Seoul Garden

I think I’m in love with this place. My husband I stopped in here for dinner for the first time a couple of weeks ago. I was initially skeptical because we were the only customers (granted, it was about 830pm on a Thursday), however that skepticism didn’t last long.
We started with a bit of soju, which was a very nice treat. It’s very difficult to find non-​Tyku soju anywhere around (even in the liquor store), but they have a couple of different varieties here. We were overwhelmed with all the tasty sounding choices, but finally settled on the tableside BBQ with spicy squid and pork belly. I’m often worried about overcooking or undercooking my food in this context, but our server made sure everything was cooked properly, and it was absolutely delicious! The sauce was very flavorful (but not devilishly spicy for us, we used the whole thing without a problem).
The service was absolutely fantastic. Our server was very helpful with food and drink recommendations and is very enthusiastic about all the stuff they serve. Given the amount of customers there on that particular night, I’m a little worried about this place surviving, so please visit! I want to try all the things on the menu (which is going to take many visits). That won’t happen if you don’t come eat here too, so please help.

Disclaimer: this is not for the bbq. I never ordered bbq however the other dishes here are spot on. This is one of the best Korean restaurants in town. I’ve been many many times and have always really enjoyed the food here. I love their soups and jap chae, the seafood pancake is really good too. Service is actually pretty decent. They play the same classical cd on repeat, no k-​pop at this joint. This is my go to spot when I want some delicious dumpling soondobu. Mmmm.
Update: I’m changing this to 5 stars because this restaurant really deserves it. Hearty, filling and consistently amazing food. They also display a willingness to listen to their customers and improve where needed. They’ve added fountain drinks and alcohol as well as exploring new menu items to add. In addition the service is always warm and friendly and they really try to make your meal as pleasant as they can. This is fast becoming one of our favorite SLC restaurant.

Was hungry for Korean while visiting town. Wow! A very good place. The place was very clean, good tasting, and reasonably priced! We tried the Beef and Pork Bulgogi. Both were tasty! Will be back again sometime!

I ended up order the Japchae (which was a first for me), and pleasantly surprised. The «glassy» noodles were tasty along with the sweet potato, mushroom, and whatever else seasoned in this dish. It all came together really well!
The staff was very accommodated and even asked us their thoughts on remodeling ideas. The service was certainly topnotch!

This is a mom & pop restaurant. It’s located right on the SE corner of the intersection, so getting into it is kind of tricky. Parking is in the rear, on the east side of the building.
The service is outstanding! I ordered the kim chi with beef soup. It came out piping hot but the flavor wasn’t there for me. It was just okay.
Because it’s a mom & pop shop, I wouldn’t come here if you have any serious food allergies. We tried to order some gluten free dishes, but they didn’t seem to know what was ingredients were in each dish or what was safe to eat. In the end, they made a special vegetables variation of a dish. So far, so good.
The kim chi had a hint of «putrid» taste that you can sometimes get with fermented foods. It was very subtle but I could taste it because I’m used to detecting the same flavor when my mom made kim chi when I was a child. The flavor would just show up in some batches. Something about the way it’s made? I’ve eaten from Cupbop A LOT and they never have this with their kim chi. Not sure what causes it but I’m sure it’s REALLY no concern. In fact, I asked for more kim chi.
We might come back and try their other dishes, but the kim chi soup was just okay.

I threatened our server if that she did not use my card for payment over my friends that I would leave a bad review. I was kidding, kind of, no really I was definitely kidding. Even if she did not use my card, I would have left a good review!
This establishment deserved a bump up from their previous rating because of their black bean noodles (usually only offered during lunch Monday-​Thursday but they made it for me on a Saturday evening), their delicious kim chi, consistency in grilled mackerel (no surprise here), excellent service, and seriously how cute the yellow pickled radish was (usually comes with black bean noodles). The only downfall this time around was the sweet and sour chicken. I didn’t really enjoy the sauce, it was too sweet and not tangy enough. But overall, this was a pretty solid visit.

The food was good but the banchan selection was meh. The service was great — we went on Chuseok or Korean Thanksgiving and were surprised it was not busy. It was the first time for Korean for one of my kids and only the second time for my husband. We enjoyed the service and the food; they just need to up the banchan variety.

Another great meal pulled off by Seoul Garden. Love the awesome food and the service.
Can’t go wrong here on anything.

The food is good. The price is acceptable. Service is very nice even though just have 1 waitress. He’s very nice and always make sure I’m ok.

I love this place, we have to drive all the way from Ogden to here since there’s no Korean food around and it was worth it ! This place was good and very tasty !

The food here was great. We got spicy pork bulgogi and a kimchi/​spicy pork bibimbop, and loved both. The banchan were good, too.
The servers and cooks were really nice, though a bit slow.
We’ll definitely eat here again.

