Jong Ga Korean Restaurant

Hello friends! If you’re a long-standing follower of my blog, you’d know that Jong Ga has been one of my favorite Korean restaurants ever since it opened a few years ago. I hadn’t been there for over a year so I decided to go there for lunch with Old bean and Mother deer. From what I remember, they used to have a flip menu but now they have a one-sheeter that’s double sided. I liked that they added photos of all the food items on there so you know what to expect when the food comes to the table

A small basic Korean restaurant with friendly staff and good food. Our server was very polite and recommended us items on the menu. She was also quick to refill our tea and to offer us more of the side dishes. The tofu soup comes in a huge bowl! I could barely finish it! Well worth the price!

The best Korean food in Vancouver! Their soups are the best in town! Good service and easy to find! I've been there like 30 times! Love it so much!

Over two years ago, I wrote my first review on Jong Ga Korean Restaurant! Since then, I have been a handful more times and it is my favourite Korean restaurant! I’ve taken different people here and everyone seems to enjoy it as well.

Jong Ga is a small, home-style Korean restaurant. It is usually busy so I try to make reservations before coming. The only bad thing about Jong Ga is the parking! It is located in a small strip mall in Koreatown, and many parking spots are reserved for other businesses.

This was our first visit to Jong Ga - we went for dinner, arriving at just after 5pm (a Tuesday).  Upon entering, we found the place about half-full of customers, and it was very active throughout the course of our meal, with new people coming in, and others leaving.  Our first impression - "wow, looks like this is a popular place".  

The service was good, and despite how busy the two servers were kept, they were always friendly, and accommodating.  Even our several initial questions regarding some of the menu items, were answered without any  hesitation on their part - we felt welcomed, and thought they were being very helpful.

Now to the food, and 'wow', it was tasty!!  

What we ordered:  and it came with a great selection of banchan - kimchi (sure good, but spicy hot!), pieces of potatoes (don't know how they were prepared, but were sure yummy!), slices of marinated zucchini, and bean sprouts (both yum!) - and tea.  The banchan was 'the' best we've been served at the Korean restaurants we've tried to date!!

--  dol sot bibimbab - hot stone bowl rice, with ground beef, an assortment of fresh vegetables, sesame oil, egg, and hot pepper sauce on the side (with some tofu, hot sauce, etc.).    

-  ox knee soup - meat & tendon, green onion, and vermicelli noodles, in a  light stock, it came with rice (with a choice of stone bowl or regular steamed), and a side dish of a soya-based sauce.

Everything (banchan, entrees, and side dishes of sauces) was so fresh, colourful, well-prepared and presented, and so tasty, and all was served piping-hot to our table.  We appreciated the mild level of spicing of what we ordered - with the hot sauces provided as side-dishes to the entrees, they could then be used as much as desired.  

This was our first taste of these particular dishes, and I believe we ordered well.  I had read much about bibimbab, now after seeing it in-person, and tasting it, can understand why it's such a popular Korean dish - I so enjoyed it!  The soup was good, but not a particular dish I would likely order again.  But for this dining, it seemed to complement the other dish.      

Jong Ga was a busy little place, but we never once felt rushed, in fact, we felt very relaxed, and took our time to fully-enjoy the meal and dining experience.  And we sure did!!  For us, Jong Ga will definitely be a 'must return to' place!!