Can't say enough great things about this place! Great vibe from the moment you enter. We were fortunate enough to be served by Eddie Wu and his service and hospitality was superb! We went with a few of his recommendations and they were all delicious. For starters, beef dumplings, mapo fries (think poutine but even better with more intense flavor) and five "cute" gochujang wings. For mains we shared spicy pork belly and general khans chicken. Everything was excellent! We'll definitely be back. read more

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Owners are Eve and Eddie Wu and they are amazing hosts for all of your dining needs. This is the EPITOME of phenomenal service. I have found my new place to call my neighborhood go to for fantastic food, great drinks (both non-alcoholic and alcoholic) that are not found at most establishments in the Twin Cities, friendly and personable service and just a great time. The city of St. Paul is being mad silly, I don't know if this was a change due to the Covid 2020 pandemic, but either way, newer establishments, like Juche are required to stop serving customers by midnight, while other establishments that are older were "grandfathered in" And stay open serving customers, both foods and beverages until 2 AM. This is Stupid.. Regarding the food, because I know that's what you're interested in, the handful times have come here with company, and also by myself after a long workday has made me and my visitors ( we debate who is a bigger Fuji than the other )concluded that the food is exceptional, executed well, and just downright delicious. Collectively from my numerous visits, I can say: 1.) Bulgogi is delicious. Lotsa meat and fixings with sauces on request 2.) Nummy mahndu 3.) Interesting and unique Soju options that cannot be found in most asian eating establishments. And they are varieties in number. 4.) The sides/appetizers are also just delicious. the wings, rice, jjapgae... Come and hang here if you want to have good food, drink and great service who genuinely just want to provide and share their love of great food and beverages with you! read more

This is place is great!! The portions are great and the food was so good! The staff was wonderful and went out of their way to accommodate my food allergies, going as far as explaining each dish and why it's safe for me to eat. The ambiance was awesome as well. Definitely will be coming back!! read more

Juche St Paul - Korean Near Me - Saint Paul, Minnesota

The portion are pretty decent, definitely enough for two! kimchi awesome, hit the perfect spice level. The place a bit small but overall vibe was nice. read more

Juche St Paul - Salmon rice dip - Korean Near Me - Saint Paul, Minnesota

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Back again to try some different items. The Mapo Fries were outstanding. The cheese sauce was silky and delicious, and the Mapo sauce was such a nice swap for chili. The kimchi here is fire. I can't get enough of it. You have to try one of the Wu lemonades. They're both so unexpected and I can't stop drinking them. Vibes are dark and fun. Must try. read more

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this place is such a gem! great service, immaculate atmosphere, tasty food, and delicious drinks. only down side is that it's pretty small so any group bigger than 4, would not be ideal. Pork belly was on the thicker sliced, side but marinated and grilled perfectly. The paste on the side was quite strong in flavor! The soup, was superrrr good and our favorite. It's very strong in flavor as well, but it's not overwhelming because it's in a broth base. chicken wings were crunchy and juicy! everything was a hit honestly and i'd loveeee coming back soon read more

Juche St Paul - Korean Near Me - Saint Paul, Minnesota

Hidden Gem! Excellent Service Cool Vibe, Small restaurant Food was excellent - interesting take on well known Korean dishes read more

Careful with their wings. I got violently sick from the wings. They were not cooked all the way. It's so dark in there it was hard to really know if the wings were cooked all the way. We thought the wings were surprisingly juicy, come to find out that's because they were not cooked all the way. Very disappointed, first and last time. read more

This place is in a quiet area in St. Paul but it's worth making the trek! Juche is wrapped in mystery. Blackout windows and a dark door open to what looks like a Korean speakeasy or noraebang - the restaurant is dark, k-pop is pumping, and there are comfy booths to lounge in as you consider the menu under a minimalistic table lamp. The menu is expansive and has all my Korean faves with a Korean-american twist to it. There's mapo tofu... FRIES! Kimchi... MAC and CHEESE! Fried samgyupsal and kimchi - WITH BACON! All these are amazingly, positively, flavor bombs. The food is rich and protein heavy, so make sure you come hungry and it wouldn't hurt to take an antacid in preparation. I promise you it's worth it ;) Now I know I sound like a Korean snob, but if I had feedback to give, it would be that I wish the servers practiced pronouncing the food and the Korean ingredients well. Representation is important, so I appreciate the menu item names, but wish there was a more intentional effort in getting the names right. read more

