Oken — Restaurant in Oakland

I've been here three times now and each time has been a great experience. The food is outstanding, we've tried almost every dish on the menu and they're all phenomenal. Some of my favorites are the baechu salad, the heirloom tomato salad, the house somen (with tomato and kimchi broth) and the oxtail jjigae. Everything is inventive but somewhat familiar and everything tastes really fresh. The restaurant is very comfortable and cool with great lights and I love all of the pottery and serving dishes. The drinks and wine list are great, some mocktail options would be a nice addition but they have great non-alcoholic options and even an NA wine. We have never managed to save room for dessert but I look forward to trying those soon.

The staff is very attentive and the pacing of the meal is always thoughtful and effective. Definitely a busy spot so make a reservation ahead of time and you may end up sharing a big table with others but it all works out.

Really glad this spot is in the neighborhood and I look forward to...

This restaurant is kickass. Big fan of OK's Deli so when I was pretty excited when I heard he was opening a dinner restaurant. Sort of a fancy Korean/Japanese fusion restaurant, you eat family style, we had 7 dishes for 4 people, (1 starter, 4 appetizers, 2 entrees) and 2 desserts. That was the right amount of food. Everything was amazing, super high quality, every little piece of it. Kalbi short ribs, Chicken noodle soup, Fried Chicken app, a beef tartare Onigiri, the salad, all crazy good. Service similarly super attentive, friendly. This place is going to be impossible to get into very soon,...

I've had the pleasure of dining at Oken twice now, and both experiences were excellent. The host and servers were very welcoming, attentive, and knowledgeable. You really feel like you're taken care of here. All of the food is delicious and beautifully presented. I especially loved both the baechu and tomato salads, maitake tempura, crispy potato, and ganjang fried chicken. And whatever you do, you must save room for the chocolate cake! Looking forward to returning and trying the gochujang glazed trout and...