Ahri’s Kitchen

OMG this place is amazing! I normally don’t bother to write a review, but I have to say… the music choice of this place is so freaking AMAZING!!! I am a regular customer to Korea town in Manhattan and I am so used to Korean food esp similar styles of these in the food court, my fav items from the menu is Korean bbq… the spicy pork is so yummy, go for it… It’s as good as the ones in Manhattan. (sorry not against Jersey)
Anyway I was dragged to this place during lunch break, it was a little bit of walk… but as Indie Music fan. I am mind blown by the taste of music… First they played MGMT including a few classic songs… then they played lots of music from The Naked and Famous, they played Pouching in Dream. during the short 30 mins lunch break I definitely enjoyed a mini bar experience. I am so happy with my experience, I assume this is local business as the place is pretty hide in the neighborhood of brownstone houses. The restaurant has cozy vintage looking decorations.

Won’t come again. Not quite good Korean food. I ordered three, but I don’t like them all.

It’s about time JC got a Korean place!
I have been here a handful of times, and the food is always spectacular. Service is very friendly too!

Ahri’s Kitchen is a cute little restaurant in the historic downtown of Jersey City. They have a small collection of tables for eat in and the restaurant is BYOB (bonus!). I had their Tofu Bibimbap and was very happy with my dish. I was served hot and came in large portions. I would visit again and recommend it.

I’m not sure how this place ended up getting 4 stars with their current 131 reviews? It really makes me question choosing where to eat based off of businesses’ stars now.
So on a lazy night at home, I decided to try ordering food from somewhere new and different. I came upon Ahri’s Kitchen for Korean food and it had, as I mentioned, 4 stars. I got excited and ordered for delivery immediately! I was told that delivery would take roughly an hour, but I was happily greeted with my food within 20 – 30 minutes! The very shortened delivery time was probably the ONLY saving grace.
I ordered the Bulgogi Dupbop and was craving for the sweet and slightly salty taste on pieces of beef to be countered with soft white rice. Instead it was a tasteless bowl of food with a bad vegetable to meat ratio. Plus the meat seemed pretty low quality. My tastebuds and my stomach were so disappointed, the same also goes for the side of the short ribs that I ordered. That was better than the bulgogi, but that does not say very much. I finished the short ribs but I threw out about a third of my meal. I probably could have forced myself to eat my remaining food, but at that point, I’d rather just save the calories for something better.
I guess I’ll have to get my Korean food fixes by making the trek to NY’s midtown.

My husband and I attempted to order delivery from Ahris on Sunday night. When the order arrived, the chicken dish that we had ordered along with dumplings and seafood, wasn’t included. We called the restaurant, explained what had happened, and the manager seemed confused/​flustered and told me that the restaurant had accidentally sent the chicken dish to a different customer. she apologized and said they would send the chicken over ASAP and reimburse us. 45 minutes later when the order had still not arrived, we called back and spoke to the same manager who said, «oh I thought you just wanted to be reimbursed for the meal, not have it delivered.»
When we finally got the chicken dish almost two hours later, the chicken was cold, unappetizing and flavorless. Will never order from this establishment again.

This place is the restaurant version of J.R. Smith. It has all the ingredients to be a great player, but mostly just misses.
Picked up the Spicy Pork Shoulder DuBop that came drenched in a gloppy mess of a sauce. The sauce was spicy, but had minimal flavor.
Typically, I love korean white rice, but I couldn’t find the rice in all the damn sauce. Seriously, what is going on here?
The bulgogi, lifeless.
The kimchi was OK tho?
Would I try this place again?
After tortuously watching the 1^st episode of «Fuller House» on nextflix, I watched the 2^nd episode so I could conclusively tell the homies, «THIS AIN’T GOOD».
So, yeah.

