Best Soondae Restaurant Grand Rapids Near Me

C. m: Foods a little pricey compared to other but being downtown it's expectedKorean bbq is a fun social time. Best done with many bottles of soju and good friends.Food: 5/5|Service: 5/5|Atmosphere: 3/5Recommended dishes Kimchi Pajun, Beef Bulgogi, Bulgogi Jungol …More

Borhan Darmal: Excellent Korean food. Authentic healthy and quick. I’ve come here every time I visit GR. The staff is awesome as well.Recommended dishes Ribs, Beef Bulgogi …More

Lilly Baker: I have been here a couple of times and it's hit or miss for me. It is a little on the pricier side for me, so the first time I was there with my boyfriend we wanted to start an order with an appetizer and one meat to split. They told us we couldn't do that and had to order two entrees.The second time I brought my family and we did the all-you-can-eat. When we arrived, my mom was super excited to try it and even suggested bringing a larger group and doing a karaoke room. Unfortunately, that night, our service was horrible. Our waitress avoided our table. The all-you-can-eat has a time limit and it took us over an hour to get a second plate of meat. We also never got the opportunity to order more drinks. After our initial order, our waitress did not come back, despite that she was helping other tables around us and we made eye contact and flagged her down multiple times. We ended up asking another waiter for more food. The food was good, but based on our poor service and the prices, I'm not sure I'll go back. It's a cool experience but we sat there for like 2 hours and only got one round of drinks and 2 plates of the "all you can eat".

Natalie Baker: Besides the expensive prices, this was literally the worst service I have ever experienced. Nobody that worked there could explain the menu, questions were cut off by the waiters running off with a “hold on” multiple times. Wasn't given soup bowls then was given one less then our party of 4, was given a “maybe” when we asked for more tongs, and our multiple waiters were far too neglectful for a well over $100 meal between 4 people. Theres a much higher rated hot pot spot 20 minutes down the road if you’re interested.

Michael Geiger III: honestly the worst service i’ve ever had and on top of that, this place is OVERPRICED. we sat down and needed help with the menu — if you’ve never been it can be kind of confusing. our first waiter gave us a 20 second rundown and left us. someone new came by next and told us “questions on the menu were an up-charge…” then proceeded to ask someone else to help him with our questions because he didn’t know the menu.. ironic. they try and swivel you into all you can eat options, which are timed and almost $40/person, and don’t explain anything else on the menu. we ended up spending almost $150 on 4 people and we finished our food in less than 10 minutes. insane.

Jannie Jiang: This place is unequivocally, without hyperbole, the absolute worst Korean bbq restaurant I've ever been to, and possibly the worst restaurant experience I've ever had. You can tell that the owner tries to take every possible shortcut with regards to food, service, and ambiance. Let's start with everything that's wrong with the food.I doubt the owner/chefs has ever been to a real Kbbq restaurant. It's as if they eavesdropped a conversation about Kbbq and simply designed the menu based off that one, second-hand experience. Their bonchan only consisted of 3. THREE. items; kongnamool (beansprouts), cabbage kimchi, and oi muchim (spicy pickled cucumber). Normally, at any real Korean restaurant, we would have at least 10 varieties of bonchon. Almost laughably, the diversity of the bonchon was not the saddest part. I swear the staff mistook us as hamsters because they gave us 1 tbsp of the kongnamool, 2 cabbage leaves, and 3 pieces of cucumber. We had a party of 4. Naturally, we asked for more bonchan within 5 seconds as everything was devoured in 1 bite. On the topic of portion sizes, this restaurant had no concept of scaling their meats to the number of people in the party. Our party of 4 decided to do the all-you-can-eat option, which was 35$ per person. They portion each plate of meat for 2 people, regardless of how many people are eating. The party of 2 behind us, and the party of 6 adjacent to us received the same amount of food as we did. A 6yo child could tell you that more people will eat more food. It doesn’t take much thinking to realize how the decision to not scale your portions might be a problem. The conclusion must be that the manager/owner has either worse critical thinking skills than a 6yo or they are intentionally doing this to cut costs. To be CLEAR, this wouldn’t be a problem if you could order as many plates as your party required. However, we were only allowed to order 3 plates of meat at a time and could not order our next round until we had cooked AND eaten the three plates. While ordering 3 plates at a time is not out of the ordinary for Kbbq restaurants, limiting us to ordering the next round only AFTER we had finished our previous round is unheard of. This led to incredibly long downtime between rounds. After 2 hours and 40 minutes we had only managed to finish 8 rounds and left the restaurant HUNGRY. Imagine going to an ALL YOU CAN EAT and leaving hungry. If the service had been prompt, this might have not been such an issue. After the 3rd round, we timed the amount of time it took between ordering the round and the time we were served. They averaged 16 minutes. 16 minutes to bring out 3 small plates of meat. They list that you have 80 minute time limit for the food, so at 16 minutes a round, you only get 4 rounds of food. Absolutely unacceptable for an AYCE. I have never had a Kbbq experience where the plates came out in over 5 minutes. Here are a couple of theories as to why service would be so slow:1) The servers are incompetent/inefficient. I’m not saying they’re not hard workers. The staff were all working hard and not lazing around. But being incompetent and hard working aren’t mutually exclusive. You can try your best but just do a poor job. The primary reason I suspect the servers are inefficient is that any other Kbbq place would have 1/3 the workers for the same number of tables with faster service times. K ROK had 4-5 servers for 11 tables. They aren’t even cooking the meat for us which some Kbbq places do. Therefore, I have to conclude that either they’re new and don’t know what they’re doing or are just incompetent.2) Poor dinner prep/inexperienced cooks/not enough cooks. How else would scooping 3oz of beef bulgogi and slicing 4 strips of pork belly take 16 minutes to get out of the kitchen? Even if they had only 1 person working in the kitchen, slicing a plate of chadolbaegi or samgyupsal should take SECONDS, not minutes.To be continued....

