The food is consistently delicious and comforting. There's nothing like a bowl of stew or noodles on a cold night. Service is great as well! This has become our weekly go to spot. read more

The food that comes to mind when I think of it is the spicy seafood ramen. If you are a fan of spicy food, you should try this dish because you will enjoy the impressive spicy flavor that only this dish can make you addicted when sipping the broth. The rich and spicy flavor is definitely what makes this ramen special to my taste. read more

Spoon - Korean Near Me - Berkeley, California

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I didn't think it could get any worse but it definitely has. Came in at 11:30 on a Friday and we're the only ones. The kimchi stew had decent flavor but was very salty. My mom had the rice cake soup and she said it was too salty as well. You know it's bad when you have to ask for hot water to dilute it. The dduckboki or spicy rice cakes were just sweet no spice at all. The service was decent. For sure this will be the last time visiting Spoon. read more

Spoon - Dduckboki spicy rice cakes-not spicy at all just sweet - Korean Near Me - Berkeley, California

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Soups were ok, the rice was undercooked, the steamed egg was burnt. They dropped off our food and never came back to ask if we needed anything else. The place literally had one other customer. Don't plan on returning. This was disappointing. read more

Flavors ON POINT-nice bimbibap bowl-I got the spicy chicken and it was great. Not too spicy (and I'm a wimp, I'll be honest). It also came with lots of small side dishes that added to the meal. It's been a while since I went, but the service was good. read more

Spoon - Korean Near Me - Berkeley, California

What I ordered: 6/10: Lunch Special Bento w/ Grilled Chicken - grilled chicken didn't have much flavor - japchae was clumpy and mushy - fishcake was sooo hard?? and didn't taste like much other than fish sauce - mandu was good though! - good deal for lunch, you get a lot of food 5/10: Tuna Kimbap - all i could really taste was lettuce, mayo, and pickled radish - wish it had perilla leaves and no lettuce I tried Spoon for lunch, hoping to find a new Korean restaurant in Berkeley. Honestly, if you are looking for authentic Korean food, I would not recommend Spoon Korean Bistro. Everything just tasted off and had a Westernized twist to it. There is a decent amount of both indoor and outdoor seating available. We chose to sit inside but that may have been a mistake. We were surrounded by flies during the entire meal! We were very underwhelmed by the food, but it might be a different experience for the rest of the menu. As of now, I would probably not come back. Food: 5.5/10 Service: 6.5/10 Total: 6/10 read more

Spoon - Top: Grilled Chicken Lunch Special Bottom: Tuna Kimbap - Korean Near Me - Berkeley, California

I love this place. Hands down my go to spot. I have been coming here for about 10 years now and order the same thing. Spicy Ramen w/tofu, veggie potstickers, and sometimes a sprite. You definitely can call me a regular as they remember my order and I normally sit in the same spot. Service is always great and food always amazing. I recommend the Cucumber side and kimchi! They have remolded the restaurant and it looks amazing! read more

Came here on a Friday night, they have plenty of seats, they have outdoor seating and indoors, seems like a Korean restaurant combined with a sushi restaurant. Great for casually hanging into out with friends and family. We had mostly Korean food, it's decent but a bit westernized, I had kale in my bibimbap which I find a bit odd. They do have a lot of starter side dishes with free refill which I'm always excited about! The service is decent, staff are friendly. read more

Spoon - Small dishes - Korean Near Me - Berkeley, California

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Food was DELICIOUS. Generous portions and excellent flavor. We got the stone bowl Bimbop and the miso stew. The bimbop came with several little appetizers. The miso soup was served still boiling, but wasn't too hot to eat and never cooled off. Each bite was hot. read more

Second time here in three weeks. The food is so good and authentic! We will definitely come back again soon.