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Came here with a couple of friends and had a fantastic time. It's a small family owned and run restaurant serving up amazing Korean dishes. It does get very busy and doesn't take reservations so there might be a wait. But the food is yummy. The drinks are great and I'm glad they are getting business. Hopefully they expand to keep up with demand! read more

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I was finally able to try this place out after going to the Christmas market in Downtown st Paul. This place does not take reservations so I advise going there early as there was a pretty consistent wait out the door and the place is VERY tiny. The service was great though given how tiny the restaurant is. The food was phenomenal - I really enjoyed everything! Korean is one of my all time favorite cuisines and I am so glad that Juche is a part of the twin cities restaurant community! Honestly one of the best Korean places in the twin cities and I cannot wait to go back! read more

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Came here on a Thursday night with friends. We got here around 7pm and were seated within about 15 minutes. It's a very small space, with simple decor and dim lighting. Service was attentive and quick. We ordered the gochujang wings, doenjang jjigae, bibimbop with beef bulgogi, spicy pork belly, and jjajangmyeon. I ordered the sujeonggwa cocktail. I enjoyed my cocktail, which was light and fruity. The gochujang wings were really good-super crispy and just the right amount of gochujang. The doenjang jjigae is such a comfort food dish, and the broth was full of flavor. The bibimbop with beef bulgogi was well balanced and delicious but I think romaine was the wrong choice for the greens (a little watery for this dish and not super traditional). The spicy pork belly was one of my favorite dishes here. It was really simple but the pork belly was tender and bursting with delicious fatty flavor, which was balanced by the slaw, lettuce, and ssamjang. The jjajangmyeon was yummy but it's a good thing we were sharing because it's a very rich and salty noodle dish. We ended the meal with some honeydew ice cream, which was absolutely delicious and so refreshing. The pear caramel sauce was the perfect addition. read more

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I wanted to like Juche so badly since I've been wanting to try this place for so long, but I was quite disappointed. I ordered the pork belly only to realize that it doesn't come with rice, lettuce, ssamjang, or kimchi. You'll have to order that on the side for an extra $3 each, which I found kind of pricey. The pork belly was already $25 and even though I knew that beforehand, I didn't think it's worth the price if the sides didn't come with. It was bland and lacked flavor and was really oily (I know. I know. It's pork belly, but it was running down my chin oily... just not my preference.) I also ordered the mac n chi, which was filled with a good balance of spice and cheese and kimchi! I liked it, but it was just a bit salty and I love salty food. My boyfriend ordered the spicy Korean burger and was quite disappointed. He said it tasted like a bulgogi burger (not pictured) and the sauce that it came with was way too sweet, but it was probably because he didn't know it came with jelly (his fault lol). He wasn't a fan of it. Overall, we paid about $89 for 3 entrees and two non alcoholic drinks. The service and ambiance were great, but my rating is for the food. read more

Juche St Paul - Korean Near Me - Saint Paul, Minnesota

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Great meal. We all got different bops and everyone enjoyed. The dish is served in a bowl (not stone pot) with tons of yummy bits of banchan. I got the beef bulgogi and loved it. They also have a wide variety of non alcoholic drinks, which i also appreciated. read more

Authentic Korean food served in a hip lounge. Best Late night spot in the twin cities! Service is attentive and personable. Must get cute wings, pork belly, Mac n chi, kimchi fried rice, mapo tofu, Eddie wu tea, and their cherry drink read more

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No reservations needed. Very small space. Good food. Good drinks. Nice ambience. Strictly street parking. read more

