Bonchon Pasadena — Restaurant in Pasadena

First time ever leaving a review but my recent experience compelled me to write one.

Overall, the food and service at this branch were mediocre at best. For instance, their "Bulldak" (fiery chicken in loose translation) was nothing like what I tried in Korea;, and it tasted as if it was prepared by some Korean exchange student amateurishly imitating his mom's recipe. The dish was also way overpriced for the ingredients used.. Wings were okay but varied in size - some of the drumsticks were the size of quails; I may be biased, but I personally think the one in Ellicott City is better than the ones I tried in Hanover and Pasadena.

Service wise, this branch either needs to revamp its strategy or overhaul the staff. I went on a Sunday (there were only about 4-5 parties at the time), and it took me 10 minutes to even see my server. Can't tell what personal stuffs he was dealing with at the time, but he also came back and had to reconfirm my orders because he was "distracted." Not trying to make a big fuss out of it, but problems kept compounding as I constantly had to correct (and ask for) things such as wrong side dishes and getting an extra spoon. When I was half way through the meal, he handed me a check and said "no rush, just pay whenever you're ready." Not sure if this bothers anyone, but I found that rude (and made me wonder why I still need to tip for less than mediocre service).

Bottom line: I'll still visit Bonchon but I would definitely stay away from this branch unless they get their...

I attended the Grand Opening of BonChon in Pasadena. BonChon is a world-wide franchise that specializes in a unique kind Korean chicken and a wide variety of other Asian dishes. If you’re thinking, “Ugh, not another chicken joint,” hold on. It’s nothing like the KFC and Boston Chicken types of chicken dishes that we’ve been used to for decades. BonChon offers are two seasoning preparations of chicken, spicy and garlic-soy. We had both, as well as a couple of other dishes. The chicken wings were very meaty and juicy, and their size didn’t require cooking to the point of losing tenderness. The skin remains on, but it seems impossibly thin and it’s pleasantly crunchy. The spicy wings had a medium kick upon the first bite, and the flavor of the meat came through immediately thereafter. The garlic-soy wings featured the same skin crunchiness, and they were flavorful without the spiciness. With the wings, small pickled radish cubes are served. Slightly sweet, they are cold and very refreshing after a few bites of the chicken. Chicken sliders were delicious, with the boneless chicken being topped with thinly sliced cucumber and shredded cabbage slaw. Pork buns were soft, slightly sweet, and tangy. I don’t know what kind of sauce tops the meat, but don’t miss it. The staff was attentive, and there is a full bar. We’re...

We went there tonight about 730-800pm. Not busy at all. Maybe 5 other people dining in. We sat right away and were given menus. We ordered drinks, took about 5 minutes. Ordered French fries and two combos or chicken. That took about 40-50 minutes. Mind you, the restaurant is still empty. When ordering, we had to repeat ourselves a handful of times because the waitress just did not seem to understand. Fine, whatever. While we’re waiting for our food, we got checked on ONCE; and that’s probably only because I was watching the waitresses just hang around. That one time the waitress checked on us she said “I’m sorry it’s taking so long, we have a new person in the back” - while everyone who ordered pick up is getting their food. The people who ordered AFTER us got their food first as well. We’re sitting and eating. Clearly finished. The waitress comes back and ask if we need boxes, we said we’ll take one. We can see her just hanging around. It takes about 5-10 minutes to get box. A to go box. Finally she gets the check and comes back with two boxes. We pay immediately so we don’t have to wait any longer. AMAZINGLY she took the payment right away and came back within minutes. Service is HORRIBLE. Bon Chon is normally packed, no wonder why this particular...