If you’re looking at this review to know what to order — I’d recommend the bibimbap…
Now that we’ve got that out of the way, Seoul Garden is a solidly good Korean joint in a pretty unassuming building. I won’t lie, the décor and general lack of polish (menus in plastic scrapbooking sleeves rather than the usual menu thingies, photos taped to the wall) is a bit below what I’d expect, even for a small, family-​run joint, but the food and friendliness easily make up for this.
The waiter was very warm and enthusiastic to serve us, and the room had a smattering of Korean families and couples chatting over steaming plates of BBQ — both very good signs in my mind. They also play Western classical music (Debussy, Beethoven, that sort of thing), which may seem like an odd thing to note, but I’ve noticed a lot of smaller restaurants recently not bother with music (or worse, play irritating pop music) and I think Seoul Garden did a good job choosing music to set a good mood for everyone dining.
We got the bibimbap and it’s one of my favorites in the valley. The egg was cooked just enough so that the whites were done, but with lots of runny yolk — delicious. Lots (most?) bibimbap dishes have the hard-​cooked rice along the sides of the stone bowl. For some people, this is their favorite part, but I personally am so-​so on this and like that Seoul Garden’s was a bit softer.
Based on the mood of the dining room full of happy customers, the enthusiastic service, and quality of the cooking, I can tell the owners and employees take their role as host very seriously. I will definitely be back for more bibimbap, and hope to see the décor someday match all the other wonderful things about this place. :)

This family-​run business has a lot of heart. It’s run by a mom and dad back in the kitchen and two daughters in the front and you can tell they have put a lot of work into the restaurant. The service has gotten a lot faster over time and I like that they actually listen to their customers and make changes for the better. The girls in front are so kind and very attentive.
The food is good. My favorites are the tofu soup (they actually give you a substantial amount of tofu), spicy chicken on table (yes that’s what it’s called), and japchae (not overly sweet like many other places). The little sides you get are fresh. I love that the kimchi actually has a kick to it!
This place is on my regular rotation.

Seoul Garden… most people would probably pronounce «soul» garden. Perhaps they really did put their souls and hard works into the food they prepare. This place is operated like most Asian restaurant with just mom and pop in the kitchen and the kids running the front. They took over the old Jang Soo Jang location when they relocated further south, and most of the décors were kept the same. One thing they could work on is the men’s restroom, I really think they could use a divider board between the men urinal and sink, so it will not be weird when another guy walks in…
The Japchae here had been another good starter, after trying many of them in different Korean places in town and they were really one of the best in state. They serve this very nice Puff Egg dish that made great starter and my kid liked it a lot more than I did being a fan of eggs. Honestly, $ 9 for a dish that nobody else serves in Utah seems to be fair, and it is actually hard dish to make too. I could honestly careless how much they charge in California or even Korea. The thing is that we do not have it anywhere else in Utah, so they have a monopoly for that dish for now until the other Korean restaurants willing to step up their game and put that dish on their menu as well.
They can make the tofu soup full of tofu, not holding back one bit, which is how it should be. I always had problems at other Korean places in town feeling a lack of tofu in my soup, but not this place, they will be glad to top it off for you. Ramen Tofu and Seafood Tofu were both good, it depends on the mood for that day. I like my soup spicy, and the spiciest they have on the menu is Level 5, later on I found out they have secret level beyond 5, so I think I’ll try mine at level 10(?!) next time.
Their barbeques were great too, meat qualities were excellent, I like it they have some varieties that nobody else has like the Seafood Bibimbop, or the Prime Rib Bulgogi. Compared with other Korean places in town, they do charge a slightly higher price, but you can tell their meat quality is much better than the other, and they have premium meat selection here as well. Most Korean places in town tried to use marinate to cover up bad meat quality, but that was one reason behind the limited choices.
Services had some issues in the beginning when they first opened, it had improved since then, our last visit was excellent here, and the sisters working at the front always take great care of us whenever we dine there. Wife did mention the spoons they used were not the traditional Korean long spoons, not a big issue for me.
Korean food in Utah… it’s getting good. Best part about it is that we finally have a Korean restaurant in town that is willing to hear feedbacks and improve from them. Look forward to new things happening to their current menu. I do not believe you truly experienced good Korean food in Utah until you visited Seoul Garden.

