Great place. Staff is great and very accommodating.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Popcorn Chicken
Elvis Mujic
??? Jin does a great job!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Janine Viray
First time going here with friends but they've been here before me. My friend Nelson knows the owner.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Alexis M.
I want to preface by saying that im not the type of person to write scathing reviews but what i witnessed this past Sunday was so egregious i feel that the management for this place needs to be aware of what a liability they have working there. One of the biggest disappointments I've ever had. Last Sunday 12/10/23 my girl and I wanted to go out so she sent me this place. Looking at the photos and reviews I was excited because the food looked really good and the drink selections looked wide. So we arrive at almost 11 pm on the dot. We were greeted after another couple who walked in a couple seconds in front of us. The host then checks our ids and then says to sit anywhere just not the back. So we looked around and found a table to sit at and then looked at the menus for about 5-10 min then when we were all set and done pressed the call button on the table and waited. Had conversation and then realized that nobody had come to our table for about 20 minutes. It was particularly frustrating because the host was at a table a just two tables away from us and we could visibly see him taking shots and smoking with the other guests. So i tried calling him over to see if we could get him to take our order but no luck he was more interested in these particular guest. Thats when i pressed the call button again to see if there was anyone else working there with success we managed to see someone else but it seemed like he was busy running back and forth. He also seemed to be quite worried about the fact that his coworker could almost not stand on his own. At that moment i was hungry and it had been 45 minutes since we first pressed the call button and nobody has as so much as taken a drink order. So we got up and left. I stated at the beginning im not that type of person to write bad reviews because i like to take into account if they are busy or short handed but including us there was only four tables. And to top it all off the couple that came in just a couple of seconds before us had already received drinks and food and looked like they were enjoying themselves. The worst part was that I didn't get the bulgogi fries i had seen wile looking at the reviews. It was a real let down because I was honestly looking forward to being a regular here!
Christina G.
Came with friends on a Saturday Night. We got seated quickly and everything we ordered came out pretty fast! We got the Passion Fruit Soju Pitcher, Elote Fries, Corn Cheese & Tteokbokki.
Phat Tran
Awesome place to hangout with friends and have a drink.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Popcorn Chicken, Korean Army Stew
celita G
Great place with great drinks at fantastic prices. I was so sad to see that it was soo slow in here. This place is definitely underrated and needs more customers because they were awesome.
Atmosphere: 5
Service: 5
Hanna Y.
Plenty of parking in the plaza. We got the pink lemonade fish bowl and personally I would've liked more alcohol in it because most of my friends and I were completely fine and didn't taste like it had alcohol . We didn't order any food but will definitely come back again to try some. Overall our server was nice and the vibes were great. They had some games to play while drinking and tvs all around playing kpop music videos.
Janelle A.
Lab 88 is a fun, late night hang out place with drinks and ok food. I've tried most of the food and it's ehh but I do enjoy the Budaejjigae! We get the cheese and noddles on the side. They play good music. The service is good because when you need something you just push a button on the table!
Betsy Lopez
The staff was very attentive. Great place if you wanna hang with your friends and have a fun time.
I'm going to be as honest as possible as a Korean-American who grew up in Ktown. The only thing Korean about this place are the posters, Kpop music videos playing on the TV and the drinks. The interior decor is perfect to set the mood for a night out with your friends, but the food is MID at best and the drinks were served in an ice bucket and not even cold. They took FOREVER to bring it out the food and they dropped off each dish, one by one. The next dish came out after we finished the plate. Terrible. Kimchi Fried Rice: 6/10The first dish to come out. For a table full of hungry folks, it wasn't bad but it wasn't anything to rave about. Because it was still decent, we were hopeful for the other plates were ordered. Boy were we wrong. Chicken Sandwich: 5/10It's a McChicken at best. You can literally buy the chicken patty from Costco, or Restaurant Depot for them. It was flavorless. No sauce, no pickles, no mayo. Nothing. Just Costco chicken patty and some greens and call it a day. The best part about this? The butter buns and the fries. Period. Bulgogi Nachos: 3/10It's the LOWEST quality meat I've ever had at a full-service restaurant. This isn't bulgogi at all, the flavors are off and they probably used chuck roast. If you bite into it, it's no different than the "steak" they use at taco bell. They also used a strange tangy red sauce that tasted like Mexican candy flavors. I love Mexican candy, but not on Korean food. They also use the cheapest nacho chips available to purchase. Also, why is there Kimchi on nachos?? If you're the chef or an employee, there's NO way you guys are eating this. I'll pay to watch you guys finish the entire thing and say that it's 10/10. How can you serve this? Chicken Wings: 6/10The best dish I had here, but lemon pepper is just okay and the buffalo isn't bad. Unfortunately, they don't know how Koreans actually do it, which we double fry the wings to give it the extra crunch. Some parts of the wings were soggy. That's crazy. I highly doubt the owner is Korean, but if you are... lol. Not that you need to be in order to put out quality Korean food, but damn. Please try the dishes at a Ktown pub like Star Night or Honey Night and compare it to your food. You'll literally be able to tell right away. I will GUARANTEE that the owner rarely stops by the place or hasn't tried the items on the menu. There's SO much potential here, but this isn't it. The people out here really have no idea what good quality Korean food is if this place is rated 4.5 stars.
