Kiwa Korean cuisine restaurant — Restaurant in Winnipeg

First time here; I used to frequent a small latenite restaurant when touring Edmonton near Whyte Ave. called 'Steel Wheels' that has an amazing kimchi soup... Decided to check out this place near where I am staying in hopes of finding a similar dish and was not disappointed!

The whole place is simple, cute, and clean (including the washrooms!) ... The servers were all masked and they clearly take their cleanliness seriously--covered spoons even!

I got the (pork) kimchi jjigae, and an order of their yum yum mandu (crispy pork dumplings in Korean sweet and spicy sauce).. and a can of Canada Dry ginger ale. The kimchi jjigae was nearly identical to the kimchi soup I was used to; a rich and spicy broth with kimchi, green onion, tofu, glass noodles (about the size of spaghetti noodles, but clear and with an average semi-firm texture - never had them in the other kimchi soup, but they were good) and pork --the pork was a little thinner and just simply less in terms of quantity than the other soup I've had elsewhere, but still tender and delicious! The soup came bubbling hot in a black stone bowl and accompanied by a small bowl of rice and 3 sides--kim chi (spicy fermented cabbage-their's is not overly salty as many are and not too spicy), seaweed salad (seaweed in a sweet/spicy sauce), and cooked, seasoned potatoes.

Every dish was delicious and service was fast, friendly, and attentive. I went around 7:30pm on a monday night, and had my order on my table by 7:42 and out by 8:14. For the dumplings (10 I blelieve) and the large bowl of soup, plus rice and sides, it came to around $35+tip. Not cheap, but not crazy for the quality and I had some leftover dumplings, rice etc.

The servers were VERY polite, helpful when asking questions about dishes / pronunciations, and checked on myself and the other guests' experience frequently (but not too much either!). It was evident there were returning customers the servers recognized that joined after me..

The team is also incredibly efficient; everything is brought out swiftly on a rolling cart, so not only are they not busting their backs with trays, it doesn't take multiple trips or servers to bring full orders, or things like boiling hot soups and tabletop korean bbqs straight to your table. And, when 3 guests completed their meal and left, both servers and another staff member came out with a cart, not a word was said, and they bussed, cleaned, wiped, sanitized, straightened out the table, and wheeled the cart off in silence in LITERALLY 11 SECONDS. As someone who has worked in the hospitality and service industry for years, I was mind blown by the efficiency...

Overall, delicious food, fabulous service and a wonderful experience. Highly recommend!! I'm excited to go with a friend or two and try some of the larger meals designed to be shared! Will update if I...

Authentic Korean restaurant with a modern feel.

Order: yum yum chicken, sirloin and pork belly (full orders each) bbq- rice, side dish, soup, included, and cold noodle ( Mul Naeng-Myeon). My Korean friend ordered all in Korean so I didn't know the names. Soju.

Location: Pembina Village Shopping Centre not hard to find. Nice place, ample parking, visible name and large sign. It isn't tucked away. Fantastic. 5/5

Customer Service: greeted by some very friendly and hospitable staff. The lady who served us was very nice and attentive. Even when we leave, all said good byes. Great service, positive vibe, no attitude. 5/5

Value: Not sure because my generous friend paid for the meal. But from the menu, it looks like any typical korean restaurant price. N/A

TASTE: The yum yum chicken was indeed yum yum. Crispy exterior encapsulating a tender, succulent well seasoned chicken wing. All lightly tossed in a crimson sweet garlic spiced sauce finished with tiny bits of green onion to enhance the experience. Never fails. Korean fried chicken is great. The only issue was the batter seemed a little too thick compared to previous korean fried chicken I've sampled but not enough to invalidate what is an tasty bite.

BBQ - very fresh vegetables and Bandhan. The kimchi was too mild for me but I understand it is to suit all palates. My favorite was the seaweed salad. Tender seaweed blanketed by a spicy sweet sauce. It would be perfect if less sauce was used but not a big a deal. The potato was the least to be desired, not my cup of tea, again inconsequential.

The sirloin was tender and not salty. Definitely required the bean paste to amplify taste and may be a bit of the sesame oil, if one prefers. The Perfect bite is wrapping the crisp cool lettuce around the flame seared beef, grilled onion and a smear of sauce. A very balanced combination. Nonetheless, I would have preferred some sort of salt on the side as I do enjoy eating grilled beef on its own. Perhaps this is the way to keep the beef from being too salty when the meat is dipped in the savory bean paste.

Pork belly, crispy and fatty, it slowly melts in your mouth as you chew the leaner meat away. Goes exceptionally well soju.

The miso soup was full of ingredients such as green onion, tofu and zucchini. Very hearty and heart warming feeling upon drinking it.

Cold noodle to finish the meal. The combination of the vinegar and mustard added subtle hints of flavor without being overbearing. Great palate cleanser after an albeit greasy meal (grilled pork belly). Again balance being a very noticeable theme.

4/5

Overall, I enjoyed this...

edit recently went back. The bulgogi soup was exceptionally sweey. Not sure if they changed cooks? The food was a 4 and not a 5... They have removed a number of items since my original review which I was sad about.

-- Did the Korean BBQ. It's an interesting experience, but all my guests agreed that the bulgogi soup item was a better bet. Do the Korean bbq as an experience, fun to do once anyway.

The service was very friendly, helpful and patient, but with minor communications issue due to a language barrier. The utensils are wrapped in paper. They are actually silver chopsticks instead of wooden ones. The spoon head is wrapped as well. They seem to be very good with cleanliness. We ordered the soup. Yuk Gai Tang $16.50 and Gamja-Tang ($12.95). It came served with 3 different sides and rice. Was told the sides were unlimited refills, we just had to ask. That was nice because at other Korean restaurants I feel like that's true, but they never actually say it to us. If you are a first timer you might not realize. Seats were comfortable and well spaced. Atmosphere was clean and higher end than the last 2 Korean restaurants I had been to. I am not including Korean sushi restaurants, I put that in a different category. The soups show 2 peppers on the menu. They were spicy, but not too bad. We preferred the Gamja-Tang for broth, but I liked what was inside the Yuk Gai Tang more. However, if you do not have the Gamja Tang you won't know what you're missing broth wise, so you can be in happy ignorance because the Yuk Gai Tang still tastes really good. Try the jujube tea! Its pricey at $4.50 for a small cup, but its a more unique drink that's not served everywhere. The prices are a bit higher here, but its also a lot more upscale. You are paying to be in a better environment, and I'm perfectly ok with that if they...