Food was disappointing. Service was terrible and very overpriced. Granted that it's one of the few, if not only, Korean restaurant in town. The price was too steep for the portion. Rather I should say that given the price I expected portions to be bigger. Including tip, spent $55 for one Jungol dish (portion for 2). Not worth the money. My boyfriend and I intended to stop by for a quick lunch but ended up spending 1.5 hours. Waited almost 30 minutes with just a glass of water and no banchan (side dish) to munch on. Normally, Korean restaurants serve the side dish before the entree comes out. I think the owner was being cheap by giving the side dish when the entree came out so we don't eat everything while we wait and have to ask for a refill. Was shocked to see the portion and the ingredients. Very weak. Literally could have made that myself at home by dumping bulgogi, tofu, and some vegetables with water. We asked for a refill on the side dishes (normally should be free) but were told that we can only get a free refill for 3 out of the 6 side dishes. The owner came back with 2 side dishes. We asked for the check and he brought the 3rd side dish instead. Again we wanted the check... And plus we had nothing left to eat the 3rd side dish with... And that was my $55 experience at Seoul Restaurant. read more

pieces of plastic in soup Overall an o.k. Korean restaurant, however last night's experience made me now want to dine there ever again. While drinking my soup, I have found not one but two pieces of plastic mixed with the tofu sundubu. Now, I'm not the kind of person who would usually complain, but this was really unacceptable. The owner had the nerve to try to persuade me that these were actually calamari bones! Eventually she offered to replace the soup for another dish. I'm a great fan of Korean food, however, I don't think I would ever want to eat there again. Plastic in one's food is a serious health hazard. Trying to get away with that on part of the owner is very bad service. read more

Seoul Restaurant is fantastic! Growing up in West Hartford our family always went to the local korean restaurant. Moving to southern CT caused me to search for authentic Korean close by. What i found is the greatest korean i have ever had! The Kalbi Beef was extremely well prepared with authentic Korean ingredients and it shows in the taste. The only downfall i have is that the sushi doesnt compare to the Korean BBQ. Even though you must try if your in the area! read more

I always enjoy the food here but its pretty expensive for what traditional korean food would really be and americanized for its location near yale. The people here are really nice and things are generally consistent. read more

nice people running the place. if it gets more than half full, it's painfully obvious that they need more workers... only in business because there are no alternatives. never knew korean food could be this expensive (well, until i came to CT... korean restaurants in other towns like stamford also charge ridiculous prices). to add insult to injury, average korean food at best. still, if you're craving korean food and want something other than bibimbop (which you can also get at oriental pantry or from the korean cart at the med school during lunch), there is no other option in new haven. open until 1030pm on some nights. but if i'm really really craving GOOD korean food, i end up driving to nyc, just for dinner. read more

Stone pot bibimbap was okay, not the best I've had. I think there were seaweed flecks in it, which made it taste a bit fishy. There also weren't many fresh veggies. I think that the Oriental Pantry on Orange does a much better/fresher bibimbap. Instead of a side of miso soup, I had kimchi. It was excellent! Probably my favorite part of the meal. However, I went back the next day to order a few sides of their kimchi to go, and was told that I couldn't (even though it's on the menu for $1.95)! Super disappointing. read more

As it is the only extant Korean place in town, by default it is the best Korean in town. That's right, by default. This is one of the worst Korean restaurants I have ever been to and I've eaten Korean food all over the country. The panchan are not very fresh (I know kimchee is pickled, but it doesn't excuse it from looking like it was recently excavated from a jar circa 1220 BC.), the gojuchang is watered down and tastes more like ketchup than chili paste and the bulgolgi is bland. Definitely not worth the money or time. read more

The food is excellent. Having grown up in LA, I think it's a decent restaurant with good food. I don't think it's fair to compare prices like other reviewers because vegetable, rice and meat is generally more expensive in CT. Stone pot is great and so is pork bulgogi. Worth trying! read more

First of all the lady was really nice...even mixed my husband's bibimbap...My husband and I liked the food but our only complaint was there was barely any beef on our food. It's Korean after all. They should put more beef on the bibimbap and shredded beef soup! read more

I Ordered the bimbimbap, which was bland, and boring. It had barely any beef. I wound up drenching it in soy sauce (which i got a look from our waitress on) The waitress was RUDE and extremely inattentive. She did not smile once. She was extremely busy.... playing on her phone. The place maybe had 3 taken tables. Perhaps if they hired better waitstaff that wouldnt be. I would never suggest this to a friend. poor service, bland food, and overall bad atmosphere. read more

For being the only place in basically all of Connecticut to get real Korean food, Seoul is definitely mediocre. When you sit down, they wait until the last minute to provide the banchan (Korean side dishes), probably so that they don't have to refill them multiple times before your food comes. The menu is pretty comprehensive and has most of the staple well-known Korean foods, like ddukboki (spicy rice cakes), dolsot bibimbap (stone pot mixed rice), kimchi jigae (kimchi stew), haemul pajun (seafood pancake), kalbi/bulgogi, and ojinguh bokkeum (spicy squid). They taste pretty good but nothing I've had there has blown me away. The prices are fairly steep and the service is just okay. All in all, it's good for a Korean food fix or for someone who wants to try Korean food, but for a die-hard foodie, I'd look elsewhere. read more

