ILCHA — Restaurant in San Francisco

ILCHA stands out as one of the better Korean restaurants in San Francisco. In all honesty, I am not a huge fan of Korean food in the city mainly because the food can be a hit or a big miss. I have been to a number including Brothers and Han Il Kwan, which are some of the other better options here.

When my friend and I arrived at the restaurant we ordered their raw shrimp marinated in soy sauce + egg yolk on top of seasoned rice (간장새우 + 계란 밥), korean fried chicken (후라이드 치킨), and “army stew” (부대찌개).

The raw shrimp marinated in soy sauce is delicious. If you like ganjang gaejang (게장), or raw crab marinated in soy sauce, you are sure to like this dish as well. I thought it was cute how they bring out plastic gloves so you can eat the raw shrimps with your hand. If you have ever had Korean styled raw crab (soy sauce based or spicy), you traditionally eat this dish with your hands as well. Just think of it as comfort food that is “finger licking” good. 😋

ILCHA serves the raw shrimp marinated dish with a side of egg on top of crushed dried seaweed and rice drizzled in sesame oil (계란 밥). While you may eat it however you wish, I would recommend to break the yolk and mix it with the rice for a creamy texture. Then add the soy sauce from the shrimp with the rice so your rice mixture is creamy and savory.

The korean fried chicken is seasoned quite well. If you are like me, you can tell the fried chicken is good when you do not need the sauces or the sides to be satisfied.

The budae jjigae (부대찌개), which is otherwise known as “army stew” was disappointing compared to the other dishes. The soup lacks spiciness and flavor. Perhaps the recipe has been adjusted to be better suited for individuals who can not handle spice but the soup reminded me of a watered down kimchi jjigae with similar ingredients commonly found in budae jjigae.

Overall, I would definitely recommend for you to check out ILCHA if you are craving Korean food. Next time I would want to try their...

The restaurant in San Francisco was a delightful surprise for someone like me, a white guy with little knowledge of Korean cuisine. Thankfully, we had a Korean friend with us, who served as our culinary Sherpa, guiding us through the menu like a seasoned pro.

Let's start with the star of the show: the fried chicken. Wow, just wow! It was a crispy, flavorful masterpiece that nearly stole the entire spotlight. The perfectly seasoned and crunchy exterior gave way to tender, succulent chicken inside. I couldn't get enough of it. If you visit the restaurant, do yourself a favor and order the fried chicken.

But what really struck me about the restaurant was the service. I can't emphasize enough how the kindness and hospitality of the servers were unparalleled. Our Korean companion helped with the ordering process, but the servers also went out of their way to ensure we had a fantastic dining experience. They were patient, helpful, and genuinely warm.

Now, let's talk about the food. We tried a spicy soup that was quite good, but I must admit, my taste buds were a bit overwhelmed by the heat. It's probably best suited for those with a higher tolerance for spiciness. One thing to note is that the communal table with backless stools encourages you not to overstay your welcome. The time limit of about 2 hours per table is a subtle reminder to keep things moving.

And then there's the bathroom situation – there's only one. So, if you're dining with a big group, you might have to plan your bathroom breaks accordingly or prepare for a little wait.

Despite these minor quirks, I can't wait to go back to the restaurant. The food and drinks are of the highest quality, and they offer premium Soju options that you won't find in most U.S. Korean restaurants. It's a testament to the authenticity and commitment to delivering a top-notch experience. The restaurant is a hidden gem in San Francisco, and I'm excited to explore more of their menu on...

We came here on a Tuesday evening looking forward to a nice dinner with our mother visiting from out of town and left very disappointed. We found the food and ambience decent, though it would have been helpful for first-time visitors to have a description of what some of the menu items are and for the servers to refill the soup broth when the pots ran low on broth. This is pretty standard at many places that serve hot pot to refill hot pots that are running low on liquid, though this doesn't happen here.

Service was pretty bad and be prepared to have your patience tested here. Our waitress didn't write down our order and forgot several items we ordered. She also claimed we cancelled the items, which we did not. The server told us they'd bring our missing items, which they forgot again and we had to remind them of. As a result, it took much longer for us to receive the food we ordered. Also, we later realized we were never offered rice to eat with our meal, which we realized was offered to every other table (we are not talking about the porridge).

Service was very lacking as our servers rarely came to check on us - I understand they are busy but it gets pretty exhausting when we have to flag them down for anything that was missing or that we needed. Not sure if this is due to negligence or poor customer service training. The severs here don't seem to take ownership of their service as there were no apologies from the staff whatsoever on all the mishaps that occurred. The experience here has left a very poor...