I first encountered Korean cuisine at Woo Lae Oak near Chrystal City almost 20 years ago. Loved it. Now there is a Woo Lae Oak in Vienna (Tyson's Corner). It is not very good either for food nor for service. I have been there several times and each time has not been satisfactory. The last time was about two months ago (before coronavirus) with a family of eight. Some ordered bulgogi or similar. The service was late and surly. The raw beef & pork was cooked on another table as ours was broken. Worst of all, the meat came without any sauce at all -- completely dry. The conversation during this meal was about other Korean restaurants that have better food. In the several times that I have visited this restaurant, both lunch & dinner, the staff is surly if not lazy. A small quarrel can be expected. I have decided not to go to this restaurant again, despite that Korean cuisine is scarce near Tyson's Corner.
Sticks Forks & Others
Not the best Korean restaurant in the world, but most likely one of the better ones in the DMV area and definitely better than the half-baked joints in Annandale. That's a fact!Food and service are average, but no worse than Annandale joints. Unless you're in Annandale, I would recommend this place over any other Korean restaurant in the area.Frankly, very few decent Korean restaurants in the DMV area, but I go here regularly.
Seoulplay
This place is nostalgic for me, i have been coming here with my family for years. Great food, wonderful service, relaxing atmosphere. I can't say enough good things about this place. Must try for anyone interested inan intro to Korean and also those who love authentic Korean bbq.? Thank you for being just as delicious as it was when i came with my whole family for all these years ?
Sanggyun Kang
Fyi, Woo Lae Oak in South Korea is one of the most praised cold noodle and Korean bbq places. This place is Not up to the quality that a typical Korean would expect from the name value. I do not know whether the Korean WLO has any association with this DC restaurant. Still, this restaurant offers a wide range of menus (totally different from what they offer in Korea) which are quite OK/nice, given it is in DC, not NYC nor LA. I guess this WLO has maintained the same menu for decades because you know there is no competition and no effort is necessary.
WooJung Choo
The best Korean restaurant experience in DMV area!
salvia miss
The food is good l, and the experience is very interesting. I just wish they have hood on top of their tables, so the smoke from the cooking food go out.
Zoey Z.
Guys. For real. If you want to try or have a down to the earth and hearty Korean Food with no BS no fancy menu , Kpop music. This is your option. Straight to the point, nothing fancy, it only use right amount taste to meet you. It's like the OG and you have to try itttt!
Rebecca Ramsey
Delicious!! My favorite Korean BBQ restaurant.
yu yu
Really beautiful environment and also very well made food. Very empty during lunch though
Christine Batarseh
The BEST Korean food I’ve had! And Helen was amazing!
Good food, but a little lacking in flavor. The building is dingy and needs a face lift. Good for an inexpensive family outing.
Austin Jackson
Great food and a really nice atmosphere.
janet hobson
Love this place! Food is delicious!
Alice K.
I've come to Woo Lae Oak quite a number of times but I don't think I was ever as disappointed as I was from my last visit. We visited as a family of three and each ordered a dish from the menu. The server seemed disgruntled and even forgot to give us water so we had to ask for it. After waiting for quite a while, our first dish came out but had wrong orders arrive to our table. After waiting with no explanation, we called our server and asked where the other dishes were. She quickly explained that she put in the order wrong and dismissed the matter by saying a quick apology. We continued waiting, and the second dish came out, but the third dish (which was mine) didn't come out after waiting for around 10-15 minutes. At that point I wanted to just cancel my order and just leave. Irritated, my companions called in one of the ladies around the area and asked if my order was even going to come out. The server (looked like the manager to me) apologized and said it did seem strange that we only ordered two dishes for three people. So it seems that our original server put in the order wrong and mistook us for ordering just two dishes. Our server then came by our table and started explaining that we said only two dishes to her and it only seemed to us that she was blaming the whole thing as our fault. Look, I understand. People make mistakes. But putting in the order wrong in the first place and then coming to our table saying we only ordered two dishes later just seems ridiculous to me and also seems very unprofessional. What do you expect the customers to do? "Oh, I'm sorry, I must've said it wrong. Yes, go please make it now, I'm willing to wait. So sorry, I'll give you an extra tip."---said no customer ever. Long story short, I had to eat while the other two people that came with me had to wait while I finished eating. Needless to say, I think that will be my last visit to Woo Lae Oak. I received a 20% coupon but I don't think I'll be returning to use it, unless Woo Lae Oak makes some drastic changes to their crumbling seats and interior and their service.
Robin R.
This wasn't our first visit but it may be our last. The food is good but the service was awful. The wait staff wasn't pleasant and appeared annoyed we were even there. Plenty of seating on a Sunday evening and we were so happy to celebrate the up coming holiday by remembering our three year tour in Korea with some authentic Korean food. We ordered Kalbi beef but had to ask for the fresh garlic and the traditional sesame salt dipping sauce and the lettuce. We had to ask for everything one by one. We never received the lettuce to properly eat the kalbi. We had to ask another wait staff for assistance to cook our beef, additional rice, and barley tea. What was a special night for us ruined our tradition of Korean food before Christmas. Advice to management --treat your non Korean customers as you would your Korean customers. Serve an authentic meal and include the garlic and lettuce for the Kalbi and please hire staff that like their job. Otherwise it ruins the customer experience. Good luck.
