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    Matko

    4.1 (87 reviews)
    ModerateKorean, Fast Food
    Closed 10:00 am - 1:30 pm
    Updated a few days ago

    Order Matko Takeout or Delivery

    Matko Photos

    Business Info

    MATKO ATMOSPHERE

    What's the vibe?
    Casual
    Loud
    Good for kids
    Good for groups

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    Recommended Reviews - Matko

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    Bulgogi rice bowl with cucumber, carrot, radish, japchae, and corn
    Kristy L.

    Great spot for a quick work meal. It's fast casual Korean food where you make your own bowl. You start with a base (rice, greens or both), then select protein and toppings. They also have preset combinations that you can choose from. The food is pretty simple and I like the the variety of food of you get for the price. For $12, I got the bulgogi rice bowl which came with a sizable serving of beef, purple rice, corn, kimchi, pickled cucumber, radish and japchae. They give you a decent serving of each ingredient. If you order in ritual avoid the lunch rush. They leave the orders for pickup on the side. This spot is located in the one market building and has a bunch of open seating and other fast casual restaurants in the same area. A good spot to grab lunch with coworkers if you want variety.

    Flaming Chicken
    Piyush G.

    Average food, nothing that I would be really excited about. Being in my building it could be a goto spot, however I wasn't impressed as much for it to be in my rotation.

    Montage of images from Matko
    Ed U.

    I must be in some Korean Chipotle mood because this is actually the second spot I've been to based on the same concept. The other one was the even newer Mad Seoul over in the Gourmet Ghetto in Berkeley which provided a bit more variety, a tad more freshness, and definitely a more personable owner. This is a food court operation, and expectations should be lowered as such. However, it's definitely one of the better options at One Market if you find yourself milling about here. The concept is well suited for worker bees who follow rote procedures in their jobs anyway. You pick a base and a protein first, and mine was easy, the Soy Sauce Chicken over the Mixed Greens. Then a sauce on the side, and I threw caution to the wind and went for the Mayo which had a welcome dose of sriracha mixed into it. After that, you get four banchan items. Mine were corn, seaweed, kimchi and cucumber. The result was a hefty bowl for $10.99 with a few unexpected extras like a small helping of rice noodles, cherry tomatoes and green onion (photo: http://bit.ly/2LhGcsM). It was genuinely good stuff for a relatively fast lunch in a pretty sterile food court. FOOD - 4 stars...big lunchtime bowl with lots of chicken...and good AMBIANCE - 3 stars...don't even think of a booth, food court gets intensely crowded during the lunch rush SERVICE - 3.5 stars...a lot of fast decisions, get prepared TOTAL - 4 stars...Korean mix bowls are the new black

    Chicken with purple rice
    Angela L.

    This is an updated review after they changed menu for 2019. I used to come here for lunch pretty often and I would usually get the bento box with a protein choice and some banchan. This is the first time I tried their new menu. Now they have an original option and a mini option for $1 difference. I got the miniko because I don't eat huge portions and thought that a $9 bowl would feed me. Can't believe I spent almost $10 on this... only a few pieces of chicken, glass noodle that are very hard to chew, some salad and no banchan!! I waited for a super long time as well. My colleague lined up for a neighboring store and I waited 15 minutes longer after she got her meal. Japchae noodle 0/5 This is not japchae noodles at all... the glass noodle was super hard to chew... ended up not able to eat it. Flaming chicken 2/5 The chicken is okay but comparing my attached photos you can clearly see that the portion of meet decreased by 50%... No banchan at all 0/5

    Jarred D.