Julia Kosek: Food: 4/5|Service: 2/5|Atmosphere: 2/5More

Nathan Young: Each staff member that helped up was really on top of their game. They all helped us choose that dishes would be right for our group of 6. We got a serving of samgyupsal pork and bulgogi beef to cook at the table which both ended up being amazing. Soup, bibimbop, pitchers of Sapporo pitchers, dumplings, and kimchi were also fantastic.After an awesome dinner, we transitioned into the private karaoke room, that had its own server, disco lighting, two microphones, lots of seating, and privacy.We didn’t quite know what to expect but K-ROK exceeded our expectations and I highly recommend it for anyone looking for a place that offers delicious food and a private little party spot.Glad you’re in GR!

Adam Brehob: The staff is chill, although they might be slow sometimes. I had the beef Bulgogi, and it came out to the table pretty quick and tasted good. My partner had a Bibimbap and really liked that as well. The price was expected for a casual dining experience for two, not too high, but not low either. I would recommend coming here for dinner on a weekday or otherwise where it won't be too busy and you'll be able to be served in a timely manner. Enjoy! :)

Joan Green: Great dinning adventure. You can order prepared foods, cook at your table or dine un a karaoke room singing with friends.Parking: Parking lots available in the area.

Chelsea L: Great food and great service!Food: 5/5|Service: 5/5|Atmosphere: 5/5Recommended dishes Kimchi Cheese Fries …More

Lauren LM: I wish I could feel comfortable giving a better review. If it wasn't for the super pleasant staff I'd honestly give one star. The karaoke room was fun, there was a decent song selection, however we were told the drink bill could only be split three ways with our party of seven so that it wouldn't be as inconvenient for staff to ring us up, which I wasn't a fan of. Then my friend told me, as I was about to leave a tip, that there was gratuity already added onto the bill, including gratuity on the cost of the karaoke room. I normally tip pretty well, but with how the bills are laid out it was easy to miss that gratuity was charged in the first place - so it kind of felt like I was about to be tricked to leaving a tip on top of an already decent tip (18%). The same thing happened when we got our food after karaoke - 18% was already stacked on. It made me feel bad for all of the customers who don't normally look at the bottom text of their itemized bill, if it wasn't for my friend I would have tipped 25% on top of both bills that already had that 18% tip factored in. If a member of staff had said something to me first then I wouldn't feel like they were trying to be so sneaky, but it kind of put a sour taste in my mouth. Other then that the food was decent and the staff seemed to be very nice and somewhat on top of things - but because of the lack of transparency with gratuity I don't think I'll be going back.

Paige Chapman: The food there was good and the experience was fun, however it took them twenty minutes to make change. When my group went up to check on our money the two workers were taking shots behind the bar and pouring themselves more while all our checks were lined up. Not only is that considered stealing from a business but it’s very unprofessional. Plus to top it off they added a 18% gratuity fee for themselves on everyone’s bills.

Evan Lacovic: We had waited ages for our bill o come then after given the money we waited 20+ minutes to find the employees taking shots behind the bar and barely capable of counting simple change.

