I truly love this Hidden Gem! 5 Stars Consistently Amazing Authentic Bibimbap, Ginseng Soup, Etc Quality for all items on the menu and service unmatched! I dont need to fly to South Korea for my favorites! read more

Minari - Check the Label! - Korean Near Me - San Bruno, California

Saw someone post this place, when i searched the map i realized how close it was so i had to check it out. I've gone twice so far and it's been delicious both times. I really enjoy the kimchi pancake. It has a nice crisp to it. The japchae is also great, probably the best I've had thus far. It comes out piping hot and freshly made. On the recent visit we tried ordering the wings but they were sold out. The meats are great too. I'm usually a big fan of galbi but the spicy pork was so good and flavorful. The prices are on maybe the slightly higher side and the servings at first looks just about right but I've always gone home with plenty of leftovers. Would recommend. read more

Minari - A6. Japchae, A11. Kimchi Pancake 10. Galbi - Korean Near Me - San Bruno, California

Came over for a weekday work lunch with colleagues, food portion was huge and they are freshly made to order you can really taste it. The restaurant was pretty quiet the day we came over, vibe was casual and friendly. read more

Service was so great even during rainy days! And the ambiance was cozy . Tried their pork tofu soup and was very much hearty! Huge shoutout to the staff for making a great experience read more

Minari is a new addition to San Mateo Ave. I've been to this restaurant on two separate occasions. The first time I asked for the vegetarian tofu soup - specifically asking for it to be made vegan. The kimchi is not vegan and contains fish sauce. The side dishes that were vegetarian are the broccoli, potato salad, and the seaweed. The broccoli was a little on the salty side and the seaweed pretty vinegary. The tofu soup, I asked for medium came more on a mild side. The second visit, I again asked for the vegetarian tofu soup to be made vegan. The waiter mentioned that this it is made of beef broth. I then explained that I had ordered it previously. He went to check and said that it would be made with water. In my experience, tofu soup made from water is not tasty. So did I have beef or water the first time? I decided to order the tofu bimbimbap, this was guaranteed to be vegetarian. Overall, service is good and attentive. Not entirely sure what is vegan / vegetarian as the servers are also unsure. read more

Minari - Tofu bimbimbap - Korean Near Me - San Bruno, California

The restaurant is big, spacious and great for large groups. The portions are also generous so perfectly sized for sharing and hanging out with friends. Everything was adequately flavored and just the hearty warming foods that Korean food is all about. Especially on a cold winter day, would recommend visiting and sharing a stew/soup with someone. read more

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The ramen was too salty n spicy But the Mgr replaced it for a milder Taste . Turns out to be good ! read more

Wifey and I finally had the chance to try this wonderful restaurant tonight. The food selections are excellent, portions are very filling, wife had the mackerel, I had the Korean short ribs, six different sides along with white rice and we had Strawberry Soju. Our server was very knowledgeable about the menu and helped us with our selections. Got to chat with one of the managers and we were made to feel like family. The restaurant is very spacious, well lighted and very inviting we will be back with our children. My friends give this restaurant your business and don't forget to tip your servers. Enjoy read more

Minari tastes like home but better, because their soondubu jigae is better than my Mom's. I got the spicy beef soondubu and loved it! It could have used a little more gochugaru but it was still flavorful and delicious. I also loved the mandu appetizer. It was perfectly crispy and the filling was well seasoned! The real star of the show was the banchan! They had my favorite seaweed banchan and my boyfriend's favorite Korean potato salad. Their kimchi was really good too! We loved it so much that we got seconds of everything and ate all of it up! The staff is so friendly and provided excellent service. Will definitely come back! read more

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Came here on a Thursday evening at 6:30 with a couple of good friends. The place was full of patrons enjoying their food. Shortly after we were seated a line out the door developed. Many of the patrons were actually Korean so that is a good sign for a Korean restaurant. Well lit and appeared to be clean. Did not check out the restrooms so cannot comment on their cleanliness there. The dishes seemed to stick to the tables a bit but I think that might be due to the table clear coating. Service was timely, they checked in on us and promptly refilled our teapot when asked. Food was served hot and was tasty. The stew was a bit too spicy for me but was still yummy. The Galbi was tender and very yummy. read more

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Always friendly and courteous serving quality and deliciousness on every plate! I suffered a food coma shortly after the first sentence and taking time now to finish. All in all, my visit to Minari is one of my bright spots every week. Thank you Minari team - Kevin and Gus for being amazing hosts. :) read more

