the most overlooked (and important) aspects to a good Korean restaurant is good Panchan--all the little sides that come with your plate. A lot of places go cheap on them thinking nobody would know the difference, but Seoul House has some of the best. In particular their Japchae and their Kimchee (esp the daikon one) were great.
Another delectable dish was the Pajun (the pancake-looking one), has a nice crisp to it, and a subtle flavor that brings out the seafood taste. Other big-name Korean BBQ joints tend to have rubbery, soggy Pajun (Koryo, Ohgane to name a few).
Also, I flatly disagree with some other posters. There's no MSG, especially in the soup. The telltale sign of MSG is that tingly sensation in your mouth, plus a salty aftertaste--this has none, and tastes fresh.
Nor did I have any complaints with the service--they're very courteous and friendly every time I go.
I usually go straight for the kalbi so I haven't tried their other meat dishes, but I'd rank it around the quality of Sam Won's kalbi--prefer it to Ohgane, Koryo or especially Jonga. But when you take in the whole experience of the panchan and appetizers, it simply outclasses the other joints in the area.
My ranking for Korean in the East bay (from highest to lowest) goes Seoul House - Ohgane - Sam Won - Jonga - Koryo. The main downside to the restaurant is that the area feels ghetto at night, but there's plenty of parking so you don't have to soak-in the rundown scenery anyways.
haven't been here in over 20 years and this place looks the same. the same (copenhagen) furniture seems to be there. only the pics on the wall by the owner have been changed. (they've been sold!). had the kal bi lunch special (9.95).
it came with very heavy msg-infused soup, a piece of kal bi, a bowl of rice and 6 kinds on panchan on a bento tray. in and out in about half an hour. wham bam.a "thank you" on your out. no water refill. no doubt they were busy servicing the main event in the other room.
panchan(bean thread, broccoli, bean sprouts, sliced turnip/carrot, spinach, sliced cucumbers) a few schreds or chucks of each were given.
the panchan and the kalbi were good and fresh but sparse.
only 3 stars since the presentation seems "cheap" but not of good value.
My friend and I just spent the morning at the Wiley Manual Courthouse trying to request for a reduction or community service for our terrible $410 dollar red light photo tickets (waste of time btw) and randomly decided to eat here for lunch.
The service was quick and friendly and the food was good.. I remember thinking that my beef was really flavorful and they gave a fairly large portion of it too. If I worked in downtown Oakland I'd totally come here for lunch all the time.
Came for lunch and got the Dol Sot Bi Bim Bap. I don't know if that was what I wanted, but I liked it.
I stopped here because it was rainy and I was hungry.
A waitress pointed me to a table, brought me a menu and asked me if I knew what I wanted and the same time.
I said I needed a couple minutes and she said "There's a party of 11 about to order. If you don't want to wait, let me know what you want now!"
Uh, OK . . . "Dol Sot Bi Bim Bap!" I found myself ordering and there it was . . . some of the lunch specials looked quite tasty as I saw them brought out, but you gotta reap what you sow . . . luckily . . .
Pluses: The food was very good! The meat tasty and the other fixin's plentiful. The banchan (side dishes) were generous for a party of 1.
Minus: Not very attentive. There were several waitresses and all of them looked extremely stressed, even without a full house. I needed some more tea/water and it took forever to get anyones attention. Stone pot could have been hotter to get some crispier rice.
Good food. Ok service. Averages to 3 stars.
The food is pretty decent. I've been coming to this place for about 15 years now, and I always been pretty satisfied with the food. It was the Broiled Fish that kept me going back, they prapare it like my grandma used do. Most of the BBQ's and even the Kimchee Jige is fair. The price is decent and I can always get near front door parking here.
The service is alright, you gotta have a little paitience in this house like atmosphere. The ladies working there remind me of my auntie's friends who used go over to the house and play cards and drink.
I finally broke my Mool Naeng Myun cycle here. They had it on the menu. I was tempted, but I ordered something else.
I used to come here a lot in high school. It was my mom's favorite Korean place to go. Although, I'm not too sure of how many she'd been to.
My friend wanted to come here because of this one BBQ beef with veggies thing. I can't remember the name, but it's number 6 on the lunch menu!
When I walked in, it was the same as I'd remembered it. The paintings on the walls that didn't seem to really fit with the rest of the restaurant. My brother and I used to laugh at them because they seemed so out of place. That isn't to say that they weren't well done.
Parking in this area sucks. All the meters are 30 minutes max, unless you go around the block where there are 2 hour ones. My friend had to keep going out to feed the meter (she parked in the 30 minute one). It was only when I asked our server if I could get some change that I found out, according to her, I've yet to do it, you can park in the parking lot kind of behind their restaurant on the weekends.
Our server was really nice. I didn't have to ask to get my tea refilled, so I was happy.
I ordered the seafood tofu stew (soondubu). I asked for Medium, but I think that she gave me Mild. If that really was the Medium, man, that was nothing. It tasted good, despite.
I had a little bit of what my friend ordered, and it was good. Definitely not as dry as I remembered on some occasions. It's not as good as cooking it on your own though. Too cooked for my taste (I like my meat medium to medium rare). Still good though.
I liked their banchan. It's a bit different from other places, but they were still flavorful.