Cool beans. Now I no longer have to go all the way to K-​town if I have a desperate craving Korean. They do charge the same price as in KTown with smaller portion sizes and no banchan, but the flavors were great. And it’s better to eat smaller portions anyways right?
We ordered a Bulgolgi Bibimbap (actually a bit cheaper than KTown), which came in a sizzling stone bowl. Tastes like a bibimbap should. No complaints at all. I loved the Seafood Spicy Tofu Stew and it came with a huge bowl of rice. Not that much tofu, but there was a decent amount of seafood. They give you a little cup of kimchi but you can take more from the stack next to the fridge. There’s also chilled water should you get thirsty.
Don’t forget to tip if you eat at the restaurant! You order at the front, sit down, and they bring you the food. Ordering at front almost through me off, but we remembered to leave the tip on the table. I never had Korean home cooking before, but I imagine it would taste like this.

A cute little date spot near Hamilton Park. Warm energy, Korean hipster style and décor, great chicken dumplings and terrific bi bim bap. We tried both varieties of bi bim bap: the hot style with bulgogi and the regular style with tofu. Both were great, with sizable portions, healthy ingredients, and good prices. Ahri’s is BYOB, so pick up wine or beer at the bodega across the street. This is a nice, affordable dinner date for two: entrees, appetizer, and beers all for $ 35, tip included. Definitely worth a return and don’t miss a walk through the park afterwards.

I’m not sure about this place yet. The space is fairly small and dainty. It’s byob, so it’s helpful there’s a liquor store a block away. There are little containers of kimchi on the self serve station along with cold and hot water. The kimchi is yummy, and there is a sign that says to help yourself! Also, there was oodles of to-​go orders getting assembled — definitely a ton more to go than dine in, which, again, is good since the space is small and can only probably sit 16 people total.
We ordered a spicy pork roll, chicken thigh rice dish, and seafood tofu soup.
Spicy pork roll was okay, but there was barely any pork in it — mostly rice and veggies. The dipping sauce that they serve on the side was a great pairing though.
Chicken thigh rice dish was pretty good. There were big chunks of chicken that were really flavorful and there were a good amount of veggies added in as well. However, I wish there was some type of sauce in this dish.
Seafood tofu soup — The soup was served steaming hot in a standard clay pot… Almost too hot to eat! There was soft tofu in the soup, not the standard silken tofu that I’ve come to expect, but that wasn’t that big a deal to me. I was more caught off guard by the seafood that likely came from a frozen mix. Also, the soup itself was kind of oily and not as thick as I like it. There was a strong flavor though, and the spice kept hitting the back of my throat!

Definitely a welcome addition to downtown JC. People at the restaurant are very friendly and traditional Korean fare was virtually nonexistent in the area before Ahri’s Kitchen arrived last year.
With that, expect to see many of the staples of Korean food — bibimbap, bulgogi, soondooboo, etc. The food is executed well and is what you would hope for in terms of Korean food. The main reason that keeps us from going back often is that the prices are a bit high for what you get. If the entrees were priced maybe $ 2 – 3 less I think we would be regulars.
Or, alternatively, a refrigerated section with little snacks and prepared foods (similar to Woorijip in Ktown in the city) would be great to have. The food is what you’d want out of a standard Korean joint, but I think some tweaks to the convenience and/​or pricing would go a long way.

*tofu soup (meh, I was expecting the soup to be thicker but it was relatively thin and not much flavor in it; there is loads of tofu so that won’t disappoint you haha)
*short ribs over rice (went on a Wednesday for the short rib special and the meat was pretty good! didn’t disappoint but it was funny how they cut the meat into two distinct pieces: either only meat or only the bone. I thought that was weird because the bone had nothing on it execpt for some tendon)
*bulgogi bibim (nothing special or memorable. would recommend the short rib over this definitely)
Cute little spot. Very casual and quiet. I think it’s great to have a place like this in JC, considering there’s mainly Japanese or Chinese places in this area. Not sure if I’d come back but can see why people would.

