Hello Italian Fusion Restaurant

pastas here taste so good that i forgot to take pictures of those:) eppetizer mango quesadilla is also yami. atmosphere is cozy and server is nice. i think because of the location, (2^nd floor, no parking space you should valet) here is not crowded. hope many people come and enjoy it :)

I’ve had this place bookmarked for awhile but was never quite in the mood for pasta. My friend and I were finally hungry enough to load up on carbs, so we came here today for lunch.
The restaurant is a little hard to find. It’s located on Western (next to Caffe bene) and you have to walk up a flight stairs. The décor and furnishings are cute. They even have a balcony with string lights!
We ordered the Shanghai Crab Pasta and Kimchi Bacon Carbonara. Both entrees were delicious! Although, my favorite dish was the complementary bread platter! Our server was on point! He was very attentive and even brought us strawberry ice cream for dessert!

I was excited to try out this place and it came out to be total disappointment.
Restaurant offers complimentary bread platter. Instead of sweet potato, slice of cheese may have been better.
Phyllo Pizza (***) — Tasty appetizer, dipping pizza with honey made it more flavorful.
Shrimp Basil Pesto Angel Hair (*) — It was the worst pasta I ever tasted in my life. Shrimp was cooked very dry and pasta sauce didn’t taste like basil pesto. Instead of tasting basil, sauce tasted like made of Mugworth, called «Ssuk» in Korean.
Triple Cheese Bolognaise Pasta (**) — Very cheesy and oily pasta. After 4^th bites, I couldn’t eat anymore, it was too oily for me. I had to wash it down with wine.
Wine (*) — Ordered glass of house Pinot Noir. Bad, don’t ordered it unless you want to waste your $$.
Service (***) — There was only one waiter and we were the first customer for dinner time. I literally had to wait 5 – 10 minutes for him to come out of back kitchen just to ask for refilling drinks.
Parking (**) — Parked car at Madang mall. Hard to fine parking spot during dinner time and weekends.
Ambience (***) — Cute little place. Not a fancy place but décor was adorable and I liked the music they played.
Other food entrée may taste really good at this place. However, I seriously felt food entrees that we ordered was total waste of money.

Super good service. Constantly checked up on us to see if we needed anything.
I would recommend the Shrimp Basil Pesto Angel Hair and the Kimchi Bacon Cream pasta. Both super yummy.

This place is no less or no more than 3 stars in my opinion. The basil shrimp pesto tastes very blend covered in olive oil. The Italian sausage pink sauce penne is pretty good but as you keep on eating you will notice every bite will need a wash down with either soda or wine. Maybe it’s the Korean in me but the thick cheese and creamy sauce just makes it unbearable to continue on. It was kicking my ass.
In all the service was pretty good and the food came out on time so I can’t complain. If you haven’t tried this place go ahead and waste your money :)

Food is so delicious. Super great! I love this restaurant. Actually, this restaurant is better than any other pasta restaurant that I have been visited. It’s super better than cheesecake factory. I hope that I could visit at lunch time. It was so sad that Hello restaurant open at 5pm and there is no parking lot:(

Super cute Italian fushion restaurant. The entrance is kind of hidden. there’s a door next to café bene that meads to an upstairs hallway to the restaurant.
They give a complimentary bread platter with 2 different kinds of bread, whole oven roasted garlic, slices of sweet potato, sweet butter and balsamic vinegar/​olive oil. I thought that was unique because of the touch of garlic and sweet potato. definitely fushion. Haha
Appetizer: phyllo pizza. I like the concept and interesting how they serve it with honey on the side. I’m not a fan of mixing sweet with savory so didn’t eat the honey but the phyllo pizza was really good. Savory and flavorful without the load of carbs.
Entrée: I ordered the kimchi bacon pasta. Presentation was really nice. As far as taste. it was what I had expected. I think they use more oil than cream and milk. Because I don’t use oil when I make kimchi bacon pasta and only heavy cream and milk so the color is more creamy and not clear (oily).
Entrée: bf ordered the Italian sausage penne gratin. Very very oily. Maybe a little more cheese than we would have preferred but it was delicious.
Came here on Sunday night and surprised that it was completely empty but that’s understandable because it’s hidden. They’ve been open for 3 years but I have never seen or heard of it and my church is literally less than a block away and I’m on western blvd all the time so I was surprised. I think they need more recognition and just need to get their word out. Food is good and service was good (well. I wouldn’t expect anything below amazing service since it was empty but the server/​host was friendly). It would help if he spike better English and knew more about each dish better but oh wells.
I like how they have a small patio outside that overlooks the streets.
I will be back :)

As you walk up the stairs it feels like you’re in an empty building. Then as you open the glass door you see that there is a cute little restaurant tucked away in the corner. The complimentary bread platter comes with roasted garlic, hot tasty bread, sweet whipped butter and olive oil. It takes a little time but it’s worth the wait.
We ordered the Shanghai spicy crab pasta and the kimchi bacon pasta. I highly recommend ordering these two dishes. From presentation to smell to taste, I thoroughly enjoyed each bite. We cleared the rest of the sauce by dipping the bread in it.
I was tempted not to post a review so that this place doesn’t get too crowded but oh what the heck. I’ll share I guess. Just don’t touch my Shanghai crab.

