Gonjiam is a small Korean family style restaurant serving food that a Korean grandmother would make. Food: Bossam - very soft pieces of pork Beef Soup - Excellent flavor and comforting on a cold day. Service: Excellent. Very nice and welcoming Parking: Shared lot with two other businesses. There was valet for a couple dollars on a weekend night read more

It is sort of a hole in the wall type of restaurant located in a small plaza next to Antico Nuovo. It is not too noticeable, but I am sure if you drive on Beverly regularly, you probably have seen or passed by it.   Gonjiam is known for Korean soul food, also known as gookbap, which is a beef soup eaten for hangovers after heavy drinking.   While I enjoy their gookbap, my go-to is definitely the Spicy Pork and Vegetables. It is a cold dish with sliced pork trotters with fresh veggies tossed over classic spicy Korean sauce. This dish is so refreshing, and the sauce is amazing! This dish really whets your appetite. So good, I am drooling as I am writing this.   Many people come here also for the jungol, which they call casserole, but I have only tried the Army Stew, which is not your typical Army Stew because they use the same broth as the beef soup, so it tastes very different. Honestly, not my style, and for the price, I don't know if it's worth it. I just can't justify the price for what is in it. A bit of sausage, spam, and tofu with some veggies for $44.99 is a bit too much in my personal opinion. I would not complain as much if they were a little more generous on the toppings, though.   But that spicy pork and vegetable is definitely worth trying, even though some people may argue about the high price tag, but it is really, really good.   Everyone working here is so kind and mom-like, providing homey care. Even the tables and ambiance are very much like an old Korean restaurant. They also do a lot of takeout orders, so call ahead if you wish to do that instead. Parking is $3 cash or $4 for Venmo. read more

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Ambiance: small and family style restaurant, which has been in business for more than 30 years, tiny parking lot shared with a liquor store Service: majority diners here speak Korean, and waitresses don't understand or speak English well, not very patient, and the gas pots were not cleaned at all before serve the next guest, they also made mistake with orders Food: in general ok, simple menu items, but very unfortunately, the food quality went downhill Banchan - * limited selection and tasted so so Bosam Beef - **** soft and tender beef meat, recommend Beef Soup - ** stingy portion of beef meat, lackluster broth Spicy Bu Dae Jeegae - *** army stew, bold flavor, too salty, average taste Price: overpriced for the quality and quantity, expect more than $30 per person, not worth returning read more

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the parking lot was not full at 6 PM. But still, the valet service cost $10. Will come back maybe next time. read more

Came back after a long time come to find the ownership has changed, ate the usual and the taste was the same. Interior is the same but maybe got new cushions for the seats. read more

First time here in a while and I'm very impressed that the food is still the same deliciousness. The ladies here are friendly and occasionally check in to see if they can offer more side dishes or other service. It's a typical hole in the wall, classic Korean restaurant. Glad to be back. Ordered the jokbal, suyuk, and (not pictured) gopchang jongol. read more

Gonjiam - Korean Near Me - Los Angeles, California

All the dishes are tasty and fresh. Side dishes also fresh and clean. Strongly recommend to people who loves korean beef soup. read more

Gonjiam - Korean Near Me - Los Angeles, California

Good food for hot summer weather and good healthy food for the soul Korean food. Excellent choice for the family read more

Gonjiam - Beef Soup Mak Kook Su Water Boiled Dumpling Boiled Beef With Spicy Sauce Boiled Beef Deung Gol Mer Lic Gol - Korean Near Me - Los Angeles, California

