Oh, where do I begin~ soup, the hot bubbling tofu soup makes anyone's less than perfect day just perfect! Especially during the cold temperature days. Never thought about writing the review for BCD because that would be like writing a review for McDonalds. I mean I've been going to BCD since the late 90s. I think most people's soon tofu soup experience came from BCD. They're the place to go when it comes to soon tofu soups. Kind of became the marker for the taste of all soon tofu in town. Over the years, they grew enormously and I think they're the #1 restaurant when it comes down to soon tofu. So, if you're new to the little bubbling pot of hot tofu soup (nope, it's not some weird potion in a cauldron - though it may have some magical effect) try them! The hot stone pot rice is always hot and fresh! I love eating the nooroongji (soccarat) rice after I finish eating my soup! They refill banchans and offer lots of combos along with the soup. So even if you're not too fond of soft tofu soup (you're missing out!!), you can eat non-tofu stuff here too. Service is quick and friendly. They're busy and the wait time during their peak hours are long! But they're in the process of expanding their restaurant so it may relieve some wait time at their peak hours. **They're open 24 hours by the way!!! I always come out of the restaurant feeling better than going in, so try! You will definitely be coming back for more~ ^_^ read more

All of the chains are really good. Tofu is always amazing. I usually get the beef or pork so I'm not too sure how the seafood ones taste. Their actual meat plates are really good too. read more

I'm sort of surprised this place got such a low rating. It's one of my go to places since it's open 24 hours and the food is always consistently good no matter what time you walk in. I LOVE their tofu combo with bbq ribs. When I share it with my bf, it's perfect.. just get an extra bowl of rice. Yeah.. service can kind of be bad at times but how would they know when to staff people when they're 24 hours? read more

soon du bu! this place is alright not AMAZING korean food, but convenient cuhs it's open 24 hours. seafood soondubu is my favorite read more

BCD Tofu House - Korean Near Me - Irvine, California

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I was given an incentive to write this review with them hovering. Open Late, the food I can't hate. Su Kim was great! The ban chan are good, galbi is good, tofu soup base is good when not super busy. Etc etc read more

If you're in the mood for some soon tofu, this place is alrite. They give you a large assortment of side dishes and a free little fish when you order the tofu soup. My favorite is the intestine one, but most people don't like it. Their spicy is pretty spicy, so be careful. Don't order the danger level spicyness unless you wanna be miserable the next day. One thing to note, BCD is a chain and the qualitiy of the food and the service varies by location. That being said, I think the Irvine BCD is one of the better locations. read more

This place is one of my favorites. The staff are very attentive and the food is amazing! Minor a big fan of kimchi usually but I thought this place had great food, including the kimchi. It's so great! read more

Okay I actually really like the food here...but the service makes me never going to come back. So its about 9pm on a Thursday night a tad busy due to a bunch of drunk Korean businessmen. Waited at least 10mins to get a seat for two and so many tables were empty. After that it took about 20mins to get a glass of water and 20mins just to order my food. I waited 15mins to get my check and I kept pushing the service button and no one even came and it was slow at that point! So I stood right up and walked to the kitchen to pay for my check. I was so mad with the whole experience there. I did not feel like a wanted customer. I payed but did not leave a tip... Okay and here comes the best part... The waitress chased me outside the store!!!! and screamed at me yelling "no tip!?! no tip?!?!" In my head I was like WTF! All of sudden I got attention from the faculty. I was so pissed and confused I asked her how much the tip was. And she told me I had to give her two dollars. I lied to her and told her I have no more money. But she told me that I did because she gave me change back in all dollars...wich she did. My friend reached into her wallet gabbed a dollar and said here! The waitress took it said nothing and went back inside... I'm never ever going back here. BAH! read more

I am addicted! Love the side dishes, the salted clams and fried fish are so good! I am not a big meat eater, so I love the vegetable soon tofu. This place does get crowded though, so I try and avoid peak dinner hours. read more

I like kimchi tofu and glass noodle. Parking a bit difficult for dinner. Hot pot bibimbap also my favorite. read more

I usually visit this place when I get hungry at nighttime. (Since it's open for 24 hrs) and best thing about this place is even when it's pretty late night, you can still get really great tofu with greatest service. I'm loving it. read more