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This place is such a vibe and very cozy. The ambiance is pretty dark with individual table lights which can be used for reading the menu or to create ambiance at your table. Service was very attentive and staff was very knowledgeable about the menus and ingredients. The loaded fries were so good that I ended up taking the burger home because I couldn't eat it all. The burger had a perfect amount of flavor and spicy on a juicy burger. We also loved the koritos. I wish that they would package those and sell them in stores. They had sports playing on the TV at the bar. The place is pretty small so not great for big parties. It's a perfect date night spot or place to catch up with friends. read more

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What a gem! In a funny twist of fate, days before visiting this place a couple of my buddies who lived in Seoul gave me a primer on South Korean cuisine and alcohol. Not that I knew anything about anything once I sat down, but I was content knowing I had at least tried makgeoli. We were seated immediately and the vibe was chill. It's pretty dark, but they have dimmable lamps to see menus. The place itself is quite small-three rounded booths, a 6 seater bar, and maybe a table or two. The playlist was eclectic. We had one server and she was patient with our questions and just the right amount of attentiveness. We ordered dumplings, Bi Bim Bop (a salad), kimchi fried rice, pork belly, and short ribs. It was all very tasty. I loved the fried rice the most, but everything was great. For drinks, I had a Makku and a Hite. The former is hard to explain. Sort of like a milky Sprite with alcohol? The Hite was a very watery beer. Not much flavor so probably fine to wash down your food with. I took a sip of someone's Terra. Also a lighter beer. Overall, this was a super fun surprise to wander into and I can't wait to get back. read more

This is some of the most flavorful Korean food I've ever had, and is definitely my new favorite Korean restaurant in the twin cities. I had my doubts prior to going based on some prior reviews saying that the flavors were bland but I'm seriously wondering if they were reviewing the same restaurant. Bulgogi was flawless, banchan was INCREDIBLE, and the wings were a perfect combination of crunchiness and flavor. Oh, and they were perfectly done by the way. My wife and I are completely addicted to this place and plan to come back whenever we get the chance! read more

Amazing vibes , food amazing , great costumer service.. heavily recommend! And above all open late !!

This place is such a vibe! I love the aesthetic, the music, the food, the service... It's a place that seems just too cool to be real...All this without being snobby or pretentious. They don't take reservations, so plan to wait if you're going at a peak time. It's SOO worth it! We got a lot of items to try and the consensus was, once visit is not enough! We all plan to come back and try more delicious dishes bc you only have so much real estate to work with...Even on an empty belly. I highly recommend getting the spicy gochuchang wings with some rice. The wings are killer! They are crunchy, juicy, and packs lot of flavor. We loved the little kick of spice a lot. Add a side of rice and kimchi and you've got yourself a meal! Actually, one of our friends loved it so much, she ordered another set for her meal with a side of rice. I'm not a fan of smoked salmon, but I LOVED the Spicy Salmon Rice Dip with chips! I've never had anything like it, and I can't wait to get another order of it. This was a hit at our table. For entrees, we all got a different item, but they were all amazing. One friend got the Mac & Chi and said that the generous serving would be perfect as a side to be shared with the table. I got the Beef Bulgogi Bi Bim Bop with the crispy rice. It was so flavorful and I appreciated the side bottle of chili sauce to add as my heart desired. Another friend got one of the burgers... Either the bulgogi burger or the Spicy Korean Burger...I'm sorry I can't remember which one it was, but she and said it was really good. Very flavorful and messy in the best way. For cocktails, I really enjoyed the L.A.V. It's so smooth and well balanced. If you love lychee, this is the one to get. I need to get back there soon for some more wings, spicy salmon dip and work my way down the menu: it was so hard to choose what entree to try on my first visit. read more

Considering this was a new spot, I'm sure there's a great amount of pressure to do well and with it being a smaller place, there are some areas for improvement. This spot is pretty tight. My friend and I came 30 minutes after opening and had to wait an additional 45 minutes. Each table was extremely close to one other and service was a little delayed. We did not get any refills on water. The food was mediocre. Pork Belly and Chicken Wings are two dishes you can't mess up, I would say that the Bibimbap was extremely watery due to the excessive amount of lettuce. Some of the dishes that came out were also already lukewarm. Hopefully, in the future, they can figure out the pace and make improvements. read more

