Baekban 1988 — Restaurant in Calgary

I’m a big fan of Korean food and have tried many Korean restaurants before—some were excellent, some just average. I decided to try this place after seeing an Instagram reel that showed a delicious-looking crab soup. That’s what brought me here.

When I looked at the menu, I couldn’t find any soup mentioning crab. I asked the waitress and she told me it was dish #10. Even though the description didn’t mention crab, I trusted her recommendation and ordered it. Unfortunately, the soup had no crab at all. Instead, it was filled with tofu, with only a few clams and squid. The broth itself was very plain and lacked flavor, which was disappointing.

My friend ordered dish #1, the grilled pork. Taste-wise, it was excellent (10/10). However, the portion size was very small compared to the price. Paying $22 for just a handful of meat felt unreasonable and left us unsatisfied.

The last and biggest letdown was the rice. It was extremely dry, so dry that I almost choked on it. Honestly, it was the worst rice I’ve ever had in my life.

Overall, this visit was a disappointing experience. While the grilled pork tasted great, the lack of crab in the soup, small portions, and very poor rice quality make it hard for me to recommend this place, especially...

Loved this place! We went into Dragon City Mall actually to eat somewhere else that was closed, so checked Baekban 1988 out, and I have never been so happy the restaurant I wanted to eat at closed. This was such a cozy experience, the atmosphere was humble and homey, the service was excellent, the food was absolutely phenomenal, in my opinion, best Korean food I’ve had in the city. By the time we left the restaurant was full and people were waiting to get in, so I feel that’s indicative of how good the restaurant is. Would highly recommend, and I can’t...

We had the spicy pork bulgogi (Jeyuk Bokkeum) and the traditional Korean soup (Jangteo Gukbap), and both were really good. It felt like proper Korean food — just like what you’d eat in Korea.

The inside of the restaurant was cozy and filled with traditional Korean decorations, which made the experience even nicer. The side dishes were also super tasty! I heard they change every day, so I’d love to come back and try more next time.

If you’re looking for real Korean comfort food, this place is definitely...