This might sound rather odd, but despite how we fully intended to come here, we actually didn't intend to come here either. After unexpectedly discovering there was a Korean restaurant in this complex a little over a year ago, I made a mental note to come back to check it out. Now, it's my fault for taking so long, but I didn't realize until we looked at the menu that the one I first saw (Spicy Factory) had been replaced by the one we were sitting in (K-Noodle). Not that big of a deal, as I'm always down to try any and every Korean restaurant, but it also didn't hurt that the menu still included the Budae Jjigae and Korean fried chicken wings we had originally come here to get!
Since the reviews on here from over a year ago are actually for Spicy Factory (their Yelp page was renamed to K-Noodle), the overall rating may or may not be accurate, but it's possible the food/owners are the same despite the change in concept. Comparing the two, Spicy Factory's menu was more like a Korean pub with its multitude of sides/snacks, but K-Noodle still offers several similar dishes, including the aforementioned Budae Jjigae, Fried Chicken Wings, Fried Seaweed Rolls, Ddukbokki, and Korean BBQ lunch specials. However, being more noodle centric, the majority of what they have is made up of a variety of noodle soups, stir fried noodles, soups/stews, and rice dishes.
-- BANCHAN - Kimchi, Radish Kimchi, Beansprouts
While the beansprouts were great, the other two were not. I don't know if they make their own or source it externally, but both the kimchi and the radish were pale and super bland.
-- (#19) FRIED CHICKEN WINGS...$19.95
I was really excited for this, but it was just okay. The wings themselves were big and moist while the sauce/glaze was flavorful and not overly sweet. However, the batter was weird - it was decently thick, but it almost felt like it was baked in an oven rather than fried (not super hot nor crispy).
-- (#29) KOREAN ARMY STEW...$45.95
Sadly, this was kind of underwhelming. Although there was a fair amount of goodies (especially the spam, sausage, and veggies), the broth felt watery and lacked seasoning (gochujang, salt, better kimchi, etc.). That said, I really liked the bowl of fresh noodles they give you to add in (really nice bite to them).
-- (#18) FRIED SEAWEED ROLLS...$10.95
Ehh...not bad, but nothing special either. Each piece was decently plump and were actually pretty crispy, unlike with the wings. That being said, the taste of these didn't seem all that much better than the frozen ones you can find at Korean markets.
-- (#11) PREMIUM OX BONE SOUP WITH RICE (Seolleongtang)...$19.95
I meant to get this with noodles instead of the rice, but no matter - this was still solid. Even though the brisket was cut into chunks instead of slices, the beef was tender and the soup had a really nice, peppery flavor to it.
While the food felt rather uneven overall, service here wasn't too shabby. In particular, the male worker (owner?) that helped us the first time I was here was really friendly and checked on us often. What's more, both of our orders didn't take long to come out. Which, to be honestly, only makes it that much more disappointing that the food was so mixed. Given their name and how good the noodles were, it's entirely possible that I goofed and failed to get the best things that K-Noodle has to offer. If that's the case, I'll be sure to write an update after the next time I come here, but it's hard to give more than three stars for now. read more