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where's the beef. no price on the menus either. this place has been around for years known for their cow head meat soup, but apparently from what i can gather on recent yelp reviews and other friends who frequented gonjiam in years past, ownership has changed. the older lady who seems to be the current owner here seems to have a reputation. felt like a home-y, authentic jungol (so many mom and pop places in ktown are gone now) on a chilly, december friday night around 8pm, and the restaurant was completely empty. the owner didn't particularly seem to want our business and gave me the feeling she was bothered i came in an hour before closing (yelp lists closing time at 10:30 and google lists closing at 10pm but they close at 9). it got weirder when she pushily tried influencing what i wanted to order. and not in a nice way like these are our tastiest menu items, but this is what will be least work for us before closing vibe. thought about walking out then, but i wanted to give an old korean mom and pop shop a try, and i can handle old school pushy korean adults. despite her pushy suggestion to order the boodae jjigae (military soup you can get at so many other restaurants), i told her i wanted the gonjiam jungol - a large shareable clear broth stew with white cabbage, oxtail, and ox knee. there was barely any meat and there were oxtail that was probably on the smaller tip of the tail of the cow, so tiny. i think with two diners, we had like 8 small pieces of meat each. i did take her suggestion to order the boiled beef with tossed veggies (sooyook moochim). i liked the flavor, and the dish was good, but again on the small side. we ordered these two items and a bottle of soju coming out to about $90 pre tip. i wouldn't know what each of these menu items cost because there were no prices on the wall or booklet menus. i ordered blindly knowing general prices in ktown. for the amount of protein and quantity of food, it was slightly overpriced. add more meat and charge more. geez. if you're nonkorean, i wouldn't recommend coming here. you're not going to like the gruff service. i'd only come back to try their staple item - the cow head meat soup for a quick meal or to go. but then there's so many other korean beef soup places that are more central ktown that i'd rather go to. probably won't be back. read more

Gonjiam - Gonjiam jungol - Korean Near Me - Los Angeles, California

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This is a not so hidden gem in Koreatown. This place, even after the ownership change, maintained their quality and continues to impress. You must try broiled beef spicy sauce and the beef/vegetable pancake. The soup is amazing especially for hangovers. Great service with a traditional Korean setting. read more

Gonjiam - Korean Near Me - Los Angeles, California

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This is the only authentic place where serves the beef cheek meat in LA. Both the soup and the boiled meat dishes are awesome. There many good sulungtang places in LA, but if you want to feel the original beef gomtang, this is the must-try place. Same quality, taste, and service for the last 20+ years of my experience. read more

Gonjiam - Suyuk muchim - Korean Near Me - Los Angeles, California

Coming here for 14 years and never disappointed. If you want some authentic korean beef stew or casserole, its the place:) read more

Gonjiam - Korean Near Me - Los Angeles, California

30+ years on business? no wonder they taste the same when I visited them 20 years ago. Oh, there are a few changes now, the restaurant got cleaner now, and the granddaughter of grandma owner is operating, so I assume it's a good thing ( I still miss her) read more

Gonjiam - Beef zsoup - Korean Near Me - Los Angeles, California

I don't eat meat but my family and friends really love their Bossam Beef so I feel convicted to write a review. Gonjiam is their go-to whether is be for dinner and drinks or rejuvenating after Roosevelt golf course. For me, it's their cold noodle soup (Mak Kook Su)! You know a restaurant is good when there are only older folks here. read more

Nice place and great service!! We order slice beef with soup!! It's really healthy and well being!! Side dishes are wonderful. I will be back soon for sure! read more

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Restaurant is named and known for beef head meat soup. I have been coming here for ages mostly take out, not much dining in. I really did not pay attention to the owner but I guess the owner has changed within the last year or two, as others have mentioned. Did not see much change in food price nor recipe. This is an alternative to sullang tang, typical Korean beef bone broth soup. Time to time, I miss having old fashioned, home cooking meals. This is one of those spot in Koreatown. Having a hot bowl of soup of beef head meat on a cold day is comforting and hearty. The only complaint are having to hear an earful of owner complaining to the meat distributer on the phone and having a ton of mosquito biting my ankles and legs under the table. It was funny to hear the owner bitch and moan in mixed Korean and English to the Hispanic on the phone how they sent her a box of beef intestines instead of beef bones. I was amazed at her command of English as she looked near age of seventy. The guy on the phone spoke less English than her. At times she had her Hispanic cook from the kitchen talk to the distributer. While eating the food and listening to the phone conversation, I completely ignored the mosquitos biting me. Do not order the dumpling. It is plain and boring and really over priced. I guess it is pricey because they hand make everything about the dumpling. At that price, I say get a bag of Bibigo pork and vegetable dumping at a Korean grocery store and boil or air fry, or better yet, pan fry with oil, and steam cook at the last couple of minutes, at home for really good dumplings. The price is decent, service is poor as the elderly lady takes order and serves the food. Borderline hole in the wall, do not expect a clean look. The parking is available morning and lunch but can be limited as the lot shares with a liquor store next door and a bar in the evening. read more

The best beef soup you will ever taste in your life. You will not regret. Their service is also prefect. Your satisfaction is guaranteed read more