I was skeptical at first. This is a chain restaurant, how good can they be. But I have no choice because my boss (wife) loves it. After going there for 15 times last year, I have grown to like it. Not for the food, their food are not bad, and very consistent. You can order the same thing every week for a year (which is what I did) and they will taste the same every time. The things l like are: 1. Fast, they serve your food FAST. That's smart because it keeps their rotation high. 2. Consistent, they have the SOP down. You can expect what to get first, and what's next. You don't need to call for water, for rice, or anything else, it will come in a set order, rarely miss. 3. Generous: let's face it, you go to Korean places for the unlimited side dishes, right? Most Korean restaurants will fill them upon request, or not fill at all. But this place has a dedicated staff roaming the aisle for the sole purpose of filling the side dishes. What? That's unseen! Plus that staff carries anything you might need on her cart, water, napkins, containers. That keeps me happy and keep me coming back. Ok, I am cheap, I tend to finish all the side dishes, twice. So I am rating this place a high 4 stars for the sole reason of side dishes! Sue me! read more

Their service sucks! As I was waiting with my party to be seated, I saw some friends at one of the tables and walked over to say hi. One of the waitresses, assuming I was trying to find a random seat or something, yelled at me, "YOUR TABLE IS NOT READY YET." Um. Okay, you didn't have to shout. Then the same waitress took our order when we were finally seated. She had a very irritated attitude and I had to repeat my order 3-4 times because she didn't have the patience to listen to what I was really saying and kept assuming things too quickly. Later near the end of my meal, I bit something hard from my tofu soup and after spitting it out, realized it was a piece from a steel sponge. Yup. I am most definitely never coming here again. read more

Decent service. A notch higher thank a typical Korean place because it's Irvine. Good proportions on the soups with banchan. They have a vegan soup option which is excellent. I LOVE the "salted clam" banchan with the jalapeno. The Tofu Salad is great to share, their homeade dressing is sooo good. Everytime I order this salad the lettuce is so fresh and crispy. Basic galbi. Go for the other meat options. Good value. High quality. Hordes of yuppy FOBs... Lots of Chanel and Versace logos to look at while you eat. Parking is a sport. I always avoid the mess and park on level 2 of the parking structure and walk down the stairs. read more

Have tried many So Cal BCD stops and this one isn't bad. The service is not the greatest (but what Korean restaurant has excellent service?) and the banchan selection and refills were whatever, but the kimchi chigae was delicious and flavorful. Not bad I think read more

Food is pretty good but It's even better at 2 AM after drinking. 4 stars after 2AM. Anyway tofu is good, BBQ dishes are ok but kinda pricey. Like I said after 2 AM this place hits the spot. Any earlier and it's just average. read more

Best service ever!! I was served by Sarah Ku, the most attentive server EVER. The Soon Tofu was to die for so glad they open 24 hrs

I've never had a problem here at BCD. The service has always been awesome and the food has never been anything but delicious to me. Even when the place is packed, I get seated relatively quickly. I prefer BCD to Koba, and Kaju. I love this particular location because it is open 24/7. I always stick with the Seafood Soontofu Medium Spicy because I find that it has the best taste anywhere and it's not so spicy that it is burning your mouth. It came with nice big oysters and shrimp. I really like the side dishes here too and get lots of refills on just about everything. Their potato salad is the bomb. The dumplings here are tasty too. Maybe I'm a little biased since I really love soontofu and find it hard to dislike something that is so like home to me. I would come back to BCD. 4/5 read more

If you're the kind of person that cares more about the post-drinking meal then the actual drinking part or if you're a vampire who lives by the night then you probably already know about the glory of BCD and need no explanation. But for those of you who need the extra validation that you didn't get from the other 2000+ posts, or the person who is sick with a cold and needs a cure, then I say, you must come here. Side dishes + piping hot (and spicy on request) tofu soup with the option of different meat entrees = you're going to have a good time. It's relatively inexpensive, there's a service button (I wish all restaurants took one out of the Korean book for this), and they refill your side dishes fast! Oh and plenty of parking and seating is cool too. read more

This is one of the of the best places to experience Korean cuisine that isn't KBBQ. Food is extremely affordable and comes in portions that are never too small. When ordering just 1 Soon Tofu, one gets to try 3 different Korean dishes all for an average price of $11. This restaurant also provides side dishes with any entree so diversity in tastes is almost always guaranteed. The service is superb as well in that the waiters and servers are open to explanations and have awareness of cultural differences. There is a valid reason to why it is always jam packed despite it being one of the bigger restaurants in Diamond Jamboree, in terms of seating. It is also recommended that those unfamiliar with Korean cuisine to try dishes that they otherwise would not-- you won't be disappointed. read more

