Best bibimbap in chapel hill! Try the Stone Hot to be blessed with the crispy rice on the bottom- YUM! This place has had me coming back for the beef bibimbap since it opened! It made to perfection with a fresh egg served on top. Their food is very obviously made with made fresh ingredients. The portion for the bibimbap is very big, enough to take home for later! The environment is very spacious, welcoming, and great for a group gathering! Because of the big location, I have never had to wait for a table which is great for a busy weekend in chapel hill. The staff are very attentive and helpful. One reason this place doesn't get five stars from me is they got my order wrong and didn't really apologize about it. Thankfully, I mooched from my friend's food and waited for my right order. Also, the Mochi are a little overpriced but still delicious. TLDR: best bibimbap. generously priced for the amount of food. Would come again! read more

MinGa - Chicken Stone hot Bibimbap - Korean Near Me - Chapel Hill, North Carolina

MinGa is good - nice ambiance inside, friendly waiters, lots of seating, and family-owned vibes. I spent some time in South Korea, so I have fairly high standards when it comes to Korean food, and MinGa is a solid choice for a good korean meal. The banchan were good and had a good variety of flavors. One of my dining companions mentioned that her favorite side dish had been switched out of rotation at the moment - which is a good sign that the owners change up the banchan according to what's in season. I got the bimbimbap with spicy pork. I wished that they put more vegetables. I also felt that their vegetable choices were a little too American and under-seasoned - red cabbage and kale. I prefer zucchini, more bean sprouts, and spinach. Overall, it was still good. One of my dining companions ordered a seafood pancake to go. Her review: "It's yummy. Get it if you like seafood." The Hotteok were awesome - as usual. It just doesn't get better than a flaky pancake filled with gooey cinnamon syrup, especially with a side of ice cream. MinGa is a little pricey for a student budget. Entrees can run from 12.95 to 24.95+. This is a good place to go with your parents when they come visit. read more

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Charged me two times and refused to admit their fault or refund. Very bad experience!

The atmosphere is just fine and the staff is friendly, but the food is overall just bland and it is overpriced for the amount of food you get. Mostly fillers like rice. My friend ordered kimchi fried rice and added beef for $3 but there was probably about 1 ounce of meat for that extra charge. I ordered bibimbap with pork and I think I only had about 1 ounce of meat as well. We also had the seafood pancake appetizer which appeared to be huge but it was mostly pancake with barely any seafood and almost no flavor at all. We added soy sauce and salt to most items and they still lacked flavor. I left with an unsatisfied stomach and palate. Would not go back. read more

The food was excellent with a variety of dishes available . Very good service as well. Our waitress was so pleasant and knowledgeable of the menu so as to help make good food choices. Prices are very reasonable. I would highly recommend anyone. Try this location! read more

The place to go in Chapel Hill for authentic Korean cuisine. They have a large menu to choose from and the staff was super friendly and attentive. They do follow COVID precautions which is always a plus. Highly recommend checking out MinGa if you're in the area. read more

Excellent Korean food and friendly service! Very clean restaurant and tasteful atmosphere. The Japanese dishes are also very good.

The food was the most authentic option in the area and did not disappoint. We had beef bulgogi, veggie dumplings, gimbap (Korean roll) and veggie pancake between 3 of us and loved it all! Plus there were leftovers. The staff was very friendly and provided good service for the takeout order. The ambiance was not noticed since it was takeout. Definitely ordering again! read more

The one with squid and pork is so nice! Rarely had something as Korean as this one. The jeongol is also great. The only shortcoming is that their taste are too similar (probably the same seasoning read more

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I don't know why I keep getting a request to review this place. I wasted my time on 3 occasions trying to spend money there. And now that I've read alot if reviews I know I will never return . Rude women. Sort of take it or leave it attitude. Signs says open 30 + minutes more. "You take to go " a sign said be nice to the employees that bothered to show up. Reviews indicate service is poor and extremely slow. Just what I need after a tough day of being nice to mean people. The employees have no idea how to be nice and definitely not welcoming. So I'm permanently done with this establishment. read more

