In my journey to eat my way through as many KBBQ places in the Chicagoland area as possible, I ended up at HalMae BoSsam. I went with two friends and we stuck to our usual thing of ordering one meat plate per person. This was more than a sufficient amount of food for us three. The pork jowl was recommended, so we tried that and I was pleasantly surprised at how I've missed this cut of pork before! We got some marinated short ribs which I didn't expect to come to our table fully cooked, but they were also incredibly delicious. On top of that, the extremely kind and attentive wait staff brought us two different kinds of soup. One hot bean/tofu soup and one cold cabbage soup that was honestly incredibly refreshing after all that meat. The biggest and most pleasant surprise was the bill. HalMae is incredibly well priced, an amazing deal for delicious food. Highly recommend! read more

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Food: great flavor but never too salty as other place, kids friendly. Unfortunately, they are out of my favorite pig feet. Service: all my friends love the girl who is super friendly and always gave great recommendations Ambiance: I believe they remodeled the store compare to few years ago, it's ok to fit more ppl right now. Love the clean space. read more

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Amazing Korean food...best I've ever had! Terrific service and great value! But I went back again recently....I didn't see any hours of operation...did they move? read more

This was really good. The menu is not very detailed but do not be fooled, ordering one entree comes with rice, 2 different soups, salad, an assortments of sides, vegetables to cook, and a bean sauce to dip in. You can also order noodles, which aren't currently on the menu but are very good and also a huge portion (enough for 4). In all it was too much food but I wish I could eat more. The pork shoulder was delicious but my favorites were the marinated pork ribs and marinated beef. They are currently doing a "soft launch" of their new menu but the establishment has been around for over 20 years, the staff was friendly and attentive. I recommend to all to come and try. read more

HalMae BoSsam - Korean Near Me - Morton Grove, Illinois

Will ABSOLUTELY be coming back here for the NAPA CABBAGE WITH PORK AND OYSTERS (Bossam). I haven't had an authentic Bossam experience until I came here. And I typically have my Bossam with Oysters in my Kimchi, but the oysters had in their own bowl & were fresh, juicy and tasted of the ocean. They were literally the highlight of every single bite but even the pork belly and cabbage were on point. Such authentic Korean food. Also gotta say that the side dishes were amazing. I'm super picky with my side dishes but I literally ate every single one and couldn't stop eating them. The Cockle salad was so fresh and tasty too but there was so much Bossam that we had leftovers. So if you're on a date or with a friend, just order the Bossam. There will be way too much to finish if you order another dish. Service was really nice and allowed us to order food before their kitchen was closing at 9 so I appreciated their leniency. Ambiance was simple & clean and reminded me of a kdrama location! Definitely will be returning for more oyster Bossam! read more

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I think it's the new ownership, this place feels different. Many great lunch options, to my personal taste most of the dishes were sweet. But overall positive experience. read more

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Yes, there are some problems with management of this place for sure. They are quite out of their menu items too often, they close the restaurant randomly without notification, and lack service some times due to lack of employees. However, I personally think this is one of the better Korean restaurants with good authentic korean foods in the chicagoland. We have had almost everything on the menu, and have been mostly satisfied with exception of couple of them (personal preference so no need to mention). Their bossam is very good, with really good sides/ set. It's plentiful for 2-3, and has always been fresh for us. Their pork kalbi is my favorite, very flavorful & meaty. Love the charcoal smell and the amount is plentiful as well. I did not favor their dak kalbi, but it was little sweeter for my taste so it may be your thing. And overall, the side dishes (banchan) are very good and tasty. I would avoid their extreme busy hrs on weekends but otherwise, I will continue to return! read more

I've only had gamjatang, pork spine soup, once and that was in Sokcho, South Korea nine years ago. Since it's not available at many Korean restaurant when I saw on Yelp that they had it here I had to try it. I had the small bowl and as others mentioned it was full of meaty bones. It also came with six (?) banchan and a bowl of rice. The soup was very flavorful with a little heat and I'd get it again. Other reviews complained about the service but I thought it was fine. I think there's some cultural differences that people mistake for rudeness such as having to ask for the check. read more

Get the marinated grilled ribs, take in the service and ambiance and atmosphere, and you will know the meaning of loneliness forevermore. Even if you have ten children and a loving significant other - they just won't matter anymore after the feeling of fulfillment and enrichment a slab from here gives ya. read more

Service was solid, food was incredible. Got the marinated grilled ribs. Perfectly prepared. Great banchan. One of the best meals I've had. read more

