Annie L.

Matko serves Korean lunch bowls which are quite delicious! First you would choose your protein, we opted for the beef bulgogi and the spicy chicken. Second, you would choose your base. I chose half rice and half japchae and my hubby got all rice. Third, you choose any add ons. I ordered the kimchi with the gochujang (medium spicy sauce). I would say the meats are good quality especially the bulgogi was mild and when dipped in the sauce gave so much flavor! The purple rice was soft, warm, loved the side of corn, radish and cucumbers. Not fatty pieces on the meat. Nothing was soggy or oily. Overall, a solid place to have lunch and I would be back!

shannon m.

I had no intentions of eating out for lunch today but I ended up walking to the Market - looking around and ventured over to Matko to check out their menu. First, the two ladies working there were so friendly and made me feel welcomed; they even offered to give me some samples to try. I've had their beef hangover soup which is tasty but the soft tofu soup grabbed my attention. Let me tell you the soft tofu soup was absolutely delicious. The soup's vibrant red color would make you think it's super spicy, but it's not. I love tofu and kimchi so having it in the soup together was a match made in heaven. One of the ladies suggested eating the soup with rice and so I got a side order of purple rice, and she was right, it was absolutely delicious. I don't believe I've eaten purple rice before but I will surely order it every time I see it now. The rice was so flavorful- eating it by itself was good but preparing it with the soup really kicked it up a notch.

Christina C.

One of the few eateries left within The Market and it's pretty good. I've been back several times during lunch for the soft tofu kimchi bowl and change up the base and sides. The kimchi sauce is mild but sometimes, mild is what the day, and my tummy, calls for. I'll have to come back and try the meat bowls. Ordering is self-service, then the friendly staff assemble your order, and call your name when it's ready. Plenty of tables and chairs within The Market to sit down and enjoy your meal.

Milind L.

A great spot for quick Korean food. Feels like many Korean food options are far from Mid Market/Civic Center so I'm glad there's one around! The beef bulgogi bowl was delicious. The meat was cooked well and thin strips. However, it wasn't that flavorful by itself. But if you get the gochujang sauce, it adds a large dimension of sweet, savory, and spicy flavor. Definitely will be getting again when I need more Korean food fix. Comes with cucumber, corn, and pickled radish for free sides. Quick service for lunch on a Friday and there's lots of seating in the Market area.

Jem T.

A great vendor inside of The Market and a very convenient bowl lunch near my job. The bulgogi with purple rice and banchan was not only delicious, but was served a generous portion. The staff only greets you, but nothing more beyond that. It was semi-busy during the lunch hour, which was expected. Since this is located within the market there is a bustling ambiance, but that does not interfere with the quality or portion of the food. The price is average for the City, depending on your appetite, there can be leftovers for snack

Anna Z.

What a gem! This place is located inside Whole Foods - esque market called The Market. It's on your left in the back when you walk in. There's ample seating inside and outside of the food court - quite spacious. I went here for a late lunch, not expecting much. Either I was really hungry, or this place is amazing! base: I chose purple rice and japchae. Banchan: pickled radish, kimchi, fish cake and cucumber. Toppings: sesame seeds, scallions and crisps onions (all!!) Special sauce: magic aioli I'm writing this down so I can remember to get this same order again - this does not taste like food court food!! The portion is BIG. Just drooling looking at my picture again. I really recommend if you're in the area!

Adam B.

Way better than the Matko I tried at 1 Market Street, right around it's first opening. Seems like they've had some time to improve their meat cooking techniques and textures. If you ask for the family size portions, you can get containers of just meat for only a little more than the mixed bowl. Totally worth it! Beef Bulgogi: Pretty solid for a grab-and-go counter. Full of marinated flavor. Thinly sliced with good bits of fat strands to enhance the flavor of the meat. Doesn't have the nice char you'd get from doing KBBQ at your own table, but still flavorful enough. Spicy Pork Belly: Wow, really really rich. Tasted like there was a ton of gochujang in this, in addition to other spices, so very intense. A little bit of a spicy tang by lunch counter standards, but not anything like the spicy level when you ask for spicy at a Korean restaurant. The slices of meat were very thin, like bacon slabs, not like thick Chinese or Filipino pork belly chunks. Japchae: A more exciting carb than rice. Slimy noodles with a little bit of sauce flavoring. Goes great with the intensely seasoned meats though.

Ed U.

** The following review reflects my takeout experience DURING the shelter-in-place order currently in effect. ** Oh yeah, I've been to the other Matko at One Market Plaza, and actually I didn't even notice they had an operation in The Market on Market. It's part of that crowded bar island next to the Slice House, so if your nose veers toward pizza ovens versus Dutch ovens, you may not notice them either. There's quite the collection of green and orange Creuset pots on the counter each of them containing a warmed component of a customized build-a-bowl creation. Just call it a Korean-style Chipotle. The menu of selections was pretty extensive and requires studying if you've never tried it before. For the reasonable price of $11.95, you get a base, a protein, four banchan accompaniments, and up to three toppings. Yep, that's one hearty bowl. Since I've been getting predictable choosing mixed greens over purple rice, I went for Japchae Noodles instead as my base because the sweet potato chewiness sounded appealing to me. For my base, I went for the mild Savory Chicken since it was dark meat made even more moist by soy sauce. The banchan choices were easy for me: pickled radish, seasoned cucumber, sweet corn, and fresh kimchi. And of course, I ordered all three toppings: sesame seeds, chopped scallions, and crispy onion. When I brought the creation home, it was quite a tasty combination of flavors and textures from crunchy fresh to marinated supple (photo: https://bit.ly/2VK09LE). I kicked it up a notch with wasabi sauce because that's what shelter-in-place is all about - setting my tongue aflame in the privacy of my own home. FOOD - 4 stars...really hearty bowl of Korean-style goodness AMBIANCE - 3 stars...my experience was takeout, otherwise rather crowded in here SERVICE - 4.5 stars...quietly efficient, meticulous in presentation, and generous in portion TOTAL - 4 stars...who needs Chipotle? RELATED - In the mood for Korean? Here's a collection of places I've tried and reviewed: https://bit.ly/2vxIt8t