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Party of 2. We arrived 15 minutes prior to their opening time and staff were kind enough to let us in, snag a table and review menus. The ambience: K-pop music on medium volume in the background, cozy and well lit table (little light lamp at tables). The service was good- staff are friendly, helpful and brought plenty of napkins, scissors and utensils. The spicy pork belly was Asian spicy (great), kalbi was moist and juicy, Mapo tofu isn't exactly traditional but the sauce was on point, chicken wings were saucy and crunchy (I want to go back and get every flavor), dessert was delish (not overly sweet but fresh and citrusy) and the non-alcoholic drinks were tasty. I would definitely go again. read more

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I wanted to love this place. It's close to my house and Korean food. I saw it on the new Eater list and made it a point to go. First - we sat in the front by the windows and the heater under the table was boiling us! We were so hot. So avoid the front bar. Second - the food was really great value, especially the kimchi fried rice. But it was so bland. Needed way more salt. The wings were okay. The burger was pretty good but nothing was really good. So it probably won't get a return unfortunately. read more

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You know a place is 70% vibes and 30% everything else when the door is covered in some pink plastic film to cast some bubble gum pink lighting inside and they're blasting Adele while having Lee Hyori's Netflix show on the TV at the bar counter. Vibes first. Welcome to Juche. First off - the dining area is tiny. Like, tiny home level. There's 3 booths for larger parties, a counter facing the window with maybe 4-5 seats, bar seating to fit 6, and 3 tables to fit 2 people per. My friend and I came 10 minutes after it opened on a Thursday night at 5:40p and it was already halfway full - I imagine on weekends and later in the night (thank god they're open late) you'd be waiting for a spot. When we left at 7:30p on a Thursday night, there were people waiting for a spot, so be prepared. Also - no reservations. Onto the food - I'll admit, I wasn't the biggest fan of Cook St. Paul when I had tried it years ago, and part of that has to do with not enjoying fusion food as much, as well as not knowing a lot about Korean food to begin with. Coming back to the same space, but rebranded as Juche and with a new appreciation for fusion food and Korean food, I felt like I enjoyed it a lot more. I think it's really important to take Juche how it is - a Korean fusion lounge where the food feels more geared to be eaten while enjoying a drink, very anju vibes. We ordered the mac n' chi, the jjajangmyeon, and the bindaetteok to share. The mac n' chi was the perfect fusion dish - the funkiness of the kimchi really cut through the warm ooziness of the cheddar cheese and overall just made it a really fun and approachable dish that felt like something that shouldn't work but just did. I'm not the biggest fan of jjajangmyeon to begin with, but my friend wanted to try it, and overall I thought it was pretty solid - the black bean sauce was a little on the sweeter side of any jjajangmyeon I've ever tasted, which maybe made it a little better for me personally! The star of the meal was the bindaetteok though - perfectly balanced with the acidity from the pickled kkakdugi cutting through the rich fattiness of the bacon bulgogi delivered on top of a piece of mung bean pancake with the umami, funkiness bomb of the doenjang butter mixed in? Perfection. To drink with our food, we did order an Eddie Wu chai lemonade and a juche libre. My friend said the chai lemonade was on the sweet side, and I thought the juche libre was a nice sipping cocktail that was pretty sweet and mild. Overall it was solid, but I'd probably just give one of the makgeolli cans alone a try next time. I also do hope they can offer more of a selection in the future - makgeolli is super underrated, and I love to see it available in more places here. Holy shit that was long. In summary - definitely try it for yourself. It's a great time in there, and the food is just as good as the vibes. Juche is a welcome return to the Twin Cities food scene to add to the space of fusion food well done and it doesn't hurt that the space got a little glow up too. Ultimately, Juche feels like a space for experimentation - something a little sexy, something a little daring, and always something unapologetically bold. read more

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Our all time favorite neighborhood restaurant....! We live the owner and staff, the delightful Korean cuisine options that keep us coming back time after time. Best ever crispy chicken wings on the planet!!!! OMG read more

