Master HA Korean Restaurant — Restaurant in Los Angeles

TLDR: Crabs are meaty and sweet, service is wack. Parking: Street Waitlist: In-person only

3/5 overall, food was good but service was really lacking. Don't waste your time coming on the weekend.

Street parking. Arrived early and wrote our names down on the paper waitlist taped to the door. Although we arrived before open we were 8th on the list.

We waited outside by the door, and a staff member called names. Make sure to write your name clearly/legibly, because they had a very difficult time reading names. We were seated in about 10 minutes, but it was unclear how to order and who was our server. Once seated we were served water/corn husk tea. Weirdly there were many little flies/gnats that came around and even landed in my water glass more than once (I just gave up when the second one landed).

We needed to ask some questions regarding the menu (there are no detailed descriptions), so here's the summary.

What is the difference between the premium and large marinated crab? Premium is 5 crabs while large is 3. What is the difference between the uni bowl combo and live uni? And premium vs reg? Both are served with rice, but live is served in the shell. Premium is "better quality" uni.

So after that you mark what you'd like on the slip of paper and wait for someone to pick it up. This all took about 15 more minutes. After we "placed our order" we were served 3 side dishes--cabbage, radish and perilla leaf kimchi.

Thus far service was a disorganized at best and we were really unsure what to expect. In the end we were not served our food after an hour of waiting. During the time we were waiting, tables around us (many of whom were seated after us) were served their food. However none of the staff checked on us or seemed to think it was unusual that we were sitting at the empty table for over an hour.

We got up and went to the counter (people were literally paying and leaving that ordered after us!), and told the manager they forgot our order. A staff member came to our table, made excuses that the delay was due to the rush of people being seated-- not because they forgot out order, and we basically ordered a second time and our food was served in less than 20 minutes.

This should obviously be unacceptable service. We expressed our severe dissatisfaction, and the manager apologized and comped...

If you don’t get there early - be prepared to wait! There’s a line before they even open, social media definitely blew this place up.

Does it live up to the hype.. pretty much. It’s fresh flavorful and enjoyable! The marinated crabs are a must of course. Their crab size is definitely bigger than you’ll get elsewhere. I would skip the little bowls, like the uni mini bowl, not worth it to me. The raw marinated shrimp were actually my favorite. I’d order those over the crab if it came down to it. The Wagyu bowl, worth it! It was so good, even the leftovers the next day, meat was still so good! They give you all the sides and seaweed paper to enjoy with your meal/crab. I will say - raw marinated seafood is an acquired palate. Your first few bites will be enjoyable. But after a while, the continuous marinated soy flavor and the continuous mushy consistency of the crab meat, it becomes overwhelming. Having a soda or alcohol with your meal does help. The carbonation from soda helps refresh the palate here and there.

Service was fantastic! From being greeted and signing in our name. To getting our questions answered and menu items explained. And to the sit down portion. All aspects were top notch. They’re are so kind and sweet. We were continuously checked on throughout our entire meal.

Parking - it’s LA! You’ll have street parking. Metered parking. Garage structure parking. So it’s a pain to park in LA, but we were still able...

Oh my gosh I love this place. I didn’t grow up eating a lot of raw crab but my brother who lives in LA said it was really good and had come with his friend. It exceeded my expectations. Such high quality in tasted, presentation, the service, atmosphere. When our orders came, felt like the dishes were straight out of a Master Chef competition. Every dish was both aesthetic and delicious. I had the wagyu hand roll, we ordered the special beef stew, the marinated crab, and everyone please order the Uni Premium. You can ask how to eat the last dish (pour the quail egg, mix, and portion onto dried seaweed). So delightful. From the edible flowers, edible flake silver, amazing mix of sauce, to even the mini sink to wash your hands to the server showing photos on his phone for reference, it was top-notch. Also, I loved the details of the restroom (from the lighted mirror to the mouth wash, such a nice touch on the experience). The servers were so attentive. I had to step away for a call so by the time I came back my family had finished and some of the stew grew cold. Without us even asking, they noticed and came to reheat it. Sounds like a small thing but almost everywhere else I’ve gone to eat, we usually have to flag someone down. I left feeling very thankful and content. I can’t rave enough about Master Ha. I was visiting from DC and plan to come again the next...