Chuncheon Woomi Dakgalbi

I went in around 1 on a Sunday afternoon. There weren’t many customers at that time so service was fast. My friend and I ordered the dakgalbi (around $ 15-​$ 16 per person). It’s HUGEEEE. Definitely too much for two girls to eat. The chicken was soft and the dduk and sweet potato were yummy.
They give complimentary steamed egg and tons of tiny side dishes. They also have a salad bar too.
Overall my experience was great! Service was good and food was delicious. However it is a bit pricey for lunch so I would recommend coming during the week for the lunch special which is around $ 8-​$ 9 for the same thing.

I was there for the grand opening. For a grand opening, I believe that the service and food should have been top-​notch as to set the standard. But, I must say that the bar was set really low, or perhaps even non-​existent.
My family and I (we were a party of 5) got there and were seated immediately in a nice location. Our table was joined with another one so we ended up seating next to a few strangers. Nothing to worry about. The menu is simple, and we ordered the dak-​galbi.
The order came in about 45 minutes, which I thought was very long considering what it is. You get a skillet with raw, marinated chicken, surrounded by dduk (rice cake), cabbage, and yams. For the simplicity of what was being served I think it should’ve come in less than 15 minutes. Since the main dish took so long to arrive, we actually ended up getting our dessert (frozen yogurt) before any food so as to appease us while we wait. When the frozen yogurt arrived (it’s unlimited BTW), I thought it was a simple, plain tart yogurt. What it ended up being was yogurt with a hint of a tropical, pineapple taste followed by a surge of overpowering sweetness, capped by a minuscule pinch of tart. IMO, it’s not the way fro-​yo should be done. Yes, it’s unlimited, but my limit was just that one serving.
Also, within a Korean restaurant, you expect to receive the side dishes (ban-​chan) within minutes of sitting down. The ban-​chan consists of a salad topped with Thousand Island dressing, steamed eggs, and a mac salad that’s prepared in a spicy way. Everything but the mac salad was edible in that the mac salad starts off very bland, but then becomes ridiculously overpowering with heat. It’s almost like taking some wasabi and eating it straight up. We actually received the ban-​chanour AFTER we got our main dish. We also got white radish kimchi AFTER our main dish. The table next to us didn’t even get theirs so they complained asking for their serving too evening though they were well into their main dish. I actually feel bad for them and our table because the kimchi is absolute CRAP. The radish is served raw and not in a ripe state, so it’s somewhat bitter. The broth that it’s served is SUPPOSED to be somewhat sour, yet refreshing. I know because my grandmother owns a kimchi factory which distributes her products to major market chains around Southern California. So, maybe it’s my bias, or high standard, but irregardless, it was of poor quality.
Now continuing with the main dish. Remember, it’s simplicity. The waiters/​waitresses actually cook it for you using two plastic ladles, which I thought was a nice touch. There is a chili paste that may be added to the chicken for added kick and flavor. The waitress misunderstood us and added WAY TOO MUCH. So, it ended up being a spicy mess. What’s worse is that the manager came over trying to contribute to the cooking and actually grabbed our neighbor’s ladle to cook our food. This got me really disgusted as they have been already eating with that ladle.
We reluctantly finished our meal, and asked for our check to our waiter. He acknowledged us, but never succeeded in getting our check. That’s when I started to take notice of the wait staff. They were highly undertrained, which explains why it took us so long to get our food. I noticed all the staff relied upon the numbers that were on the ventilation ducts above us. They did not have the tables memorized. Orders were taken to the wrong tables, and once again, service was horribly slow.
After a complaint about the check, we were told that the machine had failed AFTER about 30 minutes of waiting. I thought they should have at least had the decency to tell us much earlier on. We had paid the amount and finally, left the place about two hours later.
Verdict:
Pros: Although slow, the wait staff were friendly and helpful, when they were at your table, if ever.
Cons: The food was disgusting. Something so simple can be apparently be very hard to cook for some; the service time; that macaroni salad; overpowering fro-​yo; price.
Price:
Total bill (for five people): $ 46.07 + tax + tip (which was given as I didn’t pay).
Additionals: 2 bottles of Coor’s Light: $ 5 /​bottle (redonkulous)
I know this review was very long, but I really wanted to be thorough, and hopefully prevent you from making the same mistake.