My group was very pleased with our late lunch here. The special that day was half priced noodle dishes, and I love a deal, so I got jajangmyeon. It was very good, but the noodles felt vaguely mushy. The sauce was top notch though, and the portion was HUGE! I got 3 meals out of it. Same for my friend's bibimbap. The rice cake appetizer was good, as was the banchan. Just wasn't a huge fan of the anchovy on the kimchi. Our server was attentive but not overbearing, considering we were the only ones inside at the time. Located really convenient to the Chinatown metro stop, it's not super far into the neighborhood, which was nice. Not a long walk after eating too much haha! read more

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I've tried a few things from Ahjoomah's apron, all of which were not very good. The last time I went, I tried: - Seollongtang - Haemul soondubu - Kimchi fried rice. Seollongtang: was bland, wouldn't order this again. Soondubu: really tasted like it was made from shin ramen packets -- the flavor of the seafood was definitely overpowered by the spices in the seasoning. It tasted nothing like a high quality soondubu. Kimchi fried rice: Very oily, unfinishable because the amount of oil was so overwhelming. every grain of rice left oil spots on the plate. Banchan has improved from last time I came. There were a few options that were unusual, but they were not bad. The service was friendly and about average, and the restaurant was pretty clean. Overall, I would not come again because of the food quality. read more

Ahjoomah's Apron - soondubu (front) seollongtang (back) kimchi fried rice (right) - Korean Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

Do NOT skip out on Ahjoomah's Apron. I came two days in a row because I enjoyed it THAT much. They have different specials everyday (limit 2 daily specials per table per day). On my first trip, I went for dinner in the evening and had a seafood noodle soup - it was spicy and had a healthy / generous portion of seafood. The portion was HUGE. Despite being super hungry, I think I ate maybe half of it. There were shrimp, mussels, crab, and clams. The noodles were perfectly cooked and seasoned. On my second trip, I went for lunch. Since I was feeling under the weather, I opted for galbi tang - a hot beef and radish soup with a side of rice. Despite burning my tongue while being over-eager, it was DELICIOUS. Again, generous servings of meat and plenty of food for one person. The banchan on both days was slightly different, but honestly fairly average. Similarly, their mandu / dumplings felt like they may have just been frozen dumplings, but their main dishes are truly the stars. Admittedly, service can be pretty slow and it is unlikely that folks will check in on you multiple times during your visit (there's only a few workers), but I appreciated the time to sit with my food and eat. 10/10 would recommend stopping by if you're in the area and craving Korean cuisine. read more

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Went on Wednesday where all noodles were 50% off so definitely check out the dine in specials to get the best deals! The server seems shy but she was really nice. Loved the bench seating and wood decors. read more

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Came here for dinner. The staffs were super nice! I got the jjamppong and it was really good. There was a good amount of seafood and the fried chicken was also really good. The chicken was perfectly crispy and juicy with a sweet and spicy sauce. The banchan was just okay to me but overall had a great experience. The interior was also very nice read more

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Banchan was okay overall but the seaweed banchan stood out to me. The kimchi jjigae tasted mainly of fish sauce, barely any korean gochugaru taste or kimchi. It was salty, the kimchi was not even sour or ripened. The jjajangmyeon was mostly potatoes. We had questioned if they gave us vegetarian version by accident but they did not. There really wasn't any meat so we asked for clarifications. Their response was only 10% of the sauce is meat. They felt bad afterwards and offered a bowl of sauce with meat/potato after. The service was great and the set up of the restaurant is really nice. The food and prices could be better unfortunately. read more

Ahjoomah's Apron - Kimchi Chigae Soup and Jajangmyun - Korean Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

Ajoomah's Apron is not just one of my favorite Korean restaurant in Chicago, it's one of my favorite restaurants. The experience is ALWAYS STELLAR: the food is ALWAYS fresh, delicious, with large portions. You will NOT leave disappointed or dissatisfied. The authentic flavors are the manner in which the flavors work together, is very impressive!! BRAVO! 5 STARS read more