Truly amazing hole in the wall. You know it's good when the signs are only in Korean. We has the Gobchang (small intestines) Casserole, and it was one of the most delicious and well-seasoned soup I have ever had. Their homemade banchan was also out of this world. Just positives all-around. Excited to be back soon :) read more

5 stars! Gonjiam is super yummy! My favorite item here is the gopchang jungo (spicy intestine casserole) at around 30 bucks. The intestine is perfectly chewy and so so good. The spicy level is perfect - not too painful but enough kick. Ingredients are fresh and plenty (love the flavorful herb leaves, udon, rice cakes). It's enough to serve 2-4 people depending on appetite. Besides the casserole, the bossam (steamed pork belly) is surprisingly delicious too - I would say almost on par with Kobawoo (a restaurant specializing in bossam). The pork belly is super juicy, flavorful and melts in your mouth. Last but not least, their banchan (side dishes) are SO good. They are not the ones you typically find either - and you can just tell they were homemade fresh with the best flavors. The first time I visited Gonjiam, there wasn't a single English speaker which made it just a tad bit difficult although not impossible. The most recent visit in Feb 2018 they had hired a younger waitress that spoke English :) Gonjiam is a hole-in-the-wall hidden gem in ktown! read more

Gonjiam - Yummy bossam! - Korean Near Me - Los Angeles, California

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This place really hit the spot on a cold night! I've been asking my Korean buddy to take me to a restaurant that's not KBBQ related and this place did not disappoint! We ordered the beef soup, which came with some rice and your usual banchans (kimchi, radish, etc) The beef soup was really good and flavorful. It reminded me of my mom's Vietnamese beef soup, which is a plus. There was lots of green onions and meat in my bowl. Plentiful of meat is always a plus in my book! The meat was very soft and chewy. For shared appetizer, we got the beef salad. The sauce was just amazing. A little sweet and spicy and I think I tasted some vinegar? The staff was very friendly and seemed excited to have non-Korean faces in the restaurant. Would definitely come back again! read more

Gonjiam - Beef soup and beef salad - Korean Near Me - Los Angeles, California

Hands down my go to place and I was authentic Korean food that makes me all warm and fuzzy inside. This is a small business ran by a Korean grandma and she has the magic touch. She helps with the cooking and the food here always hits the spot. Whenever I come I get the Gonjiam casserole with boiled beef on the side. Spicy pig feet salad, homemade steamed dumplings, and spicy cold noodles. Whenever you're craving that authentic Korean flavor this is the place you want to come too!! read more

Gonjiam is an authentic Korean restaurant serving stews and various meat options. The sides (banchan) are all absolutely delicious, and I always order the Gonjiam stew when I come here. You're not going to have the best service or attentiveness that one might expect, but if you're looking for a great authentic Korean dish and experience, this is definitely the place to come to! read more

Gonjiam - Stew with side dishes - Korean Near Me - Los Angeles, California

Every since the owner changed this place became crap. I have no positive thing to say about this place. Crappy service the grandma is just unprofessional and extremely rude!!! Never will I be coming back to this place. Bring back the old owner!!!!! This place is terrible!!!! Not only the grandma has terrible managers the food sucks and lost all its flavors. It's disgusting and pretentious. read more

Very traditional and genuine Korean food in Los Angeles. The boiled beef with green onion intrigues Korean wine, SoJu'. The best Korean restaurant in Los Angeles. read more

Best gook bob in town order water dumpling and cow head rice soup best combo make sure you order soju or you will be sorry

LOVE this place! Tastes like the best moms home cooking. One of the best hole in the wall restaurants. Feel warm when you get in and the tables are booth like so you are separated amongst other people unless you get the middle cafeteria style bench seat.. V Recommend Gonjiam Casserole (Gonjiam Jungohl)- Clear broth with napa cabbage, veggies, tendon, few portions of read meat. Pork + Vegetable/Spicy Sauce (Johk Bahl Moo Cheem) - Pig Feet + Veggies in spicy sweet sauce sprinkled with sesame seeds ( very flavorful ) Boiled Beef (soo Yook) - Boiled Beef with soy sauce dipping sauce Water Boiled Dumplings - Meat/Veggie dumpling boiled in water Simple side dishes. 3 different types of kiimchi. Radish Cube, Napa Cabbage, and Green Onion (leek) Definitely have been coming here regularly cant wait to come again!! read more