Dave Tamondong: Austin was great

Gabriel Depakakibo: 👌

Nancy N: First time costumer. We ordered deep fried dumplings (gyoza) and beef bulgogi. The food was a delight to eat and we will be back.

Alexander Lazar: Great food, service was a little iffy but didn’t detract from a fun experience.The bulgogi is excellent.

Maia Manley: Went in the heat of a Saturday night and even though they were busy they still made us feel taken care of. The food and drinks were absolutely excellent! We did the Korean bbq and enjoyed everything especially the spicy pork! Rob the owner is a great guy and I’d happily go back again to support their business.

Amanda Nagy: Absolutely loved it!! I highly recommendParking: Right across the street!

Rob McPherson: Food: 5/5|Service: 4/5|Atmosphere: 4/5More

me Notyou: Food: 4/5|Service: 5/5|Atmosphere: 4/5Recommended dishes Spicy Beef BulgogiMore

Amanda Clarke: Food: 5/5|Service: 4/5|Atmosphere: 5/5More

Candace Collier: Best lemonade and chicken money can buy!!Food: 4/5|Service: 5/5|Atmosphere: 5/5 …More

Lexx Phann: Today these guys made me smile a ton. Always so devoted to making sure their customers are happy. A small mistake they fixed without us needing to even point it out. I’ve never had such respect for a company. These guys are AMAZING and, their food has always been perfect. Forever customer here. I mean this, you NEED to try out this place if you have never been here before. They CARE ABOUT US. They put love into their food.

Tyler Willis: Had the garlic soy wings and the red hot pepper tikku wings. Both were delicious! Will definitely come back to try other options.Food: 5/5|Service: 5/5|Atmosphere: 4/5Recommended dishes Garlic Soy Fried Chicken, Red Hot Pepper …More

Sharon D: Food is really good and you get your money's worth. At first when you see the size of the box you wouldn't think so, but it's stuffed.Food: 5/5|Service: 4/5|Atmosphere: 4/5 …More

sodacode: The garlic soy chicken is wonderful. Please bring back the bibimbap in the hot stone bowl!Food: 4/5|Service: 5/5|Atmosphere: 5/5 …More

Matthew Lyon: I had the lemon snow onion chicken tenders and they were delicious. One of the best fried chicken dishes I have ever had. Whenever I’m in town again, I will be back!Recommended dishes Korean Fried Chicken …More

Roosevelt Agnew: Food bland

Melissa Davisson: Great food and super friendly service! Their chicken wings were so good. Personally I loved their curry and soy ginger sauces. Their Korean bowls are super fresh and delicious as well. We will be coming back!Food: 5/5|Service: 5/5|Atmosphere: 4/5 …More

Kenneth Vaow: This is hands down! The best Korean Fried Chicken place in Grand Rapids! The sauces are All top notch, however the Red Hot Pepper, that’s where it’s at, it’s a perfect mix of spicy with a little touch of sweetness that will leave you wanting more and more every time! My goal is to work my way through the menu, and I have already been through all the Snow options for the chicken. The thinly sliced onion piled on top is a thing of beauty! This place is hands down amazing! It’s my every Monday lunch treat on my day off.

Haju Kim: I’ve been meaning to write a review on this restaurant since I’ve already been there probably close to 20 times now. GUYS, THEIR FOOD IS ABSOLUTELY AMAZING. I was born and grew up in Korea, and their food here, is absolutely authentic and in some ways even better than most restaurants in Korea! This is our go to place now and we NEVER were disappointed. Owners are so sweet and kind, and the workers too are great as well. In my opinion, this place is hands down the best Korean fried chicken place in Michigan. (No pictures because we never have time for pictures.. Once the food is out, we DEVOUR)

Noelle Loomis: I feel like I need to visit again to get a better feel for it. The chicken was good, and the dokbokki had great flavour but was unfortunately too spicy for me. I didn't interact directly with any staff, but they seemed polite enough.Food: 5/5|Service: 5/5|Atmosphere: 3/5 …More

Elissa Hughes: Garlic soy is the best!Food: 5/5|Service: 5/5|Atmosphere: 3/5Recommended dishes Garlic Soy, Korean Fried Chicken …More

Xochitl Zamora: I totally recomend this placeFood: 5/5|Service: 5/5|Atmosphere: 5/5 …More

Fel. L.: Food: 5/5|Service: 4/5|Atmosphere: 4/5Recommended dishes Garlic Soy Fried ChickenMore

Nancy Ismail: First time was perfect, second time waited over an hour, third time waited over an hour while my food was ready yet no one noticed. Now, chicken is stale and maybe there’s a shortage on sauce? Lacking consistency.