This place absolutely deserves to be rated higher than it is. I had an amazing experience, and will be back soon. Extremely similar to cozy restaurants in Korea. One of my all-time favorite Korean dishes is Jajangmyeon, and I haven't been able to find a good place since being in Chicago. This place is it. Their mandu is also fantastic. All the side dishes were amazing. The japchae was delicious. Service was a tad slow, but they gave us free beers for our wait and that made the experience even better. I'm attaching a pic of daily specials. You're welcome. Definitely worth the trip if you're in Chinatown. read more

Ahjoomah's Apron - Specials - Korean Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

Service and ambiance was great. The banchan was ok and the food was fair. The bossam was good but it's hard to mess it up. They were generous with the bossam toppings. In the past, I've ordered the tteubokki and it wasn't that good - we sent it back. Think there are better and more affordable Korean places up north. But if you're looking for Korean near Chinatown - not a bad option! read more

Ahjoomah's Apron - Korean Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

Arrived on Halloween evening. We had no reservations but were seated promptly. We were offered some delicious candies from our host. I ordered a peach soju and my mini me ordered a rice soda. Afterwards we ordered our entrees. We got the kimchi fried rice, bulgogi & tuna kimbop. The items arrived one by one. Everything was delicious but the two of us couldn't possibly finish it all in one setting. We were happy to be able to take home the leftovers so we wouldn't have to reminisce for long. We will be back, but with a larger group to share and eat. read more

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Super convenient Korean spot in Chinatown!! We got takeout and they still gave us a sizable portion of Banchan! I loved the broccoli one, it was so refreshing! We tried the stir fried pork belly and kimchi, which really hits because of the immaculate wok hei (Chinese term for the complex smoky aroma that comes with piping hot stir fries). This definitely had that wok hei and the kimchi was a nice balance for the pork belly with a slightly sweet and salty flavor. However, the portion was on the smaller end, and it was like 85% kimchi, 15% pork belly. Automatically came with rice, which helped soak up all that juicy deliciousness! The beef japchae had a reallyyyy nice sesame aroma to it, and the noodles had such a great bouncy texture. Was also a great opportunity to try their bulgogi beef without paying for the full dish. Overall, solid Korean food spot! Would love to dine in person sometime! read more

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The portions were good, but the Bo Ssam was too fatty for me and my friend's liking. The soup had good flavor and was a nice splitting portion but I probably wouldn't go back soon and instead try new places. There is a shortage of Korean restaurants in Chicago proper so if you're really craving Korean I'd still recommend this place. The interior was nice, quiet and intimate with some pretty wood paneling. They were quick to serve our food but not sure if that's due to quick service or since we were one of the only people in the restaurant. read more

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Been here a few times now. The jjamppong and jajangmyeon are consistently flavorful and come in big portions. The soondubu was a little mild for me and could use more depth, but the banchan beans were unexpectedly addictive. Solid spot for quick Korean comfort food. read more

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A great spot for solid Korean food at a reasonable price. The space can feel a bit cramped when it's busy, but the food makes up for it. We ordered the small Korean army stew and grilled pork belly, which was the perfect amount to share for two. The pork belly was flavorful, grilled nicely, and paired so well with rice. The army stew was packed with ingredients, super filling and comforting, especially on a cold day. The sausages in the stew were really tasty too. It seemed a bit understaffed when we went on a Friday night, but the staff was nice and patient despite the rush. read more

Ahjoomah's Apron - Boodae Chigae - Korean Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

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The service at the only reason why there are stars on this review. The wait staff was attentive and they tried our best to sit us. Ahjoomah's Apron is located near the train station and is one of the first restaurants that would welcome you into Chinatown. The ambience and the vibe of the restaurant looks very traditional and very homey. Although, the food is not that good. The scallion seafood pancakes that we ordered came out very burnt. We all each took a bite and could not try to eat any of it. The jjajangmyeon's sauce tasted really good, but the noodles were overcooked and were sticking together. The beef bulgogi and the ramyeon were okay. The server was very nice that he took out the scallion seafood pancake off our bill. read more