If Seoul Garden could only be known for one thing, it should be known for how much attention the family pays to the customers. Out of the many restaurants my fiancée and I frequent, we always seem to make our way back here at least once a week, due to the love we can see the family gives the business. If you’ve visited at least once, even just a month back, I would highly encourage you to come back again. They are learning as they go, and their service has improved tons.
Moving on to the food, I’ve tried many of the Korean places around the Salt Lake valley, and I have to say that Seoul Garden’s Japchae is my favorite so far. Other restaurants like to have their Japchae a little on the sweeter side, but I prefer mine a little more savory. My fiancée always gets their tofu soup, and has stated that this is one of her more favorite tofu soups she’s tried.
We’ve also tried other things on the menu, such as the dumplings, all variations of their BBQ, puffed egg, bibimbop, and moon pies. We haven’t tried their table bbq, but I’m pretty sure we will sooner or later. Unfortunately, their puffed egg is not listed on the menu anymore, but when we ask nicely, they do end up making it for us.
Prices are similar to other Korean places, and we usually get a good amount of food due to us usually sharing dishes with one another in our foodie group. The only improvement I could suggest would be better handling of a larger group, as we’ve gone a few times with 6 – 10 people, and service is a little slower than expected.
I enjoy coming back here, as the food is consistent as well as the service always improving.

Truly a mom and pop restaurant. The family tries very hard on making this a success.
The food here is pretty tasty. I’ve only just begun to work my way through their menu. I haven’t had anything I wouldn’t have again.
The Japchae was pretty tasty and wasn’t overlooked.
I can wait to try the steamed egg. It sounds like they’re getting closer to perfecting that.
Service was very attentive.

Well the last time I was here it was Jang Soo Jang and my first time to Seoul Garden was nothing compared to JSJ at least food wise. I notice they didn’t have much side dishes which was very odd compared to most Korean Restaurant I’ve been to. I was very disappointed when they didn’t have seaweed (I LOVE my seaweeds :‘[)
The place wasn’t really busy so the service was always on us.
I feel like they changed up their menu a bit too much and may I say some of it is not worth the price? I’m not saying that their food is bad tasting it was alright the tofu soup was ok but the taste was not what I was aiming for. Their Bulgogi was alright I just prefer a more home style traditional Korean BBQ over all lets just say my taste buds don’t like it here hahahaha.

First off, if you want to have a large group come here for a birthday, make sure you set off a large amount of time (like 2 hours) because the service is pretty terrible. There was only one cook in the back and nobody seemed to know what was going on. Even asking for simple things was a really big task.
Service aside, the food was pretty good. The tofu broth was quite tastey but pretty spicey. Their portions are quite small for the price as well so be ready for about $ 15-​$ 20 a plate for not that much food. Also, they do not have their liquor license yet so don’t count on drinking any type of alcohol.
All in all if you’re looking for no so great service but decently pricey food, this could be your place.

So, what’s great about this place? The servers are really, really, really nice.
What’s bad? The slow service. I went on a night where there were three waitresses. They served also as a cashier and busy boy. It was fairly crowded but not overly. The patrons didn’t come all at once, maybe 10 to 20 mins apart. There was one big party that was there before us, but they were almost done. I think the place might need more people in the kitchen.
Now for the food: So, when I came the rice was almost out. Because of that my friend got her rice first and I got mine after which I was fine with. When mine did come out it was kind of hard. They tried to give me my rice as soon as they could, but it was too early, so I told them that my rice wasn’t cooked all the way. They gave me another one and it was cooked perfectly. Next the soondubu (tofu soup. It was more liquidy than I would like. I usually like a thicker tofu soup like how I get it back home. They told me next time just let them know and they will make it thicker. As far as flavor, it was great. It was way better than Myunga. For myself and the majority of my friends, we dont like Myungas’ tofu soups. Their flavor just isn’t that great to us. Here, they actually make the broth out of beef bones and you can totally taste it in the flavor. If the soup tastes a little salty to you eat it with your rice like how it is usually eaten and it evens out the flavor. I haven’t tried their bbq meats and bibimbap yet which I will try later.
Would I come back? Definitely, as long as I’m not in a rush because I like their broth flavor in their soup.

So I recently came back to this place and the waitress that served me before remembered me. That is a good sign that the service of a place is very good. What I do notice is that they do read the reviews that was left and did do some modifications to the place. They have added art and some pictures on the walls so it isn’t that bare. Another thing to note that changed is that music was added to the background. They don’t really play popular music or even korean music but they classical music. It is very quite relaxing.
One of the main things I said in my previous review is that the sides were not free, well that has changed. The sides are now given for free. They do make sure to check if everyone at the table likes kimchi so it is not wasted. I have read other reviews of this place that said they charged for rice, but that wasn’t the case for me. I think that changed as well because when I ordered the beef rib and soup combo it came with rice. My friends who ordered soup and the bulgogi combo also had rice.
They are very good at their service and they make sure you do feel very welcomed to this place. Some orders were a bit messed up but they hurry fixed it and also to apologize they gave us free puffed eggs and a huge plate of french fries. The puffed eggs are very delicious, if you do want an appetizer I would totally recommend it.
This place totally deserve the 5 stars I am giving it. It is still a new restaurant, so their menu is hand written with no pictures. But they do have descriptions of the food and if you have data on your phone you can google an image fairly easy and quick. I think this place have better menus printing out soon. I would definitely come back to this place and totally recommend it to everyone.