HalMae BoSsam - Marinated Grilled Ribs (/LA) - Korean Near Me - Morton Grove, Illinois

Their bossam is really good. It comes with plenty of veggies, two bowls of rice and a few side dishes even when you get it to-go. The meat is moist and tender. I think the price went up a little and it's just enough for two people to share. read more

HalMae BoSsam - Bossam - Korean Near Me - Morton Grove, Illinois

You know a korean place is good when your first generation parents rave about it. We went for a family dinner and the food was excellent! It's no fine dining, but if you are looking for some yummy authentic no frills korean fix, this is the place to go. Made me nostalgic for korea. We loved everything we ordered! Hae mul jun gol, nak ji bok um, bo ssam... among other things. The nak ji bokkeum was a huge hit! The owner overheard me talking about how much I love gamjatang, so he actually brought me out a bowl to try! It was no small bowl but loaded with a hearty serving of fall off the bone meat with potatoes. It was SO GOOD and the broth was on pointe. Reminded me of the gamjatang I had in Korea. Will definitely be going back to try everything else! read more

HalMae BoSsam - Gamjatang. SO GOOD! The meat was so tender and falling off the bone. Broth was amazing too. - Korean Near Me - Morton Grove, Illinois

As someone that lived in Boston for 4 years, I absolutely missed the Korean town we had there. Among the restaurants located in the Korean town, the one that I craved for was a place famous for its gamjatang. Yes. It was like 90 degrees outside. So what? Nothing can step in between me and my gamjatang. :P I had been hunting for decent gamjatang in Chicago area for a LOOOOOOOONG while. And even that was an understatement. If you know somewhere else with good gamjatang, please please please let me know, will you? My boyfriend and I spent our whole afternoon at the King Spa near spa. So we were absolutely starving when we got there at a little bit over 5 PM, right when they opened. I understood that this was a family restaurant, and that the owner and server were not professionally trained, but at least I was expecting for some appreciation towards their customers. In words, the service here was terrible. We put our order within five minutes. And then, we waited for at least 20 minutes until our food was brought to us. During that 20 minutes, no banchan was served, no check-in to see how we were doing, no explanation on why it took that long to serve a pre-prepared dish. NOTHING. Putting the service aside, their food was super comforting and had that homey feeling. Just like how my mom would cook the food. I extremely loved the fact that they put tons of crushed wild sesame both in the soup and on the top. That nutty smell was so intriguing and mouth-watering. The neck bone was well cooked, like fall-off-the-bone soft and tender. Just amazing. To be honest, I was not looking for an exceptional service. I only wished they would be more welcoming, and not acting as if I was begging for their food. read more

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Service was extremely friendly. I was disappointed in the limited menu. The food was fine, but not as good as other Korean spots.

Food was great! It was nice and quiet inside - food and service were good. We ordered from the set menu. Probably my favorite bossam place in the suburbs. read more

Checked this place out for the first time with a friend. Cozy little restaurant. We went on Sunday close to 6pm. The outside table was full and they had seating inside. Make sure to call before you go, they're taking reservations currently cause of covid. We ordered a spicy stirfry squid and soondae gook. It was delicious together! The squid dish actually had a kick and it was so flavorful! Sometimes the sauce is not well marinated with the squid and spicy dishes aren't actually spicy at many korean restaurants, but not here! I reaaally enjoyed every bite! The rich soondae gook also worked really well with the stirfry. It came with like 9 pieces of soondae. Banchans (side dishes) were good too. Overall, very happy with the meal we got. I'd probably go back when I'm near the area! I want to try their bossam next time since I'm guessing that's their specialty considering they named their restaurant after bossam lol. Excited to go back. Service was decent considering it's a korean restaurant lol. A younger man took our order. Remember this- if you're at a korean restaurant, wave your hand or shout to grab servers attention cz they're not gonna come over frequently asking if you need anything lol. That's just how it is at many korean restaurants but def go check this place out! read more

HalMae BoSsam - Spicy Stir-Fried Squid - Korean Near Me - Morton Grove, Illinois

Great service and great quality food! Definitely recommend. The the bo sam and the gam ja tang are really recommended! read more

HalMae BoSsam - Bo sam! For real - Korean Near Me - Morton Grove, Illinois

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Really? No one has reviewed this place yet.. I guess it's a hidden gem then! Hal Mae is the bees knees! This place offers delivious authentic Korean food at a great price and quick service. I ordered the dolsat bibimbop and it came out sizzling and with fresh ingredients as well as a nice thick bowl of stew, along with the varied assortment of Korean sidedishes. Great place! read more

