Always a great time here. Staff is friendly and food is good. I come here about twice a year and its always really tasty. I was here for lunch and they had a lunch special which was nice! Overall great place cant wait to take more friends and family here. read more

DuBu - #1 on the lunch special - Korean Near Me - Elkins Park, Pennsylvania

DuBu is just an average Korean restaurant. Not the best, but one of the few decent spots to grab Korean food in Philly. The quality is not that consistent and their banchan (side dish) game has declined over the year. They used to serve better side dishes and more of a variety. The kimchi isn't made from napa cabbage either so I wouldn't say it's the best. The soon dubu is just okay here, but I recently tried the 왕 갈비탕 (king short rib stew) and it was SO GOOD!!! The stoneware that the soup comes in keeps the soup PIPING HOT!! I am a firm believer that Korean soups taste 100x better when they are so hot that they almost burn your mouth (just clarifying, but it definitely wasn't hot enough to actually burn your mouth haha). It came with three bones full of galbi meat. The broth was homey and flavorful and the soup came with shredded egg, scallions, radish, and glass noodles. Definitely comforting! This dish is seasonal though so get it while you can! read more

DuBu - side dishes - Korean Near Me - Elkins Park, Pennsylvania

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DuBu is great for all Korean food enthusiasts! The soups are personalized to any palette. I especially like the kimchi soft tofu stew. I get it spicy and allow the egg to mellow out the flavor. I usually get the seafood pancake to share and the portions are more than generous. Another dish I love is the spicy raw marinated crab. It's perfectly seasoned and if you don't like it spicy, there's always a soy version. I wash it all down with the rice water, it's nutritious and a great cleanser. Everything is scolding hot, so please be patient when enjoying the meal. Their ban chan varies, my favorites are the kimchi, the cucumbers, and the potato salad! read more

This is by far the best Korean restaurant in the Philly area. I live in center city and happily drive the 40 minutes it takes to get to dubu. The banchan is simple and delicious, fried fish and less fermented kimchi with another veg and fish cakes. The real standout here is the selection of seasonal chewy naengmyeon and stir fry dishes. The gejang - raw crab - is a spicy sauce bibim version, but it is delicious, refreshing, and truly a rice thief. The army soondubu has a slightly smoky flavor and tons of delicious spam and sausages. The hameul paejeon is crispy and loaded with seafood. Best part of this meal? The SOJU! Make sure to clear your schedule if you take advantage of the lunch specials here. 1pm somaeks anyone??? If you're looking for a Korean food experience that isn't typical BBQ, has some Korean booze, and some flavorful more unique Korean dishes, this is the spot. read more

DuBu - Naengmyeon, gejang - Korean Near Me - Elkins Park, Pennsylvania

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HANDS-DOWN the best authentic Korean food in Philly. I have tried many Korean restaurants, but this one is still on my top list. Food is amazing at reasonable price and big portions, compare to others Korean restaurants, which are very pricey. Everything here is delicious starting from side dishes, specifically the fried fish is my favorite. but a must try LA Gochujang Samgyupsal (spicy pork belly) and LA Galbi (Beef ribs), eating them with rice is just perfect. Meats were marinated perfectly, very tender and so flavorful. Another must try is their soondubu soup is the best! Can't find it at anywhere else in Philly. read more

DuBu - Korean Near Me - Elkins Park, Pennsylvania

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Do I like driving? No. Do I like driving outside of the city? NO. Would I do it weekly for this food? YES. Honestly was really sad that the Broad Street Run wasn't inverse so I could run up from South Philly and finish up here for their spicy tofu soup. We loved the seafood pajeon and dumplings to start. The dumplings were very large servings (the fried ones are veggie)! The soup is served with refillable banchan and even a little steamed fish haha. The soup you can get at a variety of spice levels like 1-6, three being spicy and 1 being no spice with 6 probably being actual lava. It was hard to tell for me if my 3 was too spicy or just too hot. The stone bowl they serve it in keeps it hot for so long. I want to get it again though to test it out and will report back. read more

This is my third time dining in DuBu. Its Grilled beef ribs is one of the best so far I have tried. King Galbi stew is good as well. However, it hasn't been consistent on the size of its king beef ribs. The first two times ordering the Large size of King beef ribs stew were great. Meat was tender, soup was good with beef flavored. Nothing to complain about. Our family enjoyed it very much. When we came here to dine in the third time, ordered again this large size of flavorful king beef ribs stew, the ribs were 1/3 smaller. The grilled galbi was 1/4 less than last time as well. Taste is the same but quantity was less. Otherwise, they had served us a good meal. read more

