I rarely leave reviews, but I simply cannot stop thinking about the meal I had at Sole. A friend and I shared a scallion pancake and pitcher of hot corn tea, and I also got a mango spritzer (SO refreshing) and kimchi jjiage with beef. It was literally a 10 out of 10, perfect meal. The banchan was perfect, and refreshed by our server when dishes ran low. The cafe itself is clean, intimate, and minimally decorated-- but it works. Everything there is a perfect harmonious blend of smells and tastes and sights and sounds, and I can't wait to go back. read more

The phone did not eat first here Went here for the first time and loved it. The atmosphere was super homey and cozy, felt really welcoming. Definitely left 5 pounds heavier because the food was so good. I thought the portion sizes would be bigger, but I still left full so no complaints. The seolleongtang was the standout for me, the broth was sooo good and comforting. Overall really enjoyed the experience and would definitely come back. read more

Sole Cafe - Korean Near Me - Saint Paul, Minnesota

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i was in town visiting for the twice concert and visiting family. i'm from southern california with the best korean food. the food and ambiance here definitely are as good as the ones in ktown in LA. the owner was sweet and got us in quicker than expected. he was also so excited to hear that twice was in town. i got the bibimbap and mango refresher and both were delicious. i liked how they gave the gochujang in a bottle. sometimes i feel like i want to ask for more gochujang so i appreciated i could have unlimited lol. the mango refresher was perfectly sweet and very refreshing. definitely recommend checking this place out! read more

Sole Cafe - Korean Near Me - Saint Paul, Minnesota

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Gosh, I've been coming here for years and somehow never got around to writing about it. Probably because I was in a food coma and looking for the nearest bed to crawl into! I have seen this place change from being run by an elderly couple (man in the kitchen banging out hot, delicious food) and a woman out in the dining area, seating you and mixing your bibimbap! I miss the days of the TV playing some Korean show and all the plants they used to have. It's now got servers, and their food definitely tastes different. It's not as good. I have worked my way through the menu over the years. I haven't had any of the soups (I'm not usually craving soup), but my heavy hitters are: Bokkeum, Tteokbokki, Pajeon (regular and seafood), and Bulgogi (chicken and pork, especially)! Like others have said, the bathroom is tiny, but you're not really going there for that! Street parking. It's affordable and a good option for Korean food. read more

I've watched this restaurant slowly transform from a dark space with an old drinking hole vibe to its current look--bright lighting, coffee table cook books with tasteful modern ceramics, and a light-colored laminated wood bar. We stopped by for the first time in a few years. The parking lot alley is no longer lit, so we weren't sure if people still used it. In addition to the clean, modern remake, they have fancy metal dishes. The menu has also shrunk. I wanted a stew with lots of vegetables, so I ordered vegetarian tofu kimchi jjigae. My spouse ordered bulgogi. The kimchi jjigae was delicious, and hit the spot on a cold October night. I kept the leftover broth to kick up some soup I had at home. I was a bit disappointed that aside from the kimchi, the stew had only green onions and some carrot slivers as vegetables. I was hoping for more carrots, and vegetables like zucchini. My spouse's dish also had mostly onions as vegetables. The banchan was delicious, but we would have needed to order two more sets of banchan to get our fill of vegetables. To be clear, most US restaurants don't serve much vegetables, so Sole Cafe is not an outlier in that sense. Next time I will ask the server to clarify what kinds of vegetables are in the dish before ordering. They redid the bathroom, which was a nice surprise. And I believe the server is the same man from before. He was attentive and courteous as always. Glad to have Sole Cafe as a local option for Korean food. read more

Sole Cafe - Tofu kimchi jjigae, rice, banchan. - Korean Near Me - Saint Paul, Minnesota

My first experience of trying out Korean food. I heard of this place so it was excited to stop by and try out the food. Apparently it was more like a mom and Pop shop, served by some aged grannies. They were friendly. The price of the food are a bit pricey for the amount of portion. The place feels a bit crowded and outdated, because this is one of the first and oldest Korean restaurants in our state, I believe. The amount of food to the price was so out of proportion, very little amount of food for a big price tag. I haven't been there recently, but I heard that it was updated a little bit. This restaurant went back as far as year 2000, when I first heard it, and my friends were talking about it. read more

Delicious authentic Korean restaurant! Visited Sole Cafe with a friend that had never had Korean food and decided to take them here. We ordered tteokbokki to share, a spicy pork dish and I got a bi bim bap for myself. The tteokbokki was divine. The rice cakes were cooked to perfection, chewy and full of flavor. The sauce was light, spicy and sweet but not too sweet. This so far has been my favorite tteokbokki I've had in MN. My friend loved her spicy pork dish, it was the first time she ever had Korean food and it left a good impression on her. She did say it was spicy (she eats spicy and handles it quite well, they don't go light with the spice level on this). If you like spicy food, you'll love this dish as much as she did. Flavor was amazing too. It is served with a portion of white rice. The bi bim bap I had was good, lots of veggies and good flavor. Would I get it again? Not sure. Next time I am going for something spicy and with meat. This restaurant is authentic and the interior resembles a Hanoi style restaurant like those in South Korea. It's small, clean and the waiter is attentive. Street parking available. If recommend checking this restaurant out for Korean food. Prices are a bit elevated but it's worth it. read more

