Sarang Kitchen — Restaurant in Toronto

Sarang Kitchen is a short walk from Dufferin Station near Paradise Theatre on Bloor St W.

As soon as you enter the restaurant there is someone waiting in order to take you to the seating area towards the back of the restaurant.

I went on a Saturday around 5:00PM and there was no table seating available but they did have bean bag seats so I had to sit there. The bean bags are comfortable but definitely takes some getting used to since they are bean bags so there is no back support; which makes getting up and sitting back down awkward.

Ordering: You need to scan the QR code in order to look at the menu there is no physical menu. The menu is well written and features pictures of the food as well. The staff was also very friendly and was able to recommend options to me.

Cost: I paid around $50 (just for myself, there was two of us so total bill of $100) including tax for my main, splitting half an appetizer, tips included. Also when you pay the bill you have to pay as the table not individually; which I found was sort of weird unless I misunderstood the server who gave us the bill.

Wait Time: Did not check if there was reserved seating I just walked in. I was accommodated immediately but again I had to sit on bean bag chairs instead of seats at an actual table so reserve if possible.

The Food: My friends and I got the K Snacks Platter as an appetizer, and I got the Grilled Chicken with Sarang Rice Ball as my main.

The K Snacks Platter had dumplings, seaweed rolls, squid rings, fries, onion rings, tempura prawns and two dipping sauces (might've had one of the dipping bases as some type of yuzu since it was very citrusy). The dumplings were great, the fries were crispy and seasoned well, the squid rings were juicy, the onion rings were good, the seaweed rolls was probably the worst of the bunch (I just didn't like the mix of flavors within the seaweed roll, really felt out of contrast with the other K Platter Snacks).

For my main, I got the Grilled Chicken with Sarang Rice Ball Maaate style and with no cheese. It was fantastic! One of the best dishes I've had! It had a very stew type of consistency and had thinly sliced potato, onion, chicken, carrots and more. It was great! The rice ball mixed in well with the grilled chicken. My only complaints about this dish are 1. I wish I got it spicy instead of Maaate as I think the heat really would've added to the dish; and 2. I wish there wasn't so much seaweed on the rice ball, as it didn't contrast well flavor wise into the stew. Other than those small hiccups the dish was fantastic, I truly loved it!

This was the most quite possibly one of the worst experiences I've ever had at a restaurant. Walked in and saw a sign that said please wait to be seated. So we waited for a long time, and the waiting area in the front is quite small so many people walked in and it started getting tight for space. Then, after 25 minutes of just standing there, a server appears from the back with with clipboard and asks if my name is on the waitlist. I said no because you have a sign that says please wait to be seated. She finally seated us at a 4 person table with two other customers who were already seated and next to a large group on the other side. If you walked by, you would have thought we were all part of the same group. We sat there for about 10 minutes before I asked to be moved to another table. They moved us and then we waited again for someone to take our order. For such a small restaurant, the staff seem extremely unorganized and while they were trying their best, they were overwhelmed as there was no clear leader in the front of the house. They finally took our order, and at this point it was about an hour and change since we walked in. We got our food about 15 minutes later or so. We ordered the Sarang Platter and it didn't take long for things to go bad. I took a bite out of a chicken drum and saw that it was a little pink inside. No biggie, it happens, so I decided to take a piece of fried chicken thigh, and this one looked ever more pink. I called over the waitress and showed it to her as I was concerned with it being chicken. She took it back to kitchen, and brought it back and said that the chef said they cook it for 6 minutes and that its fully cooked and that sometimes the blood of the chicken makes it look that way. It was so upsetting to look at that I lost my appetite and just ate french fries for the rest of the meal. My coke zero never came so I had to walk up and ask for it near the end of my meal. So I ended up paying 70$ for chicken, fries, and a fried squid, 30$ for a ramen bowl, and 3 dollars for a soda for a grand total of 117$. When I went to pay, there is a sticker on the card swiper that says "tipping is discouraged" as they have a no tipping policy but the waitress handed me the machine with the tipping option on the screen lol so bizarre

The food is quite messy and saucy so then we went to the bathrooms in the back to wash our hands, and there was no soap and and an empty bottle of hand sanitizer. So we just washed our hands with water and got out of there.

Overall, a very unpleasant experience with the service and the food. It is not cheap by any means. There is a Popeyes a 2 minute walk down the road that serves Halal chicken and it would have cost me half the price and I would have had my food in minutes. Won't return to this restaurant and wouldn't reccomend it to anyone I know.

Advice to owners: You should consider hiring a manager. Someone competent who can manage the front of the house to make sure guests are looked after properly and that bathrooms are stocked up....

I had the pleasure to dine here during their soft opening last night. I was greeted with a warm and welcoming smile. I’ll separate the review in the following themes: 1) ambience/vibe, 2) service, 3) food, and 4) conclusion.

The ambience was very welcoming. The place appeared a bit small but there was plenty of seating. There were tables with seats, booths, and even BEAN BAGS! Sarang Kitchen strives to make an inclusive space for everyone. They have a multi-sensory room to help people relax when they feel overstimulated or anxious. They also have a shelf full of sensory boxes with items that promote relaxation and reduce stimulation. Example of items include noise-cancelling headphones, fidget items, and a weighted blanket. They also have a board at the back that asks a question, and the top answers receive a voucher. The question changes monthly, and this month the question asked what inclusion means to us. I loved that addition to the restaurant because it facilitates self-reflection, and a lot can be learned when we pause and reflect on our beliefs and values.

The service was great. Peter was my server and he was very friendly. Jennifer, the owner, also came to check in on us as well. They were very personable and easy to have a conversation with. I didn’t feel rushed to finish my food as well.

My party of 4 (including myself) had the Sarang Platter, which came with 2 choices of chicken (bone-in/boneless), tornado fries, choices of sauce x4, fried whole squid, cabbage coleslaw and pickled radish. We underestimated the portion size because even with 4 people… we still had leftovers! The food, overall, was delicious. We had boneless chicken and it was juicy and tender. The sauces were great. I recommend Good as Gold (black truffle sauce) and Sweet As (sweet and spicy sauce). The latter wasn’t that spicy btw. Lastly, it was a lot of fried food so it could be heavy on the stomach. However, the cabbage coleslaw and pickled radish that were refillable really helped with the heavy platter. Overall, I recommend the Sarang Platter to share amongst your group!

I loved the story, mission, and values of Sarang Kitchen. That was one of the reasons why I wanted to check it out. I love that they are bringing their experience and knowledge working with individuals who have Autism… and creating a space that is inclusive for everyone, including those who may be on the spectrum. I love that tipping is not included and that they pay their employees a liveable wage. I will be coming back again to try the 떡볶이 (Ddeokbokki, Korean Spicy Rice Cake) in...