Maru Korean Bistro — Restaurant in Fairfield

Our first time here. I read about this place on a fb group page months ago & finally had a chance to try it. Didnt even notice it here even though I frequently the area often. Its kindof in the corner and the sign is so small. Walking up my 1st impression was on no, they have the front door held open on purpose, I thought they must not have air conditioning, which for me is a hard pass! I will never pay to eat in an uncomfortable environment, did that once swore never again! I wouldnt sit & eat if it were too warm, even if the food is free lol. I mean it's not a pic-nic ya know. If a restaurant cant afford AC then they need to close. I digress. It was actually fairly cool & not uncomfortable BUT when you have to fight off flies at your table & I mean constantly then I may or may not go back because I find that extremely frustrating & well for lack of a better term, kinda ghetto. So the door being open is an actual issue. Also worries me a little about how many flies are landing on the food in the kitchen. Yicks! However, the food was all delicious. Very flavorful, very tender and all the tiny sides dishes were yummy. Yes,it is a tad overpriced & they charge 2.00 extra for the Hot Stone which I think is hilarious but they do offer refills on all the tiny sides they give you & that makes up for it I guess. Service was fast & super friendly but not real helpful. I just feel when they ask & find it's your 1st time, they should offer suggestions on what is really good or maybe what is most popular. It would have been helpful. Other than the flies, they dont wipe the edges of the tables. I got something sticky on my hand while we adjusted our table because it was sliding all around & then I watched several tables get cleaned & they only wiped the top & well the hand should also run down the sides of the table top?? Food & people can get messy, things spill etc. I was a little grossed out by touching the edge of the table & having something sticky all over my hand. Lol but I always carry hand sanitizer. If it weren't for the flies, I would totally just order take out in the future. But now I am going to have to check it out every time I drive through & see if the front door being open is a regular occurrence. I just really dont like seeing them land on my food at the table & I know in the back they aren't fighting them off like we were at the table. You know what I am saying. Oh and the bathrooms are NOT well kept. I didn't go but my wife did to wash her hands & she told me that I wouldn't want to use it, so 🤷. Sorry the pictures were not taken when they first brought the food, I forgot. Again, it was all really delicious. Not the best I have ever had but flavorful and not overcooked which is important when it comes to meat. I think the issues they have could be corrected with...

We came to have late lunch on a Saturday afternoon. We were in the area and were hungry, so I did a quick search for restaurants nearby on Yelp and Mary Korean Bistro popped up. They are one of the newer restaurants in Fairfield. The restaurant was not busy, so we were seated right away. There was a nice ambiance, kind of a trendy contemporary feel. They give you a physical menu or you can scroll through the tablet at each table where you can order your food or the server can physically take your order. Like most Korean restaurants, once you order, they bring out a number of banchan (side dishes) to get you eating right away.

Food (5/5 stars): big portion, great plating/presentation. BBQ Special Spicy Pork: came out on a sizzling plate. Great flavor and not too spicy. Bulgogi Bibimbap: good flavors, not too sweet or salty. Nice presentation. You can opt to have it in a sizzling hot stone bowl for $2, but we opt for just the regular bowl. Spicy Seafood Bibimbap: great flavors, not too spicy. Can opt for the sizzling hot stone bowl as well. -Korean Fried Chicken - Honey Butter flavor: the chicken is boneless which is not my favorite as I like bone-in chicken so it is less dry and more flavorful/juicy. The honey butter flavor was not too strong to me, but tasted good overall. They did a good job with the crispiness of the batter. Banchan: typical Banchan dishes at most Korean restaurants. The initial portion is pretty small in case you don’t like them. Once you ask for refills of your favorite ones or all the dishes, they increase the portions.

Service (5/5 stars): server was very attentive and helpful.

The prices are little high for lunch (not sure if they have a cheaper lunch menu on the weekdays), but portion size is big, so most people will have something to take home, especially if you fill up on the banchan. If you have leftovers to take home, they package them for you in the kitchen in a microwaveable plastic box with the top sealed in plastic wrap which is very nice to prevent spillage and no smells in your car. We had a great experience here and look forward to coming...

Maru

Packed house on a Friday. Seating is very limited Seems to be no communication between the waitresses/servers I was asked 3 times if I had been helped before I was seated. It’s good to be attentive but it can come across a bit annoying.

Menu is small and limited but looks to be nice enough.

There are appetizers, soups, galbi mains, bbq mains, and other assorted dishes.

Alcohol choices are limited but to be expected from a “bistro”.

I had a question about the different galbi the server only knew about one and not the others. Which is such a miss if you’re going to be serving food and have any opinions on the other dishes to recommend.

Banchan is amazing. Changed almost nightly. Good reading to come back. Corn cheese hits very good. Nice and cheesy and not overwhelming :)

The seafood pancake is nice. It does fall apart very easily, but the flavors are there and it’s packed with plenty of vegetables and seafood.

I chose the Rose Galbi as my main and the visual presentation and aroma did not disappoint. The flavor profile was complex and yet at the same time sublime. A nice little kick of spice made it very nice.

I give this new restaurant 5/5. I can’t wait to come back and...