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Solid 4 stars. This place is known for their cow head soup (so muhri gookbap). Hearty, deep flavored soup that is similar to sullungtang for those of you that are familiar with it. Décor: small restaurant, very authentic Korean style. Service: Hit or miss, the waitresses are nice but sometimes they are so busy that they don't pay much attention to you. Food: Not only their cow head soup but their other dishes are all very good, especially their spicy beef salad. This is one of few places that has been endorsed by the pickiest Korean food connoisseur I know, my dad. Consistent, tasty, affordable, and authentic. I will be back many times, I'm sure! tip: No kbbq and not good for big groups. Parking is available in the lot. read more

Gonjiam - So muhri gookbap. Really hearty and comfort food good - Korean Near Me - Los Angeles, California

Worst restaurant ever. Table is so dirty and the soup is too bad. Taste was like chemical soup. The manager is not so kind as well. read more

This place was so authentic that they barely spoke English, the waitress was nice and tried hard to explain and understand. We ordered mixed sausage army pot, water boiled dumplings, and a beef plate. Both the army pot and beef were pretty good and tasty, but the dumplings needed more flavor (half of them were broken so they were tasteless). Glad that I came here since I've had this place bookmarked on my Yelp for awhile. Definitely come early, it gets packed after 7PM. read more

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This hole in the wall has no signs in English, only Korean. It is next to a spa and convenience store. The ox tail soup is my favorite. Season it with salt to your taste. Sometimes it does not need extra salt. My next favorite is the beef salad. and them the ox head soup. Did not care for the military soup. Authentic Korean food with reasonable prices. read more

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This spot is an authentic hole in the wall that I would've never found out about if I had not found it on Yelp. I'm surprised that as a LA native, I had never even heard about this place. It seems like their main specialty is the different casserole/stew dishes and as I LOVE, LOVE gobchang (small intestine), i had to get the gobchang jungol (small intestine stew). Their price is also pretty amazing as the stew was only $31.99 and portions were plenty for 2 of us. I do wish there were more veggies/ingredients in the stew but for the price, I won't complain. Loved the udon noodles in there and they gave plenty of portion in terms of the main star of the dish which are the small intestines. The soup was pretty flavorful as well. Definitely coming back! Also, looks like their beef soup is legit since the name of the restaurant includes that dish. read more

I would have never found this place until my Korean friend took me here. The sign outside is not very obvious so you can't tell at first sight that this is even a restaurant. It's a blue and white sign next to the spa. Parking can be tough as the lot is small and shared with other business and the liquor store. This place is a very small hole in the wall type of establishment. Inside the tables are lined up that seating can be kind of tight. Their budae jjigae can be easily shared between 2 people. It's served in a large pot served over a portable butane gas stove. They serve 4 different kinds of banchan here with you per meal. They also serve brown rice as well. I usually order medium or spicy when I go to most Korean soup places. Their soup here is pretty spicy that when we asked for a little less spicy that it was just right for me. It had a spicy kick that I had to drink my water but not too spicy that it essentially ruined the palette on my tongue. Much like comfort food, the soup was filling with its fill of ramen, sausages, hot dogs, rice cakes, and veggies. I would definitely come back here to try the other items on the menu. The minor downside was that service may get spotty that they don't really check up on you. read more

For the last meal before my dad went back to korea, We had the Gonzium Jeongol( hot vegetable stew) and the mixed soo-yuk for dinner. He wanted to eat at this place, that's why. The mixed soo-yuk was very delicious. I liked it. the soo- yuk inside was very chewy and the vegetables were spicy and sweet at the same time. The Gonzium Jeongol was delicious too. The stew was very savory and warm. The only downside was the price. It was so expensive. I treated my parents out, but it came out so expensive. Anyway, other than the price, i enjoyed the meal and had a great time here. read more

Gonjiam - mixed soo yuk - Korean Near Me - Los Angeles, California

They have a new owner and I do not think I will be coming here anymore. Our bill was over charged over $100. They said they accidently charged for the table next to ours. This was the second time our bill was over charged after the new owners. read more