Outstanding experience! Owner served us and also cooked for us. Small environment but perfect for a double date. The food was delicious, soju flights were fun and tasty. read more

Juche St Paul - Snacks and soju - Korean Near Me - Saint Paul, Minnesota

The menu is wall-to-wall bangers but do yourself a favor and order the Trust Me. My husband and I love to bring people here to sort of soft launch Korean food to their lives because the flavors are unmistakably, gloriously Korean, but they're presented in a way appealing to the American palate. read more

Had no problem getting a table here on a Thursday night. The food was pretty good. Loved the wings and flavors were really unique with the entrees. I'd come back to try out some other dishes. Rating it a 4 because I felt like the ambiance was kind of weird. The place is small and intimate which I usually like but it felt like the place was so small that the staff had no where to hang out so they were just hovering in the dining room watching you eat. It appeared they didn't have any server station area. Also our server put in an order for an additional entree that we didn't order so when it came out we were confused and there was an awkward silence so we offered to just take it to go. I would think in that scenario the server would have just offered to take it back to the kitchen and take it off our bill. The servers all appeared to be young and new though so that's probably why. Last minor complaint is that all of the food came out at different times. Ordered two apps and second one didn't arrive until after we had long finished the first one. Same with our entrees. read more

Went to Juphe on a Friday evening around 6PM and it was almost filled out! Parking is on the street only but we found a spot right away. We were greeted and seated immediately and the servers were attentive. I want to name, this place is SO small. It feels very tight and no matter where you sit, it feels like you are in the way. Be prepared to be hovered around. We started with an order of Gochujang wings, which came out pretty quickly. They appeared to be hot on the hot side but only warm on the inside. Not sure how that works, but something I noticed. The wings were okay, nothing mind blowing or special. They did have a nice crunch, which I enjoyed. We also ordered the bulgogi burger, general khan's chicken, and a Korean pancake. The bulgogi burger was not what I expected. I assumed it would have some sort of bulgogi on the burger or flavor similar to bulgogi and neither were the case. It was a plain ol' ordinary burger. What a disappointment. The general khan's chicken lacked flavor and also fell flat. We were primarily eating fried chicken thigh skin, as there were barely pieces of meat. The Korean pancake was actually the best thing we ate and I would rate that 6/10. Could've been more crisp. The lighting is very dark and ominous, which was a different experience. The food was disappointing, but we had amazing service. I'm glad we experienced it, however, I probably wouldn't go back. read more

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Awesome burgers, awesome staff. Great experience all around! So glad it is our neighborhood.

I've never felt inclined to write a review for a restaurant, let alone, a local upcoming spot in St. Paul but I'm honestly astonished by the mistreatment, disregard, and clear alienation from the owners of this establishment. Our small group arrived to this restaurant with the prior knowledge that space/square footage would be tight, so a longer wait time would be likely. We were greeted by a man who would later identify himself as the owner's husband. He signed us up for a text alert after numbering off our group, and informed us it would be a 15 minute wait time to be seated. Let's keep in mind that at this moment there were visibly 2 seats near the window, a small table that seats 2 on the main floor, and multiple seats at the bar open, but we didn't inquire about them because he insinuated with his hand gestures that he would seat us somewhere in the main dining room...We happily obliged. We waited a whopping 26+ mins in our car for an alert. We get into the restaurant to be checked in, to only be welcomed by a woman who asks if we received a message, and to our surprise states, "Great, we'll be seating you at the bar!" We shared, that we clearly see a space on the floor/main dining area available and that this wasn't what we were expecting. Also, noting due to religious practices, we would prefer to not be seated in that area. She completely disregarded that statement noting, it's just a "name" and isn't a full bar (I have yet to witness a restaurant that serves alcoholic beverages not use a built in bar outside of its central purpose). At this moment, she continues to double down although we told her that we wouldn't have waited for bar seating that was available prior if that's what were being offered...She then offered to call on the man who initially signed us up to speak with him further...LOL and this is when it truly got hilarious. A response that is la crème de la crème #chefskiss, he shares "my wife and co-owner has already SAVED those seats in the main dining room for an employee and her friends...so all we have is the bar available !" Haha, at this point I've had it up to my head because, you know at what moment it would've been good to know this information?: 1) First encounter when pointing to the main dining area as the space you would be seating us after the 15 mins 2) First encounter when there was CLEARLY bar seating available and it wasn't mentioned 3) First encounter when we were informed that we were 1st party and there was NO one/group ahead of us So, ultimately I'm disappointed that this was the experience of me and my loved ones. I would hope that the front house of this business can be better established, so it intentionally and effectively serves its diverse existing and potential client base. When working in the service business, the market is tough, the ecosystem is an unknown often BUT customers are always the truth. I have no plans recommending this place, and will go out of my way to share my shitty experience with the owners. Good behavior and reflective leadership starts from the top, and it's EVIDENT this is a place where that is already starting off shaky. read more