Kunwoo Kim: Food: 5/5|Service: 4/5|Atmosphere: 3/5More

Chase Hasper: A very trendy-upscale eatery that offers unique takes with fresh ingredients. We ate upstairs and had a great time! The waiter was friendly and not overly intrusive and the restaurant wasn’t too crowded or loud. It is a bit pricey, but you pay for what you get! They had some outstanding mealsDine in: Yes Outdoor seating: Yes …More

Chelsea D: This place is so great! Delicious food and good drinks. Staff and ambiance is nice but the prices are a bit high.

Alyssa W: Very unique atmosphere and menu offerings.

Christopher Gallagher: it was fine. I attribute the difficulty to an imminent moving if of locations.

Heather Alten: Not super impressed despite all the great reviews. Ordered 2 dishes off the Saturday brunch menu only to have them come out with ingredients missing as they were apparently a misprint? Service by the outdoor bartender was meh. He didn't seem super concerned that we were missing ingredients and answered with a " I haven't worked a brunch shift in months so I don't know". Coffee was full of grounds also. Staff also seemed put out that we didn't have a reservation? What a way to celebrate my birthday! Over all will not be back.Emailed them as asked about my experience and have not heard a single peep in months. Will definitely not go back or recommend them to anyone.

Alex Crawley: I was always really intrigued to try this place, but they ended up being such bad neighbors, it soured all interest in the establishment. They try and hit us with their cars. They put their trash in our trash can. We just found their cook with dreads, smoking weed on our porch!Edit: we watched them walk back and forth to sovengard. So the restaurant's reply is them further trying to get out of being decent neighbors. It's disappointing

Michael McAlpine: Interesting menu, good drinks, fun place.Dine in: Yes Outdoor seating: Yes Takeout: Yes Delivery: Yes …More

Bryn Perkins: Great food, perfect staff. The outdoor seating is amazing.

Lauren Belchik: The vibe was very chill and a sweet staff. The bs and gs we're delicious

Kelsey Gaylord: Great brunch for my sister in laws bachelorette party! Delicious food and drinks and friendly staff!

Robert Hunter: everything was great!! unfortunate, though, the outdoor seating’s proximity to the dumpster. every time the wind blew it smelled really bad.

Jim Hocking: The last time I visited The Sovengard was before Covid and it was wonderful, but upon my return I am pleased to say it was absolutely out of this world.Aside from having top of the line service, we were sat on the beautiful back patio on one of the most perfect days we could have asked for. Ambiance isn’t in short supply, and vibes are overwhelmingly positive.We had the bloody mary and the mimosa for drinks, the Dutch baby for a sweet treat, and a savory shareable finish with The Hearty Woodsperson; a portion fit for a single eater with a large appetite, or for two to be comfortably enjoyed without a food coma.I highly recommend the Sovengard for brunch or dinner. This restaurant breaks away from some of the monotonous trends that plague new age eateries. You won’t be disappointed!

Noah Hopson: Excellent food, good cocktails, cold beer and a great outside space. I hope they can match the ambiance at their new location.

Gina Hubbell: It was a little confusing to get to their outdoor garden area, but I appreciated that the tucked away patio was much quieter than the rest of Bridge St. All the staff was super friendly and personable, our waitress let us sample the lemon mead and it was delicious! Food was pretty good, artful plating, I got the beet carpaccio(?) and I thought it was a creative dish. Very laid back atmosphere, while still feeling upscale and luxurious.

Sean Downie: Everything about this place was perfect. Brunch burger and grilled cheese were on point. Having been a cheese monger, I love finding unique takes on cheese related food, and this was a gem. Service was delightful. Loved this place; will return.

Mike Raymond: The best food and drink, beginning to end, we've had in GR. in a long time. Next time we will save room for dessert.Wonderful.

Nathan Ver Beek: Had an excellent brunch today at Sovengard! The outdoor patio is beautiful and very comfortable for a morning meal.The food was very good, especially the brunch burger. The mimosas were good too, a touch light on alcohol.

Tari Sasser: Wonderful food and outdoor dining.

T-Bones Medium-Rare Jeff Carroll: Excellent, unique and wonderful food in a artistically designed restaurant. The staff were very helpful and responsive and kind.