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We are definitely Korean food newbs but I'd heard so much about this place that we figured it would be a great place to start trying unfamiliar dishes. We ordered the topokki, beef soondubu, seafood pancake, and LA gochujang samgyupsal. Topokki -had delicious broth and was plenty spicy. Beef soondubu - had no flavor. To be fair I ordered it mild because I was intimidated by the spice, but I assumed there would still be a discernible flavor. Seafood pancake - tasted like it was made with such fresh seafood, it was so good especially with a little bit of kimchi or dipped in the broth from the topokki. La gochujang samgyupsal (pork belly) - was our absolute favorite. It had such great flavor and every bite was perfectly tender. I'd seen a lot about the prices being on the high side for some of the dishes but for something like the pork belly (around $30) it is pricey but the portion is PLENTY. We didn't finish one thing fully, everything came in a large portion (looking forward to leftovers all weekend though). Overall we cannot wait to try more dishes and go in person one night (we assume the seafood pancake is even better when it's fresh not packaged in a container). The takeout order we got through DoorDash was put together so thoughtfully - anything juicy was within plastic as well to keep spills/leakage from occurring. It was such a great introduction into Korean food (that wasn't grilling your own at the table). read more

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The Yukejong (sp?) was amazing, great broth and the meat was super tender. Broth was a little more fatty/oily than I thought it could have been but overall the spice + flavors made this one of the best dishes I've tried. I can't emphasize enough that the meat basically was falling off the bones in this dish. We also got their whole fish, interesting menu item but pretty tedious with picking the little bit of meat off of many bones. read more

holy omg so good going back again get the soondubu i got army soondubu it came with an entire set of side dishes! read more

Service and staff are a treat. Best Korean food in Philly by far. Fun place to hang out with friends or family with a guaranteed a great time. read more

Spicy crab was amazing!!! It's one of the must-try dish I highly recommend. Plus, their portions are big.

Good authentic food. Wonderful staff. When ordering be cognizant that they give you tons of Bon chon. And you'll want to eat it. The king galbi is awesome. New menu item. My favorite is a kimche/porkbelly/tofu dish (e5 on the menu) Enjoy! read more

It was our first time dining here on a whim. It took a while for someone to acknowledge us at the front and get us seated. Shortly after settling down with menus on the table, the waitress wanted to take our order immediately. We barely even held the menu in our hands and told her we needed some time to look at the menu since it's our first time here. A minute later, another waitress comes over to rush us to order. We told her the same thing. Before you know it, the first waitress comes back again rushing us which was getting annoying. We told her we needed a few more minutes. Omg. Then 30 seconds later, a different waitress comes over. At this point, we felt pressured to order whatever. Geez. Not sure what the rush is but the vibe felt more like a fast food establishment. We ended up getting the pork bulgogi, jap chae and hot stone bibimbap. Just the typical Korean dishes since we didn't really get a chance to look through the menu. The only thing I liked was the kimchi which taste fresh and not acidic like the store bought kimchi. The bibimbap was so bland, so not a fan. The jap chae was too mushy and not as good as the ones that are premade at Assi or H-Mart. The bulgogi was ok. It looked like a big portion, but only the top surface had the meat. The bottom was filled with onion, so $29 for the dish is definitely not worth it. Then when it comes time to pay, they are so eager to make sure you pay enough tips. They grab the receipt right away to check the amount of tips before you can leave which is kind of rude. It was an expensive meal. The food was meh and service was poor. Probably would have gotten a better dining experience at the food court next door and saved a few extra bucks to get bubble tea as their food was overly salty that you will get super thirsty after eating there. Some Korean restaurants offer a complimentary yogurt drink after your meal, but this one doesn't. read more

DuBu - Bulgogi on top, all onion on the bottom - Korean Near Me - Elkins Park, Pennsylvania