Mediocre food, overpriced, rude servers. That about sums it up. I've had much better when it comes to the staples, like the banchan, soondubu and dolsot bibimbap. The flavor just wasn't there. Plus, their gochujang sucks. What really makes me angry, though, is that the servers are rude to you in Korean. I've been there with Korean and non-Korean friends. With my non-Korean friends, we kept noticing that the servers were abrupt and snappish with whatever we asked for - a few minutes to look at the menu, barley tea (which they offer if you ask), etc. They were not like that to other people who spoke Korean. Their animosity was confirmed, though, when I went with a Korean friend, and she told me the awful things that the servers said about me when I asked for a few more moments to decide. This just really ticks me off. I'd rather go further to Seoul Garden to get better food and service. read more

Amazinf restaurant with awesome food, great environment and the staff is very friendly and helpful. Ramen 10/10

Great place for Korean staples! I was a frequent flyer at MinGas previous location, so when I came back for my college reunion I was thrilled to learn that they were doing well and had moved to a new spot. I was able to get a same day reservation for five at 7pm on a Saturday without any problems. It was very busy when we arrived, but we were seated straight away. The space is tidy, clean, and casual. The staff is very kind and quick to respond to requests, however since it was grand opening weekend they were quite swamped with customers. Food took 45 minutes to arrive, but I do think this is normal for new kitchens getting adjusted to a high demand from customers. I'm sure over time the wait will come down. I ordered the vegetarian bibimbap and was quite happy with it! I felt the tofu was a bit under seasoned, but with the spicy sauce and the side dishes it was not an issue at all. My friends ordered a squid stir fry dish, kalbi, and the seafood pancake appetizer and were very happy with it. Food is reasonably priced and on par with comparable Korean restaurants. Definitely worth checking out! I'm sure this place will be a favorite among college students just as it was for me. read more

MinGa - Tofu bibimbap - Korean Near Me - Chapel Hill, North Carolina

I loved this place! A friend and I split a bunch of food. When we split the bill it was about $50 each, but for the amount of food we got I was completely happy! I suggest going in with a group and sharing everything. Just easier to try more things because the pricing is a little high in my opinion. But hey, treat yoself! I will be going back! read more

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I went twice in 2 days. The first time I had the ramen and the noodles were very cheap feeling. Kind of like the ones out of packaged ramen bowls. The server was also slow and came once every 20-30 mins. Definitely a bad time. The second time I went I tried to bibimbap on a stone bowl. This was very good. The stone bowl was burning hot to create a layer of crunchy, tasty rice at the bottom. The service this time was also a lot better. Overall my first experience was a 3/5 and the second was a 5/5 so I'll average it to a 4/5. read more

MinGa - Korean Near Me - Chapel Hill, North Carolina

MinGa is another one of my only-one-order places. I have a love affair with their ddukbokki. The robust, spicy sauce and soft rice cakes just understand what I need in life. It's nice place to dine in here too, the decor is clean and traditional. Finding my one true order wasn't a stroke of luck, I wanted to like other dishes too! But I tested out a bunch of others and they weren't a match. The cheese ddukbokki is definitely a step down - the cheese mutes the spice and makes the whole dish mush less viscous, like lasagna. The other dishes I've tried (japchae, L.A. galbi, kimchi jjigae, shrimp fried rice, udon) were just not noteworthy to me and definitely not worth the price. Sticking with ddukbokki. read more

MinGa - Side dishes - only comes with entree - Korean Near Me - Chapel Hill, North Carolina

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Takeout order. It appeared neat and tidy inside but I was in a rush so I ordered takeout. It comes with 4 types of bon chon. I enjoyed 2/4 which were the cucumber and radish kimchi. The other bonchon had a strange flavor that I didn't enjoy. The S8 soup with beef bones absolutely hit the spot for me. It's rich and meaty and intensely satisfying. I will try dining in person next. read more