Good:
Excellent Food
Very helpful waiter and waitress
Love Food Presentation! It is an art.
Love their bread samplers
I love the music wall (It shows synthesizer beat on the wall)
Bad
In theory, you cannot park at Madang. So this can be an issue.
Portion may not be enough, if you are a heavy eater
Not enough drink selection, if you are not into wine
Ugly
Carpet. I felt like that I am stepping on a giraffe

This place was definitely a pleasant surprise. I was a bit apprehensive since fusion normally doesn’t turn out well all the time. I agree with another reviewer that the décor is reminiscent of a k drama, which I thought was lovely.
Onto the food. The bread platter. Fantastic. You get slices of herbed bread with an entire bulb of roasted garlic, olive oil and balsamic, sweet whipped cream butter, and some roasted sweet potato. I would’ve paid money for this, but even more amazed that it was complementary. I ordered their vongole with spaghetti and my sister ordered the spicy crab angel hair pasta. She asked for less spice but it came out spicy anyways so we switched dishes. It was delicious! I especially loved the fried scallions the were sprinkled through the dish. Excellent balance of flavors and textures. The pasta was al dente too. I should’ve just taken a to go box but it was so good I stuffed everything down. They also give you a complimentary olive, pepper, and tomato dish to pair with your dinner.
I would definitely come back. The price is decent too. Under $ 40 with a 20% tip!

This spot is tucked away on the second floor of a building about a block away from the Wiltern. The atmosphere and ambiance is really nice once you get up there! Very modern-​feeling.
I like that they give you a selection of breads, butter and olive oil to start off with. The mentaiko pasta was phenomenal. The pasta was perfectly al dente, and the creamy sauce was perfectly salty. Yum!

Just totally in love with this place. Such a hidden gem. The waiter was friendly. We went on a Sunday night, a very quiet time to visit and also added to the romantic ambiance. The food was AMAZING. Very tasteful and nothing you’d expect. Each plate has the perfect haemorrhage in taste. We ordered Shrimp Angels Hair — looked beautiful and tasted just right. :) The Itlian Sausage Pasta was also delightful but on a saltier side. And then, the pizza starter, with honey. Speechless!
Definitely coming back!
P. S. buy a bottle of wine receive a free starter.

Came here with a friend and it was really dead. I think we were the only customers inside the café for lunch. However, we did really enjoy the two pasta dishes we had here.
First one we ordered was the mentaiko pasta. I really enjoyed eating this one and had a nice creamy, and salty seafood taste. Triple cheese bolognaise pasta was also really good. Pretty much the melted, ooey gooey goodness overpowered everything but I am a sucker for cheese. We ended up demolishing the pasta since me and my friend are pasta nuts.
It is a lovely environment and I enjoyed the scenic view from the second floor that hello is located in. The service was good and the waiter was kind of enough to refill the bread a couple times. (Seriously, great selection of different types of bread with a tasty balsamic dip!)
I highly recommend this if you are in ktown and don’t mind going for korean-​Italian fushion food. This place rocks! Would come here again.

Whenever I come to this place, it’s so empty. This place is so underrated!
Their kimchi carbonara pasta is SO GOOD. It’s the best one in ktown, so it must be the best anywhere. (kimchi = korea)
One star off because it literally takes an hour to come out.

So surprised by how empty this place was on a Friday night! I’m so glad we decided to check this place out because it is
.
The free bread was so good and it came with gogumah! We also had the mango quesadilla which was HUGE for an appetizer and delicious! I had the mentaiko pasta and it was also so freaking good– noodles were perfectly cooked and the sauce was amazeballs. It wasn’t overly creamy and you can just taste the mentaiko. The best part is how inexpensive it all was! We had a glass of wine, appetizer, and two entrées and the total was around $ 55 (not including tip). Service was great, presentation was awesome, and the food amazing. Definitely check this place out!