My favorite Korean restaurant in the East Bay - maybe the entire Bay Area. This is one of those places that you hope remains busy so you know there's less chance of them closing. The best vegetable pancake! BB read more

Fast service and the food amazing so far. The staff are kind and the ambiance is incredible too read more

Spoon - Apetizer - Korean Near Me - Berkeley, California

Good food and good service! Overall, nice ambiance too! Will come back here when we got a chance!

Dolsot bibimbap!! We live in Temescal where there is no shortage of Korean restaurants, but we come HERE for their stone bowls. Consistency is key! read more

Amazing food and priced very well! In love with the army stew. It's our go-to :) Wait staff is great, Daniel is the best!

Amazing service & fantastic food. If I lived closer, I'd come here everyday! Everyone was friendly and the experience was exquisit.

This place is AMAZING. How did I not discover it earlier?! I had the spicy soft tofu stew with seafood and asked for it extra spicy and they did not disappoint! It was utterly delicious and the perfect spice level for me. The appetizers (which they bring you as part of your mains order) are also amazing--the pickled radish is especially worth a shout out. The ambience is great, they have indoor and outdoor seating, the manager was so nice and attentive, and there's parking out front. I'll be back! read more

Good food, good service! We ordered the kimchi fried rice, Fried Chicken, and corn cheese!

Ughhhhhh I wanted to love this place, but I think you kinda know when a business tries to do too many things, they end up not doing a great job at either. I didn't end up trying any sushi, but the Korean food was not there. The Hamachi kama came out literally burnt and broken apart, which felt like the final nail in the coffin. You could not eat the skin at all. The fish itself was still moist, but I think the heat was too high or someone forgot about it. The seafood pancake had very little seafood in it, but it was crispy. Sauce that came with it was a little weird. The Korean Gnocchi soup would have been my favorite dish because we were able to fix the broth with some salt. The gnocchi was a good texture, and the shape reminded me of squid. But unfortunately we opted to add chicken which cost an extra 3 dollars and honestly, it kind of ruined the dish with no way to salvage it. It was giving dry/shredded rotisserie chicken. Egg souffle was tasteless. The side dishes were pretty bad, either underseasoned and also overly sour kimchi, overly funky seaweed. The servers were pretty attentive and got us the things we needed. I don't think I would come back. read more

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Stopped by for lunch after a workout. The service stood out to me. They really try to take care of you. The food was also very good. In my soft tofu stew, I had the beef which there was plenty of in the bowl. I also had the ginger tea which had the perfect sweetness. If I'm in the area again, I'll stop by and try the kimbap and one of the other tea options. read more

good food quality overall ; authentic a bit pricey for korean food nice service not crowded read more

This place has a wide variety of Asian food from Korean, Japanese, and Hawaiian. Service was good and food came relatively fast. Started with the complimentary banchan dishes with kimchee, pickled cucumber, seaweed, seasoned broccoli. Also ordered the corn cheese, Jhap Chae fried rice, & bento box. Both meals were good proportions and had to take food home for later (even better late nite!). Would come back again. read more

Spoon - Corn Cheese - Korean Near Me - Berkeley, California

I have passed by this place so many times, but never got a chance to try it until recently. It's great to know that there's such a solid Korean place so close to Emeryville! The Spicy Beef Noodle Soup ($20.99) had really good flavor and the medium spice level was a nice, challenging amount. I really enjoyed all the veggies, especially the fern, in here. The noodles were also perfectly cooked. The Dolsot Bibimbop with bulgogi ($20.99) was my favorite -- it came out so hot and packed with veggies. It was probably the best Bibimbop I've had. I will say though that the banchan wasn't as good as at other places and the meal was definitely on the pricier side. However, the dishes really made up for it with their flavors. Spoon would definitely be one of my go to spots if I was ever craving Korean food! read more