Our group of 4 tried this small place (I believe a pop up place). Tried variety of their appetizers and main dish: chicken wings, mung bean pancakes, bibimbop, galbi, pork belly, bulgogi burger and several Korean cocktails. The food are good but the cocktails can be made better I think. It is a small place and not suitable for a large group but overall a nice experience. Come and support this establishment. read more

Wow, what cool ambiance and delightful food! I stopped by today for a take out burger and definitely plan to return for a date night soon after walking in and feeling the vibe. I tried the 'Chris Her' burger and wow, it is everything I want in a burger! Best burger I've had in a long time! Cannot recommend enough. The flavor was *chef's kiss*! read more

There are very few late night places in St. Paul that serve excellent food--Juche has quickly become a favorite. My favorites are: Fries with kimchi, beef bulgogi, and cheese (my spouse will specifically ask me to bring a to-go order of these home if I go myself) Ma Po Tofu (This is Chris Her's Hmong take on Ma Po Tofu, with a unique smokey flavor)--ask for a side of rice Tteokbboki (One of the best I've ever eaten) The honeydew ice cream is delicious and if they offer you any banchan, holy freaking cow, it's amazing. Owner Eve Wu puts so much time and effort into each dish. By far the best banchan I've ever eaten anywhere. read more

Vibes, food, and service all 5/5! We've met one of the owners, Eddie who's such a great guy! He told us the story behind Juche and the inspiration of each dish. This place makes me feel like I'm at a pocha. I love their spicy pork belly, their bibimbap with crispy rice, mapo tofu, and their mung bean pancakes! You have to get their unique ice cream, who knew gochugaru and ice cream would be such a great combo! My Korean friend approves this place! read more

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The one time we went to cook was pretty amazing. The style of food that were served was a Korean fusion. Also wanted to give some recognition of the logo which was designed by Maori drome which I really admire their work. Needs to go back and visit again soon. read more

By divine luck I love just down the street from this amazing restaurant. I try to come here as often as I can, I bring friends, and they all love it. All of the food is top tier. I'm a particular fan of the bulgogi burger, I think about it all of the time. The Eddie Wu lemonade is also godlike. The staff is consistent, funny, friendly, attentive, and informative. It has a sort of night club aesthetic which feels eminently cool, and it contributes to this air of being let into an exclusive place, like you're in the know. I love this place so much I just had to buy a shirt this time. read more

A really fun new spot. Small, with maybe a 20 minute wait for a party of 4 on a Saturday. Everyone was attentive and helpful, and the bill was cheaper than expected at the end of the night. The agreed upon standouts were several dishes that I think appeared to be more fusion than they actually are, but work from flavor profiles that are not unheard of in South Korea--the Mac and chi, for example, or the the spiced chips with chibjang 'salsa'--but even the burger was unexpectedly exceptional. Definitely worth a look. read more

Juche St Paul - Bori mak (makku, barley tea, and orange); mr wu's chips and chibjang in background - Korean Near Me - Saint Paul, Minnesota

Amazing food, best I have had in a bit. The staff and experience were awesome. I also love the layout of the restaurant, intimate and great ambiance. I highly recommend! read more