Omg. Actual italian restaurant in koreatown, and its pretty good!!! I got a three mushroom carbonara and it was spot on. Not those only cream sauce pastas hehe… and the guy working was sooo nice!!! I also got the bruschetta which was not your typical kind but had a twist. It was very light and refreshing!!!
Beware of their open/​close times though. They have weird hours and theyre closed for like three hours in the afternoon.
Overall would definitely come back for the great service and food: D

Such a charming little gem! The interior is very modern, spacious yet intimate. I absolutely love the design and placement of everything. It’s very airy and just… so darn cute.
My best friend and I came here around 7 p.m. before the Epik High concert. We were seated immediately and the waiter was super sweet. He’s so adorable and was very enthusiastic on giving us recommendations. We ended up going with the Shrimp Basil Pesto Angel Hair Pasta and, per our waiter’s recommendation, the Triple Mushroom Carbonara.
Bread Platter ⁵⁄₅ — Hands down the best bread platter I’ve ever head. It went hand-​in-​hand with my preferences. Sweet potato? Yes! Rosemary? Yes! Sweet whipped butter with bread? Yes! It came with 2 types of bread, vinegar & oil, whipped cream, garlic and sweet potato. Freshly baked.
Shrimp Basil Pesto Angel Hair Pasta ⁴⁄₅ — It was yummy, very refreshing and light. It perfectly complimented the heavier Triple Mushroom Carbonara.
Triple Mushroom Carbonara ⁵⁄₅ — This was divine. Creamy, rich and very flavorful. I’d totally recommend this over the Shrimp Basil Pesto Angel Hair Pasta.
Service ⁵⁄₅ — There were two servers, a waiter and a waitress, both of whom were very attentive throughout our meal.

Hello seems like it’s straight out of a k-​drama. Which one? Pasta, of course! I almost wanted to order the Vongole and shout «yes, chef» («ch» pronounced like on cheese). I giggled as I amused myself and as I woke up from my daydream, I noticed the waiter looking at me.
We figured the dinner special seemed like a good deal so we ordered the phyllo pizza as an appetizer, two glasses of cab (complimentary as a part of the special) and two dishes. I got the risotto because I can never resist a risotto when I see it on the menu. It was certainly a Korean interpretation of what risotto should taste like.
Overall, the food was solid and the décor is super cute. This is not where you should go for authentic Italian food but for some Korean-​Italian, give it a shot!

This place is totally adorable. In typical fashion, we ordered different dishes and shared everything — the caprese salad, pico de gallo squid and mentaiko pasta, along with a glass of prosecco each plus a bottle of wine. OK, admittedly we drank a fair amount — but hey, we weren’t driving, and it was a Saturday night. :D
They still had the special going on where one of the appetizers was free with a bottle of wine, so the overall bill ended up being pretty fair — $ 80 total for everything, which considering how much we ate and drank, that was less than what we were expecting to pay.
Other Unilocalers have mentioned the bread, and I have to agree — their bread basket is so good! It came out piping hot with sweet whipped butter as well as olive oil for dipping, and I almost filled up on that. The sweet potato addition was a bit odd but was still good — the more carbs the better, I guess.
The caprese salad was fine, nothing you haven’t had before. The tomatoes could have been a little more ripe, but everything was fresh so no real complaints. The squid appetizer was very good, especially the side garnish it came with, but the portion was quite small. The mentaiko pasta was solid — cooked al dente, nice flavors, not too oily, well balanced.
My big suggestion for them would be to improve their wine selection — especially the white wines! Not that the reds were so stellar, but there were more options and choices in comparison. There are lots of good, interesting wines that are not expensive — a wine master who knows what he/​she is doing can put a decent list together. The price points for wines at $ 25−35-ish for the bottle is good, but they need better options here.
I found the service to be fine, but then again, the restaurant wasn’t at all crowded — we were there early tho, around 6:30-ish. This place is really a 3.5 star joint for me, but I rounded up the rating in hopes that business picks up for them and that they do well — we need more diverse places in Ktown to choose from!

Cute little hole in the wall place, decorated with a Korean flair but definitely a classier look.
We got the shrimp basil pesto angel hair pasta, Mentaiko pasta, the tuna tartar, and a wine bottle.
One thing to note about the wine: we ordered two Argentinean malbec glasses but they couldn’t provide us glasses because not enough people order wine and they couldn’t leave the wine hanging… so they had a special where if you order a whole bottle, you get an appetizer free (or else no wine for you unless it’s the house wine). Normally this wouldn’t be a big deal but there weren’t too many appetizing dishes to choose from so we got a recommendation from the server and got the tuna tartar. It was good but nothing too amazing. The tuna did taste fresh but there wasn’t much tuna to begin with.
The shrimp basil angel hair pasta was so dry! It tasted like there was no sauce and I was eating noodles tossed in olive oil. The mentaiko, on the other hand was definitely more flavorful but this is also a dry pasta so we couldn’t finish either of them. Regardless, the mentaiko concept was fresh to me and it was pretty exceptional compared to the other two dishes.
I do have to say the service here was great but the kitchen will need to make a lot more improvements to the dishes because nobody will come back just for the ambience and service.