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Incredible. Mind bending. Straight forward Korean. Amazing tbbokki. Bibimbop. Excuse my spelling. Everything was fresh and delicious. Restaurant has been cleaned up made fresher since the last time I ate there. We'll go back way faster now. Banchan was great, all very fresh. Seafood pancake was outstanding. Not very expensive...$85 for 2, 3 dishes, drinks. Service was good. Maybe a little slow but it was a Friday night. Very very pleased. read more

Sole Cafe is a gem. This is a family-run and no-frills spot, with a cozy wooden interior and a TV playing K-Dramas or Korean Sports (at a modest volume--this is no sports bar). It's tough to wrong with the menu. If you're with a modest group, I'd suggest going family-style. Grab a grill item like their Jeyuk Bokkeum (spicy pork stir fry) or Kalbi (short ribs), a big Bibimbap, and stew like Seolleongtang (or Yukaejang for the spice lovers). Add a couple appetizers on too, their Tteokbokki and Mandu are both favorites of mine. Don't be afraid to ask the owner/server for recommendations or dietary restrictions either, they're very accommodating. The most special part about Sole Cafe though is that it's a real facet of the community. Don't be surprised when people drop in to just chat with the owner! I hope Sole Cafe remains successful in the tough years since the pandemic that have seen so many beloved restaurants go under. I'd highly recommend checking this place out whether you're looking for something new, or something familiar. read more

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A California girl in the Twin Cities, so of course I am always craving Asian food. We found this place by checking Eater Twin Cities where they had an article for 13 Essential Korean restaurants in the Twin Cities. We were going to order from the online lunch menu to find out that the online lunch menu doesn't exist. In fact, I don't think it is their website or it's definitely not up to date. But going back to the food, we ordered bulgogi and japchae. As soon as I picked up my takeout order, I could smell how delicious it was. Good portions for sharing with two people, and they included some banchan for us too. read more

Sole Cafe - Bulgogi, Japchae and banchan for takeout - Korean Near Me - Saint Paul, Minnesota

I'm not sure if the owner had changed but my food today is so different from my other orders I've had before. I'm so sad and disappointed. I recommended this place to all of my friends and now its not the same. I had to call them and was told its a different chef. I don't think i'll be going there anymore. I'm just sad because there's no tteppokki as good as this place used to have them here. read more

Sole Cafe - My sad TTEPPOKKI. It lacks so much flavors, i just threw it away. I only come here for this dish mainly. - Korean Near Me - Saint Paul, Minnesota

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Again, this place is pretty good, but pricy. I understand due to the prices in everything. The dumplings are always a hit! This time i got the soup, and im not a big fan of both the soft tofu soup with beef and kimchi soup. It just taste like pepper with tofu. Kind of flavorless. The japchae was oka, it taste like sesame oil mostly. The bulgogi was good, i also got the spicy pork buligogi. It really help that those dish was there. Definitely a little family restaurant. It feels a bit slow because it is only the wife and husband. They make everything pretty fresh. I would definitely come back for the seafood pancake. This is a great place for it! read more

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The vegetables in the tofu bibimbap were very different than what I'm used to seeing in all other bibimbaps I've had. Looked like mostly cabbage. I was skeptical it would actually taste good but it sure did. Love the homey, old-style atmosphere in this place too. My partner had the veggie bibimbap, which had more of a variety of colorful veggies than the tofu bibimbap, and he was impressed too. read more

Food was absolutely amazing. Each dish has its own umami taste- Seafood Stew and Squid Stir fry. As for the bibimbap, the fried rice was crispy and the sauce that was on the side it was super delicious! I def love love the squid here because it's such a big portion! Can't wait to come back and try other dishes The place was very authentic just like the food. Sadly no. AC in the building but they do have fans running and is constantly running around to making sure you have water!! read more

Sole Cafe - Soontofu - Korean Near Me - Saint Paul, Minnesota

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Great place for delicious authentic Korean food and a cozy meal! We were pleasantly surprised to see that this place had been recently renovated since our last visit. The dining room has a warm and calming ambiance, great for a dinner with family or friends. We ordered the green onion pancake as a starter and it was nice and crispy on the outside, packed with soft veg and served with a great dipping sauce. My dolsot bibimbap with beef came out sizzling and was absolutely delicious! A perfect blend of vegetables, crispy rice, beef, egg, and govhujang sauce. My sister got the manduguk and really enjoyed the mandu dumplings and broth. The barley tea and complementary banchan sides were just the right finishing touches for our meal. The service was attentive and welcoming! He refilled our tea and banchan a couple times - very kind and really made our experience memorable! We will definitely be coming back in the near future. read more

