Jagalchi

Tteokbokki

For her birthday, my daughter wanted to eat tteokbokki- her favorite Korean dish. We would be in the university area so | did a quick yelp search and found Jagalchi. Located on Young Street, this Korean restaurant has a young, casual, and fun vibe. Definitely a good time.

We were greeted by friendliest server and quickly seated. Ordering is done via ipad at the table. There are a lot of great menu choices, but we narrowed it down to tteokbokki, chicken wings, and bi bim bap. Our food came with a plate of banchan. Everything was very yummy and | look forward to returning. The only tricky thing is that parking fills up quickly in the lot and they only take reservations for parties of 6 or more.

Order right at your table.

Banchan

Chicken Wings

Bi Bim Bap

Jagalchi

1334 Young St Ste 106 

Honolulu, HI 96814

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Soon's Kal-Bi's BBQ Family Pack

Soon's Kal-Bi is a popular Korean spot in Salt Lake.  We ordered their family pack, which was $67.25 for 3 kal-bi, 3 bbq chicken, 6 bbq beef, meat jhun, and 5 piece man doo.  For  $7.25 extra, you can add veggies and rice.

Everything was tasty and we did have some leftovers (enough for a couple of people).  I really liked the chicken and man doo. 

Cash only!

Soon's Kal-Bi
Salt Lake Shopping Center
848 Ala Lilikoi St

Honolulu, HI 96818

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Yujin K-BBQ

Yujin K-BBQ is a fairly new Korean restaurant in Waipahu, and I was quite impressed with the food!

BBQ Chicken & Mandoo

The chicken was tender, smoky, and tasty, and the mandoo was perfectly crispy with a flavorful filling.

Bulgogi & BBQ Chicken

Mandoo & Spicy Pork

Meat Jun & Spicy Pork

Yujin Special

The Yujin Special comes with 2 pieces kalbi, 2 pieces BBQ chicken, Bulgogi, and mandoo.

All plates also come with rice, a piece of zucchini jun, and 5 different banchan (my fave is always the braised potatoes!).

Each plate lasted for two meals so we had lunch and dinner!

Waipahu has a number of great Korean restaurants, and Yujin can be added to that list! 

Yujin K-BBQ
94-300 Farrington Hwy B-03

Waipahu, HI 96797
Phone: (808) 200-1285

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Hong Yeon

We recently stopped by Hong Yeon, one of Moʻiliʻili’s newest Korean-Chinese restaurants, and it definitely lived up to the hype. Since we visited on a weekend, we didn’t get to try their weekday lunch specials — but after this first visit, I’m already planning a weekday return just for those deals.

We ordered a good mix of dishes to share: yaki mandu, shrimp fried rice, Mongolian beef, sweet and sour pork, and their signature jajang myeon. Portions here are no joke — the three of us ended up with plenty of leftovers to take home.

The yaki mandu wasn’t my favorite; the pi (wrapper) was a bit thicker than I prefer. 

But the sweet and sour pork hit the spot, especially when you dip it generously into the sauce. 

The Mongolian beef was another fave — flavorful, tender, and something we’d all order again. 

My son loved the shrimp fried rice, which came packed with shrimp and had that perfect wok-char flavor.

The standout for me, though, was the jajang myeon. Rich, savory, and comforting — and for some reason, I loved it even more with a splash of vinegar. Highly recommend trying it that way.

Service was genuinely friendly, and even with the weekend crowd, we felt relaxed and not rushed.

All in all, Hong Yeon is absolutely worth a visit — and I’ll definitely be back on a weekday to try those lunch specials!

HONG YEON

909 ISENGERG STREET

HONOLULU, HI 96826

808-367-1909

 

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Visit Waimea: Yong's Kal Bi

A bunch of people told me I should try Yong's Kal Bi in Waimea for great Korean food, and I finally had a chance to get take-out while in the area for work.

Bi-Bim-Noodle

The Bi-Bim-Noodle was full of noodles and veggies.  I upgraded to Garlic Pork Belly for an additional $3.  I wish they gave more pork, because it was really delicious and added flavor to the dish.  The dish itself was just filling and refreshing. 

Organic Maitake Mushroom, Garlic Chive & Onion Pancake

The pancake was loaded with mushrooms, garlic chives, and onions, and the pancake and both the sauce were very tasty, but I felt the pancake could've been crispier.  