    Matko is a fantastic spot if you want to sample Korean food! How it works: 1: Pick an entree (or two) from their selection of Seoul Pork, Beef Bulgogi, Spicy Pork, Soy Sauce Chicken, Kimchi Tofu, etc. 2: Pick a base: Purple Rice or Japchae Noodle. 3: Pick a sauce: Red, Mayo, or Teriyaki. 4: Pick 4 Banchan/sides: Radish, Kimchi, Cucumber, Corn, Fishcake, Seaweed, etc. The set above is their OriginalKo. If you want to exclude the Banchan and just have the entree and base, you can get the MiniKo. This is what I did and was pretty satisfied with how flavorful and filling it was. My MiniKo was comprised of the Purple Rice base and the Beef Bulgogi and Spicy Pork as my entrees. The Beef Bulgogi was tender and had great flavor. The Spicy Pork was not too spicy and was enjoyable to eat; however, it had too much of the fat. Portions for the entree are large in comparison to the base. I wish they added more of the base for a better balanced dish. Overall, their meat and side options are pretty wide for a small store. The possibilities for mixing and matching are plenty, so you can try a lot here! Service is pretty quick too, so it's prefect for a quick bite.

    Purple rice, soba noodles, spicy squid, spicy pork, and banchan
    Tina N.

    I found this place on Yelp while looking at all my lunch options in the area. I was excited to try this but I thought the food was just ok. It is similar to Chipotle but Korean food. You start off with the base (salad, rice, noodles), and then the banchan (kimchi, corn, cucumber, bean, radish), then the protein/entree (chicken, pork, beef, squid, tofu, mushroom). Price was around $11 to 14 depending on the number of entrees. I got the purple rice, soba noodles, spicy squid, spicy pork, and banchan to try. I thought it was just ok! A lot of the reviews said the spicy pork is the best but I didn't think so. It was not spicy and didn't have much flavor. The squid also was not spicy and tasted rubbery. I didn't like the soba noodles at all (tasted weird). The purple rice and the banchan were just ok. Overall, the food was average but I don't mind coming back to try other items there.

    Soy Marinated Chicken over Purple Rice - loved it!
    Cindy L.

    I went in with zero expectations, thinking it would be Panda-Express-level Korean fast food, but came out pleasantly surprised. It may not be 100% authentic, but heck... it's way better than all the other "Korean" spots I've tried around here, and it's clean & healthy! When I approached the counter, the extremely welcoming employees immediately offered me samples of all the main entrees. I ended up sampling the spicy pork, chicken, and bulgogi. The chicken was very tender (4/5) and the bulgogi was aite (3/5), but the *flavorful* spicy pork blew it out of the park for me (5/5) - it. was. delicious. Despite loving the spicy pork, the health-conscious-voice in me told me to go with chicken on a Wednesday afternoon. I ordered a purple rice bowl with chicken and most of the banchan (kimchi, cucumber, corn, and pickled radish). The banchan was placed on top of a small bed of mixed greens with a soy vinaigrette dressing. Everything in the bowl was delicious, but what surprisingly hit it home for me was the purple rice. The rice was perfectly warm, soft, and fluffy, and made the whole meal come together. I could not be more satisfied. I've been eating mostly salads for lunch for as long as I can remember, but Matko is so clean and delish that I'm going to start changing up my regiment to include it in my lunches! P.S. Come before 11:30am to avoid the crowd, and take your sweet time to sample the various entrees (: P.P.S. Despite tasting as good as (or even better than) white rice, did you know that purple rice is a whole grain and full of fiber? From a nutritional standpoint, it is very similar to brown rice!

    Soba Noodle w/ Soy Chicken. Spicy Pork and Beef Bolgogi
    Adam B.

    I was hoping for something the caliber of BibimBar, but got worse than Sorabol. I'm usually a fan of the Chipotle-ization of any cuisine, since I love the fast casual concept, but not this time. The meats, all of them, were very disappointing. Soba Noodle: Was expecting to see something like japchae as a noodle option, but soba was fine. Had a nice chewy hefty texture. I appreciated that the noodles didn't stick together. Not an overpowering taste, so to let the other mix-ins take the spotlight. Soy Chicken: Large chunks of what tasted like boiled chicken. It could have been roasted, maybe. Very bland regardless. Spicy Pork: The most tolerable of the meats. Thin slices of soft pork belly in a chili (but not spicy at all) sauce. Could have been better if they upped the spice level and/or crisped the pork belly a bit. Beef Bulgogi: Bulgogi literally translates to "fire meat". So I kinda expected some grill marks or seared bits. None of that, just sogginess and disappointment. Like when you try to stir fry too much meat at once so everything ends up cooked yet wet. Hotteok: Ok, this was decent. Sweet and peanutty filling stuffed inside a fried pancake.