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Stopped in for a meal if KFC and a seafood pancake. Both dishes were crispy and fresh! We got the 15 piece fried chicken and had it with spicy and sweet chili sauce. The spicy just had a mild kick and the sweet chili sauce is what you can pick up at an asian market but it was still good. The fries on the bottom were an unexpected bonus! I was mainly impressed with the crunch of the chicken because often it is served a bit soggy but they didn't overload the sauce. The seafood pancake had a decent amount of seafood and was thick. At first glance, I was disappointed in the size of the pancake but once we cut it, I realized it was a thick pancake. Again, the crunch was spot on! Everything was crunchy but not greasy. We had an infant with us so the server was kind enough to give us plenty of privacy and space. I loved the tea and the unhurried atmosphere. Will have to come back to try some of their other dishes! read more

Minari - seafood pancake - Korean Near Me - San Bruno, California

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Came here on a Wednesday for dinner and was craving some good Korean food! Good: - Fast service - our army stews came out in less than 10 min - Really cozy homey vibes here, wooden aesthetic - The army stew was SO GOOD - the portion sizes were amazing and also the dish itself was the best I've had - so many different ingredients. I especially liked the ramen, the fish cakes, and the spam. - The banchan that came with the entree were great too - had some brocolli and potato salad. Bad: - Pretty simple self service water place Overall this place was such a surprise and a gem! read more

Minari - Banchan - Korean Near Me - San Bruno, California

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Food was delicious and tasted freshly made!! I love all the different sides that they gave us. My favorite was the pancake and fried chicken wings. Service was great but they maybe understaffed during the lunch hour. read more

I came here on a Friday night at 6pm with my sister. The restaurant had most of the tables filled but we were still able to be seated right away. The staff was really nice and brought us our banchan once we were seated. The banchan was good, and my favorite was the mashed potato, which is something I haven't had at other Korean restaurants before. The food was absolutely phenomenal! We decided to share two dishes - the army stew and Korean fried chicken, which we got in the flavors plain, sweet chili, and soy sauce. The food came out super quick, and I loved the presentation of both dishes. The army stew was flavorful, but the only downside was that it only came with two rice cakes. I wish it came with more. The Korean fried chicken was served steaming hot, and all the flavors were delicious. If I had to pick a favorite, it would be the soy sauce flavor. It was not too salty and had a good umami taste. The sweet chili flavor tasted like a sweeter version of orange chicken marinade. It was tasty but definitely a lot sweeter than I had expected. The food was sooo good and we will be returning soon! read more

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Wowzers! This place has legit galbi beef short ribs! They were so tender and juicy! It was literally the best galbib I've had! Other Korean places have really dried up galbi and I thought that was normal with Korean food. Not at Minari! The cheese corn and bacon was a big hit on our table of 5. My aging parents loved it and my daughters loved it! The dino rib soup was pure soul food! I just wish they had some kind of sauce to dip the beef ribs on the bone. The kimchi little dishes were so fresh and spot on! Yumms! We finished two sets of them and they were offering us a second round, but we had to turn it down because we were getting seriously full! We also had the japchae noodle and it was a huge portion and it was delish. Not too sweet like some places and not too smooshie. The Korean pancake was also perfectly crisp and crunchy. They were devoured almost immediately. Service was attentive, caring and speedy. I must say this is our go to spot for Korean food! Sorry no photos because it was so good and we were hungry. Next time! read more

Came here with my family and ordered a bunch of things. Told the server that the soup needed to be not spicy because the kids don't eat spicy food. The server assured us it would not be spicy. Of course the soup came and it was spicy. The server came and basically forced us to keep it saying it's not spicy when it clearly was and my kids didn't eat it. The service was horrible after the food came. We tried several times to get the check and containers but they straight up ignored us even standing near the register. Literally walked right past me as I looked straight at them waving and saying excuse me and didn't even look my way from 2 feet away. I almost just walked out if they ignored me any longer. Finally the same server luckily saw me as she was walking back the same way she just past. They had the audacity to include an 18% service charge and still treat us this way. The food was bad too, the fried chicken flavorless, japchae too sweet, beef tough, and the non spicy soup was spicy. Will never be back here. Horrible experience and worst service I've ever received. read more

I really can't complain about anything when it comes to Minari. It's usually not hard to get a table here, the food is excellent, and the price is reasonable. Ample parking in the area, water is self serve and the food came out very quickly. I hope to come back to try more of the dishes on their menu! read more

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Service was excellent and the space is very spacious. Our server made sure to ask if we wanted more refills of the banchan which I appreciate and there was always someone readily available to assist. We ordered the cheese corn with bacon, seafood soondubu, and the army stew. I thought that my seafood soondubu was very bland and the one octopus in there was very hard. I would not recommend ordering that. I felt the prices are not worth the quality of the dishes. read more

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First time while visiting the area. The place is quiet and very clean. The servers are all welcoming and nice. We were so hungry so we were ready to eat some Korea. Food. Everything was great! Except for some dishes were either too spicy or was missing some extra spices. Overall experience was good, the price was a little high than other Korean restaurants read more

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I had the beef japchae and ban chan to go.. all was delicious. I would definitely come back again..