Poor BCD...such staggering hatred for this place. Personally, when I found out they were opening a BCD in Irvine, I got really excited. You can only go to Dennys so many times for your drunken 4 am food binge. Plus, since everything in Irvine closes at around 9 pm....Irvine desperately needs another 24 hour place where we can get our eat on after that 3 am house party. BCD isn't the greatest Korean restaurant in the world, but you don't come here for fine gourmet dining. You come here because they give you decent Korean food that satisfies that drunken beast inside you at any hour of the day. I'm always starving, so I always end up getting the Galbi/Assorted Tofu combo, which has hit the spot every time. However, I find everything here is pretty much the same quality....not fantastic...but not horrible. Basically, as a Korean restaurant, this gets 3 stars at best....but as a 24 hour drunken eatery...its always given me exactly what I want, so 4 stars! read more

BCD Tofu House is one of my favorite places to go when I want Korean tofu soup, and I would love to give 5 starts to this place...but I simply can't! The food is great. I love and appreciate the fact that they use organic tofu and do not use MSG. I love their Korean BBQ--I think the marinade is much better than many other Korean restaurants. Their kimchi has never disappointed me, and I love all of the side dishes that come with the meal. However, their service is really horrible. Yes, I am a Korean and know that I shouldn't really expect the same service I get at American restaurants when I go to Korean restaurants. However, the service I received at BCD Tofu House a couple of weeks ago was NOT acceptable! I took two non-Korean friends who had never really been to Korean restaurants. So when the service was so bad, I was embarrassed and felt really bad. We went there on a Saturday night. The restaurant was very busy as we all expected. After we were seated at a table, we had to wait way longer than usual until someone came to take an order. We probably waited for more than 15-20 minutes. We all kept looking around -- a subtle hint to the waiters and waitresses that we were READY to order! My friend eventually raised her hand to get a waitress' attention. She made eye contact with my friend but simply ignored her and told another employee to take an order for us. Still no one would come to our table. I told my boyfriend that we should just leave and go to a different restaurant, but I think he didn't want to...because we went there so that our friends could try the tofu soups that they never had before. A waiter finally came to take an order. My boyfriend specifically asked for Korean BBQ ribs with "no onions", but they gave him the dish with onions. When my boyfriend told a waitress about it, she didn't even apologize. She just took the dish without saying "I'm sorry" and came back with less onions on the dish. Ummmm...HELLO??? He said "NO onions" -- not less onions! The second time he told the waitress that he didn't want onions at all, she still didn't apologize and just grabbed our waiter. The waiter finally came back with no onions on the dish. After we were done eating, we waited for long AGAIN to get our check. We kept looking around, but no one paid attention to us. BTW, I'm not even sure if customers are expected to walk up to the cashier to get a check at BCD. I've been going to BCD at a few different locations for many years, and it seems like some BCDs have their employees bring a check to your table...and others expect customers to walk up to the cashier for a check. Anyway, we didn't want to wait any longer and my boyfriend walked up to the cashier to pay. My boyfriend told the employee at the cash register about the horrible service we experienced. The employee apologized and told him that they were under-staffed. I'm a big tipper. I like to give a decent tip even for mediocre service because I used to work as a waitress years ago, and I know working at a restaurant isn't easy. If the service is amazing, I even tip up to 30%. The service at BCD was so horrible that I just left a penny on the table. Yes, we had four people in the group and gave a PENNY for tip! I don't mind waiting at all! No one is perfect, so I don't expect all employees to give us perfect service. I also understand that many of the employees working at BCDs are not fluent in English. That's totally understandable! However, apologizing when necessary isn't so difficult! Almost everyone living in the U.S. who barely can speak English probably knows how to say "I'm sorry". We wouldn't have been so unhappy if the employees apologized for the bad service and messing up the order before we finally made a complaint. They could have at least told us that they were under-staffed and that it could take them longer to serve us, etc. That night, pushing the service button didn't do any good, either. I will go back to BCD only because I love the food there. If you want good food along with good service, do NOT go to BCD! read more

24 hour tofu house?? I wish there was something like this in northern California. Who wouldn't love immersing yourself if a hot bowl of soon dubu after the festivities of your drunk night are over? Although, my first encounter was not like that, it was more of soberly wandering in during the peak dinner hours. The time to get seated was reasonable. The ordering involved pushing a button on the table, or, if you needed to exercise your arms a bit, waving your arms furiously around until you catch one of the waiters attention. Luckily, the food doesn't take too long to come out. My sadness came when the food came out. Majority of the dishes lacked flavor. The soon dubu all tasted the same, even though we had ordered different meats and spice levels. The stone pot bibimbap was not crispy. The kalbi was probably the best dish. Flavorful, tender, and delicious! Aside from the kalbi, bland was the word to sum up everything else. The 24 hr part saves it from getting a 2 rating. read more