Sole Cafe - Newly renovated dining area - Korean Near Me - Saint Paul, Minnesota

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Very good Korean meals, authentically spicy and flavorful. Our group tried several things, Galbi, Bulgogi, Bibimbap, and also were served a selection of sides. This is a small placed owned and run by a couple of- he's the chef, she's everything else. read more

Sole Cafe - Great dinner - Korean Near Me - Saint Paul, Minnesota

The menu here isn't as big as other Korean spots around town, but the kimchi soup and sundobu chigae here are my favorites in the Twin Cities. I love that it's a locally owned, no frills spot owned by a Korean couple who isn't afraid to tell you if you are eating something wrong. They're super nice and it feels like you're at a grandparents house. The restaurant itself is small with a few tables spread about and Korean shows on the TV. Parking is available on the street and neighborhood. I'll need to come back and try other menu items but it's nearly impossible for me to not order soup. read more

Delicious authentic Korean food! Great service! Loved the pork bulgogi and spicy tofu soup!!! Yummy!! read more

I can't believe I have never been here before. It's a hole in the wall but the food is excellent. I ordered the Bimipap and it was quite good. I have never seen a Korean restaurant in Twin Cities get the crispy rice so perfect. I will be back. read more

Sole Cafe - Korean Near Me - Saint Paul, Minnesota

this place is so good!! I went there on a cold winter night with a friend and it just felt like home! the food was amazing and the service was great too! the server was very funny. my friend who had never been there said she would definitely come back! read more

Fantastic food and really nice staff! We come to Sole Cafe at least monthly. I have not once been disappointed with the food or service.

The service was amazing and very friendly! The food was excellent and had good portions to share. The entire vibe of the place had a modern touch with great ambiance. read more

Great food, poor service. Prepare to be judged and criticized while you eat here. The server told our table we ate to much kimchi and were cut off after our second 1/4 cup serving. I've eaten at countless Korean restaurants in America and Korea. This was the first time I've ever heard such a thing as a limit on panchan/side dishes. I wasn't to surprised after hearing the server inform another guest they were eating their food wrong because they weren't eating certain parts of the dish. Prices online are about $5 below whats on the current menu. Hope you have a better experience than we did. read more

What you get for what you pay is just not worth it. Yelp pictures implied they had a lunch menu so we decided to go for lunch. When we sat down, they provided a menu that had some rather steep prices. I asked the waiter if they had a lunch menu and was told the menu he gave me was all they had. When our orders came out, portions were lacking. All the dishes with what was presented to us should've been at least $5 less each. Menu said Dol dot bi bim bap had beef...we had to dig around to find the few bits of minced meat. Yelp prices are inaccurate. Example, Dol sit bi bim bap shows as $12.95, it's actually $18.45. I don't normally complain about price. But if they keep this up, they are setting themselves up to fail. And it would be sad to see them go. We use to frequent the place, and they used to be a lot busier. But over the years, they've gone south. I actually think their food is pretty good. I know it's tough times, but at their price point for the food you get, no one's gonna visit. If they got their pricing right and their portions right, people would be flocking in. The last two visits, including this last one, we were the only customers there the entire time we dined. It's just too unfortunate, but I get why. read more

The food is so authentic. The place is packed with Koreans. A good sign! The service is impeccable.

Didn't take pictures but was good. My friend liked the food. Service and ambiance were good too. .

You know a place is good when they have a huge TV on the wall, the tiniest bathroom, and only about two staff members. As far as I know, Sole Cafe has one chef in the back (the owner) and one server (his wife). If you were looking for the definition of mom and pop, look no further - it's right here. Came here for lunch with some friends and ordered tteokbokki, kimchi jjigae, and japchae for the table. The tteokbokki had a great heat to it - not too spicy, not too sweet, and with plenty of fish cakes to appease everyone. The kimchi jjigae came out boiling (as it should) and was pretty heavy on the gochujaru but was perfect for sweating out my demons, and god knows, I have a lot so that was perfect for me. The japchae had great flavor, but the noodles were a little overdone and I felt like there weren't many noodles to begin with, so they were extra shrunken. Overall though - fantastic place to get some homey Korean food, and reminded me greatly of mom and pop shops run in Seoul. No one bothers you while you eat, and you can listen to the chatter of other tables or watch whatever variety show is playing on SBS at the time. Be patient and relax, because the food is worth the wait. read more

Sole Cafe - Kimchi jjigae, japchae, tteokbokki - Korean Near Me - Saint Paul, Minnesota

