Doma Korean Restaurant — Restaurant in Rancho Cordova

Cross-posting a review I shared on Yelp on 9/15/2024:

My friends and I just stopped by this afternoon because we were going to be in the area anyway, and had planned to get dinner anyway but hadn't decided where. But, we all like Korean food, and Doma popped up on our search with good reviews. It definitely lives up to those reviews.

We drove separately; my friends arrived maybe 5 minutes before I did, and by the time I got there they had already been seated. I don't mind having a wait time, but, that was a nice bonus not to have one. The hostess was friendly when I walked in; she was immediately ready to offer to seat me, but I let her know I was meeting friends who were already seated.

Our server was attentive but not pushy, for example when we needed quite a bit of time too look over the menu before we were ready to order. Their menu has a good selection of choices. The server was very helpful with any questions we had, like whether a dish was vegetarian (one of my friends is vegetarian), and what the name of a specific banchan was (it happens to be my favorite but I don't see it offered very often at other places). And speaking of banchan, they gave us quite an assortment: fish cakes, spicy pickled cucumber, cabbage, kimchi, bean sprouts, rapeseed flower (yuchae), japchae, and broccoli; not sure if I am forgetting any. Our server checked in now and then to see if we needed anything else (refills, napkins, etc). At the end of our meal, after we got the check, they brought each of us a complimentary cup of iced plum tea.

Aside from the banchan and plum tea mentioned above, we ordered: Beef bulgogi combo (bulgogi, steamed rice, tofu soup with your choice of beef, pork, seafood, or veggies). My friend ordered this and chose seafood for his soup. Pork bulgogi combo (same as above, but pork instead of beef). I ordered this and chose veggies for my soup. Jjajangmyeon (black bean sauce noodles). Hot green tea

Everything was delicious. Portions were good and prices were fair.

The restaurant was very clean with good natural lighting from the windows.

Will definitely...

I wanted to share my unique experience: I came in at the end of my work day, with a slight asthmatic cough. I was dog tired and just wanted a hot soup to take home. I was afraid people would think I was sick, or judge me for not being able to eat spicy food. But I was instantly greeted and made to feel at home by their warm staff.

This is actually my second visit, and they completely remembered all of my preferences from my first visit. They noticed my cough, and offered me mildly warm tea (they remembered I can’t do piping hot or cold) and remembered the side dishes I liked most, and even that I was vegetarian! I felt really bad but asked for something non spicy as to not irritate my throat, and their kind waitress immediately knew what to recommend and double checked how I’d like to customize my meal (she guessed everything right!). There was no judgement, and customer service was absolutely above and beyond.

I definitely recommend this restaurant. Clean and calm ambiance, immediate individual attention, and warm friendly staff all around. AMAZING food (goes without saying!). Big appetizer, soup, meat, noodles, rice, drinks, etc selection. Not sure if I saw this wrong, but lunch specials are only $9.99..!? (You can’t get that price anywhere.. even fast food!) I also saw a few families enjoying their meals, including one family who was sitting outside with their dog. Pet-friendly bonus :)

Stellar food + great service = ULTIMATE experience. Thank you, Doma, for taking care...

We came on a Friday night at 6:30 and there were plenty of tables. We were seated pretty fast. Lots of parking too. Small interior but there's space to accommodate bigger parties if needed. Pretty clean interior but would recommend a changing table in at least one of the bathroom.

Jjamppong: the spiciness was just right for me but a little spicier for the others at my table. I love the assortment of seafood that it comes with. I wish there were a little more noodles to the dish. 4.5/5 Ton katsu: crispy, tender, juicy but I would order something that's actually a korean dish rather than a Japanese dish. Pretty standard katsu you would get at a Japanese restaurant. 3.5/5 Galbi: delicious, flavorful, finger licking good. Love the fat on some of the pieces . Very juicy, not too sweet but just the right amount of sweetness. Would order again 5/5 Jiajang myoen: very thick sauce, noodles kind of stuck together but very flavorful, lots of onions in the bowl. Give it a good mix and you will have a good noodle dish 4/5

One of the staff accidentally placed another tables food at our table and we were wondering what dish it was. Turns out it was a udon dish. They quickly realized their mistake and gave it back to the rightful owner.

Before the meal was over, there was a complimentary refresher tea. Sweet and cleanse my pallet!

I'd come back if I'm craving some good...