Was craving for ramen that day. The Unilocal reviews were great so thought of trying it
Ordered chicken dumplings and ramen which was great.
The only thing is the frozen dumplings are PAN fried and served. I like steamed ones

Not bad for fast food Korean in Jersey City but I think it could be better. They offer standard Korean items like BiBimBap, SoonDoBoo, Grilled Short Ribs, but the flavor did not meet my expectations for what traditional Korean food tastes like. I know this is supposed to be like Korean home cooking, but I’ve had that before too and it’s also been quite flavorful.
I am also a bit miffed that they don’t serve better kimchee and also introduce the idea of some banchan. (little side dishes to whet the appetite)
At this point, I don’t think I’d go back only because it’s a bit out of the way and I’d rather spent an extra 10 minutes on the PATH and go to Ktown.
I really, really want there to be great Korean in JC. So if the menu changes or if I just came on an off day, please let me know because I’m open to changing my mind if the food lives up to expectation.

Okay so, this is more of a 2.5 star review but I just couldn’t bring myself to select 2 stars on here, the staff is nice and I am hoping other things on the menu are better than what I had since I only tried one dish.
As with any new restaurants in the Hamilton Park area, I was very excited to give Ahri’s a try, especially since it is a Korean restaurant — Korean is one of my favorites! It took me a while to finally stop in but I finally made it over for a take out order. One of my favorite Korean dishes is sundubu — tofu soup/​stew and that was what I had a craving for when I placed my order. Ahri’s has a couple options for the tofu soups, a seafood one and a bulgogi one, I opted for bulgogi since that is what is closest to what I usually get which is pork kimichi tofu stew. Unfortunately, I was very underwhelmed by the soup, it was bland and had a very oily consistency which made for an unpleasant tasting soup. The kimchi was not very flavorful, there was a lack of spice and just generally not much taste to it. The tofu was the saving grace as I did enjoy the tofu but that was about it. Ahri’s is also pretty pricey… I can get the same size tofu soup at other places for almost half the price and a way better taste. I understand that they may need to charge higher prices in order to cover the costs associated with being in this neighborhood but I would expect better quality if I am paying those prices.
I still am hoping that there are other dishes on the menu that are more flavorful and maybe I will give it another try but as far as my first impression with the food, I was disappointed. I have to say though that the place is very cute and the staff are very nice!

Ahri’s is a great little addition to the Hamilton Park area of Downtown JC.
It’s a cozy little spot that oozes the local vibe in the best way. It’s delicious Korean that is also BYOB. They have few drinks you can purchase and tap water that is self serve. The menu is simple with a few choices where it will only take a few extra minutes to deliberate over what choose — but if you are undecided the staff there can lead you down the right path.
We’ve had sit down and take out and the wait is never too long — but the wait for the amazing fresh — made to order food is worth it.
The Bibimbap is amazing and the pork shoulder … and the kimchi fried rice. With most items you get extra sides of kimchi — but make sure to ask for some just in case — it’s so good.
Ahri’s is only getting 4 stars because I’ve only sampled a few items on the menu — but imagine it’s all five star quality.

As a resident of Jersey City and lover of all Asian cuisines, I was delighted to hear that Ahri’s Kitchen had opened up in the Hamilton Park area earlier this year. The restaurant is family owned and operated, and aptly named after the couple’s daughter; after moving to Jersey City from Manhattan, the dearth of good Korean restaurants in the neighborhood spurred owners (Aena and Andrew) to launch a venture of their own.
The restaurant is simple and welcoming, with a bright, well-​windowed interior that consists mostly of two tops and a few four-​tops that are better suited for families. Orders are taken at the counter, which is also where their menu is printed against the back wall. You’ll find an array of comforting and well-​known Korean dishes, spanning a handful of appetizers, kimbap (rice rolls), bimbimbap (rice bowls), jigaes (stews), and noodles. My friends and I took a few minutes to decide on our orders, but our server was helpful in clarifying some of the dishes.
We started with the «Seafood Fritters», which is better known as the Haemul Pajeon — a crisp pancake-​like appetizer that’s cooked with various vegetables and seafood. Ahri’s was filled with scallions, carrots, calamari, and mussels and although the portion was on the smaller side, it was well seasoned, crispy, and not overly greasy. Take advantage of the vinegar dipping sauce on the side as the acidity cuts through the slight oiliness of the pajeon without being too overpowering.
My main dish was the Spicy Pork Shoulder Rice Bowl, or Jeyuk Dubap. It’s a dish that consists of stir-​fried pork shoulder cooked with various vegetables, including chili peppers, carrots, cabbage, and onion, in a slightly sweet chili pepper sauce known as Gochujang over a helping of sticky rice. I have to say that this dish disappointed me as the sauce was too cloying and sweet for my tastes, and the ratio of it to the rice was far too generous to the former. I missed the punch of spice that’s often present in many Korean dishes as well, and while the ingredients used were well-​cooked and fresh, the taste of it was lost in the copious and heavy sauce.
I’d certainly give Ahri’s Kitchen another chance as it isn’t entirely fair to give a final judgement to a venue based on one lone experience… But for the time being, I’ll make my way to Manhattan’s K-​town for my Korean fix.