I used to like going here but more recently they seem to constantly get my order wrong! I know it get me super busy in there, but that's not any different than before. C'mon BCD you're better than that! read more

Ok, I love Korean food, but since I'm from norcal, I haven't really been to K-Town LA much, and if I did, this review would probably quickly go down to a 3. But I came here this weekend with a couple friends, and I really enjoyed it. I loved the banchan, the fried fish, and the rice in the stone pots (and they even fill up the pots with warm water after scooping out the rice for you to eat as a kind of jook afterwards with the leftover rice in the pot). The kalbi is pretty good. The soondubu, which is supposed to be the specialty here since it's part of the restaurant name after all, was lacking something. I can't pinpoint exactly what it was...perhaps a certain kick or flavor? It was still good though, and I pretty much inhaled it. They come with a raw egg you can crack in if you'd like. Prices are about the same or a little more than in norcal, but the combos are a pretty good deal (and will definitely make you really full). read more

Came here again on a Saturday night around 3am. The difference from my first experience was that this time, I was drunk as hell. With three friends, we ended up ordering the bul-gogi, kalbi, and soondooboo. Now, at this point, my bar is set pretty low. I could have eaten those dirty dogs that they sell outside the club in downtown LA. Nonetheless, we made the trip out here since it was close to home and open 24/7. Nonetheless, it was not half bad. Prices here are pretty standard, with your combo being around $20, and the meat plates around $10-$15. The bulgogi was a little on the sweet side, but still edible. As always, my favorite part is not the meat, but the grilled onions below it. Sweet awesomeness, goodness gracious. Kalbi, same sweetness, but better meat obviously. Usually, I don't order it because I'm a lazy eater. Who wants to spend those extra 30 seconds taking the meat off the bone anyways? As far as my soondooboo, I thought it was a lot better than when I first ordered it. This time, it didn't taste all watered down and nasty. Props to the staff working there during that time because I'm sure we were loud and annoying as hell. To be honest, this is a great place to go to when you're drunk like a sailor. Otherwise if you're sober, there are tons of other spots you can go to, just not at 3am. read more

The service here is terrible. I ate here with a friend and it was almost impossible to get our waiter to stop at our table. After giving us our orders she basically abandoned us. When we were ready for our check we waited about 20-30min before giving up and just going to the cash register ourselves. The tofu soup was bland. It wasn't memorable at all and I had a hard time just trying to eat it. The banchan dishes also tasted stale. BCD isn't that much cheaper than it's competitors. If you're craving Korean tofu soup find another place in Irvine you have lots of options! read more

BCD is great because they're open late, but it's definitely not the best soondubu I've ever had. I used to go there all the time as a college student. I still go there now because of the location. Anyways, my last visit there was good. I went with my girlfriends and we were seated right away. I love their sides, especially that pickled cucumber stuff. I ordered the beef soondubu and it was okay. If you like your food spicy, then you shouldn't order the "medium" level... it still was not spicy enough. Their bimbimbap is okay, I think I still prefer that place in H-mart has has stone bowls. They're bulgolgi is tasty and they have good teriyaki chicken. Overall, it was a good experience. Fast service and cheap food :) Good way to get your soondubu fix. read more

Can't believe this place is open all the time. We went here twice after some late night shenanigans. Don't let the name fool you. Yes, there are tons of tofu on the menu, but that's not all there is. I got the chicken teriyaki plate that came with soup, rice, and fried fish. The only thing I really wanted was the teriyaki, which in all honesty was pretty good. The servings were enough and definitely made me full. The only thing that irked me were the prices. I wished they had a cheaper a la carte version of the teriyaki without the soup and fried fish. But other than that everything was pretty damn good. read more

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Worst Korean tofu house experience ever. We came here for late lunch on a weekday since SWSH was closed for lunch. The place wasn't really packed and service was absolutely terrible. We waited over 40 minutes for our food and they got the order wrong. Instead of spicy barbecue chicken they gave us teriyaki chicken. Since we waited so long for our food we didn't even bother trying to fix it since we were starving and didn't want to wait another hour for the food. Not to mention it took them over 20 minutes just to bring out the banchan (the Korean side dishes). I ordered the seafood tofu soup and it was very watered down compared to other ones I've had. I can see why people have told me BCD is only good if you're drunk or if you got those late night Korean food cravings. Otherwise don't come here. You're better off eating at Kaju for tofu soup. read more

