A common reason I read why folks go to Gaboja . . . "the wait at Gooyi Gooyi was too long" Yep, that's why I wandered across the shared parking lot too. What I had was a surprising and surprisingly good K-BBQ meal. Surprise #1 when I asked for one order of Jumulleuk (short steak marinaded in sesame oil, salt, pepper) and the waitress leaves and then comes back out and lights the BBQ table grill ( yelp.com/biz_photos/gabo… ) Usually places say min 2 orders for table top grilling . . . maybe 'cause it was Monday and slow? Then 6 plates of banchan appear ( yelp.com/biz_photos/gabo… ). Pretty standard with kimchi, sprouts, fish cake. I think the dark one on the left was doraji, or bellflower root, which is not too common. The well marbled meat is marinated with white and green onions ( yelp.com/biz_photos/gabo… ) and it looks like for smaller orders they use a flat, rectangular grill plate vs. the large round ones you see in most pictures ( yelp.com/biz_photos/gabo… ) Surprise #2 when a small Doenjang Jjigae (soybean paste stew yelp.com/biz_photos/gabo… ) is delivered. I took this to go. The servers take care of the cooking, but I grabbed the meat sooner to make sure it was rare to med-rare ( yelp.com/biz_photos/gabo… ). For non-marinated and these light marinated meats they bring ssam-jang (gochujang / doenjang based dipping sauce) and sesame oil with salt ( yelp.com/biz_photos/gabo… ). Very tasty and tender meat. I liked the chunkier pieces where I got it more on the rare side. And after I've been eating a bit, Surprise #3 appears. Gyeran Jjim (steamed egg casserole yelp.com/biz_photos/gabo… ) along with a couple more banchan ( yelp.com/biz_photos/gabo… ). This was a little overcooked and burned on the bottom, but still decent. Overall, a very good meal. 4.5 stars. Rounding up, because I'm easily bribed by "service" items.
(5)
Susan M.
Came here with my bf because we wanted to try out Gooyi Gooyi next door, but it was super crowded. We decided to try out this place since we were craving for korean BBQ and boy did we regret walking in here. The cost of the food here is really high for the quality that you're getting. We ordered the tofu soup and it was not good. It was so bland that we could not even finish it. We also got an order of the Kalbi which was a bit steep at $25. Although it tasted good, it was not really the best quality meat and there were a lot of meatless short rib bones in it. For $25 I would kind of expect a lot more meat, not just bones. Lastly, service was horrible for there being a total of 2 people in the restaurant aka my boyfriend and I. We were shocked that we had to ask for water and tea almost 3 times. It finally came after they delivered us our food which came like 30-40 mins after we ordered it. A bit long for it being this empty. We also had to ask a few times to get the bill. Funny thing is when we paid, they seemed to come right away. We were both extremely disappointed with this place. When the bill came, it was pretty expensive and just not worth it. I guess you can't always strike out when trying out new places. I am a huge supporter of mom and pop restaurants, however, I would not recommend this place to anyone.
(2)
Helen D.
The good thing about this place is it isn't as crowded at the other Korean BBQ next door on Saturday @midnight. I could see why after we sat down. Canned coke. Expensive menu. We ordered baby octopus and pork belly (2 thick slices) and our dinner came to around $60. Yowwws. Ripoff. And none of the meats were seasoned! Which is why you should ask for a bowl of salt n pepper. The side dishes were very good. Kimchi soup was part of it. They don't speak much English here, so you know. Parking is straightforward in the small front lot. I think there was parking in the rear too.
(3)
Tina T.
Great place to go to for late night eats without much wait. Initially tried to go to the restaurant next door Gooyi Gooyi, but wait was extreme. Kalbi short ribs was tasty. Food was decent with a good amount of sides, but fried chicken was a definite miss. Meat was slightly red. Waitresses were nice though. Tried to recook the chicken, but results were the same. Therefore, paid for fried chicken that I did not dare eat.
(3)
Akin B.