I came here with the girlfriend at 2:30 PM on a weekday. We were the only ones in the building and shared the bo ssam. There was a variety of banchan and the bo ssam itself was very tender and excellent. Price was about $26, so it is very reasonable for two people to be incredibly stuffed. My huge complaint was the service! I swear the waitress never said a word to us and looked like we were wasting her time. There is this sentiment about hardcore korean restaurants giving preferential treatment to koreans, but the girlfriend was speaking korean so this is NOT an excuse. Great food, miserable service! read more

HalMae BoSsam - bo ssam with banchan. excellent food and reasonably priced (~26). be wary of service though - Korean Near Me - Morton Grove, Illinois

Despite driving past this place all the time, I never once saw or heard of this place! ...Until last weekend when my friend took me and my husband here for lunch. Korean food here is authentic and delicious. Came here with a group of four and split the 'Gam Ja Tang', 'Soon Doo Boo', 'Yook Gae Jang', and 'Oh Jing Uh Bokkeum'. Our favorites were the 'Gam Ja Tang' and 'Oh Jing Uh Bokkeum'--best we've ever had. 'Gam Ja Tang' comes with a ton of meat and is spiced very well. My husband is quite the picky one when it comes to Gam Ja Tang... but even he said this was the best one in the Chicago area. The 'Oh Jing Uh Bokkeum' is basically squid and vegetables mixed in spicy red sauce in a stone bowl. Addicting flavor that keeps you wanting more. As with other typical Korean restaurants, your dish will come with a variety of banchan (side dishes). Portions are quite generous here--we were starving when we got here, but still had a ton of leftover food. It's unfortunate this place has poor reviews based almost solely on their 'poor' service. I think most of it has to do with cultural differences. Especially at authentic Korean restaurants run by Korean people who speak minimal to no English... you HAVE to wave your hand and sometimes yell across the restaurant to get the servers' attention--no kidding...that's just how it is. Don't be shy to ask for more banchan either : ) read more

HalMae BoSsam - 'Soon Doo Boo', 'Yook Gae Jang', 'Oh Jing Uh Bokkeum', and 'Gam Ja Tang' with banchan (side dishes) - Korean Near Me - Morton Grove, Illinois

I would give a higher rating for the food, but the service truly put me off. The lack of service is common; I'm used to it. However, it was difficult to flag the wait staff down to get refills on water each time, and when we asked for a refill for the banchan once, the waitress told use they were out. Obviously she deceived us, as others who dined in were given banchan. She could have said that they don't give refills rather than being pretentious and saying that they were out. As that had left a bad taste in my mouth, I certainly won't be returning. read more

BEST Gamja Tang in Chicagoland!! The restaurant should change their name to Hal Mae Gamja Tang! Gamja Tang Pros: 1) Meat falls off the bones! 2) Generous portion of meat! (see picture) 3) AND priced well I have not been to a restaurant that gives that much meat in a Gamja Tang before AND priced that well. Here are some comments that I received when I was served my Gamja Tang: "Woah, they give you a lot of meat!" "They filled the meat to the brim!" "Man, I should've got the Gamja Tang..." "Why didn't you tell me to get the Gamja Tang?" read more

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Went on a Sunday afternoon around 4 with my family of 12. We took up the entire middle section of the place. It's not that big, but they do have a "next door" where people were also being seated. Craving some Bo ssam so came here cuz the name n read some good reviews. Food was just ok. Soon dae gook (blood sausage soup) soooo bland!!! And I normally eat my food bland but this was like water. My mother had the sul long tang (ox tail soup) and again no flavor what so ever!!! Normally you should be able to taste the bone in the broth but again it was like water. My mother asked for some salt 3 times n never got it. Bo ssam was ok. Nothing to write home about but the kimchi radish that comes with it was pretty tasty. I put a bunch of it in my soup for some flavor (since intend so bland) Service was awful! Just like most other Korean places. But if the food is great bad service doesn't bother me. But food was not good...at least what we ordered today. I will go back to try a few more things off the menu. Like the stews you cook at your table cuz that's what all the other tables had going on. read more

HalMae BoSsam - Bo ssam - Korean Near Me - Morton Grove, Illinois

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Literally translated to "Grandmas cooking." That homey feel is definitely translated into their food. Generous portions, bright veggies with well marinated meat, and the sides were so delicious. We ordered this conch shell dish- wow, I was pleasantly surprised! I loved how the flavors from the sauce and each vegetable all just sink into each other, and the chewy conch shell meat balanced out the crunchy veggies. I just ate but I get hungry thinking about this place. It's homey, and it has an all Korean staff. It was a bit awkward to not be able to speak Korean, so it was a good idea to go with a Korean speaking friend. read more