Brian Douglas (Sonic)
It took 30 minutes to not have our drinks. The bartender was caring and took our orders, but the bar in general wasn’t up to the task. I’ve lived overseas in japan and Korea and haven’t experienced food this slow. There needs to be an improvement, theming and music can only carry you so far. I’m very disappointed with this establishment.
Xiao Phong L.
This is a pretty chill spot if you want Korean food and vibes, without driving all the way to Ktown, if you live in the SGV. My cousin suggested this place, as she was craving late night snacks.We came around 11pm? Parking was spacious, as this is located in a small shopping center, next to a bowling alley and a pub. They check for ID at the door.We were sat down immediately, and the large tv blasting Korean music, KTV was playing. Atmosphere is cool.We ordered a few apps and a bottle of soju. Both me and my cousin don't really drink much, so we figured one bottle would be enough for us.The food was ok. We ordered wings, elote fries, and nachos. Definitely large portions if you bring a group of friends, but the food was overly salty. Atmosphere again, is great, but food...eh. Could be better.Overall, this a cool hangout for friends, for booze and great night out. Next time, probably order just one or two apps.
Lili W.
Visited this place without looking at the menu beforehand and I was expecting a larger variety for a Korean place. Apparently they have no rice cakes available for a long time and a lot of the foods I wanted to try were "sold out" too. Not much variety here so we went with the soy garlic chicken wings and kimchi fried rice. I thought how could you go wrong with kimchi fried rice but it definitely disappointed. It was very soggy and greasy and the flavor was ok. The chicken wings were good and very crispy. This was a good amount of food for 3 people. The soju amf did the job tho. They card you right when you walk in and have a birthday special of 10% off. There's also lots of games to play with! The place was nice and very dark in the restroom But I don't know if I will come back for the food
Violetta Le’Mone
Im so happy my friends and I discovered this place! When we went (on a Monday night) it wasn’t packed. We were instantly greeted at the door and Manny immediately took great care of us. First off, the atmosphere was super chill. The music was perfect! The drinks were smooth (but strong ??) and Manny recommended some really delicious plates (get the wings)!! The cherry on top were the nostalgic games they had for us to play! Operation, battle ship, etc. My friends and I had an incredible time. Thank you so much to Manny for making the experience special as well! I seriously thought he owned the place with how attentive he was! Either way, we will definitely be back ??
Great place. Staff is great and very accommodating.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Popcorn Chicken
??? Jin does a great job!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
First time going here with friends but they've been here before me. My friend Nelson knows the owner.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
I want to preface by saying that im not the type of person to write scathing reviews but what i witnessed this past Sunday was so egregious i feel that the management for this place needs to be aware of what a liability they have working there. One of the biggest disappointments I've ever had. Last Sunday 12/10/23 my girl and I wanted to go out so she sent me this place. Looking at the photos and reviews I was excited because the food looked really good and the drink selections looked wide. So we arrive at almost 11 pm on the dot. We were greeted after another couple who walked in a couple seconds in front of us. The host then checks our ids and then says to sit anywhere just not the back. So we looked around and found a table to sit at and then looked at the menus for about 5-10 min then when we were all set and done pressed the call button on the table and waited. Had conversation and then realized that nobody had come to our table for about 20 minutes. It was particularly frustrating because the host was at a table a just two tables away from us and we could visibly see him taking shots and smoking with the other guests. So i tried calling him over to see if we could get him to take our order but no luck he was more interested in these particular guest. Thats when i pressed the call button again to see if there was anyone else working there with success we managed to see someone else but it seemed like he was busy running back and forth. He also seemed to be quite worried about the fact that his coworker could almost not stand on his own. At that moment i was hungry and it had been 45 minutes since we first pressed the call button and nobody has as so much as taken a drink order. So we got up and left. I stated at the beginning im not that type of person to write bad reviews because i like to take into account if they are busy or short handed but including us there was only four tables. And to top it all off the couple that came in just a couple of seconds before us had already received drinks and food and looked like they were enjoying themselves. The worst part was that I didn't get the bulgogi fries i had seen wile looking at the reviews. It was a real let down because I was honestly looking forward to being a regular here!
Came with friends on a Saturday Night. We got seated quickly and everything we ordered came out pretty fast! We got the Passion Fruit Soju Pitcher, Elote Fries, Corn Cheese & Tteokbokki.
Awesome place to hangout with friends and have a drink.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Popcorn Chicken, Korean Army Stew
Great place with great drinks at fantastic prices. I was so sad to see that it was soo slow in here. This place is definitely underrated and needs more customers because they were awesome.