A nice little mom and pop Korean BBQ restaurant. The food is good, the customer service is nice, the place looks very clean, and they deliver (HUGE competitive advantage). The only bad part is they are located next to a perverted adult video store, so you see creepy men and women walking in-and-out of that place.
(4)
Runxuan L.
it sucks. Service is terrible. I will not come here ANY MORE
(1)
Nicole S.
Came here like others because the wait for Gooyi Gooyi next door was going to be an hour long. Part of me wishes I would have just waited, but we were hungry. Meat and banchan were okay hence 2 instead of 1 star. Gripes: Bad service overall. .. 1.) Why list bibimbap on the combo menu when its not really included? During dinner they asked if we wanted rice, and I said yes I wanted my rice. Then after the meats were done grilling they brought out the soup. We kept waiting for the bibimbap, while we finished our meats. It was taking so long so we finally asked for the dish. The waitress looked confused and took our half eating rice bowls away to show and talk to the the owner?? She then comes back to tell us that they use the rice, left over banchan, and left over meat to make a sort of bibimbap? WTF. Why did they list it on the combo menu as a dish? Why didn't they say anything to us before they gave us our rice bowls? This irritated me the most about our dinner. 2.) Under grilling meat. Or grilling meat and combing back too late so one side was overcooked. 3.) Having to ask for things like our lettuce when its automatically brought to other tables. Or not being given bowls for our soup, or even a serving spoon. Would i come back here again? NO!
(2)
Phoebe T.
I can see why their business sucks. Was waiting for the rest of our group to arrive for dinner; stepped over to the next store, the woman came out to tell us to get out of the parking lot if we aren't eating here. Wth?! Seriously? Just for that, we ate at another place. Plenty of food nearby. Yes, they actually have a Mexican lady standing in front to watch the parking lot. Good luck with getting customers with that kind of attitude.
(1)
Amanda T.
Amazing place. Good food and great service. Servers were super attentive. The replenishment of side dishes was instant. When I dropped my chopsticks into the flames, and trying to fish it out, they handed me a new pair right away. BEST thing about this place is that you don't walk out smelling like Korean bbq! Love that!!
(5)
Mike K.
I got the $99 combo 3 with 2 other friends. The ahjuma spent the time to cook everything for us and was very accommodating. She had a large party that left just before we came in so it was a little slow at first coming out with our banchan or heck even taking our order. But at the end of it all, she did us 1up and gave us a free soju bottle that we basically ended up paying it back via a large tip. I think it's some what odd that there are 3 small kbbq joints within two very small plazas. It's like adult video store, kbbq, adult video store, kbbq, liquor store, kbbq. All in all, if this place is packed, just try going next door to see if there is less of a wait. They are all virtually on the same level.
(4)
Dean C.
11/15/14: This place is really hit and miss. The KBBQ is definitely sub-par, but their other non-kbbq dishes can be quite good. 1. Combo I (picked 2 items: Brisket, Cow Tongue) $49.95: Size-wise this will probably make 2 people of average appetites decently full. Might be good enough for 3 or 4 if also ordering other dishes. Brisket: is not the typical 3in diameter pieces usually served--these are strips about as long but twice as wide as large pieces of sliced bacon. That part is cool. But unfortunately the meat is REALLY tough and there is a lot of connective tissue. Very hard to chew. My date took like literally 1min to chew each bite and couldn't talk most of the time. I cooked these pieces myself experimenting with doneness from rare to well-done, and no matter how I cooked them, they just sucked. Pretty bad quality meat. 2/10. Cow Tongue: my favorite KBBQ meat. This one tastes fine. Not especially tasty, but not awful like the brisket. Average taste. 5/10. 2. Seafood Pancake $18.95: It's huge!!! (yup, that's what she said.) More than 1ft in diameter... maybe about 1.5ft? The outside is super crisp, but not hard. The inside is about medium-rare, with some gooeyness. Full of small oysters and other goodies. I loved how the outside is fried oh so well. Delicious. I never had a Korean pancake/omelette fried so nicely! 8/10. 3. Fried Chicken (S) $?: Mmmmmmmm.... I LOVE the batter on this! Lots of batter, but not a mouthful of thick flour. Just layers and layers of crunchy, super fried but not burnt, savory goodness! The actual chicken is a tad dry/overcooked. So, this isn't the #1 Korean fried chicken (that honor goes to Hot n Sweet Chicken in Arcadia, CA), but it's damn good. 8/10. Service was super bad. I wouldn't say it was the waitress' fault--she seemed nice enough. But I think she might have been the only waitress for the whole restaurant!, which was about 3/4 full. That's just really bad management. Took us like 20min to get our check after asking. I think it might have been 30min before she gave us water and the tea we ordered. It was pretty bad. So... I think some of the dishes are worth the crappy service and maybe even the semi-high prices. But definitely DO NOT GET KBBQ here. 3/5. #Korean #kbbq #friedchicken #chicken #koreanpancake #wings
(3)
Prashant K.