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Great food and service. Highly recommend. Their kimchi is really nice too. Great food and service. Highly recommend. Their kimchi is really nice too. read more

There were some good things. The portions were large. The pork fried mandoo was very good. The bulgogi was standard, nothing special, but good enough. The dolsot bibimbap was good, very big. Overall, standard Korean comfort food, which is good enough. The real problem I had was with the jjajangmyun. It was the worst. Flavorless, just very bad and very disappointing. Fix this please as we have been looking for good jjajangmyun in Chicago and cannot find it anywhere. read more

I had heard great things about Ahjoomah's Apron before I moved away from Chicago, but unfortunately I never got the chance to check it out. Recently while back visiting, I gave it a try with a friend and it did not disappoint. We ordered an abundance of food (seriously wayyyyy too much for the two of us), but we got to try a number of things. First of all, I would say, despite our over ordering (we planned for leftovers), the portions were seriously generous. The stir-fried squid alone could've easily fed a few people. I loved that they had a pajeon option that featured both seafood (one half) and kimchi (the other half). It was loaded (perhaps a little too loaded as it ended up a bit soft). The banchan were on point. And the kimbap with spam was pretty addictive. The bibim nang myun we did a disservice as we ate the other hot dishes first and it did get a big tangled while it sat. That said, we went on the 'noodle' special day, so it was an affordable add and we made use of the leftovers. Eating there on a weekday lunch made it a little hard to assess the ambiance (fairly quiet), but we had excellent and attentive service. read more

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Back in the Before Days, if you were a U of C student in need of Korean food, you'd have to make the trek up to Lawrence where there is a cluster of Korean restaurants. That informal Koreatown has since changed, with fewer options as it appears that the population center has moved into the suburbs to the northwest. So it's harder to get your kalbi fix up there. Another family member recently discovered this place in Chinatown - much more convenient to the university - and highly recommended it, so we made the short drive from Hyde Park to dine here on our last evening in town. Though it was a Saturday evening and the restaurant was busy, we were fortunate to get seated right away. The group right behind us, who decided that it was more important to smoke one more cigarette before dining so we entered ahead of them, ended up waiting quite a long time before a table opened up. We were seated at one of the tables on the side, which seats 4. In the center of the restaurant there are long tables that probably officially seat 8, but more can be crammed in. Over these tables they've installed a metal structure that allows them to post signs on the sides, but it also gives the place a cramped and compartmentalized feel. Our friendly and attentive server took our order quickly, and it wasn't much longer before the panchan arrived at our table, followed shortly by our main meal. Kimchi and seafood pancake - I think we all expected this to be a mixed dish, but in fact it was a half-and-half pancake. TBH I think it would have been more interesting if the seafood and kimchi were a melange. Still quite good. Tempura shrimp udon - surprisingly large portion. In every other restaurant where we've ordered it, even without requesting, the tempura is served on the side so it stays crisp, but here it was already in the broth. Soggy tempura isn't so nice (we prefer to dip it in the soup). Good flavor, though, and the noodle texture was just right. One nice touch at the end as we packed up the leftover, the server brought a separate container for he noodle so that it wouldn't get too mushy overnight. Stone pot tofu bibimbap - normally I go for beef but have recently discovered tofu bibimbap. I believe it was just $1 more to have it in a stone pot, and the crispy rice that usually forms is always delicious. In this case, inexplicably, that didn't happen even though the bowl seemed pretty warm. The tofu was a medium-soft consistency, and when everything was mixed together it was disintegrated into small pieces resembling cottage cheese. I would have preferred a firm tofu and little more sear on the cakes, but in the end I still really enjoyed this dish. Prices were surprisingly quite reasonable given the quantity of food. As mentioned, the service was excellent. We will certainly be back again. read more