I tried the new location on East Franklin Street recently to see if the food has improved in the 3 years since I last visited, but unfortunately it has not. Mediocre and overpriced sums it up nicely. The best thing we ordered was the seafood pancake, which was pretty decent. The zam bong was the worst we've ever had at any Korean restaurant, weak broth and with the wrong noodles. The new place has a couple of tables outside, which is nice, but the interior lacks the charm of the old restaurant. read more

Food and service are good, but prices and portions are just okay. I really want to be stoked about MinGa. They replaced another korean restaurant that specialized in bi bim bap, that was pretty good. It's clean, the waitstaff are friendly and the menu is pretty big for a korean joint. The food has been good both times I dined. I just have a difficult time with those prices. The stone pot bi bim bap, a classic dish, is good. But at $12.95 for the "lunch" version, which only includes a couple ban chan (small plates of kim chi, etc), and no drink - is a tough sell. The "box" lunches, which is essentially a bento-style variety platter, start at $17 for chicken or pork, and go to $19 for the kalbi, are ridiculous to even consider a lunch deal. I don't know about you, but spending $20+ for lunch is a no-go for me. I will still come once in a while when I need the korean food fix. Too bad they can't work out a better price for those of us who'd like to come more often for lunch. read more

MinGa - Ban Chan small plate - Korean Near Me - Chapel Hill, North Carolina

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I'm not sure if my taste buds just aren't refined enough, but I really enjoyed my experience at MinGa, despite the 3.5 star Yelp rating and other people telling me their opinions of MinGa! I ordered the seafood suntofu, and shared a seafood pancake as an appetizer with my friends. While we were waiting, the typical free appetizers provided at Korean restaurants (kimchi, bean sprouts, those potatoes covered in soy sauce) came out quickly, so I was pleased with that! The seafood pancake was MASSIVE and thick. So, while a little pricy at ~ $16, split among 3 people it was a reasonable food for a reasonable amount of money. The seafood suntofu was great! Piping hot, with a few prawns (still in their shell, which is how you know it's an authentic Asian food place) and shell fish. You can also get an egg at NO EXTRA CHARGE! Considering most places, whether it be a brunch establishment or other Asian restaurant, will charge you at least a dollar for en egg, I greatly appreciated that. However, the hot pots were a little pricy (mine was $15) and the portion of rice that came with the suntofu did seem a little small. Overall, I really enjoyed my experience at MinGa! The staff was very friendly and attentive. In reality my review leans more towards 4.5 stars, not quite 5 because it still was just a little pricier than I was expecting, but all-in-all a great place to hit up for delicious Korean food! Will definitely go again when I'm craving soondubu or japchae :) read more

If you really like Korean food, definitely don't come here expecting authentic food. The worst Korean we've ever been to by far - we've been to Korea before and often go to Korean restaurants in Virginia. Very disappointed. The soondubu was served warm - from where we were sitting, we could see the chef thought we were takeout, so instead cooking the soup on the stove, it was put into takeout containers first. They realized it was supposed to be dine-in, but rather than heating up the stone pots to boil the soup, they just poured the soup into the cold bowls. So the soup was barely warm, and we added an egg, but since the soup wasn't as hot as it should've been, the egg stayed raw. It was also super watery and barely had any tofu (tofu was completely broken up) - the seafood version one we ordered barely had any seafood either. Just a few small pieces of squid and some tiny pieces of clam rather than the usual full ones with the shells. The galbi tang wasn't cooked for long enough so the rib meat was not tender at all. The banchan (side dishes) were not great enough - the kimchi was expired. And the rice didn't seem fresh; was cold and hard. For $15-19 a dish, we expected higher quality and better service. We politely mentioned the soondubu didn't seem to be hot, but they didn't really want to heat up the stone pots for us. read more