Next time I hope to dine in!

Order online to minimize wait time!

Yong's Kal Bi
65-1158 Mamalahoa Hwy

# 4, Waimea, HI 96743

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Korean Cuisine at Lani Sot

Spicy Pork Pot Rice Set

I recently saw on a friend’s IG feed her experience at Lani Sot and I knew I wanted to
check them out. Located upstairs at SALT Kakaako, Lani Sot specializes in Korean Pot
Rice sets. Although they opened a few months ago, they are currently still offering a soft opening menu of six different pot rice sets: Eggplant, Mushroom, Garlic Shrimp, Teri Pork, Spicy Eggplant, and Spicy Pork. Priced at $24.99, each set comes with a variety of sides and
soup.

I tried the spicy pork rice set and loved it! I enjoyed every side dish including the very
tasty beef soup. My spicy pork was delicious and not fatty which I appreciated. Service
was great, but it got a little busy at the restaurant so we didn’t get the roasted barley tea
added to our pots to create the rice soup at the end of the meal. I wouldn’t have been
able to finish the soup since I was so stuffed, but I would like to try it the next time.

Garlic Shrimp

Spicy Eggplant

Spicy Pork

Lani Sot is open daily from 11am. Be sure to scan their QR code at the restaurant to
receive discounted parking.

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Gina's BBQ Kapolei

We recently ordered the Large Family Pack at Gina's BBQ Kapolei.  The cost is $93, and you get:

6 pieces Kalbi

10 scoops rice

6 pieces BBQ Chicken, 6 pieces Bulgogi

12 Meat Jun Strips and 12 Man Du

and choice of 5 veggies.  We chose:

Corn

Shoyu Potato

Long Rice

Choi Sum

Macaroni Salad

It feeds 4-6, and all of this food ended up feeding our family of 5 for 2 dinners.  

Everything was very tasty, including the banchan.  The mac salad was seasoned well, and I love shoyu potato, but some of the huge pieces were undercooked (although the flavor was still there). 

My faves in the pack were the BBQ Chicken and the Man Du.  

It was definitely a good deal, especially considering it fed our family for two nights!

Gina's BBQ Kapolei
4850 Kapolei Pkwy suite #305

Kapolei, HI 96707

 

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O’Kims

Before the Honolulu City Lights Electric Parade, we picked up food from O'Kims.  

Truffle Mandoo

The Truffle Mandoo included 4 different kind of mushrooms, zucchini, and mushroom paste.  The Mandoo was perfectly cooked and the filling was so scrumptious.  

Korean Chicken

The Korean Chicken plate came in a huge box!  Deep fried chicken with gochujang sauce and house-made gnocchi nuts were accompanied by purple rice, salad, and kimchi.  

Bibimbap with Spicy Chicken

My husband and son loved the Bibimbap with Spicy Chicken.  It was so good, that my son ate up all the vegetables (it was that apple gochujang sauce that he couldn't get enough of).   

Everything was delicious!

O'Kims
1028 Nuuanu Ave

Honolulu, HI 96817

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$5 Bentos from Mama's Bento

Dealages alert! I had heard that the former owner of Mama Woo's in Moiliili was selling $5 bentos on the grounds of a church on Keeaumoku next to McDonald's, and so of course I had to check this out, because I used to love going to Mama Woo's when she was running it, and it's not the same under the new owners.

I came on a Friday at around 12:15 PM and there were a lot of bentos for sale. Prices start at $5 and go up to $10 for a combo like this one: 

The loco moco sells for $7.

 I tried these two $5 bentos:

Would I return? Certainly! These $5 bentos were way better than the $5 Bento Box that you see around town. 

They have lots to choose from and it's so convenient - just grab n go. Cash and credit cards are accepted. 

There is lots of parking on the church grounds - you can enter through the narrow driveway just past Domino's Pizza (if you're heading makai on Keeaumoku), or you can park in the back off of Sheridan Street). 

 

Their table is located in the shade, and they are here Mondays - Fridays from 11 am - 2 pm. The address for this location is 915 Sheridan Street.

According to their business card, they also have locations at 959 Queen Street (M-F, 11-2) and Queen's POB 3 Parking Lot (Mondays 10:30-1).

They also do catering! 

Check out their Instagram page (@mamas.bento.hi) to see some of their offerings and menus!

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