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COVID update -- Heard so much about this place but comparing it from a nj/ny/la standpoint the soondubu was subpar. I think it's a great spot to fill your soondubu cravings once in a while but I have had better. Service was OK and I sat outside the main dining room, because there were so many people inside the restaurant with no social distancing. I don't know why but all the servers look so sad and gloomy, but they weren't unfriendly either.. Kimchi was fresh and all the ingredients were great as well, no qualms about the food itself. Also, the soybean paste soondubu is basically your standard korean soybean paste soup - . If you want something a little more like the red soondubu I advise not getting the curry or soybean paste ones! read more

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Came here on a Sunday evening craving good Korean food. This is the first Korean food I had in a while. And it was sooo good! Large portions of appetizers and Seafood SoonDubu had a lot of seafood in it. Very good. I'd like to come back for other kinds of SoonDubu! read more

DuBu - Appetizers - Korean Near Me - Elkins Park, Pennsylvania

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Usually, I like eating the soondubu (tofu stews) from Dubu but this time, I decided to get something different: the gejang (raw marinated crab covered in spicy sauce) and doenjang (soybean) soondubu. To be honest, I was a bit disappointed. Since this was my first time trying raw marinated crab, I didn't know what to expect. The texture is a bit slimy since it's raw and the spiciness was a bit too much for me. I wouldn't try it again, and I would only recommend it if you already know that you like spicy raw crab, instead of trying it for the first time. When it came to the soybean soondubu, I realized that I prefer the regular spicy soondubu based compared to the soybean soondubu (which also had thin beef, tofu, and zucchini) since the soybean paste has a rather strong flavor and gives the soup a slight grainy texture. I do appreciate how my food came with lightly fried croaker, different types of kimchi (cucumber, broccoli, radish), marinated egg, and rice. I do not recommend the broccoli side dish though since it did not taste fresh. Overall, I would recommend getting the spicy soondubu instead of the two items I ordered. read more

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Dubu is my favorite Korean restaurant that I've been to, especially since soondubu is my favorite Korean dish (I prefer it to KBBQ myself). The inside is very spacious and clean even in non-COVID times, yet the wood paneling and traditional design elements still give it a cozy feel. The last time I went, I was given a cup of hot barley tea to drink, which was delicious but you might have to ask if you want cold water. The prices might seem a little high, but think of it as subsidizing the great variety of banchan (complimentary sides/appetizers) you get - kimchi, salad, a little fried fish, and some other rotating ones including saucy short ribs on Saturdays from what I've seen. You heard right, that's FREE MEAT! The veggie banchans are all refillable, as the servers will nicely remind you of whenever you finish a dish. They'll also pack banchans to go with takeout orders, so you won't miss out however you order. As the name says, soondubu (soft tofu soup) is the signature entree here, and it's the best I've had. Each order of soondubu comes with a bowl of rice and a little egg to crack into it when it's still bubbling hot, which is a ton of fun. I always get the mixed soondubu which comes with both seafood and beef, and it doesn't skimp on the meat. As someone who's pretty sensitive to spice, I find the regular spice level just right. It's a generous portion, and after eating the banchan, I usually can't finish my soondubu and I bring some of it home. I know many people who've made the trek up from Philly's college campuses just for this restaurant, and Dubu is definitely worth the money and the trip! read more

DuBu - Banchans of the day - fried fish, salad, and kimchi are staples, and we also got broccoli with a spicy sauce and delicious short ribs! - Korean Near Me - Elkins Park, Pennsylvania

Still a solid place to get Korean food! Hmart is right next door so you can do your grocery shopping/snack hunting there before or after lunch. A bit pricey, but definitely worth it as the tastes are authentic and multitude of options. We opted for Soondubu and mandoo today. Everything was cooked perfectly and spiced perfectly. My mom swears they make the best Soondubu in Philly. Just a tip: their regular spice is still pretty spicy, so beware. read more

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Really glad we got to come back to try since we were in the area, it was our first time dining in during the pandemic and it a very enjoyable experience with proper measures taken. All the side dishes came in separate plates and meal tray with dividers, very organized set up! Unless you're a family, they will put them out to share per usual if you're comfortable. Everyone received a bottle water instead of cup too, though I'm not a proponent for wasting plastic like that but understandable given the circumstances. All tables were 6 feet apart with everyone in mask too Flavor was great and loved the food once again, still one of my fav soondubu places. However disappoint that again our orders were messed up with the level of spiciness that we had to trade it back in. The staff was very friendly and helpful though. Overall it was a gooooood first time dining out experience! read more