This restaurant blew me away with great food and awesome service. I arrived on a Tuesday night about 45 mins before closing. This Korean restaurant specializes in soups and bowls, although they do have traditional bulgogi and fish. I opted for the hot stone beef Bibimbap which came out sizzling. I also ordered the seafood pancake which was super thick and full of seafood. The tastes and quality were as good as it gets. Of course I had to accompany it with some Soju . The Banchan (sides) are always my favorite part of a Korean meal. Gus , my server was super polite and very attentive and a great server. The dining area has wooden tables and wooden chairs, and maybe 4 TV's playing something different on each. I stayed past closing and felt no pressure to leave. Do not hesitate to give this wonderful restaurant a try. Next time I'm near SFO, I will be back. read more

Minari - Hot stone beef Bibimbap, seafood pancake, Banchan and soju. - Korean Near Me - San Bruno, California

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I came on a Wednesday night with my friends and luckily it wasn't too busy. The servers are very nice and attentive to us. Water was self serve at a counter set up near the tables, and banchan was served to us prior to our entrees. My personal favorite is the potato salad. I ordered the Corn Cheese to share & Beef Tofu Soup. As a big fan of corn cheese, I wasn't impressed. I think the torched cheese made it a little too burnt, and the corn was a bit watery/soupy which diluted the flavor. The Beef Tofu Soup was great, it was a bit too spicy but I enjoyed it with my rice and took my leftovers home. I'm interested in trying the Bibimbap and other dishes on their menu next time! read more

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We wanted to go someplace for dinner on Friday night. My brother made a few suggestions, and I opted for Minari. I asked him to make reservations once everyone else confirmed that they were able to join us. Our reservations for was for 10 people at 5:30pm. One person bailed on us but everyone else showed up on time for a change. Our table was ready. Menus, set-up and tea were presented. Water is self-service in the dining room. It took a while for us to figure out what we wanted. We prefer to eat family style rather than each person ordering their own dish. This takes careful negotiation because of allergies. We always strive to order so everyone gets what they want and enough so everyone else can have some. Thank goodness, the menu at Minari isn't massive. Bu there's plenty to satisfy everyone's cravings. What'd we order? We started with two orders of Mandu while we were deciding on what to order. We had them placed at either end of our long table and the rest of our food was distributed the same way. 2x Mandu 2x Corn Cheese Japchae Chicken Japchae Plain Pancake Seafood Pancake Korean Fried Chicken Sweet Chili & Soy Sauce 2x Army Stew-BuDae Jigae Grilled Mackerel 2x Galbi Stone Chicken Bulgogi Tteok-Guk Six items of Bon Chan were also placed at each end of our table, and more was brought out as we finished them. Service was terrific as they kept checking back on us frequently, took away empty plates and kept the tea pot full. Everything we asked for was provided with a smile. read more

This is probably my favorite LEGIT traditional Korean restaurant around the area. The food and ambiance is very "mom style home-cooking" which is exactly what I'm looking for. They offer tofu soup here but have so much more variety of soups and meat entrees! We ordered: Galbi Tang: SO GOOD...the meat is super tender and fall off the bone! Soup is just as delicious. Literally could not stop stealing my husband's dinner. Budaejjigae: AKA, army stew. I love how they make this for one serving. Usually, it is served for 3-4 people but this was the perfect amount. The level of spicy was medium but you can always ask to make it more spicy if you like! The owner Phillip provided amazing service for us. Will definitely be coming back! read more

Minari - Budae Jjigae - Korean Near Me - San Bruno, California

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Great service and amazing food. If you are craving Korean food, this is a must place to try

After landing in SF, I was starving and CRAVING Korean food. Fortunately, this restaurant isn't located too far from SFO and was open. Walking in, the restaurant was pretty spacious and had plenty of seating. The ambiance was very lively and fun. My group and I each ordered an entree with a mackerel to share and everything was delicious. The portions were generous, food was flavorful, and everything was cooked to perfection. The only thing I would note however, was that service was very slow. There were a couple of times we were worried that the waiter may have forgotten us as we waited about 10 minutes before getting seated and waited near 30 minutes for our food to come out. It wasn't a huge deal, but I would keep that in mind for next time if I were to come again. read more

