hanok: korean lunch to satisfy the spicy craves

trying to hit up all the korean restaurants in richmond, my mom and i ventured into hanok korean restaurant on "eat street" and were given a nice surprise when we were presented with loads of food for a very small price. 

their lunch specials (which i do not know if they still exist) are an amazing deal with an entree and side dish for $8.99. 

banchan: complimentary and standard. love the sweet potatoes!! 

bibimbap ($8.99): this was actually quite large and filling for a lunch size that came with a side dish. the egg wasn't raw but otherwise it was a good meal! 

4/5 

japchae side dish (with bibimbap): surprising portion again, we HARDLY made a dent in this as we were too busy eating up all the bibimbap goodness but it was a good balance of flavours although it stuck together a bit

3.95/5

pajeon (with soft tofu soup): a little more doughy and less seafood that i wouldve liked but not too oily (also a bit "colder" since it wasnt served on the hot plate)

3.75/5

seafood soft tofu soup ($8.99): bubbly perfection! the soup was nice and spicy with the raw egg getting cooked up in there. it had a small amount of seafood but plenty of tofu! came with a bowl of rice as well! 

4.5/5

overall: their prices are SPECTACULAR and the food is pretty dang good too. there was way too much food for two people (yes mostly carbs) but still!! definitely recommend for a cheap and delicious korean lunch. 

haroo korean homestyle cuisine: bibimbap and seafood pancake

my first every bibimbap experience was at haroo in richmond. i decided to try it here because of the extremely high score on urbanspoon but after having this, and then trying multiple other korean restaurants, i dont think it lives up to the hype as its good but not mind-blowing.

we ordered from the lunch menu which is not bad for the price-portion ratio but our seafood pancake was a bit expensive

banchan - complimentary appetizers (?) not sure what the real name is for these but these were good. i did not have anything to compare them to at the time but i remember enjoying them quite a bit, especially the salad dressing. 

bibimbap and tofu soup set and more banchan ($9.95-$10.95: not sure) but a good deal!

bulgolgi soup: this was my favourite part of the combo! it had quite a bit of meat and veggies in it which was surprising and also some vermicelli type noodles as well. it was piping hot through most of the meal and was quite a large bowl to be part of a set.

4.5/5

bibimbap - because it was part of a set, it was a bit smaller but thats okay with me. good but i feel like they were a bit light on the toppings. it was the first time i had bibimbap so i didnt know it was a bit bland in flavour. the hot sauce mixed in was much better but i still felt something was lacking.

3.75/5

haemul-pajeon: seafood pancake ($17.95) - a bit expensive in my opinion even though it wasn't small, i wish they gave us a choice of m/l. there was a decent amount of seafood and vegetable and the pancake itself was quite good but i was very put off by how oily the bottom was. 

3.25/5

overall, the food here is good but not my favourite korean place so far. i think the expensive pancake put me off but the lunch deals are pretty good! i mightve gone in with my expectations too high but i didnt have anything to compare it to either so maybe a return visit is in order? one thing i did like was that the place was very small and warm which made the meal quite comfortable.

**UPDATE: THEY ARE NOW ONLY OPEN FOR DINNER ): 

cho sun: not bad but not great korean fare

i have a newfound LOVE for korean food. i recently learned to eat spicier foods and korean meshes my two favourite things (usually) being spicy and healthy(ier)

going back to the summer time, i asked my friend what her favourite korean place was as a starting point and she suggested cho sun so with a group of my friends, we decided to try it,

one of my best friends hates the smell of korean barbecue so we opted for food that did not require any grilling and i ended up ordering bibimbap to share with my friend and a seafood pancake to share with 2 friends. 

bibimbap (~$9.99): rice, eggs, veggies and minced beef on a bed of rice served in a stone bowl - this was okay. a bit tasteless without the spicy sauce (which my friend could not handle) and therefore was bland for her. i actually love bibimbap because of all the veggies and generally healthy meal.

3.75/5 

seafood pancake (~$15.99): pancake made with assorted seafood and vegetables - this was very oily and was lacking in seafood. the portion size was okay for the price but still leaning towards the expensive side.

3/5

overall food was not bad but it was not amazing. this was one of my first experiences with korean so i had nothing to compare it to but it quite bland, oily and overpriced here at cho sun. maybe we just didnt know what to order but this is not somewhere i would choose as a korean food regular.