This place is decently priced. Especially during lunch. Something I didn't remember was the portion size. This time it seemed much more plentiful than it used to be.
Definitely wouldn't mind going back, but I've got other Korean restaurants to try!
This is where I first fell in love with Korean food when I was a little girl. My parents and grandparents would drive to Oakland every weekend and we would eat here after doing our grocery shopping. I haven't been here in about 2 years, but each and every time I've eaten here I've been nothing but satisfied. I only really order their bulgogi here and it's always flavorful and moist. Since I've learned to drive, I've been hesitant to make the trip up 880 to Oakland... well, there's no reason for me to head to Oakland. But every time I get a craving for Korean food, I think about this place... and well, head to Four Seasons Tofu House in Fremont. I'll be back.
G-H-E-T-T-O....
and not in the hole-in-the-wall good food kind of way. first of all you walk into a run down place with tacky paintings of jfk, marilyn monroe NEKED, and then misc scenic ones. i found out that the owner actually painted them...okay, so i'll throw them a bone there. i wouldn't have minded the tackiness so much if the food weren't so bad! my kalbi was so tough and chewy!! the ji gae's (soups), banchans (side dishes) all less than mediocre. not only that but can i tell you how off their service was?!! first off, we got our banchan AFTER our food came out and as we we're about to finish our last bite of the meat then the ssangchoo (lettuce), garlic and sauce came out. AND who gives a coke without any ice in the cup?! WHAT'S UP WITH THAT?!
Excellent Korean food! Nice family & staff. Welcomes us with open arms. Can't complain about the food because everything is yummy and tasty. We haven't been here in awhile with the family. We used to come here all the time. But the food is very good and the prices are definitely in our budgets. May have to come here for some sake and a sapporo!
My favorite Lunch spot in dt oak!!
Their lunch special is very reasonable. everyone is friendly!
Seoul House again for us tonight. The only Korean restaurant for us close to home that we'll go to. All the staff was different but still friendly. We were the only ones in the place so we lucked out on all our food coming out in good time (even with a few take orders going out in between). The pan chan was the same ole stuff and was delicious. We went with the bul golgi, kal bi, broiled saba, duk boki (spicy rice cake), & spicy squid. Our first time getting the squid here and it was better than expected. All the portions are great sized and all nice to share to get a taste of everything. Since trying Korean BBQ Plus in Concord I can't seem to give up 5 stars though.
My favorite Korean Lunch Spot! Dinner is great too! Prices are reasonable as well. I always get the kalbee lunch and it's fantastic, as well as satisfying! (I'm a big boy, too!) THe paintings that adorn the walls are very well done, however the place is not the fanciest to dine at . But who cares if you're hungry for some great authentic Korean food! =) Oh, doen't forget your "20 seconds of flavor" Melon Gum on your way out...
Seoul House has good bbq short ribs and spicy pork but they also have the best yook hwe I've had compared to some other places I've been to. Their panchan is good but pretty predictable. I have to add though, it would greatly help their customer service if they smiled a little bit more. Prices are reasonable for what you get. And yes, those eclectic paintings really do look out of place.
I went here a couple of times. Their food is pretty good but the service is terrible! There was a cockroach in our table and we told one of the waitresses about it. She shrugged it off and said that it's normal to have them since it's an old building. Ewww that is not acceptable!
Seems to be the most popular of the Korean places in the area. It's pretty cool. Lunch Special prices are about what you'd expect. This might be the first place I've actually tried Bi Bim Bap. So Seoul House will always have a place in my heart.....
Best Korean in downtown Oakland - great for lunch - fast good portions. My favorite is the spicy pork lunch special. But everything is great - prices are to be expected. BUT one of the only restaurants that can have you in and out in 40 minutes.
Wow. Learning that the owner painted the paintings on the wall make them that much more impressive! I embrace the cheesiness of this place. The restaurant is conveniently located near Chinatown....and the food is pretty decent. I got the kimchee jigae which hit the spot on a cold winter afternoon... Prices are okay too!
Very good portions & awesome appetizers.... Reasonably priced as well.... Loved it... My family & I have been coming here for years...
I don't know what the previous reviewer was talking about. The paintings are masterpieces. Obviously the previous reviewer knows nothing about art. The food is way cheaper than other Korean places in Oakland like Oh Ga Nae or Jong Ga. The food is delicious especially the Deh Ji Bul Go Gi. Only issues are they don't have charcoal/gas grills (cook at your table) and the waitresses are too old. But being an regular, they serve me well. Lastly more fat on the meat, the better the taste. Ask any butcher. Add non-meat connoisseur to the previous reviewer. Order the prawn tempura. They are the biggest in town!
First time visit, and I ordered kal bi. It came with a big rib bone. That was nice. But the beef is only slightly better than the baking-soda-soaked beef you find in Chinese restaurants. They do it that way to tenderize the beef, but in reality, it only gives it an illusion of tenderness by making the beef spongy in texture. The panchan was ok. The broth was like MSG water with a few strips of fried egg.
Pricey but the food is SO good! Parking can be hard but service here is very friendly and the food is quick. Everything is seasoned well.
Appetizers are excellent. This category is how we gauge Korean restaurants. :P
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