Gonjiam - Korean Near Me - Los Angeles, California

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I pretty much know nothing about Korean food except that I can pay $18 for AYCE KBBQ and I can get stinky soup at that one place. But when I saw some pics of budae jjigae, I knew I had to try it. http://www.yelp.com/biz_photos/gonjiam-los-angeles?select=Mbdzg4XDvyJOB_i-vE3kwA#Wgl7Tg7mabCdujhNF-dGuw It's basically the Korean version of chop suey; take all your leftovers and make something with it. Here it was 10c ramen noodles, veggies, hot dogs, and spam, all in a rich and mild broth. There was enough soup for a couple average people to get stuffed on just the soup or pleanty for four to share with some pork on the side. I've had bossam before at another place, but they served with slightly fishy oysters, which turned me off to all of it. Here the pork came with just veggies to make little carb-free pork sandwiches that were quite nice. http://www.yelp.com/biz_photos/gonjiam-los-angeles?select=Mbdzg4XDvyJOB_i-vE3kwA#eXbxL_zyR2tZzcuhc5YYeQ Overall it was a fun meal and the Korean ladies running the place were very nice. They kept asking if I liked it and if I've had Korean food before. I guess the white plague hasn't overrun this spot yet. I'd go back. Bonus - There a "massage" parlor next door that looks very "legit," if you're into that kind of thing. read more

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MY FAVORITE PLACE in the world for BUDAEJJIGAE... There are only two reasons people go to this place...BUDAEJJIGAE and BOSSAM. For those non-koreans, let me explain what the two are. :) Budaejjigae is a korean dish that was made during the Korean war, when the US occupied korea. It is basically a fusion stew of western ham, baked beans, bacon, etc. with kimchi, ramen, the works. :) It's amazingly tasty when it is made right...and gonjiam totally hits the spot. Their broth is amazingly rich, and that is all that is needed to make this stew delicious. If you like kimchee jjigae, bcd tofu, etc, I totally urge you guys to try the budaejjeegae here. :) It's that good. The second dish I order is the bossam. Bossam is boiled pork slices served with boiled chinese cabbage and radish kimchee. If you like going to those korean bbq restaurants where you wrap the meat with cabbage or dduk, you might enjoy this as well. It's fun to make, and it's delicious! Go right now! :) If you order these two dishes, it's more than enough for two people...actually may be enough for three. Look at the picture I posted above to get an idea. :) Price is reasonable, side dishes are good, and the people there are very kind. The place is small, but I've never had to wait more than a few mintues to get a seat. MM..I want to go back tehre again. :) **Check Picture Uploaded for Reference** read more

Gonjiam - Top: bossam Bottom: budaejjigae - Korean Near Me - Los Angeles, California

The best authentic gobchang jungol (spicy intestine casserole)! We also had their boiled beef and it's so tender which literally melts in your mouth. It's reasonably priced and you know it's authentic when you see a lot of Koreans eating there. Service isn't that great, but what did you expect? It's Koreatown! read more

We just finished having dinner here. I not sure how this place got so many raving reviews. Food: We ordered jaeyook bosam (pork belly) and gop Chang jun gol. We were completely surprised amount of meat we got on the plate. Maybe 10 pieces at the most and the plate was $21.00. It was DEFINITELY not your money worth. The jun gol was lacking flavor big time and just spicy and we love spicy food. Service: We had no utensil, had to ask for banchan, water, and had to ask to the check twice when the owner ignored our request and decided to play with the baby next to us. We paid our $50 bill and no thank you. We're sticking with Gobawoo next time. Even if the wait is long just plan going earlier before or after the lunch/dinner rush. I seriously think this was one of the worst meal ever at a korean restaurant. I usually go to korean restaurant by word of mouth. This restaurant and dining experience is a EPIC FAIL!!! read more

Gonjiam - Jae yook bosam. Less than 10 pieces of meat for $20.99. Not worth it. - Korean Near Me - Los Angeles, California

This is the worst restaurant ever. The gopchang jungol is terrible. See my picture. It is tastes like water plus gochujang. Never will go here again. I had a to-go and all the liquid got out. Tastes the worst. NEVER COME HERE. read more

Gonjiam - DISGUSTING gopchang jun-gol. Very mad - Korean Near Me - Los Angeles, California

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Soooo yummy. Their bossam pork #11 is amazing and their soup #18 is just as delicious. I really enjoy the soup broth that they use for #18 soup. This is such a hole in the wall and I'm so glad my friend recommended me. The food is really authentic and a little intimidating if you're non Korean, but the servers are really kind! It's in a little plaza and it doesn't have English words but There! The sign is blue with white Korean words. I'm so excited to go back! read more

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