The place is a hole in the wall. Parking on a Sunday eve was an issue. The menu is limited, and the items are not only expensive, but the quantity of meat is small, as compared to the price. The food quality was so-so. Will not visit again
(3)
Maruchi K.
This place deserves more business. The service and food is so much better than gooyi gooyi next door. Especially late at night. If youre not looking for a loud atmosphere and just wanna chill on some BBQ and have a good time come here.
(5)
Peter Y.
It's been a while since I've been here and all I can say is wow at all the recent changes. They expanded their restaurant and now have a nice large back area suitable for large parties. They definitely invested well with their exhaust system as you don't walk out of there smelling like bbq. Their menu has also improved as their offerings are more varietal and meat quality is excellent. This place is located in the same plaza as Gooyi Gooyi, which I've also been to. However gooyi is much smaller and you definitely walk out smelling like bbq after eating. Gaboja is more traditional of a place, and has way better "banchan". The owner is actually well known in the community for having one of the best Kimchi. The side plates there are fresh and great in quality and taste. This place is probably the closest to LA KTown type of environment and the staff here are super nice. Rather than waiting next door for a table, I'd much rather always take my friends and family to Gaboja. I'll definitely be back now that they have a large room for big parties. This place is very authentic to restaurants in Korea. Come check it out, it will NOT disappoint!
(5)
Vana A.
Great late night food! I went here on a late night date night and they didn't disappoint. The food and drinks were so good. I suggest ordering few little things, and enjoy :-)
(4)
Judy V.
Monday night -- 99 chicken is closed (forgot to check!)...Korean BBQ is the next best thing while on El Camino. We decided to check out Gooyi Gooyi becos it was close, we haven't tried it yet and there were good reviews. It was busy there and with a long wait..really..on a Monday night?? So we decided to go next door. It seemed busy here, but we didn't have to wait long for a table...or so we thought! We didn't get to order until 20 mins later. The lady kept letting us know she'll be with us, but we were hungry and getting cranky lol. Ordered the 1st combo with the soybean soup, choice of 3 meats, soju or makgulli, rice or bibimbap. We decided to try the makgulli since we had no idea what it was lol and other meats...on a foodie adventure :) The lady brought us our makgulli and two bowls. Ummm, are the bowls for rice or soup. Neither! She said they were for our makgulli. Tasted pretty good, like yogurt soju except there's a rice taste to it. We were loving the fish cakes and seaweed ban chans. The lady cooked us the meats at our table. She's really friendly when she's at the table. We loved the pork belly and the meat. Not so much the intestines (tripas?). The food was good, not the greatest but worthy of another trip back if in the area. Towards the end of the meal, she gave us some korean popcorn :) she was eating it with us which made us laugh but also felt like we were guests at her house. We teased her about that. Food was surprisingly good. Don't let the service keep you away.
(4)
Alex M.
Place is not very good at all. I would suggest eating next door at Gooyi Gooyi. Service was not at all as expected for it being so empty. The lady just kept standing at the door making sure no one parked in "their" parking spot even though there are no signs indicating it was for that restaurant only.
(2)
Cynthia L.
Instead of focusing on providing great service and food to customers, this place hires an employee who just sits in front of their door chasing people away from their designated parking spots. Advice to the owner: "If you have no customers, there is no use having tons of empty parking spots." What an absurd way of running a business.