Atmosphere: 5
Service: 5
Plenty of parking in the plaza. We got the pink lemonade fish bowl and personally I would've liked more alcohol in it because most of my friends and I were completely fine and didn't taste like it had alcohol . We didn't order any food but will definitely come back again to try some. Overall our server was nice and the vibes were great. They had some games to play while drinking and tvs all around playing kpop music videos.
Lab 88 is a fun, late night hang out place with drinks and ok food. I've tried most of the food and it's ehh but I do enjoy the Budaejjigae! We get the cheese and noddles on the side. They play good music. The service is good because when you need something you just push a button on the table!
The staff was very attentive. Great place if you wanna hang with your friends and have a fun time.
Atmosphere: 5
Service: 5
Restaurantji Recommends
I'm going to be as honest as possible as a Korean-American who grew up in Ktown. The only thing Korean about this place are the posters, Kpop music videos playing on the TV and the drinks. The interior decor is perfect to set the mood for a night out with your friends, but the food is MID at best and the drinks were served in an ice bucket and not even cold. They took FOREVER to bring it out the food and they dropped off each dish, one by one. The next dish came out after we finished the plate. Terrible. Kimchi Fried Rice: 6/10The first dish to come out. For a table full of hungry folks, it wasn't bad but it wasn't anything to rave about. Because it was still decent, we were hopeful for the other plates were ordered. Boy were we wrong. Chicken Sandwich: 5/10It's a McChicken at best. You can literally buy the chicken patty from Costco, or Restaurant Depot for them. It was flavorless. No sauce, no pickles, no mayo. Nothing. Just Costco chicken patty and some greens and call it a day. The best part about this? The butter buns and the fries. Period. Bulgogi Nachos: 3/10It's the LOWEST quality meat I've ever had at a full-service restaurant. This isn't bulgogi at all, the flavors are off and they probably used chuck roast. If you bite into it, it's no different than the "steak" they use at taco bell. They also used a strange tangy red sauce that tasted like Mexican candy flavors. I love Mexican candy, but not on Korean food. They also use the cheapest nacho chips available to purchase. Also, why is there Kimchi on nachos?? If you're the chef or an employee, there's NO way you guys are eating this. I'll pay to watch you guys finish the entire thing and say that it's 10/10. How can you serve this? Chicken Wings: 6/10The best dish I had here, but lemon pepper is just okay and the buffalo isn't bad. Unfortunately, they don't know how Koreans actually do it, which we double fry the wings to give it the extra crunch. Some parts of the wings were soggy. That's crazy. I highly doubt the owner is Korean, but if you are... lol. Not that you need to be in order to put out quality Korean food, but damn. Please try the dishes at a Ktown pub like Star Night or Honey Night and compare it to your food. You'll literally be able to tell right away. I will GUARANTEE that the owner rarely stops by the place or hasn't tried the items on the menu. There's SO much potential here, but this isn't it. The people out here really have no idea what good quality Korean food is if this place is rated 4.5 stars.
It took 30 minutes to not have our drinks. The bartender was caring and took our orders, but the bar in general wasn’t up to the task. I’ve lived overseas in japan and Korea and haven’t experienced food this slow. There needs to be an improvement, theming and music can only carry you so far. I’m very disappointed with this establishment.
This is a pretty chill spot if you want Korean food and vibes, without driving all the way to Ktown, if you live in the SGV. My cousin suggested this place, as she was craving late night snacks.We came around 11pm? Parking was spacious, as this is located in a small shopping center, next to a bowling alley and a pub. They check for ID at the door.We were sat down immediately, and the large tv blasting Korean music, KTV was playing. Atmosphere is cool.We ordered a few apps and a bottle of soju. Both me and my cousin don't really drink much, so we figured one bottle would be enough for us.The food was ok. We ordered wings, elote fries, and nachos. Definitely large portions if you bring a group of friends, but the food was overly salty. Atmosphere again, is great, but food...eh. Could be better.Overall, this a cool hangout for friends, for booze and great night out. Next time, probably order just one or two apps.
Visited this place without looking at the menu beforehand and I was expecting a larger variety for a Korean place. Apparently they have no rice cakes available for a long time and a lot of the foods I wanted to try were "sold out" too. Not much variety here so we went with the soy garlic chicken wings and kimchi fried rice. I thought how could you go wrong with kimchi fried rice but it definitely disappointed. It was very soggy and greasy and the flavor was ok. The chicken wings were good and very crispy. This was a good amount of food for 3 people. The soju amf did the job tho. They card you right when you walk in and have a birthday special of 10% off. There's also lots of games to play with! The place was nice and very dark in the restroom But I don't know if I will come back for the food
Im so happy my friends and I discovered this place! When we went (on a Monday night) it wasn’t packed. We were instantly greeted at the door and Manny immediately took great care of us. First off, the atmosphere was super chill. The music was perfect! The drinks were smooth (but strong ??) and Manny recommended some really delicious plates (get the wings)!! The cherry on top were the nostalgic games they had for us to play! Operation, battle ship, etc. My friends and I had an incredible time. Thank you so much to Manny for making the experience special as well! I seriously thought he owned the place with how attentive he was! Either way, we will definitely be back ??