I eat a variety of traditional korean meals everyday at home thanks to my talented wife. However, the food at Seoul is simply delicious - the best I have had in New England - sorry honey ;). The service at Seoul is excellent and friendly. I love the renovations they have made - the environment is warm and inviting. I will definitely be returning again and again. When I want a greater variety of korean food options I will head down to The City but until then Seoul saves me a lot of traveling and sends me home smiling every time. read more

I feel like I am in Seoul again at this place. Something about the ambience, staff, and the food! I was honestly really surprised to find such high quality in a city with little other competition in terms of Korean food. It's better than anywhere I found in Boston, where there is more competition. We also brought our young toddler and the staff was very kind, bringing her plain tofu cubes and other mild things she could chew. I love everything about this restaurant, always a treat to go. The pa-juhn is particularly masterfully done. The kim-chee is excellent too. read more

I suggest this place to everybody who would like to try Korean cuisine. I went there few months ago for a lunch and since then it is my favorite restaurant in new haven. Owners are really nice and very helpful. Inside is nicely decorated and it is perfect for a relaxing dinner/date. The entrees are all very healthy choices and they all come with some little side dishes as well which are absolutely delicious and worth to try (kimchi and cucumber are my fav!). Overall it is great dining experience. read more

We greatly enjoyed our dinner at Seoul Restaurant. The owners waited on us and they were both so friendly and helpful. They were very accomodating to my Vegan brother and his vegetarian girlfriend. They even brought special appetizer dishes out for them with no meat or animal products. My dol sot bi bim bap was delicious! read more

I went to this restaurant with a buddy of mine a few weeks ago...coming from Korean ethnicity, I know a little bit about Korean food...been to a bunch in New Jersey, NYC, and Seoul (the Korean city, NOT this restaurant)...by far and away this was the worst and most disappointing...where do I start? 1) VERY OVERPRICED: the $40 bulgogi meal for 2 was seriously for one person...literally a handful of bulgogi with two small heaps of rice...I could literally get the EXACT same amount in the H-Mart food court in Hartsdale, NY for $9 or $10 with similar quality...other restaurants I've been to at Palisades Park, Flushing, NYC, etc. gave significantly bigger amounts for similar prices...this restaurant probably figures people who are not too familiar with Korean food won't know the difference and figure people are willing to pay the price for it since extreme scarcity of Korean restaurants in CT...as a CT resident, I will NOT be going here again. I also like (and I mean this sarcastically) the way the "Ajumah" (those that know the language knows what I'm talking about) kept trying to sell me the $50 Kalbi for two instead of the $40 Bulgogi for two because "it is a more healthy & satisfying dish". 2) EVEN THE SIDEDISHES WERE DISAPPOINTING: they gave 3 pieces of kimchee for a meal of two...need I say more? 3) QUALITY: the food itself was not bad nor was it that great...actually hard to ascertain how good/enjoyable the food was when there was such little of it to eat in the first place. 4) SERVICE: not the most important category here as long as they are not rude, which they weren't...however, after giving us the bulgogi, they pretty much ignored us till we asked for our check, though...my water was never filled and left empty all the way till check time..could not necessarily ask for more water when they were not around for me to flag down 5) OPTIONS: to get decent Korean food and decent prices, there are no other options for CT residents other than NYC (a bunch there, especially in Koreatown) & New Jersey...few half-decent ones in Hartford, CT & the Edo restaurant in Norwalk gives you a little more for the same price but nothing to write home about. I'm writing this review because it's important that people get decent value & service for their money and I don't want people thinking this over-priced Korean restaurant represents what all Korean restaurants are like, because there are some truly phenomenal ones in NJ and NYC. I usually try Korean restaurants out before I decide to bring my Korean wife (who is picky about Korean restaurants) and well, even my non-Korean buddy said two-thumbs down. read more

Last time I was at this restaurant, it was Sept 2003 when I was a student, it was for my birthday, it was long time ago but I remember the food was really not very good, so I've never been back since then until tonight. And just when I thought maybe after 12+ years there would be some nice change to the restaurant, well... I was severely disappointed. Yes the space looks a little different from a decade ago, but it's still expensively priced mediocre korean food at best. I ordered the beef daikon soup dish, a whopping $18 after tax and tip. In L.A. I can order really good all you can eat korean bbq with that price. My friend ordered a bibimbap that she said had very little meat on it. I agree with many reviewers that if there was another decent korean restaurant in New Haven, this place would have closed a long time ago. Probably only surviving because it's right across the street from where many Yale medical students and young doctors live, so prime location for easy customer access. Lets just say I have learned my lesson and will NEVER be back again, I'd rather take the 2 hour ride into NYC to get some good korean food, this place would make real korean food lovers and their pocket books cringe with horror. read more

As somebody who has worked in Korean restaurants before, I can honestly say that Seoul is mediocre at best. The first time I went there I just got a small order of dukk bokki to go and a side of kimchi. Wasn't horrible but was certainly not great. Second time I dined in with 2 friends we order a kimchi pajun which was crisp but very thin and didn't seem to have much substance to it. The ban chan were also mediocre and not very generous of portions considering our over $100 bill. I had Spicy pork loin for my dinner which was good however when I asked for lettuce and bean paste to make lettuce wraps they said that I couldn't and that was only if you did table barbecue(which they didnt have many options for). My friends got spicy stir-fried squid and jap chae for dinner, both were decent. However the stir fry was hardly spicy. I ordered a order of duk bokki to bring home as Seoul is the only restaurant in the area that offers it. As the only place in New Haven to really serve Korean food you have to give them some credit, wasn't the worst Korean food I've ever had. The female owner is very sweet and I would love to see them do better in the future read more