Bonchon West Hartford — Restaurant in West Hartford

The food was very good, but the experience was upsetting. I was out with my mom, who is a senior, we got hungry, and I convinced her to let me take her to Bonchon. We had never been, but I love Korean food and Korean fried chicken. What ended up happening was they brought out my food, but my mom had to wait about 40 minutes for her chicken katsu - chasing after waiters and the hostess THREE TIMES, asking about it, and not getting any information. They were completely ignoring us. By the time she got her food, she wasn’t even hungry anymore and we had to bring it home.

This was a Sunday around 1pm and it was very busy, so we expected a wait. I ordered a small mixed chicken combo and some small dishes like the street corn (which I asked for with no scallions because I have an intolerance and it came out with them anyway - fortunately I was able to scoop them out, so I didn’t say anything).

My food came around, and we expected my mom’s chicken katsu to follow. I started eating because I was starving, and offering some of my good to mom - which she declined, saving her appetite for the katsu. We waited about half an hour before she got up and asked the hostess about the katsu. They said “one moment please”. The waiter came around asking what the issue was - the katsu. We waited another 15-20 minutes, already feeling weird, since they were asking the table next to us if everything was okay?? The same waiter… my mom had to get up and ask the hostess again for her katsu, and that’s when it finally came out a few minutes later. I was done eating by then. I had to apologize to my mom, and I know she doesn’t have much of an appetite, so it was very unfortunate.

We did not get an explanation, an apology, or a heads up explaining that they forgot the order (presumably, we don’t know what happened) and had to wait another X amount of time. That would have taken 3 seconds. I could not eat my food and just chill, anxiously watching the staff to see if the katsu was coming or not, and my poor mom being a good sport, waiting, while I stuffed my face, while she had no food in front of her.

I don’t know why we were ignored, or why it made sense to have one person eating and a senior lady just waiting. Her dish wouldn’t even take as long to cook, it’s a breaded chicken breast on white rice. Also, why would you bring out one person’s order and make the other wait so long? My mother waited about an hour for her food from the time she placed the order until it made it to the table. It made no sense. The bill also included everything in the order. I don’t know, but some places would have at least given a discount for our trouble.

I don’t leave petty reviews, I love food and if you see my other reviews, they are mostly 5 stars because I love sharing great experiences. If this had happened to myself alone, I would not have said anything, but my mom was neglected and I felt like a jerk for bringing her there.

I will not...

I've had BonChon in Massachusetts and New York so I was excited to check this one out. The restaurant was clean and service was friendly. There's a bar/counter when you first walk in. We sat at one of the tables and there's a huge projection screen with sports on. Parking lot was spacious and in a plaza.

For my meal, I ordered the the lunch special; 8 pc wings with half of it spicy and half Korean BBQ. There was a complementary side which I opted for white rice. The chicken was fried to perfection; it was crispy on the outside and juicy on the inside. The flavor profile of the spicy and Korean BBQ was intense; sweet salty, spicy, my taste buds were dancing. I love kimchi so I had to order a side; the pickled napa cabbage with a mix of spices helped cut the fried food fats.

My husband ordered the Korean tacos; spicy chicken with coleslaw, lettuce, buttermilk ranch, spicy mayo, scallions, and spicy chicken in a tortilla. I had a bite of that taco and it was amazing. He also had their boneless chicken soy garlic and he said it was delicious.

The service was quick, friendly, and attentive throughout the experience. The place was clean, including the restroom, and spacious. The food was A+. Our overall experience was top notch, can't...

I haven't received my food yet as I just placed the oder but I'm a little turned off. She asked me about sauce. I asked could I have it on the side as this is my first time here and I have no idea what the sauces taste like and she told me NO. I'm like so that's $15 that can be wasted because if I order it and don't like it then I'm stuck with it. She just shrugged her shoulders. I pray the sauces are good but geesh, if it's something that's not liked by the consumer you're pretty screwed.

Got my food and it was NOT hot. I ordered as a walk-in/take out. The girl who took my order wasn't the friendliest. She walked passed me a few times and approx 10mins later she said oh you had and said the name it was under and then placed the bag on the counter. There was long black hair all over the bag. I looked inside and didn't see any hair and just removed the food from the bag. That's when I realized it wasn't hot. She allowed my order to sit and wait for quite some time before letting me know it was ready and so it was cold. I'm home and its just sitting in the box. I no longer want it and will be finding an alternative. Since unread from other reviews their horror stories, I won't be back to this one and may give the one in New...