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Nice outdoor dining area, but not really a nice neighborhood to dine al fresco....lots of traffic, trucks...oh well can't help that. Outdoor patio is better than no patio. I'd choose indoor to dine. Service was excellent. Staff always coming around to see if you have enough banchan, need something else, served us 4 little extra dishes of fishcake Banchan without the stink-eye (as other Korean restaurants would give you), which was my kid's main course. Friendly people too. The spicy seafood/tofu stew was some of the best I've ever had. Pure flavor. If there were just a couple clams thrown in there then the stew would definitely qualify as best ever (a suggestion) Child's bibimbap bowl was adult sized, and a steal at $11. Spicy chicken was fantastic and generous sized, sizzling hot out of the kitchen. The deep fried noodles appetizer wrapped in seaweed with a breading was very good, but possibly not so much food for your money @ $10 as the other three dishes above. All in all, this place is better than other Korean restaurants, and cheaper too. No doubt the food is a solid 5stars, and service with a smile is also a plus. Out the door for $90, meal for three, and we were served a feast, including appetizers! So much food we took some leftovers to go. We will definitely be back when in Berkeley. read more

Great food and great service. Love the Ramen. Best around. Come from the valley and any chance to come by to eat we do

My friend and I came here for a late lunch on a Tuesday afternoon. It wasn't busy when we arrived and we were seated immediately. Food: My friend and I ordered the following: Corn Cheese - Delicious but you cannot go wrong with corn and cheese. Spicy edamame - these were saucy and good Garden Roll - this was avocado and cream cheese which is great for me. Hate it all you want, but cream cheese in sushi rolls is good. Tofu Pancake - not really a pancake, but more like fried tofu. Still good though. Spicy Pork Belly - My friend ordered this for herself, and she thought it was pretty good. The portion was pretty big too. Service: Our waiter was pretty friendly and attentive. They weren't very busy when we were there so we could see the servers restocking and taking deliveries. Even then, they never forgot about us! Our food came out promptly as well. TL;DR - good service with some good korean food! read more

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Decent and very large dolsot bibimbap but honestly very plain in flavor. I needed to add so much spicy sauce to enjoy it. Overall it wasn't my favorite bibimbap, especially for the price. But the side dishes were a nice touch and I think I'd come back to try a different dish next time. Service is great and the food arrived quickly. The waiters are attentive and refill your side dishes as needed. Ambiance is casual, nothing fancy. Prices are pretty standard for bay area, around $20 per meal. read more

Nice quaint location in Berkeley. A quiet Sunday, light crowd but busy. Service was quick in both ordering and delivery of the entrée dishes. Sides were delivered as soon as the order was provided and the waitress kept checking on us beinging additinal sides once we fisnished them. . Food was great and a lot for the price. Yes, prices are high due to inflation but the food portions are large enough for two people per dish. Great place to eat if 8n the area. read more

Spoon - Hot Bimbimbap , Tonkatsu - Korean Near Me - Berkeley, California

Sorry guys and gals, I know " Crash Landing on You" is like one of the best Korean shows ever made right? I simply can't get into watching it! Maybe it's too "cheesy"? However, I'm always up to eating some cheesy corn and a hot bowl of kim chi stew! Spoon is a great spot in Berkeley for some casual Korean food. Good soups to warm the tummy and the soul. Order some deep fried wings and wash it down with bottle of Terra beer! Lots of patio sitting and indoor sitting as well that's great for the warmer days we've been having. read more

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Had a good craving for Korean food today, so here I am! Parking is not too bad but I did a circle around twice until i found something. Street parking only. I looked around the menu and instantly noticed a few glaring things. You're probably going to shell out some $$$ for what you would normally get in most other Korean restaurants and most standard things will cost you as an add-on. Luckily the banchan are still free with the entrees, phew... Though don't get your hopes up yet. The banchan were incredibly bland, pretty much flavorless. Pretty sure its not me and its the dishes. The banchan could definitely use some help in the flavor department. Now, what did I get? I ended up getting the tofu stew. You only had one selection and it was an incredibly vanilla one. So don't expect a wide selection of tofu at this place. The fishcake was an add-on for $2 at the time of writing this. The dish came with an egg, no charge. The flavor in this entree was pretty good. This restaurant brings the rice out with the banchan unless you ask them to hold it till the tofu. I usually turn the lid the egg comes on over on the rice to keep it warm. Overall, it was a bit below expectations, but wasn't bad. Would I recommend it? For the pricepoint and what it offers, probably not given everything else in the area. read more