As authentic as it gets. Delicious food with quick service. I wasn't expecting the ajumma to have dry humor, and saying "no" when I asked for banchan. It felt like I was visiting someone's home and eating their food. Her and her husband were very nice people. I would come back and have more food. read more

The food tasted great! The sides (banchan) were good and you could get up to two refills. The staff was very attentive and provided excellent service. There was free 1-hour on-street parking out front of the restaurant. read more

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This place is so so good. The owners are great - so welcoming. Every dish we had was delicious - full of flavor! I'll be back for sure! read more

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I had the pork bulgogi Very good flavor and more spicy than I expect in Minnesota but I liked it with the white rice. Four of ate and all enjoyed their meals. Service was good. We wanted hot tea but were told they do not have tea. We had water. read more

Solid 4.5/5. Having just come back from South Korea, I had higher than normal expectations for Korean food. This hole-in-the-wall place definitely hit the authentic aesthetic of the restaurants I went to in Seoul. It was run ma/pa style with only two people running the whole show (on a Friday night) so do not expect fast service. My friends and I got the vegetarian Korean pancake. Portion was huge and good for 2-4 people depending on how much you eat. Price was higher than places I've been to, but worth it because it was really flavorful and packed with veggies. For my main, I got the tofu stew (it was SO spicy) and delicious. I enjoyed it a lot...cleared up my sinuses on a cold day, HA. Definitely not "Minnesota" spicy, so beware if you aren't able to handle the heat. My friends loved their stews too, beef and dumplings/rice cakes. I would come back for sure for the bimbimbap and japchae. read more

Sole Cafe - Korean Near Me - Saint Paul, Minnesota

Had the Pork Bulgogi and Tofu and Pork Stew. Both excellent. Bulgogi portion was larger than other places. Service was fast and friendly. read more

Sole Cafe - Pork Bulgogi. Tofu & Pork Stew. - Korean Near Me - Saint Paul, Minnesota

If I could give 5 more stars I would, amazing hot fresh flavor-filled food with the greatest spice levels and open to adjust hotter if needed. Was so small intimate but full of love you could feel it when u sat and ate. Owners are so kind and welcoming. I wanted to order everything but it gives me reasons to return again and again. read more

A delightful and small restaurant run by what I can only assume is an older Korean couple/family. One woman taking care of the serving and bussing, the gentleman, cooking. The menu is easy to navigate and offers a good variety without being overwhelming. My partner and I started with dumplings and rice cakes. The dumplings were nice and crunchy and paired well with the sweet/spicy sauce of the tteokboki. For entrees he ordered the Pork Bulgogi and I, the Seolleongtang. Both items were seasoned very well, the soup having a nice peppery broth with large pieces of beef, some clear noodles, and a bunch of green onion. It would be a great soup for hangovers and bitterly cold days, which resembled closely to the day we went. The pork bulgogi was delicious, sweet and meaty and had lots of nice toothsome veg which paired wonderfully over a spoonful of rice. Of the side dishes (they were all wonderful), our favorite was the bean sprout which was simple and offered a nice crunch with a nutty sesame aftertaste. We'd definitely go again. read more

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The food is delicious, service was great. The owner made sure our cup of water is never empty and made sure we enjoy the food. Very pleasant man. We ordered more than we can eat, so we took most of it home to share & have for dinner. The restaurant had Korean music playing in the background, not too loud but enough for us to chit-chat & have a good time. Definitely recommend and will visit again read more

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10/10 The food were delicious. The ahjumma is very kind and great service too. This will probably be our favorite Korean restaurant in MN. If you're thinking about trying this place out, you definitely should! It is quite pricy as each dish is $12-$15+ The only thing I would say is... the bathroom is very tiny (unisex). The bathroom definitely need a upgrade. It's VERY cramped. Make sure y'all use the bathroom before coming here. read more

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Great service, food authentic not Americanized! Spicy pork with vegetables, tender and delicious I ate it all up! The owner is wonderful- best part was eating with my daughter who loves Korean food and dramas! read more

Sole Cafe - Korean Near Me - Saint Paul, Minnesota

Service was much faster this time! The beef stew was so good! I had this favorite restaurant in South Korea that has the BEST beef rib stew and this is very similar to it! read more

Sole Cafe - Korean Near Me - Saint Paul, Minnesota

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This is the most authentic Korean restaurant in the twin cities. There are a few cheaper restaurants, but those lack in quality & authenticity! Sometimes the food takes a while to come out of the kitchen and to the table. There's only one chef, who is also the owner. However, the food is always fresh and hot when it arrives! The service is about what you would expect for a more "hole-in-the-wall" restaurant. There's usually Korean TV playing on a big screen. There is a one-person restroom but it is small. Parking is available out front, and in the back. read more

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