Fantastic! Love this place! The kimchi stew is amazing! The people are so nice and always happy to help. I haven't had anything here that wasn't great. read more

I was quite disappointed on the stone pot Bibimbap, which I had tried this dishes at many Korean restaurants. There wasn't enough vegetable on the dish, not mentioning the amount of beef is a pity. Look at the size of sunny side up egg. Where did the owner find such small egg! They did heat up the stone pot enough so that there are quit a bit of burned rice. But the taste was so plain even though I added a lot of Korean hot sauce. The udon was quite plain with small amount of toppings. We ate at the restaurant for lunch on weekend so that the price is not the price for lunch special. I wonder how much less the toppings would be if come for the lunch specials. The egg rolls were over fried and dry. read more

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While definitely nowhere near the Korean food heights of K-Town, Flushing or Downtown LA, Min Ga is usually pretty solid and not a bad choice at all considering that the only other even half decent places around are on the other side of Raleigh (or H Mart), it does sort of fit a niche My wife and I have been probably 12-15 times and, after exploring the menu a bit, usually settle with one of a few things. Appetizers-wise we pretty much solely stick with the gyoza now as they are always hot, crisp and pretty tasty. The Korean BBQ is always good, though the galbi and pork bulgogi is probably better at H Mart. The ramen japchae is good when doused with lots of gochujang and the raw beef bimbimbap is actually great if you can get past the fact that they bring it out almost frozen. There's also a great banchan variety even if a good number of them are inedible. Service has always been slow but polite and the ambiance is ok (though there are some pretty strange collages of dead butterflies in the inset dining room area. read more

MinGa - Dolsot bibimbap -- rice and vegetables and marinated pork over rice in a stone pot - Korean Near Me - Chapel Hill, North Carolina

If you want to wait for more than an hour to get your food served, no refill for your drinks, no refill for the kimchi, then this is your place! read more

MinGa - These are kimchi for 2, and there is no refill. - Korean Near Me - Chapel Hill, North Carolina

As a korean-american I grew up on good Korean food at home and a huge choice of Korean restaurants in northern Virginia. I ate here for lunch and we ordered some favorites including Korean kimchi pancakes, spicy cold buckwheat noodles, jampong, and japchae. We loved everything! It was authentic and definitely met the high standard that I have for Korean food. Staff was super friendly as well. The menu is familiar to those who frequent Korean restaurants, but also seems extra approachable to those who might be less experienced with this cuisine. It's good! Go get some people together, order too much food to share, and enjoy. read more

Solid four stars, no idea why it only has 2.5 on Yelp right now. My boyfriend and I *almost* nixed coming here because of the low Yelp average. But then I realized all the reviews were recent (meaning the resto is probably newer) and people like to bandwagon ("Oh, someone gave it a one star, maybe I should bump my 4 down to a 3.") Armed with such thinking, we ventured forth to Min Ga and was much pleased with our decision. The decor is fantastic with high vaulted ceilings. There is NO GRILL for Korean BBQ (aka: No DIY Korean BBQ). But their jampong/champong, free mini-appetizer sides, kimchi pancakes, and duk mandu guk (beef dumplings in broth) were DELICIOUS! Our waitress was attentive and offered great advice, she knew the items well. The kimchi pancake is a MUST. It was fluffy, stuffed with kimchi, but cooked with a nice crisp on the outside! I've had the misfortune to eat uncooked, doughy, and dense kimchi/seafood pancakes at other restaurants in the triangle, but Min Ga definitely knows what it's doing! We came late on a Thursday night, so we were the last of 3 tables. I didn't experience any of the service issues other reviews have mentioned, maybe because there were only 3 tables? Anyways, I would HIGHLY recommend any Durhamites or Hill people to check out Min Ga to satiate their Korean needs! Yummmm! read more