Spoon - Banchan you get with entree orders. - Korean Near Me - Berkeley, California

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Spoon Korean Bistro is one of my go-to spots in Berkeley! Service is always quick and super friendly. The food hits every time. The dolsot bibimbap is perfectly crispy, the seafood pancake is loaded and crispy on the edges, the kimchi fried rice is flavorful with a nice kick, and the chicken wings are crispy, saucy, and addictive. Great vibes, great food, fast service! read more

The food and atmosphere have improved a lot over the last 6 months! I truely enjoy visiting with the server Naomi being so accommodating and friendly~ read more

Food was ok. Service was pretty good. Outdoor seating area is nice but can get a bit chilly We got there around dinner on a weeknight and most the tables were filled but we didn't have an issue getting seated. Service was a little slow after getting seated. We asked for some sauces and a refill on the banchan and they said sure but never gave them to us. Spicy beef stew - pretty tasty. The glass noodles were very overcooked though. The rice they served with the stew was hard. Japchae - noodle texture was better but sauce was on the sweeter side Good banchan! read more

Spoon - Banchan side dishes - Korean Near Me - Berkeley, California

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Had the spicy ramen with medium spice and spam as the protein. It tasted absolutely fantastic. The servers were attentive. The music gave a casual vibe, there was k-pop music videos playing on their TV. I would definitely come back for the ramen! read more

Spoon - Spicy Ramen with Spam (medium spice) - Korean Near Me - Berkeley, California

On my recent visit we ordered short rib bbq and jhapchae. Short rib was highlight of the dinner well marinated cooked perfectly. Jhapchae had slightly sweet flavor that didn't overpower the ingredients. Also complimentary side dishes were great and tasted fresh. Service was friendly and attentive. read more

I have returned to this spot for a 2nd time and this place do not disappoint. Clean and the waiter and waitress very attentive. Food was excellent and it started out as quiet but by the time we were getting ready to leave it started to get busy. Food was excellent and came quickly after we order. Excellent and was flavorful but not salty! Just the best place for Korean food. read more

This little gem in Berkeley is serving amazing food and amazing service. The portions you get are by far better than most places in the Bay Area. I was able to try one of their new specials made for families to share and all I wanted was more! read more

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A solid spot for Korean and Japanese food. Parking is street parking only but when we went it was a weekday pretty close to when they opened. There's outdoor and indoor seating available. Our server was very nice and the food came out quick. We ordered beef bulgogi and mandu. Everything came out piping hot including the soup. The bulgogi was served hot and sizzling on a hot plate. The banchan were just fine. Not plentiful or anything extraordinary compared to other Korean restaurants I've been so around CA, especially Koreatown in LA. Seaweed soup was great. We were in town so it was a good place to go that was nearby without having to go in a different direction. As always I'd recommend not keeping belongings in your car in plain view. This is true anywhere in the Bay Area though. read more

Really good sides! Service was good too! Really caring too! I heard it's really popular so I came

We ate here for lunch on a Saturday and overall had a great experience. The portion sizes and quality definitely match the pricing. My BBQ rice plate was huge and the beef was really tender and flavorful. We absolutely loved the spicy rice cakes with cheese and that was probably our favorite part of our meal. Service was great, they are very friendly and accommodating which I appreciated. They have a nice shaded outdoor patio that is really nice in the summertime. We will definitely be back! read more

Spoon - Tteokbokki with cheese (extra charge for cheese) - Korean Near Me - Berkeley, California

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