I first encountered Korean cuisine at Woo Lae Oak near Chrystal City almost 20 years ago. Loved it. Now there is a Woo Lae Oak in Vienna (Tyson's Corner). It is not very good either for food nor for service. I have been there several times and each time has not been satisfactory. The last time was about two months ago (before coronavirus) with a family of eight. Some ordered bulgogi or similar. The service was late and surly. The raw beef & pork was cooked on another table as ours was broken. Worst of all, the meat came without any sauce at all -- completely dry. The conversation during this meal was about other Korean restaurants that have better food. In the several times that I have visited this restaurant, both lunch & dinner, the staff is surly if not lazy. A small quarrel can be expected. I have decided not to go to this restaurant again, despite that Korean cuisine is scarce near Tyson's Corner.
Not the best Korean restaurant in the world, but most likely one of the better ones in the DMV area and definitely better than the half-baked joints in Annandale. That's a fact!Food and service are average, but no worse than Annandale joints. Unless you're in Annandale, I would recommend this place over any other Korean restaurant in the area.Frankly, very few decent Korean restaurants in the DMV area, but I go here regularly.
This place is nostalgic for me, i have been coming here with my family for years. Great food, wonderful service, relaxing atmosphere. I can't say enough good things about this place. Must try for anyone interested inan intro to Korean and also those who love authentic Korean bbq.? Thank you for being just as delicious as it was when i came with my whole family for all these years ?
Fyi, Woo Lae Oak in South Korea is one of the most praised cold noodle and Korean bbq places. This place is Not up to the quality that a typical Korean would expect from the name value. I do not know whether the Korean WLO has any association with this DC restaurant. Still, this restaurant offers a wide range of menus (totally different from what they offer in Korea) which are quite OK/nice, given it is in DC, not NYC nor LA. I guess this WLO has maintained the same menu for decades because you know there is no competition and no effort is necessary.
The best Korean restaurant experience in DMV area!
The food is good l, and the experience is very interesting. I just wish they have hood on top of their tables, so the smoke from the cooking food go out.
Guys. For real. If you want to try or have a down to the earth and hearty Korean Food with no BS no fancy menu , Kpop music. This is your option. Straight to the point, nothing fancy, it only use right amount taste to meet you. It's like the OG and you have to try itttt!
Delicious!! My favorite Korean BBQ restaurant.
Really beautiful environment and also very well made food. Very empty during lunch though
The BEST Korean food I’ve had! And Helen was amazing!
Restaurantji Recommends
Good food, but a little lacking in flavor. The building is dingy and needs a face lift. Good for an inexpensive family outing.
Great food and a really nice atmosphere.
Love this place! Food is delicious!
I've come to Woo Lae Oak quite a number of times but I don't think I was ever as disappointed as I was from my last visit. We visited as a family of three and each ordered a dish from the menu. The server seemed disgruntled and even forgot to give us water so we had to ask for it. After waiting for quite a while, our first dish came out but had wrong orders arrive to our table. After waiting with no explanation, we called our server and asked where the other dishes were. She quickly explained that she put in the order wrong and dismissed the matter by saying a quick apology. We continued waiting, and the second dish came out, but the third dish (which was mine) didn't come out after waiting for around 10-15 minutes. At that point I wanted to just cancel my order and just leave. Irritated, my companions called in one of the ladies around the area and asked if my order was even going to come out. The server (looked like the manager to me) apologized and said it did seem strange that we only ordered two dishes for three people. So it seems that our original server put in the order wrong and mistook us for ordering just two dishes. Our server then came by our table and started explaining that we said only two dishes to her and it only seemed to us that she was blaming the whole thing as our fault. Look, I understand. People make mistakes. But putting in the order wrong in the first place and then coming to our table saying we only ordered two dishes later just seems ridiculous to me and also seems very unprofessional. What do you expect the customers to do? "Oh, I'm sorry, I must've said it wrong. Yes, go please make it now, I'm willing to wait. So sorry, I'll give you an extra tip."---said no customer ever. Long story short, I had to eat while the other two people that came with me had to wait while I finished eating. Needless to say, I think that will be my last visit to Woo Lae Oak. I received a 20% coupon but I don't think I'll be returning to use it, unless Woo Lae Oak makes some drastic changes to their crumbling seats and interior and their service.
This wasn't our first visit but it may be our last. The food is good but the service was awful. The wait staff wasn't pleasant and appeared annoyed we were even there. Plenty of seating on a Sunday evening and we were so happy to celebrate the up coming holiday by remembering our three year tour in Korea with some authentic Korean food. We ordered Kalbi beef but had to ask for the fresh garlic and the traditional sesame salt dipping sauce and the lettuce. We had to ask for everything one by one. We never received the lettuce to properly eat the kalbi. We had to ask another wait staff for assistance to cook our beef, additional rice, and barley tea. What was a special night for us ruined our tradition of Korean food before Christmas. Advice to management --treat your non Korean customers as you would your Korean customers. Serve an authentic meal and include the garlic and lettuce for the Kalbi and please hire staff that like their job. Otherwise it ruins the customer experience. Good luck.