HalMae BoSsam - Korean Near Me - Morton Grove, Illinois

Let me quickly sum up my dinner here since it seems like a lot of other yelpers had the same experience. Decent food, mediocre to poor service. Pros *Our entrees and ban chan (side dishes) were quite tasty. I ordered the beef bulgogi since they were out of the pork and the meat was tender and sweet. My friend had the galbi and the flavor was great but was too chewy. Cons *We were seated in a sketchy side room (where it's a karaoke bar) since all of the regular tables were taken and it was so dark I could barely read my menu. The ambiance of the room was mob-esque like in the movies where the bosses are doing "business", putting hits on people, all the while money laundering is going on in the back back room or basement. *Two guys were seated at the table next to us but then a few minutes later were asked if they wanted to be seated in the main dining area since a table opened up. Um why were we were never asked that?? *Our waitress checked on us once or twice throughout dinner but had we needed to get her attention for whatever reason we probably wouldn't have been able to find her I wouldn't recommend coming here unless all other Korean options were exhausted...which was our case since the place we originally wanted to try was closed and Hal Mae was the next closest. read more

HalMae BoSsam - Bulgogi - Korean Near Me - Morton Grove, Illinois

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It's good. The food is solid and very homey. It is more like Grandma's than a restaurant vibe. That is to say, you're not going to relive your Seoul experiences here. But good Bossam is very welcome in Chicago. Sitting outside would be ideal, but it is very limited. The interior is quite basic and not a particularly special dining experience. If you are craving bossam, this will satisfy. read more

I was so so in the mood for Korean soup but couldn't find anyone open on Dempster St where I usually go so decided to give this a try. I ordered the Man Doo Gook which is beef dumplings in beef broth. They give plenty of dumplings and very reasonably priced, but I've had better dumplings before so I wouldn't recommend getting the soup here. I did enjoy some of my husband's Dolsot Bi Bim Bop which is always one of my favorites and the fat that it is served in a clay pot so that the rice gets extra crunchy is worth the extra few dollars that is charged for the dish. The place is a dive and it looks like they haven't cleaned the interior in over 10 years, but they do offer Korean television for your viewing pleasure! read more

Ordered curbside pickup at the recommendation of my brother. Ordered galbi, dangjangjigae, pajun, bulgogi. Everything was excellent. Probably one of the best danjangs I've had. Reminded me the the dangjang my grandmother used to make. I must have driven by this place millions of times not realizing they were there. Now I found a go to Korean restaurant in the neighborhood. Definitely would recommend. Very authentic Korean food. read more

Love their lunch specials and their dwangjang jjigae is simply the best. It's simple korean food, nothing fancy.

Wow. Just wow. The bo-ssam here was on point. Their shrimp (sae-woo-jut) sauce was the perfect compliment. Their blood sausage (soon dae) stew was A-M-A-Z-I-N-G! I was not expecting any special from this restaurant but the food was excellent and the service was phenomenal. I think it is owned by a husband and wife and they are very service oriented. The egg dish was delicious. Go here. You won't be disappointed. read more

I just had dinner here with my family. I ordered the hot spicy beef soup. Upon first sniff - I was met with a horrid rotten fish scent. The taste was god-awful. My family described it as the same, even with a dirty rag smell. I hesitated, but I did ask for this to be fixed. The owner did not seem to believe me, and questioned it, and did not say much of anything else. The waitress offered to bring a different soup - to which I said yes to the suggestion. Then, she offered another stew which confused me. She brought me the second one for some reason. I was so disgusted by the first bowl of "soup" that I could not enjoy my night with my family. I still feel very sick. The worst part of it all was the owner not even saying he was apologetic in any way. I will not be returning. I am writing this as a public service so others do not have this experience. I still tipped 20% which I now regret read more

Their bossam is fantastic! Gamjatang is my favorite. Always good like grandma's home cooking. :) read more

We ate there a few days ago. It was not a good experience. The waitress wasn't nice and it seems she only gives smile to Korean people. Once she brought the food to you our table, she never came back. When we finished, we've waited for note than 15 minutes for the check, but she never looked at us. No way to make an eye contact. We called and asked for our check, then ... The whole period made us very uncomfortable. I don't care whether the food is good or not, I won't come back if the service is poor. read more