DuBu - Pandemic style for side dishes, great job. Even had ribs! - Korean Near Me - Elkins Park, Pennsylvania

Dubu was my first indoor dining experience and it surpassed my expectations. Covid precautions are taken -- they give you water bottles, clean the tables efficiently, and space the customers apart. The entire restaurant feels very spacious and there is outdoor seating as well. They gave us some side dishes to start and what surprised me was the free short ribs in which they gave free refills! I had never come across any korean restaurant that generously provides free short ribs so that's definitely a plus in my book. The dishes my boyfriend and I got were the seafood pancake, kalbi, beef soondubu, and soybean beef stew. They were all delicious and portions are pretty large. You'll definitely have your belly full by the time you leave this place. We had to take food some to-go. In all, this is a solid spot for quality korean food in philly! read more

I am very excited that I finally got to try this place It's always busy and it smells so good from the outside. The menu wasn't too overwhelming and of course, it's a la carte. I got the seafood pancake and the dumplings for appetizers and they were good. For the entree, I got the tofu stew with pork along with the nutritious rice. It also came with a small fried fish and salad on the side which I thought was pretty great. The service was good considering it was busy and the food came out at a reasonable time. I would come back to try other dishes. read more

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Got take out lunch from DuBu and it was pretty solid! I briefly saw the interior, which looked nice and I could see the staff and patrons were all distanced. I had the LA Galbi Lunch Special with medium spicy seafood soondubu. I really liked that the soondubu didn't have any really oily or fishy aftertaste and the gal I was tasty and tender. I also really liked the side dishes that came in square containers. It's a bit pricier but the servings are pretty large - if you're not extremely hungry, you can probably share one lunch special between two. read more

DuBu - Korean Near Me - Elkins Park, Pennsylvania

Food is ok. Not the best Korean food around Staff just in hurry to serve you and kick you out. All about tips. Soft tofu has no scallion touch . They don't really know what Korean food should be. My 2nd time here. I'm very disappointed. read more

Although particularly pricey. The food is absolutely phenomenal and they are very generous with appetizers. I ordered a regular soondubu and was met with a pretty spicy serving over my limit, however I couldn't stop eating considering how good the Tofu is. I will return read more

There were 19 of us celebrating my nephew's 21th birthday. Our waitress was terrible. Very unprofessional, rude and impolite. Her tone through out the night was condescending, like we were there inconvieniencing her. Not sure if this would happen if we were Korean. But if she doesn't like to serve other nationality, should've say so and we would request another server. read more

There is so much to say about this restaurant but consistency is probably the most important. It doesn't matter when you go the food is always well seasoned, fresh and delicious. The effort they put into their food shows with every bite. This place is a must go. read more

One of the best spots for Korean food in the area! I always get the soondubu and it never disappoints. They also have great side dishes that come complimentary with every meal (salad, fried fish, beef ribs, seaweed, kimchi, etc.) and they are very generous with refilling them as much as you want! There are both indoor and outdoor seating options, the staff is very friendly and attentive, and the restaurant itself is very clean. Highly recommend this one! read more

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Food was tasty, especially the Gochujang Samgyupsal and Pajeon. Service was excellent and ambiance great for large parties.

Don't miss out on this Gem it is the most authentic Korean food I have ever had! The food was amazing just order the menu you can't go wrong. read more

Dubu never disappoints! Quality food with big portions for a decent price. And, you really can't go wrong with all the banchan (side dishes) that come with your meal - fish, salad, kimchi, and more! read more

DuBu - Ojingeo Dolpan Bibimbap - Korean Near Me - Elkins Park, Pennsylvania

I go to Dubu restaurant once a week, which is my favorite Korean restaurant. The food is excellent, and the staff always provides good service. Especially, sundubu soup and LA Galbi are delicious. read more

Got the seafood soft tofu and the jae yuk dolsot bibimbap. It's typical of a Korean restaurant to give you banchan, small dishes like kimchi, seasoned cucumber, salad, fish. Some are refillable by ask, some are charged extra. If you get a soft tofu, they provide you with a raw egg, which you crack open directly into your hot dish. The staff was fast, and the food was pretty good, served hot. read more