Parking: It's a bit of a pain when you come any time before 10 or 11pm...but I usually come here after 12am when parking lot is a bit more empty. Service: Only time I come here is after a night of heavy drinking. So pretty much you can tell that it's gonna be jam packed with other drunks hahaha service can be slow to REALLY slow...thank goodness there's banchan to fill up on. Food: It's alright. It's tofu soup, I can't see any way tofu tasting super bomb. However, after a night of drinking, it does hit the right spot. It's one of the very few places that's open late around the area and not so bad to eat here if you don't mind the wait and the slow service. read more

Call me basic but I love BCD. It's my go-to for good soondooboo. They are open 24 hours and they're so busy they're expanding even more! I love that they still give you unlimited side dishes, the fried fish at the beginning of each meal, rice during, and "rice soup" (for lack of better translation) at the end of each meal. Their portions are always super filling and hits the spot. I think the prices are quite reasonable for how much you get. My favorite is the assorted, medium spicy. Comes with beef, clams, and shrimp. I also like their galbi and spicy chicken meat combos. read more

I've gone to multiple BCD tofu houses, as well as many tofu houses in general. This is not what you'd expect... in a bad way. The soup here is flavorless. I dont know what's wrong but... it's seriously flavorless. I get the spicy spiciness.. and taste nothing in it. The fish is always good (like every other BCD)... sides are OK... but the soup itself is very bland. I prefer the tofu house on Walnut and Culver or the BCD in Garden Grove is much better than here. I've gone here three times so it's not like my review is based off a single night either. read more

Came in and stood at the door for a few minutes, two servers saw us and did nothing. After a while I went to the cashier to speak to someone about getting a table. Nobody there. Finally an employee that was on their break(!) spotted us, stopped eating and seated us. Then we waited. And waited, and waited, and waited. I pushed the button for service several times, nothing. A server came to check on a table next to us and asked if they ordered, to which they replied "Yes, we ordered a while ago" then the server looked over at my boyfriend and I (we even made eye contact!) and before I could say a word he disappeared. I was so annoyed I just grabbed my bag and got out of there. It wasn't even busy. There were lots of tables available, though most of them still needed clearing. After tonight I don't think I will return to this location. Really, the only thing going for them is that they're open 24 hours. read more

The service here wasn't as bad as a lot of reviews have mentioned, but we did have an early lunch and the place was only 1/3 full. Our group had ordered different combos. We were satisfied with our choices, but nothing really stood out in a good or bad way. I ordered my tofu spicy and it was a mild spicy to me, so you might want to ask for extra spicy if you love food hot hot hot. read more

When weather is cold , tofu soup is way to go. especially this place is perfect for late night dinner without "feeling guilty" ask for Anne....she is wonderful...and funny. read more

Thank the late night food gods! BCD, serving up yummy Korean food 24 hours! BCD has become a staple with my friends and I. A late night hot stone bimbimbap, kimchi, some sausage and cheese soup, so delicious! It's always a pickle to find parking in Diamond Jamboree. But once you've nose dived into the lines of the one leaving car, you're set! BCD is great because not only can you get great food and great service, but you can take the short walk down to 85C after! Who doesn't love a fresh pastry after a plate of Korean BBQ chicken?? As I mentioned, my BCD staple is the hot stone bibimbap. A piping hot stone bowl of veggies, egg, and rice. Don't forget the sriracha and soy sauce. Why hit up late night del taco when you can head to BCD and get a home cooked meal? Plus their rotating sides are always enjoyable. I've still never understood the whole fried fish, but it's fun to not eat them and take pictures with punny captions. Yup, there's even entertainment! Haha. read more

THE ONLY asian place i know thats literally open 24/7! They give you some type of fish as a free dish when you order food; which is unique, but the fish has lots of bones.. and its bland. Its definitely a late night type of place for me, Ive driven up from San Diego to Irvine just to have this at night! Would go back, but if other places were open, id give them a shot before BCD. read more

Great food. Busy and crowded atmosphere on weekend. Hard to find parking although you will find one eventually if you a little patience. Worth your time to visit. read more

Can't go wrong with the soon tofu. I got the beef one and it tastes exactly the way I expect it to. Love the variety of side dishes as well. This place is so efficient. You have one person coming around just to refill side dishes, one to scoop your rice, one to add hot water to your rice, etc. It gets busy and parking can get hectic so come at off hours for a better experience. All of the staff we interacted with were friendly except for one sour-faced man who took our order, but he is the exception. read more