Cho Dang Village - Carrollton — Restaurant in Carrollton

I used to consider Cho Dang one of the best Korean restaurants in the city due to their excellent food and service. Even my father, a Korean man who is quite strict when it comes to judging food, thought that Cho Dang was very tasty. However, I've noticed a distinct dip in the quality (and consistency) of the food and especially the quality of the service ever since the restaurant changed owners. I still think it's worth going to Cho Dang for a meal because of the food alone, but I would suggest going to Musiro (another restaurant close by that also sells traditional Korean food) instead if good service is important to you.

To elaborate on the bad service: most of my gripes with the restaurant are because of the inattentive waiters. I went to Cho Dang 2 days ago with two of my friends at around 8 PM. We were seated quickly but the waiters stopped paying attention to our table after they gave us the menus; I had to wave at this one gentleman (the only person who was really looking around - I think he might have been the owner) after around 10 minutes in order for my friends and I to order our food even though not all the tables were full at the time. After we received our food, it took a very long time for anyone to come by and refill water even after the cup had been emptied. Normally when this happens I look directly at the waiters and try to make eye contact so I can let them know I need something, but none of the waiters were really looking. In the end, I ended up pouring myself a cup of the barley tea that's meant for the rice.

I did want to specifically mention one waitress who I thought was quite disparaging and/or rude - I never got her name but she was an older woman who had glasses and a bob cut. My friends and I all ordered tofu soup and when she was handing us our soup, she stared me down and slowly repeated the word "kimchi" a couple of times when I asked for clarification on which specific kimchi tofu soup she was putting down on the table... yes, I know what kimchi is, I'm asking because we all ordered different kimchi soups with different spice levels, okay!! It honestly wasn't a big deal and I wouldn't have mentioned it if that's the only thing that happened. However, my father, mother, and their work colleagues also had issues with this same woman when they went to Cho Dang yesterday for dinner... and unfortunately, their experience with her was much worse than mine. Because my father and mother came with colleagues who were not very familiar with Korean food and drinks, my father asked the waitress for both water and barley tea in case the work colleagues didn't like the taste of the barley tea. This waitress told my dad something along the lines of "That will be too much work. I'll give you diluted barley tea instead." After they had received the diluted barley tea, my dad later asked her for some normal, undiluted barley tea, but the waitress said that she had already given them barley tea (a lie, she had given them diluted tea that was little more than slightly flavored water) and REFUSED TO SERVICE THEM. The request wasn't exorbitant at all and there was no reason for her to turn down the request. I believe that the attitude of this waitress is a huge problem and I feel that it's important for other potential customers to know that this is the level of service they might receive if they choose to dine at Cho Dang.

Cho Dang was a great restaurant in the past and it has the makings of a great restaurant in its future; as of right now, however, I find it harder and harder to justify going to Cho Dang over other restaurants like Musiro, Maht Gaek, and Ddong Ggo when the food and especially service are both compromised. I'm giving it a pretty negative score of 2 stars, but I do so with the hopes that the issues I and my family have with the restaurant will be addressed...

Looking for the best soon tofu soup in Dallas? This is THE spot! Not only that they have amazing soon tofu, they also have your other typical Korean dishes like galbi, bibimbap, etc.

I always pass by the restaurant but was never hungry enough to try it, until this summer. The smell outside is phenomenal and always attracts me. They have a big menu, and the second I saw Korean ahjummas serving, I knew this place was legit. I love the variety of side dishes, and they gave us two sets for a group of 4. They also included some barley tea on the side.

I got their fish egg soon tofu + galbi combo, seafood pajeon, and my boyfriend got the bibimbap and bulgogi combo. It just seems like a better option, especially how it's only $23 for two dishes. The fish egg soon tofu came with so much fish egg inside, and they give you a raw egg to add in so you can adjust how much you wanted it to be cooked. The spice level was perfect, and they didn't give you a small cup of rice like other places. The rice came in this big metal bowl with a wood base which makes more sense to me because I like to scoop the soup and add it to the bowl to make it not spill.

Their seafood pajeon is my absolute favorite! I've been trying to find a restaurant that makes it similar to this one restaurant I ate at in college, but nobody makes the batter like it until Cho Dang Village. It was crunchy, filled with different seafood (squid, shrimps, mussels, etc) and green onion. Dipping a piece into the sauce and eating it with rice and some kimchi brings me back to my university days. I didn't finish all my food because the soon tofu was enough to fill me up, so I had extra rice + galbi to bring home.

We came in around 3 PM so it wasn't too packed, but they did have some private rooms filled up. We got seated right away and the food only took 15 mins to come out. There's a button to ring for service but we didn't need to until the end when the restaurant became packed. Free refills on the water and barley tea, plus leftovers for dinner. I'd highly recommend this place if you're looking for authentic comfort Korean dishes. And yes, I do prefer this place MUCH more for soon tofu compared to...

Hands down my favorite Korean restaurant. I can't believe I've walked by this place for this long before ever stepping inside. It's located near the very back of the H-Mart plaza, on the left of where Cafe Brown Sugar (TomTom) was. Between two people, we got....

Mixed Seafood Pancake ($14.95): One of the best pancakes I've had! Cho Dang doesn't play around - they loaded this with squid and it wasn't too oily like others have been. We devoured this! Seriously, it's amazing.

Two Combo Specials Beef Bulgogi + Soy Bean Paste Tofu Soup ($16.95): This soup is EVERYTHING. It was my first time having Soy Bean Soup, and it did not disappoint. It was extremely rich in flavor and it was a nice change from the soups that I usually get. If you're wondering what it's like compared to normal Korean soup, it's sweeter. The bulgogi was mediocre - probably wouldn't get this again. The soup was better than the meat, which I rarely ever say.

Korean BBQ Ribs + Beef tofu Soup ($19.95): If you know me, you know that I love Kalbi. The size of the meats in the Combo Special is a bit small, but I didn't really mind because I was mostly focused on the soup! I'm not sure if I would get any combos next time actually - I think I'll only get the soups!

Other notes: Other Yelpers were correct, the rice is perfect. Banchan was good Definitely want to try the Nak-Ji-Soo next time!

Lastly, the service was great. Our waiters came to check on us frequently, and the food came out quickly! Cho Dang Village will probably be my go-to spot for...