Cherylynn N.

3/3/20 UPDATE: I've returned three more times since their soft opening and I'm really disappointed that the portions have decreased with each subsequent visit. Today, my Dosirak with 1/2 rice, 1/2 salad had a one fistful of greens and about 2-3 ounces of purple rice. And, the protein and banchan was half the portion than my first visit. I don't know if they're trying to ration since their food is cooked at a commissary kitchen or if it's a training issue but I hope they work on being more consistent because I'm still hungry after eating my Dosirak today. =X ******************************************************************************* 4.5 STARS They say, "To Save Money, Never Shop When You're Hungry". Truth. Especially at The Market in the Twitter Building. It's double paycheck compared to Whole Foods (i.e. $11 for 8 oz of pre-packed asparagus?!) but hey, sometimes convenience wins when you need a healthy snack. I was shopping for bananas at The Market this morning when I saw "Secret Open" Sign for Matko at the cheese counter across from Slice House. I saw Spicy Pork Belly on the menu... *STOMACH GROWLS* So, I returned for lunch. No wonder I'm broque. Matko is a fast-casual eatery serving BYO Dosirak Korean lunch box (similar to HoM Korean Kitchen). This is Matko's second SF location. For your Dosirak, choose the following: https://bit.ly/2txHSq8 (1) Base: Purple Rice (Japgokbap), Sweet Potato Noodles (Japchae) or Mixed Greens; (2) Protein/Entrée: Bulgogi (+$1), Spicy Pork Belly, Seoul Pork, Savory Chicken, Flaming Chicken, Tofu Kimchi, or Mushrooms; (3) Banchan (choose 4): Pickled Radish, Kimchi, Cucumber, Sweet Corn, Fish Cake, Seaweed, etc; and (4) Toppings: Sesame Seeds, Scallions, and Crispy Onions. **Sauce (+$1): Gochujang (spicy), Pineapple Teriyaki, Gochujang Aioli, Ssamjang (fermented soybean paste). PRICE: 1-item entrée - $10.95 or 2-item entrée - $12.95. For the soft opening this week, it's 15% off so I ordered the 2 Item Entrée ($12.95) w/ Spicy Pork + Bulgogi (+$1), 1/2 purple rice, 1/2 salad, pickled radish, kimchi, cucumber, fish cake, sesame seeds, scallions, and crispy onions: https://bit.ly/3bbS4FL. For fast-casual Korean fare, the Dosirak was tasty, healthy, and filling. The purple rice was nutty and the mixed greens were fresh. Of the two proteins, I liked the pork belly a lot more because it was more flavorful with a good kick (the bulgogi tastes boiled but it's not). The banchans were surprisingly solid especially the kimchi (good pickled flavor and heat) and fish cakes. The pickled radish needs more acid. With the soft opening discount, it was a great value for the amount of food I received. I have enough food for two small meals. Service was very friendly. They're new and working out their kinks but their goal is to build your meal in less than 60 seconds. Open seating in The Market, café area, and outdoor patio area. Overall, I enjoyed my Dosirak. If you're in a time crunch and can't travel far for Korean food on your break, Matko is a good option. It's just one of the many new food vendors that's starting to pop up inside The Market which is great for those of us who work in the area!

Tara A.

Best new place in the Market!! I was there for their secret soft opening (15% off, yay!) and everything was delicious and super affordable. I ordered a 2 protein bowl with savory chicken and spicy pork belly. In hindsight I wish I tried the beef, but there's always next time! For my base, I ordered half purple rice and half japchae. I loved both of them and will probably get the same next time. For the banchan, you can't go wrong with any of them! I got the kimchi, seaweed salad, fishcake (so glad they have this) and sweet corn. The bowl was so big that I was able to save half for the next day's lunch! Super worth it and under $15. I can't wait to come back!

Chloe C.

food - alot better than I expected. the beef bulgogi was the perfect sweetness and not too overwhelming. the beef was soft and easily breaks apart and thin (I thogujt it was be thick and chewy and dry). the kimchi tofu is soft tofu (my fave, I hate hard tofu) w kimchi like juices and sauce and it was super good flavor. the kimchi overall was good and not super spicy but still had flavor. everything went well w the purple rice and spinach price - it was like $16 ish? idk I ordered it for lunch at work

Benny W.

I ordered the Beef Bulgogi. The beef was tender and trimmed, which I really appreciated. The other items that came with it were fresh and delicious.

Anvita S.

Huge portion size and flavorful bowls packed with noodles, veggies and meat. My favorite is the glass noodles with pork belly, kimchi and crispy onions/garlic on top!