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Ordered the black bean noodles and since I read the reviews of the noodles being to mushy I specifically asked if they could not over cook my noodles the server was very polite and said of course I can tell them to not over cook them. They were delicious, I'm not sure if the sauce wasn't suppose to be hot but it was like very warm but I would have preferred hot temp wise. The flavor was delicious and the serving was huge. I also ordered the fried beef dumplings they came with a. Delicious sauce. I would recommend ordering these both. You'll be full and satisfied. read more

Ahjoomah's Apron - Black been noodles, beef dumplings and bonachón - Korean Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

I've never written a review for any restaurant in my life, but I've never been so disappointed with a restaurant that I had hopes for. Moving from NYC less than a year ago, I'm always on the lookout for great Korean spots that are few and far between in Chicago, especially compared to the east end of Queens. Ahjoomah's Apron is not one of those spots. To start with the ambiance, it's very cramped and noisy. It's a lot smaller inside than you'd expect and as a result, the tables are very close to each other and people are crammed together, leading to a quite loud environment. I ordered the kimchi pancake, stir fried kimchi & pork belly and my partner had the kimchi jjigae. The kimchi pancake was the only redeeming aspect, but even then it was just "ok". H-Mart does this dish better and for cheaper. The kimchi pork belly was flavorless. As if they prepared it with literally only kimchi and pork and zero other flavors or seasonings - which they probably did. Not to mention the dish was covered in green onions, to the point where it was "spicy" from the sheer amount of them piled onto the plate, which I had to stop and meticulously separate all of them halfway through my meal. Very rarely do I not finish my meal, even if it's bland, as I hate to waste money and will still finish for the sake of getting the calories in, but I had to quit 3/4 of the way through. The kimchi jjigae was bland. I wouldn't be surprised if the soup base was just water and kimchi. The piece of pork belly that I also tried from it had no flavor either, furthering my theory that they used only kimchi for the flavor of the soup. My partner only ate the jjigae until all of her tofu was gone. The staff were nice, but the service was underwhelming. After we ordered, the only time the wait staff paid any notice to us was only to drop off our food or when we flagged them down for the check. Overall, do not come here if you want actual Korean food. Just stick to the Chinese options if you're already in Chinatown and go elsewhere unless you want a low quality attempt at Korean food. read more

Ahjoomah's Apron is a nice Korean restaurant nestled in Chinatown. Service was fairly quick, and ordering was easy. My party ordered the seafood and kimchi pancake and army stew. The seafood and kimchi pancake was okay, though a tad too doughy and not as crispy. The army stew, however, had no "spiciness" levels. The army stew is quite spicy if you aren't used to it and difficult to eat without having watered down - definitely not for the faint spice tolerance. Other than the food, the kimchi was not too impressive, and was fairly sour and spicy, a slight hint of salty but not much hints of sweet. Overall, it tasted just "ok." read more

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I didn't hate the place. If I could it would be a solid 3.5 stars. We orders the jajangmyeon (black bean noodles). The noodles were incredibly way too mushy. The flavor wasn't right because I've had a few different versions of this. It was definitely not edible for me. There are special for everyday of the week and we had the beef bugolgi. It was pretty good. The flavors were bold and was well seasoned. We also had the Seolleongtang which was a beef bone soup. That was really delicious. The service was alright considering he was alone and doing the best he could. It's a cozy place in there with paid parking on Cermak. The food was pretty inexpensive. I would visit there again. Good for small groups. read more

The food is always great when we go. We tend to go when they have certain specials; my favorite personally is when they have 50% off soups. Additionally, their banchan is always fresh, and they always ask if we want refills on it. The service is good, and they always seem so friendly when we walk in. The server we usually have is very kind and checks up on us often. The seating is small and limited, so I would make sure to call ahead if you have a big table. Dinner is when it's more popular. read more