Good Korean food that won’t hurt your wallet.
This is not the best Korean food but it’s definitely a good choice. Order at the counter and have a seat, it’s not exactly waiter service but they do bring you your food. The food is what I think should be the standard for Korean, plenty of meat and veggies with some good flavor. While I enjoy this place a lot, it’s recently become inconsistent with the quality and quantity of food. Both of which are distinct reasons why I like this place.
So if Ahris Kitchen can continue to push out good food I’ll keep coming, but hopefully this place doesn’t take a turn for the worse.

Ahri’s Kitchen is a small place that has probably about eight tables or so.
You order at the counter, find a seat, and they’ll bring your food to you.
Here is what we ordered:
Chicken dumplings ($ 5) — these were perfectly pan fried and not too greasy. The filling wasn’t anything to write home about though. It tasted like your standard frozen Chinese supermarket dumplings.
Bulgogi roll ($ 8) aka kimbap — a little bit too much rice but not bad overall. It comes with a small side of kimchi.
Spicy Pork Shoulder Dupbop ($ 12) — it’s not as spicy as it looks. The pork was sliced thin, which I liked. But I feel like it could have used more meat. There were more onions than pork in it.
Korean ramen ($ 8) — I thought this was a dry ramen since the menu didn’t indicate anything about a broth, but it came with soup. Again, there were too much onions in there. There were more onions than there was ramen, which should not be happening. The ramen was also a little soggy. It wasn’t the best I’ve had, but it wasn’t the worst either.
I probably won’t be back. The food was very mediocre. I feel like I can pull some Korean food recipes off the Internet and make it better (okay, maybe not — I’m just being really ambitious here!)
Also, I actually came in thinking it was another Korean place I had bookmarked. Now I’ll know for next time!

I had a sample of Ahri’s during the Jersey City winter market. Even in the pouring rain we went both days for the bulgogi. Flash forward like 6 months they have finally had the storefront all set up. Their menu is small but inclusive including a few appetizers, some rice rolls and a mixture of rice and noodle dishes. They sell canned sodas and bottled water and are still BYOB… but no tap water?! Im not sure about that one.
I was over the moon when I saw that they had grilled beef short ribs served on rice. A bit pricey at $ 18 but it was sure a healthy portion, you get about 3 meaty short ribs that they have generously cut up for you. The meat was seasoned well and grilled to perfection. Not gonna lie I may be drooling just a bit as I am typing this up.
If you have not tried the cold mustard noodle, then you are missing out on life. It is a buckwheat noodle dish submerged in a cold sweet beef broth with a slight tartness topped with freshly sliced cucumbers and carrots topped off with an egg and a bit of mustard. There are a lot of different textures going on in the dish and the cold noodles does a great job of maintaining them for the life of the dish. Not being a mustard fan myself I found the mustard a bit overpowering, I will make sure to ask for it on the side next time.
While their rice rolls sound like a great idea, I was bit disappointed with the marinated sirloin rice roll. Think sushi but with marinated beef and assorted vegetables. Again, concept is great but the meat tasted a bit dry and lacking of flavor causing the entire bit to just taste off.
Something that is missing at Ahri’s is the generous variety of side dishes, but understanding it is a smaller family run restaurant they do compensate with a small portion of kimchee and soup with every meal.
Staff here is great and they are always willing to answer questions and provide their personal recommendations. And a small bonus for everyone who has dietary restrictions, they clearly indicate gluten free items on their menu.