JOA

Razuzu

1.0

Normally this is my go to for korean food, in previous years i have been a loyal customer & reccomend this place for something good on st denis, but the last time i went, i saw AI advertizing being used.
Beyond the stance of being anti AI, this indicates to me as a customer that shortcuts are being made, & normally when a restaurant visibly shows shortcuts (examples such as: unmopped floors, dirty menus, ai advertizing/menus are little things that i note when deciding to eat somewhere as someone with 10 years of FOH experiance), it means shortcuts also might be made in the back of house. The food this time as well was okay, there was a less sauce on the spicy chicken cup bap i normally get & that also reflects to me that costs are being cut in places. i am unable to trust the restaurant any longer & will no longer be refering it to tourists or friends, hopefully i can revisit in the future & be brought back on the JOA bandwagon, but as of right now im going to hunt for a new korean restaurant to haunt occassionally.

Jea

5.0

Takeout-focused Korean kitchen with solid Korean-Chinese dishes.

Not bad at all. For a place that looked like it was falling apart from the outside, the food was authentic & nicely seasoned. Classic mom-&-pop spot that doesn't bother catering to local palates & just goes straight for the real thing.

My friend & I got the black bean noodles (jjajang), the spicy beef noodles (jjam bbong), & a fried chicken cupbap, & everything was satisfying. No weird sweetness, no MSG bomb, just straight wok-fired cooking with natural umami doing the work.

My favorite was the beef jjam bbong. It ran a little spicy even for me, but it was one of the best versions I've had in a while. A lot of the brisket versions I've had in the US come loaded with beef fat in the broth, but this one was mostly clean spice & vegetables.

For a spot we picked at random, this was a nice hit. Would come back next time we're in the area.

Stef

5.0

Simple setup for a quick meal. I appreciated the hot spicy soup noodles for dinner in winter. Recommended if you're in the neighbourhood.

Disney

5.0

The vegetable dumplings with spicy sauce are so good I had to leave a review.