Stephen Knape: Bacon wrapped elk dish was great, and so was the service. Wife had the pork chop which was also very good. Looking forward to visiting the new location eventually!

Patty Archer: Food: 5/5|Service: 5/5|Atmosphere: 5/5More

Nick Hilton: Food: 4/5|Service: 4/5|Atmosphere: 5/5More

Soul Fuel: Outstanding.Food: 5/5|Service: 5/5|Atmosphere: 5/5Recommended dishes MI Pork Schnitzel, BBQ Pork & Polenta …More

Michael Belligan: I sat on the patio on a Saturday evening for dinner & drinks. There was no wait for the covered patio later in the evening and the atmosphere & service were great (I think the inside is a little too bright). I had the chicken skewers & falafel wrap - both were tasty as were my drinks and I appreciated the $5 hoegaarden bottles.Food: 5/5|Service: 5/5|Atmosphere: 5/5 …More

Darla Chinn: Food: 4/5|Service: 5/5|Atmosphere: 5/5More

Danielle: Nice outdoor seating area, great vegetarian optionsVegetarian options: Plenty of vegetarian options and not just boring stuff, actual creative and interesting dishesFood: 5/5|Service: 5/5|Atmosphere: 5/5 …More

Anthony Coggins: One of my go-to restaurants in GR. Food is always fabulous and the patio is hard to beat on a summer day.Food: 5/5|Service: 5/5|Atmosphere: 5/5 …More

CC: Soo good! I’ve been here countless times and it never disappoints. Pricey but consistently great quality food and large portions. The only thing I’ve ever gotten that I did not like is the chicken strips (chewy and tough for $18). Everything else, including the service, is 10/10.Update: Green Well is always excellent. Pictured: Michigan turkey sandwich (personal fav) and Pierogis (seasonal), tacos (Thursdays only)Second Update: I’m a bit disappointed to say I think the quality and service has declined a touch. The last two times we went out food was good but not great, which makes it hard to justify the price. I ordered a medium-well burger and it was pretty raw, I couldn’t eat it. The service was also slow. We often get the curry with chicken, but now priced at $27 it’s just too steep for what it is. I’ll still be back, but will probably reserve this place for happy hour and lunch only.

Gary Morris: We ended up going there by mistake, never knew it was even there. Party of six everyone commented how fabulous the food was, wait was minor, wait staff was right on. Definitely will be returning. By far the best chicken sandwich I have ever had. Two people at our party ordered the Cuban and loved.

Timothy Conley: Food was very good. Came out quickly. Actually got the food before our drinks. Nothing complicated 2 beers and 2 glasses of wine. Very pleasant setting and atmosphere.Food: 4/5|Service: 2/5|Atmosphere: 5/5 …More

jkvalk: Our server was very patient and helpful in answering our questions. Our order was carried out accurately and timely, and our food was delicious.Vegetarian options: Multiple vegetarian options

EA RE: Huge kudos to management as they were gracious to seat our larger party with no notice. This enabled.our celebratory dinner to go on and be enjoyed by all. Food was unique and fabulous. Bartender and waitstaff were amazing. Menu catered to gluten free and vegetarian needs with gusto. Five stars hardly seems adequate!

Harley Whitehead: The food NEVER disappoints. The Chicken sandwich, Cuban, and goat cheese dip are some highlights for sure. The staff is always relaxed, attentive, and very helpful with suggestions.Recommended dishes Warm Goat Cheese Dip …More

Kinga W: Great place to hang out with friends. Very retro.Service: 5/5 …More

Jodi Smith: Wow. Only here for 4 days and have eaten here twice. Dreamt about the pork & polenta & had to go back. The curry, truffle fries & bbq pork polenta brought us back...the Michigan salad stole our heart. The servers tho...they were on point both visits. Don't cheat yo' self when in Grand Rapids.Food: 5/5|Service: 5/5|Atmosphere: 5/5 …More

Emily Moore: Great clean atmosphere, great for business lunches, and great tasting food.Food: 5/5|Service: 5/5|Atmosphere: 5/5 …More

Richard Novaco: Food: 5/5|Service: 4/5|Atmosphere: 5/5Recommended dishes Salad Feature Parking space Somewhat difficult to find parking Parking options Free street parking, Paid street parkingMore

Mason Luce: Recommended dishes Fried Chicken SandwichMore

Amirreza Amighi: Visiting GR for work. Came here twice in a row and love the food and service. I never leave reviews but this place is awesome.