(1)
E. T.
We had a wonderful dinner experience here last weekend. Came with the whole family (husband, me and 3 kids). Bbq meat was delicious (we ordered brisket and pork belly) and also bulgogi that was cooked in the kitchen. Kimchi was very strong and tasty. Server keep checking on the grill to make sure meats are cooked properly. And the kimchi fried rice prepared on the grill is really delish. The lady owner was so nice to us. She gave me a tall bottle of Hite for Mother's Day... :) and gave ice creams for the table. My 10 yrs old daughter just love the lady owner and already tells me to go back there to eat again soon.
(5)
Joel R.
Food is just ok here. The other korean restaurant next door is much better. I recommend just sticking with the bbq. I parked my car in the parking lot that belonged to the business next door because Gaboja's parking lot is tiny and was all full. My friends made me drink too much soju so I had to call a cab to drive me home after dinner. I returned the next morning and found my car gone. Car was towed and it costed me 300 bucks to get it out!
(3)
Hanna Y.
You know, if you can't get into Gooyi Gooyi this place right next door in the same lot is not too bad. They don't have much non-marinated meet but I think it's still pretty good. It's not as poppin' but the price is right and the soju is chilled. Just the way I like it. Parking situation is not that great given it's in small lot but we got here at 9 p.m. and we found a spot as others were leaving. The service is good and they come by and cook the meats for you most of the time. Would come again. =)
(3)
Angela F.
This is a great mom and pop Korean restaurant. With all the Korean restaurants in this area, it's definitely hard for one to stand out above the rest. The food here is good and they have a few unique dishes such as the fried onion chicken. However, the customer service definitely deserves some recognition. The lady who served us so friendly and nice. She was also very attentive and kept coming back to refill our water and dishes. The prices are very reasonable too.
(4)
jay n.
Gaboja is our go to Korean eat out in town! We love how they make all their side dishes fresh, even the kimchi. The owner ammie is so thoughtful and nice. Service can be hit or miss depending on who is your server. They are really prompt tho but they do get busy. The ambiance is chill unlike Goya gooyi. We tried pretty much all of the Korean places on elcamino and gaboja is definately the go to place. We come here about once a week and never been disappointed. Thanks gaboja for always taking care of us!
(5)
Kimberly M.
WOW! I have never had the worst kbbq experience until I came here. First off I have never had to pay so much to get such little portions. Not to mention that their sauce for their meat was extremely bland! Might I mention that they cannot accommodate large groups! They were not considerate that there was a large amount of people and the only two grills that they placed were at the very ends of the table! Isn't that great?! The people seated in the middle starved like crazy! I literally paid $16 to eat half a strip of pork belly! The only thing I enjoyed was their kimchi tofu soup and fish cake. So I guess if you only like those two things definitely come here!
(2)
Jeff J.
Best meat in South Bay bar none. Don't come here for service, don't come here for ambiance. Just come to eat meat. The baby shrimp banchan are pretty swell too.
(5)
Fidela C.
Horrible service. Inconsiderate wait staff. Eat elsewhere. Wish I didn't have to put 1 star, not even worth that.
(1)
Kenitha Y.
Gooyi Gooyi was packed so we decided to come here instead since it was in the same plaza. The service was great! Our waitress was accommodating and extremely friendly. She was the highlight of the experience and that's saying a lot. Anyways, the food was typical Korean-fare. We couldn't eat any of the combos since we weren't THAT hungry. Side note - the combos include alcohol (woot woot). We ordered the kimchi fried rice which was yummy and galbi. The galbi wasn't super greasy so I was happy. Our meal came with banchan - kimchi, baby shrimp, bean sprouts, seaweed and fish cake - a bowl of white rice and steamed egg. I wished they had the glass noodle as a side dish cause I would ask for like a million refills.. But overall it was good and I would come back.
(4)
yulun t.
This restaurant just so selfishï¼ I was parking right side of the parking lot ( face to el camono) as soon as I walk to the restaurant next to them, one lady yell at me and said "u can't park here!" hello WTF! It's public parking!! They should focus on their food and service not their parking
(1)
AJ D.