Minari - Dolsot Bibimbap - Korean Near Me - San Bruno, California

Had an amazing dinner here recently! It was a weeknight, but we luckily got in before a big rush came. On to the food! The four of us ordered a good amount of dishes, and they all were delicious! We ordered corn cheese, kimchi rice, galbi, bulgogi, and Korean Army Stew. Everything was super flavorful, and our group wound up full and satisfied! The service was great as well, and the food came out pretty quickly. I loved the K-pop soundtrack, too! I will definitely be back! read more

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Awesome food! We came by on a Saturday afternoon right when it opened but it quickly got busy soon after. The interior space is pretty spacious actually and I believe they have private rooms in the back?! (Please correct me if I'm wrong lol) Service: 10/10. Quick, friendly, and efficient. We got our food under 10mins Food: 9/10. Kinda wished they served fish cakes as part of their side dish but you do get generous amount of different side dishes as common for Korean restaurants. Spicy pork - Boyfriend thought it was pretty spicy and he finished all of it in one sitting so that already says a lot about how much he enjoyed it xD Ginseng chicken soup - We had this hoping it will revive us because we were both sick and woooowwwww. The soup tasted really delicious and the seasoning was perfect. It was most likely boiled for hours because every ingredient in it (garlic, ginger, ginseng) literally melted in our mouth. Chicken was SO tender and really flavorful too. Not to mention there was rice inside the kitchen so it was a hearty meal! read more

Minari - Ginseng Chicken Soup - Korean Near Me - San Bruno, California

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ARMY (are we) gonna ignore how STEWpid the GenZ slangs are? Like "Cheugy" really? CHEU need to think of something better. JKJK, didnt mean to call it stupid, just needed a STEW pun. Yo... not judging, but at least millenial slangs make sense. **Dining experience from 8/2022** .:: FOOD ::. Seafood Pancake $23: squid, green onion, octopus, shrimp in what SHOULD be a crispy pancake, but ours was just soggy and sad. comes with sauce but it was bland too. Korean Army Stew $25: sausage, spam, kimchi, rice cake, ramen. Just ok. I mean, it could have used more flavors. But it's just a comforting dish honestly. .:: Service / Ambiance / Parking ::. Our ajumma waitress was super nice. Was like a mom vibe. We got seated immediately on a random weekday night. Food came in a timely manner. The place is very clean minimal looking. Plays softer music in the background. Parking was not too bad on a weekday, its in downtown San Bruno strip. So plenty of street parking read more

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We ordered three mains: bibimbop, glass noodles, and bulgogi. The bibimbop was in a much wider but shallower bowl than I am used to and the rice didn't get as crispy as I like. The glass noodles were a bit too sweet. Bulgogi was absolutely perfect. The sweet and spicy rice cakes looked really good at another table, but we didn't order it. The side dishes were wonderful and the mashed potatoes were a surprise treat. There was plenty of food for the 3 of us with leftovers. Service was fast and crisp. I was the only non-Asian in the place. One table was speaking Mandarin and another Cantonese. Definitely will be back. read more

Minari - Beef stone bowl bibimbop. - Korean Near Me - San Bruno, California

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Got the seafood tofu soup, which was just your standard tofu soup - their regular spicy tasted pretty mild. The ban chan was okay, not super good quality or taste. The wait was really long, and the restaurant wasn't even busy. Furthermore, the prices were exorbitant for the amount and quality of food. The ambiance was simple and pretty clean, so not bad. Overall, 3/5 read more

Minari - seafood tofu soup - Korean Near Me - San Bruno, California

Delicious, mouth watering food. The stone bibimbap comes out sizzling with tender meat on top. The galbi had a nice glaze and chew to it, paired with rice and mostly raw onions that offset some of the richness of the meat. Meal also comes with banchan. Clean tables and good service. Self serve water. read more

Minari - Beef bibimbap - Korean Near Me - San Bruno, California

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Nice setting, service was spot-on and menu looked excellent. Food was well prepared, just really lacked any seasoning. I really wanted this to be great, but it just wasn't - for either of us. read more

Definitely come check out Minari if you're in the area and craving Korean food. I can't say I've tried too many Korean restaurants in the area, but I would absolutely come back and would love to try more dishes. I would imagine this place is pretty popular in the evenings and weekends, so if you can... come on a weekday! Husband and I came at 1130 on a Thursday and were the first ones there. I think there were only about four to five parties during our time there. The server was attentive throughout our entire meal and even asked us if we wanted more ban chans (side dishes). Usually I always find myself having to wave someone down to get refills, so that was a happy surprise! The sides were all delicious and pretty typical of what you get at other restaurants (radishes, kimchi, seaweed, etc.) We ordered the army stew and cheese corn. The army stew is fairly big, and often recommended to share with someone else. I imagine you would be insanely full if you ate it yourself. Great amount of flavor with a lot of meats. I liked the ramen that they used too. The cheese corn was very creamy - a bit creamier than I'm used to.... But not bad! More cream + cheese than the amount of corn. Again, since we were one of the only customers there at the time, wait was extremely reasonable. Music is louder than your average cafe, but not an issue (def not like a Korean bar.... Or maybe it turns into that at nighttime). Check out Minari for your Korean cravings! It won't disappoint! read more