    Mealpal lunch -- Seoul pork bowl
    Bonnie Z.

    I tried the SPICY PORK BOWL from Matko through MEALPAL today. Portion was large and filling -- see water bottle for scale. The bowl came with pork, purple rice, radish kimchi, shredded pickled daikon radish, and steamed corn. I disagree with other reviewers that the pork was fatty and oily -- it was very tender and flavorful! Meat was topped with sesame seeds and green onions. The pork itself actually wasn't too spicy. Radish kimchi gave the dish a spicy kick instead. The daikon was a bit sweet and the corn had good crunch. Loved the three different veggie banchan sides! The purple rice was filling and seems healthier than white rice (it was just a tiny bit overcooked). Flavors were on par with Spice Kit but this place had a bigger portion and more veggies. I only wish they didn't put hot foods in plastic containers because they're sitting in a big heated insulated box by the register for you to grab after scanning your QR code. This may be one of my new favorite Mealpal spots! I noticed this was a new offering in my Mealpal app after the new year. However, searching through Yelp reviews showed that Matko was on it back in 2018. As you can see in my attached pics, the portions seem to be a lot bigger in 2020 compared to 2018! Just putting in my two cents if you weren't sure about trying this place out via Mealpal or just in general.

    Lani S.

    I've eaten here twice. I was looking for Korean food near work and this place popped up on Yelp (thanks, guys!). They don't have things like japchae, but I get the concept. It has the basics and an overall healthier vibe. It might seem like a turn off, but I liked what I had both times. The first time I came here, there was no one in line (I came after the lunch peak). Staff was super friendly, explained the dishes, and offered to let me try anything. I was trying to avoid eating meat that day. I got the mushroom veggie entree with purple rice and all the fixings, which was fine. I decided the next time I'd get something with meat to get my money's worth. I did... the second time I got the soy chicken. Flavor was good. The plate/dish was filling, and I didn't feel all greasy. There are a few signature dishes/bowls (?), but it looks like most people do the Step 1-3 option (choosing a base, veggies, and entree). It is $10.95 for one entree, $12.45 for two, $13.95 for three, and $1.50 for any additional. I didn't love it, but I liked it, and I will probably come back at some point.

    Glass noodle with radish, kimchi, corn, seaweed, and mushroom.
    Emily M.

    I just tried this spot! Perfect for my glass noodle craving!!! I usually go to Bibimbar for glass noodle bowls but I wanted to try something new and I am very glad I did. I prefer not to eat meat for lunch, so I taste-tested the spicy tofu (not too spicy) and the mixed mushrooms (super saucy). Nice of them to let me try a few options. I opted for: mushrooms, seaweed salad, corn, kimchi, and pickled radishes with the glass noodles. LOVED the glass noodles. I cannot get over their texture, their springy-ness. I love that they're translucent, lol. Employees very nice. The interior vibe is really nice, feels very new and cafeteria-like, which looked nice. Good to get away from the hustle and bustle. I ended up taking my dish back to work and sat in front of my computer slurping my noodles. I ended up not combining anything, just eating it all separate, which I actually loved. That way I could keep my noodle experience PURE.

    Spicy pork - super fatty and oily
    Niina G.

    2.5 stars. I went with spicy pork over purple rice. The pork is flavored good but way too fatty and oily that the bottom of my plate was drenched in the sea of oil. I also had to threw away 1/3 of the meat because it was all chunks of fat! It comes with some garnish like pickled cucumbers and radish when you select Set A. I guess this is an add-on but the counter lady sells it to you like it's part of the meal. Overall it definitely falls short for a $12 lunch meal.

    Beef Bulgogi with Greens and red sauce. Was way too salty for my liking but will be back
    Maila P.

    Two stars because food is still decent. I used to always order from here and feel full. Ordered today and finished hungry Decreased serving size by half!!!!!!!! Same price, less food. Why the change????

    Portions are pretty big

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    Ask the Community - Matko

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