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"Tasty, upscale Korean food in Chapel Hill" We happened upon this place when stuck at a pet store and I just typed "Restaurants" into the Yelp app to see if there was an interesting place nearby. Thanks be to Yelp-- this was great-- whole family enjoyed it. I confess ahead of time that I'm far from a Korean food officianado-- only ever been to one other place (not including the Korean taco truck). Positives: + Very nice atmosphere-- building was pleasant, decor was soothing, and there were partially isolated "areas" within it so it didn't feel like just a single large room. + Service was outstanding. Other reviewers complained about this, but there must have been some sort of major change, as at least three different people checked on us multiple times, they were super-friendly, they always refilled our drinks, they brought us extra "sides" when we finished ours without our asking, etc. + "Sides". Either I missed this on the menu, or it's somehow supposed to be assumed, but we each ordered one dish off the menu, yet we received an assortment of ~8 "sides" that I certainly didn't know we were getting (to share). They were awesome-- a crunchy black seaweed dish, little fish strips, a potato dish that was absolutely scrumptious, kim-chee, and more. The portions weren't huge, but they were a nice side/ appetizer for our meal, and again, totally unexpected (to me, at least). + Presentation. The presentation of my ordered dish (the hot stone pot bibimbap) was outstanding. I think in the future, I'd pass on the hot stone pot presentation, though, since that cost an extra $2 and made the dish so hot it took a long time to cool down and eat. + Taste. The Korean beef sushi rolls appetizer was awesome-- would definitely be happy to have that. My dish was good-- the rice wasn't as good as the purple kind I had at Chosun Ok, but the rest of the dish (especially the beef) was excellent. The fried rice was really good, too (my daughter gave me a bite). And again, the sides were outstanding. I should note there were a lot of dishes I saw at other tables that looked amazing. Neutral: +/- Not cheap. It's certainly a fair price, but it's definitely not what I'd call inexpensive. The entrees were all above $10 and most above $12. They had some that could be shared, but those were in the 20s-30s. I'd probably only go there if I had a strong craving, was hosting an out-of-towner, or was celebrating something-- probably wouldn't go for a random dinner. Minuses: Mostly covered above. All minor though. Rice in bibimbap was fine but not great, and given there's a lot of rice, it moderated what may have been an awesome dish to a good dish. My wife had a vegetarian bibimbap and therefore found it a bit bland. Hot stone presentation was great on presentation but cost an extra $2. Price was fair but not inexpensive. Synopsis: If you're hosting someone special who loves Korean food, or going out with a group who you think would appreciate the full experience, this is definitely an excellent choice. Probably a little pricey for random family dinner. They have lunch specials, but unless hosting a special lunch, I think I'd rather go back to Chosun Ok and hit the buffet rather than be limited to the selections. I consider this a very viable "special dinner" option-- 3-4 star border, so I'll round up. read more

Nastiest korean food I've ever eaten. Yook ge Jang (beef stew) was so sour and vinegar-y. The bibimbap was mostly rice and gave too little toppings to mix the rice with. The side dishes are all so unflavorful and bland. I don't know who is cooking this food. Are they korean? Are they tasting the food before serving it? I'm korean and I've never ever had such bad Korean food in my life. I can probably cook better than this. Please do not be mistaken in thinking this place is authentic Korean food. The restaurant itself is clean and bathrooms are clean. read more

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The three of us shared the seafood jeongol the night we went and I still dream about it. The soup was so tasty and they had a great variety of seafood - crabs, shrimp, squid, etc. We requested udon noodles to be thrown in and they were able to oblige. We also tried the kimchi pancake, which was GIGANTIC. Between the three of us, we had leftovers of the appetizer and entree that we shared. I definitely want to go back and try some other menu items, but it'll be hard not to reorder the seafood jeongol. It's really that good. read more

MinGa - Seafood jeongol with fresh picked leafy greens - Korean Near Me - Chapel Hill, North Carolina

