Sul & Beans — Restaurant in Los Angeles

Moderately sized korean dessert cafe. When we came after lunch, it was pretty packed inside and there was a small line outside. The waiters call you in like a restaurant as spaces open up. But once inside it is similar to a fastfood place in that you go up to the counter and order food, get a buzzer, then when it rings you go back up to pick up your food. Also when you're done you return the trays to the counter. It was pretty packed so can be hard to fit a large group in.

The menu is mainly in Korean with a literal English translation, so might be hard to know what to get. They do mark the most popular items with stars. There was a fair amount of waiting: waiting to get in, waiting to order, waiting for food. The bingsoo is soft and creamy, similar to Taiwanese snow shaved ice, but instead of thin sheets of ice, it's more like lots of small grinded up pieces of ice. The one thing I do like is that they create multiple layers of ice and toppings. I think I have a slight preference for the Taiwanese snow shaved ice instead though.

GOOD Strawberry mochi bingsoo - Deliciously sweet and refreshing. Clearly my favourite. Had a good amount of strawberry, mochi, and some sort of creamy milk drizzled over it. Black Sesame bingsoo - Tasty, the powdered black sesame has a strong flavor. But didn't really like the powderiness.

MEH Injeolmi bingsoo - I'm not a fan of the roasted soybean powder that covers everything. I find it makes it a little too dry and powdery. Injeolmi toast - The chewy mochi inside is good, but the soybean powder makes it dry and powdery, and the bread was a little too dry and bready. Sweet potato toast - A subtle sweet potato flavor, but again not a huge fan of the dry and...

We stopped in here during rush hour but were assured we could order takeout. After opting for a chocolate banana bingsoo, we were promptly forgotten about and made to stand aimlessly around the front of the store like headless chickens, which in retrospect and upon further reflection I think must be used in the kitchen to create whatever foul, excrement-brown "sauce" was unceremoniously dumped atop our "meal." After almost 40 minutes, during which sumptuous-looking (but ultimately, I discovered, deceiving) bingsoo was brought out to at least a dozen customers dining in AND out, we were driven to the brink of exhaustion and insanity and flagged down the server who was fronting. Voila! We were handed a bag of venomous bananas, the aforementioned sauce, and underneath it a mountain of literal ice. I know it's called snow, but I hadn't dared to imagine the name was meant to be so literal...seriously, I took two bites and felt so sick I had to restrain myself from stuffing my face with ice until I passed out and hopefully woke the next day having forgotten my misery. Forget being forgotten about. Forget the frozen, immotile block of so-called cream. Forget even the haste with which we were pushed out onto the street. The food was so bad I cried. It was only a moment, but it happened and was probably recorded on video by the, for the record, immensely incompetent mall parking lot security team. (They tried and failed to direct the flow of traffic when they noticed my distress, then immediately gave up). In that moment, I lost my dignity; I can say that for certain. What I can't say is this: when even that is lost, what little of a human...

Heaven ... snow flakes from heaven ... that fell into a bowl ......

That is what this place provides! I like their injulmee and black sesame flavored bingsoo (shaved ice) more than any other ones. They are really nutty and somehow not overwhelming. They put little pieces of dduk (rice cakes) on top along with shaved almond pieces and dehydrated date pieces. All of these flavors and textures come together to make the perfect little bowl of dessert!

There is usually a line a little after supper time and on weekends but they have gotten a good system down so that you don't have to wait too long. You can also get their desserts to-go. They wrap them up nicely and even put them in an insulated bag with an icepack inside.

Parking is plentiful as the plaza has its own garage and several floors to park on. There restroom is usually pretty gross but it is quite forgettable as their desserts are just too perfect for anything else to matter. Service is pretty good and also quite fast considering how busy they are. Prices are not too bad and even on the cheap side if you compare to other shaved ice places.

I love this place and go back every...