Minari - Korean army stew + cheese corn + sides - Korean Near Me - San Bruno, California

Minari is a welcomed addition to San Bruno. It provides the perfect bookend to K Grill and Tofu House who has been a long classic on San Mateo Ave. We tried two dishes during our visit, the hot stone bibimbap and the bulgolgi. The bibimbap was delicious! Everything is assembled on the hot stone after preparation which ensures that the rice is not burnt by the time it's delivered to the table. You'll have to actually give it a few minutes to crisp up and get golden before breaking it all up and tossing it with the spicy sauce. The bulgolgi was interesting! I've never had bulgolgi served with mushrooms and bell peppers (onions, yes). I'm not sure it really helped to elevate the dish but I will give Minari props for its tenderness and flavor. It could have used a bit more charring in my opinion and I also wished the pieces were a little smaller but it was delicious over rice nonetheless. Banchan at Minari was pretty standard. I always love the kelp, bean sprouts and kimchi and that's the bulk of Minari's offerings. The potato salad was.....um, interesting. Probably still passing on that one moving forward lol. read more

Probably my favorite Korean restaurant in the Peninsula(at the moment). Minari is situated in downtown San Bruno(mix of old and new shops and restaurants). Parking can be challenging(either street-side or a few parking lots in the back of San Mateo Ave. As for the layout of Minari's restaurant, it is actually quite open, airy and you don't feel pinched by the other surrounding tables. Always a positive attribute of a restaurant in my book. My two favorite dishes to order are the Veggie Stone Bibimbap and their Galbi Beef dish. I love how the Bibimbap's stone plate is wide and shallow versus other pots where they are deep and narrow. The reason for this is shape of their pot allows for more of the bottom layer to become browned and crisp. A detail I hadn't picked up until dining here. As for the Galbi, it sits on top of a bed of raw onions which makes the combo amazing in flavor and texture. Service is efficient and good overall. read more

Came here looking for korean food! I was craving bibimbap and found our way here. We came for lunch on a weekend afternoon, and there were only a couple parties seated. There's self serve water, which is nice so you can get it whenever you want, but as others have pointed out it can be a bit of a hygiene issue. Of course, I had to get the dolsot bibimbap. Pretty large portion with lots of beef. It was exactly what I needed-- I feel that this is difficult to mess up. The sauce was on point, and the rice was beautifully crispy on the bottom, which adds so much texture when mixing the bibimbap. The spicy squid was actually really good. Usually, squid might be a bit tough, but it was surprisingly tender. The sauce was also really tasty. Only thing is that it was swimming in a mixture of oil and sauce (more like a pool of oil with a splash of sauce). We got 6 pieces of kfc with sweet chili sauce. It came with some fries underneath, which looked underwhelming but were actually cooked well. The chicken was tender, and the sauce was sweet with a hint of spice. I'm not sure if they tossed the kfc in the sauce or poured it on top, but a few pieces had sauce on top and nothing on the bottom side (which I don't mind). Overall, solid choice for korean food. The only major downside is that it is way overpriced. There are probably cheaper places that are just as good or better, but if you have cash to spare then go for it. read more

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Big portions, tasty meals and mellow atmosphere. I'm not as familiar with Korean food as I should be, so this was the first place I ever ate Army Stew. For those of you, like me, who hadn't heard of it before, here's the story: it originated during the Korean War, from leftover army rations, which explains the sausage and spam. That may sound like a strange noodle dish in a Korean restaurant, but with the gojuchang and kimchi and Ramen noodles, it all works. It's a little spicy but not over the top. The bibimbap was also a tasty treat. I recommend paying a little extra for the stone version, if you can swing it. read more

Came here with a friend on a rainy Friday night for dinner. It's a cute, casual spot with a pretty extensive (but not overwhelming) menu. We tried the seafood pancake, beef bibimbap, army stew, all the bonchon and of course some soju. The service was quick and they were very sweet! We showed up closer to their closing time and they gave us a warning for last call for the kitchen but said we could keep ordering drinks. Such a cozy place with great food, I will definitely be coming back. read more