The menu is great and the pricing is consistent with the area. It is a hidden gem. The bossam is exactly what they are known for in the Chicagoland and suburban Korean community. The menu is brief as it should be and their specialties lie in the bossam. Drinks are typical Korean wines, beer and of course soju. The sides that come on the table are excellent, some of the best I have had in the north shore area. On the topic of the delicious bossam!! For some reason there are no more oysters being served with the bossam for a couple of months now. I am on a bossam protest on occasion and would like to see oysters back on the plate as this is what bossam has as a standard fare. Their stews and soups are great, I would suggest eating early evening for those items to make sure you get the richest flavor from them! Ah the topic of service, I had to read a few of the gripes on this site and I can agree that if one is not aware of the range of Korean service, it can range from downright cold, icy cold to warm and pleasant with time taken. I am not turned off by any of these or expect someone to behave a certain way, I am here for food and drink and if I wanted to make a friend then that should be separate on the agenda. I have been to this place for some time now and have spoken with, had drinks with and been served by some of these people that work there. Really, don't go into a Korean eating or drinking establishment without accepting the fact that you will get a blunt person or seemingly rude person. read more

Seriously the best gamjatang on the planet! It's a pork soup that looks spicy but really isn't at all. Also their cod soup is really good too. They have fresh side dishes. Actually most of their food is really tasty. Service is spotty but I couldn't care less because the food is sooo good. I've noticed that service has been getting better which is a good sign. read more

I had the spicy shredded pork noodle soup and my wife had the hot stone bi bim bop. They're both very tasty. The spiciness of the noodles was perfect, overall the soup was flavorful. You can taste the sweet pork as well as the crunchy veggies. The texture of the noodles was right, it wasn't soggy. Finally, the soup was quite large so it was quite filling without feeling bloated. The hot stone bi bin bop was also awesome. The rice tasted sweet soaking up all the toppings of beef, mushrooms and various veggies. The texture was soft and crunchy for the ones that got crisp from the hot stone. Driving 1 hour from lake in the hills is totally worth it for this place. I would do it again. read more

When one places the word "Bo Ssam" in the name of a restaurant, one would believe that restaurant to specialize and make a killer bossam dish. Unfortunately not the case here. Bossam being one of my favorite dishes, I have eaten it a lot at numerous places and know what's good and bad. This place is BAD! This restaurant failed in so many ways. I couldn't believe that I fell for the name of the restaurant. First, if you expect any service, don't look for it here. One corner of the restaurant is taken over by older men who obviously gather there quite often if not nightly to down bottles of soju. Those men must think the place is a hostess bar and expect the female employees/servers to join their table and drink with them. They are also very loud. Not the most comfortable dining experience. The bossam dish was a joke. The sliced radish dish that's part of the dish was far from being seasoned or even cut correctly. At any other restaurant, raw oysters are always mixed with the radish. It's just a given that the radish include oysters. This restaurant surprisingly charges extra for oysters so I ordered it. Instead of mixing the oysters in with the radish, they were just thrown on a small dish and served on the side. The pork wasn't even heated properly and wasn't even lukewarm. The flavor of the pork was also way off and just wasn't cooked or seasoned correctly. Basically the dish was uneatable. Leftovers were taken home and ultimately thrown in the trash. I couldn't force myself to eat one of my favorite foods. Sidedishes were for the most part ok. Sadly I couldn't get refills on a few of them because the female servers were too busy partying, drinking, and playing hostess to the men drinking soju. read more

I came here to eat Potato Stew with spicy pork. The overall taste was good but I have to say, there is a lot of MSG or Mono sodium glutamate. Tasted great. Was very dizzy and sleepy afterwards. It does not come without some downs. The service was not the best. We ordered the food. Then not a word from the server until we asked for water, in which we had to walk up to the server. Overall a good tasting restaurant with some not-so-good service. It is a nice lunch if you want good tasting Korean food. read more

Really delicious pork bone soup. The amount they give you is SO much and is more than fulfilling. I also love how there is an option to change your rice to mixed rice at no extra cost. The best pork bone soup in Chicago! read more

This is a pretty traditional Korean restaurant with a standard menu and I was really excited to try it out. I really hoped that I would love this place but I felt like everything was pretty bland. The banchan (side dishes) were also just okay and nothing too special. I wish I had more to say about this place but it is what it is, it's a place you'd probably go to if you really want Korean food and don't have any good options. The service was also kind of off, the woman working didn't seem to happy to be there and seemed like she just wanted to be alone. Maybe it was an off day. read more