Second time coming and I will be a regular. No doubt about it. My friend ordered the Kalbi dish and it arrived very quickly. The meat was well seasoned but some parts were rough. I expected thinner cut to be better for chewing purposes. One additional plus is that it also comes with the side dishes. So you didn't have to worry about only eating meat for the price that was paid. One thing I did note is the menu says it comes with ox tail bone broth if you dine in. However our server said we didn't get that but offered rice instead. Different but I didn't think deeply into it. read more

Ahjoomah's Apron - Kaleb - Korean Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

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That takeout was very good. Generous portions on the bi bim bop and sol long tang. Everything was delicious - warm and yummy even after it was sitting in delivery table for bit (my delay, not restaurant's) Would definitely order them again - especially for a solid hit of beefy, comforting soup in Chicago weather. read more

Such kind service and I loved the inside--felt like a cozy place to gather with friends and stay a while. The banchan can be refilled as much as you wish, and the menu has many options. However, the food was very much just ok. Most notably we asked for the tteokbokki to be mild bc some in our party are a bit sensitive to spicy food, and it came out basically tasteless. Also, while the champong noodles were perfectly chewy and we were pleasantly surprised to see crab mixed in, the broth was not quite hitting the spot. The broth reminded me of shin ramen flavoring packet and didn't have that seafood flavor that I was hoping for. It could just be that this restaurant's style of cooking is not what my friends and I prefer, but we agreed we probably would not be in a rush to come back. read more

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I wanted to eat Jajangmyeon so I looked up Korean restaurant to eat here in Chicago and found this restaurant. This restaurant located in the chinatown. We went here last night. We also ordered not only Jajangmyeon but also galbitang. Both of the entrees were decent size. The broth to the galbitang has an airy homemade taste, which was delicious. The banchan were great, I liked the seaweed one the most. The staff were nice and friendly. The service was fast. read more

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Second round here, so I tried some new things. There's a slight changed in the side dishes, but I'm glad to see my favorite egg plant is still there. I ordered chicken bibimbop this time around and was surprised to see how much chicken it comes with; however I do prefer shrimp over chicken. I think I'll order beef during my next visit. The bulgogi is great, nothing too surprising about that. And the seafood pancake came in a large portion( similar to last time). Again, I'm not a huge of pancakes, so I personally think it's a big heavy and oily. But it does come in a portion with a good amount of seafood. The service is great as before. The environment was very comfortable. It does tend to get very loud as more customers come in. I hope I'll be able to try more options in the future. And PLEASE consider adding cushions to the chairs, it gets very uncomfortable after sitting for awhile. read more

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This was my first time at Ahjoomah's Apron and it will definitely not be the last. I've been wanting to try for the longest time and it was simply devine. The little dishes that comes with the meals was so fresh and delicious. The beef bulgogi was so tender and flavorful. The pork belly melts in your mouth. Everything about that lunch was fantastic. The service was absolutely phenomenal. Our server was so knowledgeable and kind. Very polite and such a nice young man. And the place was dark but not too dark yet there was dividers that gave us some privacy. Ambiance was great. I highly recommend this little gem in the heart of Chinatown for some delicious Korean food! What a treat! read more

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My fav part is the complementary side dishes!!! So good, and u can have refills (but ofc dont do it too much). The pan fried mackerel was my fav, its portion matches its price and its well prepared. Idk many places that sell pan fried mandu so this makes me happy. The different 50% off items each day of the week are great for encouraging rotations too! The normal price is ever so slightly pricey imo but it more than makes up for it with the side dishes. 100% will come back!! Also the staff are all super chill and polite read more

Ahjoomah's Apron - Pan Broiled Salted Mackerel, Mul-Mandu - Korean Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

They have different half off items everyday! We got half of bibimbap on monday Seafood pancake was super crispy and a decent amount of seafood read more