Amazing food. My husband and I have never had Korean food so we wanted to try something different. This place was delicious! Very friendly staff and we didn't wait long for our food. Would recommend going here! A bit pricey but delicious! read more

MinGa - Beef pieces and crunchy seafood rice - Korean Near Me - Chapel Hill, North Carolina

MinGa is a TREASURE! Finally some good Korean food in Chapel Hill. Almost everything I've gotten here has been delicious. Even when it's full, the service is always prompt and polite. Really really highly recommended! Btw, don't forget to get the Hotteok for desert. It's absolutely mind-blowing. read more

Very pricey but good Korean food in a nice atmosphere with lovely interior. The broiled eel was outstanding. If you like the type of eel that you find on sushi, with that distinctive eel sauce, this is similar to it, except much better and of course, larger. At $20 though, it's a splurge, and the portion isn't that big. I had the ramen japchae (fried ramen noodles with vegetables & beef), which was delicious and less expensive at $13 for a filling portion. The complimentary side dishes are numerous and amazing, and I felt like I was eating small tapas of authentic Korean cuisine. There were pickled vegetables (including kimchi, of course), vinegar cucumbers, fish cakes, potatoes flavored with broth, among others. They also readily refill your side dishes. Overall: Lots of expensive options, but what we ordered was very good. Also great concept of complimentary side dishes. read more

On another quiet weeknight I visited minga and greeted with a still massive menu had a decision to make. Enjoying kimchi dumplings we were greeted with the generous portions i remembered and upon arrival of the condiments assortment i was feeling excited for the entrees to come. Maybe it was an off night. I had a rice noodle dish with Black bean sesame sauce, pork and vegetables. I guess i had just expected more variety and texture, rather it was a very one dimensional sweet-salty stew of indescribable contents over a heap of, albeit satisfyingly, chewy noodle. The bi bim bap my companion ordered was slightly less well adorned, crisp-rice lacking. An off night, bit still reliable Korean in Chapel Hill read more

MinGa - Seafood pancake. Fluffy, tender, scallion studded and deliciously. - Korean Near Me - Chapel Hill, North Carolina

I dined here for several times; my impression is the food is overpriced. The taste of food is okay. Nothing underwhelming but nothing really special. read more

All I got was kimbap as I was passing through but it was great lol. And! The order was early. Bonus.

The food was amazing. We had a great time, the staff was fabulous and fun. We will visit again soon. read more

MinGa - My sister and I had the best time at MinGa , The staff was friendly and fun. The restaurant was modern, clean and beautiful. - Korean Near Me - Chapel Hill, North Carolina

I love Korean food, so I was really excited when Min Ga opened near me. Quick and dirty is: - Food is excellent and the portions are large, too - The have vegetarian options that are delicious - Unfortunately, there are two other Korean places not very far away (55/54 area) that are exceptionally good and much cheaper (especially for lunch) Ultimately, I consider Min Ga a "laziness tax" when I don't have the time/energy to drive 15 minutes away for a less expensive and just as good (if not better) Korean food. In sum, it is delicious, but pricier than you can get in the metro area. read more

MinGa - The tofu Japchae and kimchi - Korean Near Me - Chapel Hill, North Carolina

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Authentic, flavorful, delicious This place hit the spot aesthetically, smells, and taste. My sister, cousin, and myself we pleasantly surprised to find this gem! read more

MinGa - Kimbop - Korean Near Me - Chapel Hill, North Carolina

Cute Korean restaurant located in a house. I do enjoy the food here, and the service is okay (sometimes, you have to flag them down or just get out of your chair to go find them). My two gripes: the bulgolgi is very expensive, and the restaurant is stingy with the quality and quantity of the banchan that is typically served complimentarily with Korean meals. They do have a parking lot available at the side of the building. I think that with H-Mart and M Kokko as well as other new restaurants that are opening, MinGa needs to step up the game in terms of being more generous with the quality and quantity of the ingredients used in their food in comparison to the prices that they are charging. read more