Great spot if you're craving Korean food! They serve the best banchan, complimentary side dishes like salad, fired mackerel, spare ribs, potato salad, broccoli, and kimchi anything. You can ask for more too! Their LA galbi (LA style grilled beef short ribs) and soondubu (spicy tofu soup) so always my go to. The LA galbi is so flavorful and tender. The soondubu tends to be spicy if you can't handle any spicy (customers do have the option to ask for no spicy but I would highly recommend getting some spicy). There's a lot of free parking in the lot. They get really busy around dinner time. There's usually a 45-1hr wait during peak hours. If you can try to come before 6pm for early dinner to beat the crowd. read more

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Eighteen of us went to Dubu for a friend's birthday dinner this past weekend. They do not have party or secluded rooms. The service is friendly and attentive, even for a large party! We brought in an outside cake and they were very accommodating with offering to keep it in the fridge until it was ready to be served and providing extra plates. Korean restaurants tend to serve hot barley water during the winter, so you need to specifically request ice water if you would like some. There is an assorted amount of delicious ban-chan (side dishes), along with the single fish per person. The ban-chan makes Dubu worth it honestly. I specifically shared a mixed soon dubu and an appetizer of the dduk-bokki (spicy rice cake) with some friends. Both were prepared well. The consistency of the dduk-bokki was not hard as it should not be. We also shared a large seafood pah-jeon (korean pancake), which was crispy, warm, and delicious! Definitely recommend the pah-jeon! The bathroom smelled nice and was aesthetically pleasing. Prices are a little steep for everything other than soon dubu during dinner. There are lunch specials that are worth exploring! read more

DuBu - Seafood pah-jeon - Korean Near Me - Elkins Park, Pennsylvania

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Favorite karaoke spot. Wings are 10/10. Adult capri suns are good. Also have fun when friends and I book a room for karaoke read more

the bulgogi a were really good and so was the seafood jigae. The bibimbaps were okay and not as flavorful you definitely have to add more sauce. My favorite thing was the pork bulgogi. It's definitely on the pricier side and make sure you make reservations because it can get packed. read more

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Soy bean (doenjang) tofu soup - Don't do it. Straight doenjang soup base. Not the same soup base as the other soondubus. I ordered spicy and it was not spicy. Japchae - not on the menu, we asked for this dish specifically. They paired it with beef. It was ok, I've had better japchae. It was a bit too sweet for my taste. Wouldn't get it again. Fried stuffed tofu - the outside was crispy and the inside was soft and silky. Came with a sweet sauce on top that paired nicely with the crispy hot tofu. Banchan includes fried yellow croaker, kimchi w/ oysters (yum!), cucumbers, bean sprouts, and iceberg salad w/ dressing Get the mixed soondubu next time. read more

This is an authentic Korean restaurant just a little north of Temple Campus though the traffics is pretty back during rush hours. Our daughter came with her friends several times and highly recommended this place. They serve great side dishes (Bonchon). We had fried fish, kimchi, marinated dikon, broccoli, salad and a wonderful stirred fry Kalbi with jalapeño. The Seafood Pancake was cooked to perfection with excellent texture and flavor. All the selections we chose were great. We we left with fully stuffed stomachs and definitely will come back for more. Be aware of the heavy traffic during dinner time. However, it is really worth the effort of flighting through Philly traffic to come here. read more

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My partner took me on a late lunch date to dubu on a chilly day, the perfect weather for eating a hot bowl of soondubu soup. We went at a weird time, around 3ish but the place was already packed-- so you know it was going to be good. We had to wait for our table for 2 for about 15 minutes, but then were seated and given two hot cups of barley tea right from the get go which I very much appreciated. We ordered the budae soon dubu and haemeul soon dubu (army stew and seafood, respectively) and absolutely loved every single bite. It's a big bowl, and on top of that you get a nice selection banchan and a piece of fried fish each. Everything was absolutely delicious and exactly as I expected it to taste as I expected it to-- nice, hot, spicy, flavorful, and just packed with tofu. The tofu texture was soft but not too soft and they also give you eggs to crack into your soup. I had a ton of seafood in mine and my partner also had a generous helping of his toppings. They have a customizable spice level for those who aren't used to having spicy soups or who can't tolerate it, but if you can, I would encourage you to take on the heat! :) they also had so many varieties of soondubu so I'll definitely be back. Definitely give this place a try, it was a really great experience and service was quick and attentive. Would highly recommend for your soondubu cravings!!! read more

DuBu - Korean Near Me - Elkins Park, Pennsylvania