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The bulk asian person service was actually mean. His attitude from the moment we sat down was very aggressive. When we ordered the chicken wings, he didnt even give us different choice of options for the flavors and just did his own. And his refill of water was the bare minimum, half of the cup. Overall, the buff/bulky asian guy to aggressive and sympathetic. Bad service. read more

We ordered take-out here on a chilly day. Ahjoomah's Apron is a women-owned establishment in Chinatown serving Korean staples. Was craving some hearty soup and this hit the spot for us. For the take-out order, the time estimate was accurate and the package was nicely done to avoid any spills. I also enjoyed all the banchan packaging, but the selection seemed more limited than if you dined in. Each soup comes with 4 side dishes and rice. Boodae chigae - I can't say I'm no expert, but it had most of the toppings I was looking for - a lot of spam, sausage, tofu, kimchi and ramen noodles. The kimchi flavor was crazy strong and it was a mild spicy for me (which I of course added extra spice too). The broth consistency was thinner, but overall it tasted good. Haejangguk (Hang Over Soup) - contains beef rib meat, napa, bean sprouts, radish, and OX blood in spicy broth. Again, not very spicy at all. The beef rib was tender though. I didn't see many pieces of the OX blood of thee radish, but still a solid soup to us. read more

Ahjoomah's Apron - partially eaten take-out order of Boodae chigae - Korean Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

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Everything was so good and had that home cooked taste but plated so nicely. I would definitely come back. The staff was very friendly. The kalbi was my favorite. Keep an eye out on what their specials are for the day so you can score a deal! read more

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My fav go to Korean spot w huge portions lots of side dishes and great flavor - cozy bench seating. Good service read more

Ahjoomah's Apron - Bulgogi - Korean Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

Got to go. Checked multiple times if they give the side dishes, disappointed that they have only kimchi and pickled radish/cucumber. Like in restaurant, they give so many good side dishes but for to go, it's only a few. Anyways the kimchi jjigae was good. Service is trash though read more

Went with my daughter for New years Lunar eve. Had the Kimchi Chigae which appears like a soup but is more like a stew. Slightly spicy broth, with some Kimchi, some veggies, and makes your nose run a bit. Excellent! They also served about a half dozen sides like boiled potatoes, tofu, cabbage, something that looked like squid , but wasnt. Wish my daughter was around I could be more exact. Plenty of rice. The entree was the pork belly which was great, lil smoky, lil crackly, served with some scallions, & onions. Very tasty. Those also came with rice and soy, jalapeños & white onions, etc. I havent done a lot of Korean but enjoyed it. Service was good but not in a rush. Definitely a place to check out. read more

Ahjoomah's Apron - Stir fried Pork belly with kimchi. In the middle Kimchi Chigae Soup. Dinner for 2. Excellent! - Korean Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

Such a great experience here. not only was the food AMAZINGGGG, but service was above and beyond. Everything was delicious except for beef bulgogi-- would definitely skip on that one. So much foooood such a good food coma. The staff was so friendly and let us stay and finish up our meal as they were closing up. Small place to eat at but pretty good setup for big parties etc. Would 100% return if ever in the area and would recommend to everyone. super yummmmmmm. read more

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Located in Chinatown, about in between Chinatown Square and "old Chinatown." This is a nice change of pace from all of the dim sum, hot pot, and other kinds of Chinese food here. We actually came here after a hangover, so the food tasted fantastic. We ordered just the right amount of food to fill all of us up. There were 3 of us. We ordered the seafood pancake, kimchi pancake, bulgogi, and soup. Sorry I can't remember the exact soup since I didn't order it. The pricing was definitely exorbitant for pancakes, they shouldn't be as high as $19. Bulgogi was also overpriced, current cost is $28. Honestly, you could go to SGD or some other other Korean places in Glenview and pay $2-4 less for the same dishes. Service was good and we got our food fast. Overall it's about a 3 for me. Portion size was adequate but they're ripping you off in prices. read more

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