Gogi Korean Kitchen — Restaurant in Knoxville

Opening week for the new Korean place that has filled the spot where Kaya was. Service is very good, though still learning. Staff seem very passionate about the new endeavor. We were immediately served water, banchan dishes, and a small bowl of brothy soup. They have Pepsi products. The menu is small for now, as they are in “soft open” mode. Staff say they expect it to evolve as they learn what people like and request. For example, it’s not indicated on menu, but you can request tofu in dishes. My suggestion was to bring in bean sprouts as an ingredient as I really missed them, both in dishes and as a side. They seem willing to experiment and make things work! Ownership is not the same as before and is also different than Q Korean BBQ out west. Keep in mind a lot of the menu is spicy by default. If you haven’t had Korean before, the japchae and bibimbop are safe and non-spicy. Kimchi side dish is spicy. The others were not (imo) though some do have a little sprinkle of chili pepper. We ordered dukbokki to start - pretty different from kaya’s version. Less sweet, comes with 2 boiled eggs and some fish cake. It was seasoned well and the fish was not overpowering. Quite filling actually. Would be good for a quick lunch. I had the japchae, which was a winner. A little dryer than the Kaya version, but also less oily. I love that Gogi has fresh sautéed shiitakes in their dishes too! Husband got the dolsot bibimbop, which was also very good, but do note the bowls they cook this in seem to retain heat for longer than before!! I was half done before he could do much more than nibble. The staff was sweet, did check to make sure he wasn’t unhappy with the dish. Both entrees were filling with a good portion of meat to vegetable and noodle or rice. This is something Kaya had struggled with in the last few years. Quality food, positive experience. I will definitely be back and look forward to them growing the menu as they get in a groove. The space has been renovated and is much more airy and open without the large cook top tables. The Korean music gives an upbeat vibe. They made the bar area really nice — it’s BYOB for now, but they are working on their...

Food - 2 Our appetizer and entrée came out together, which was disappointing. The appetizer wasn't cooked enough and was soggy. One of the appetizers even arrived later than the entrée. One entrée was supposed to be sizzling hot, but it wasn’t; I could grab the pot with my bare hand. The order came out wrong from the kitchen, but the servers noticed and sent it back, which took a long time. When it returned, it still came out wrong (missing the main ingredient), so we had to send it back again. We ordered a combo, so they brought out parts and charged us accordingly. We barely ate the soggy appetizer, yet we were still charged for it.

Service - 2 During our visit, I didn’t see anyone who looked like a manager, despite the restaurant being almost full. There were only three staff members attending to around 40-50 customers, which led to a chaotic experience. It seemed that appetizers and entrées were coming out from the kitchen at the same time and just sitting on the window, with not enough staff to check or run the food. This delay was likely why we received our appetizer and entrée together.

Quality - 2 The stone bowl entrée was supposed to arrive sizzling hot, but it didn’t. The side combo galbi was cold, likely from sitting on the window too long or being pre-made. The ddeokbokki was overly salty, and the only flavor was red pepper powder.

Overall - This wasn’t our first dining experience at this restaurant, and we’ve always had hit-or-miss experiences. Last time, the ddeokbokki was excellent, bringing back nostalgic memories of my mother country, but the kimchi jjigae was too watery, more like soup than stew.

People have said this restaurant is authentic, and we should try it, but I’m unsure now. I recommended this place to others recently, and I’m starting to regret it. People might excuse the issues as a result of how busy they were, but this is a restaurant, not a casual dinner invitation at someone’s house; professionalism and consistency are expected. I’m unsure if management or ownership has changed, but the quality seems to be declining. I don’t know if I want to return.

Well, at least the atmosphere...

PSA: Do NOT use the Groupon deal online ($10 for $20 worth of food). It is a scam. We used to purchase this voucher all the time and it really was such a great deal. There was no problem with it before. Unfortunately, the last two times we have gone to Gogi, this voucher never appears in our account. We even are given confirmation by Groupon that we bought it and that it went through, but then it just says "Order Processing" and the voucher is unavailable. The first time this happened, we wrote it off as a fluke, as the two nice male employees helped us receive the discount, even though the voucher QR code was not present. This second time, our waitress brought out the female owner/boss, who proceeded to tell us that she could not give us the discount that we purchased. I do understand this decision as there is no QR voucher code for them to scan, but the way the female owner/boss treated us was poor. She was patronizing and condescending. When we calmly explained the situation, she made sad faces at us and said "Awwwww" several times. We are so confused as we don't need pity? It was a really strange response to our situation and not professional. I informed her that her business should look into this as it has happened several times now to us and our friends. She just looked at us blankly and didn't agree. She also tried to insinuate that we were never given the discount before, even though we most certainly did. We are regulars at Gogi and remember the situation clear as day. I have to say that the food is wonderful, and the waiters/waitresses are great too. It just sucks because what was a pleasant evening turned sour after our interaction with the boss. Gogi, please do something about this! Please stop doing these deals with Groupon! Please believe your customers, especially those who give you their money time and time again, just to be...