I've been looking for a Korean BBQ place in the Bay Area that's similar to Shik Do Rak in SoCal, and I would say that this place comes close. $50 for a combo of 3 different kinds of meat and soy bean soup. The food was great, no complaints about that. I wish they would have: had rice noodle paper, been more generous with the sesame oil/salt thing, had more than 1 person serving all the tables on a Sunday night, and been all-you-can-eat. But overall, I stand by my 3 stars, and I would come back here.
(3)
DanThu D.
We actually came to Gaboja because it was right next to Gooyi Gooyi which had 2 hr wait for no reservations. We got seated right away for party of 3. The restaurant is new and clean looking. It doesn't look spacious, but it has more space than it looks because they have small private rooms. Just like other Korean BBQ places, Gaboja menu has several combo options for you to choose or you can just order by each category on the menu. For the party of 3, we ordered combo 3 which includes kimchi pancake, egg pudding soup, beef ribs and skirt steak with soju other alcohol drink. We didn't want any alcohol drink, so we switched to 2 cokes and 1 hot tea with the same price. As usual, the banchan came out first, and we was kind of disappointed at first with the unfamiliar items besides kimchi..but they brought more items after awhile. For the BBQ part, the ladies there cooked for us and served them on our dishes. The ladies were very friendly, nice and attentive. However, I wish they would slow down their service a lil bit. They cooked too fast making me feel like I couldn't catch up with the food. I had to eat fast. Plus, when meat was cooked too fast, and you don't have enough time to eat right away, it became dry and not as hot and as good. The meat was actually very flavorful and thick. They were high quality meat also. The egg pudding soup was good if you like that type of soup. Kimchi pancake was okay. It was not crispy enough. We also got a second soup of our choice (second egg pudding soup or miso). We chose miso, and it was a lil bit salty and different from the typical miso we had. We wanted fried rice, and at the end they brought the beef ribs to the back and make fried rice for us. They brought out the pan with a lot fried rice. It was hot, tasty, and I liked the herbs they used. It was still good even 2 days later ;-). Gaboja has happy hour from 9pm to midnight with $5.99 for Soju and few dishes, btw.
(3)
Nancy M.
The pork belly and sliced beef is so good!! And they have happy hour from 9pm-2am!! $5.99!!! Service is really friendly and they are very accommodating to people who know nothing about Korean food. This is only my 2nd time eating Korean food but it's absolutely my favorite! I will definitely be back especially for the side dishes!! Great or parties too they have private rooms you can use and really clean bathrooms! Definitely a place to visit with friends and family!!
(5)
Christopher T.
I prefer Gaboja to Gooyi Gooyi. Meat portions are bigger, everything feels handcut and vs a restaurant, Gaboja feels like you're eating at home, which is a good thing for me. I think if you are a regular at Gooyi Gooyi, it's worth coming here at least once.
(4)
Mike M.
My meal of BBQ pork and rice was good; the meat was tender, albeit it was a bit heavy on the fatty side, but it's pork. My fiance's meal was the fried bibimbap. The flavor was good, but the "beef" was not. Let me put it this way... I've had beef jerky that was more tender. It was hard, gristly, chewy--with no flavor. When we asked if this is supposed to be this way, the hostess said something like "it'll be safe for our stomachs". I don't think that was a good reply--we were expecting a replacement serving of beef that was more tender. They did not replace the beef. Was it beef? Couldn't really tell, actually. It was certainly not what we were expecting beef to be like. Pork was good, as was most of the kim chee dishes. That beef was a deal breaker though. Update: they refunded the price of the bibimbap, which was nice of them.
(3)
James N.
Worst Korean Restaurant in the World Award goes to these guys. Hands down. I came here with my family for an early family Christmas dinner. The place next door was closed so we settled on this lovely abomination. You walk in, there's a small amount of tables and seats, understandable. The workers don't really speak English since they are running on a Korean based strip. No problem, I completely understand where they are coming from. Bringing out meat, leaving it on the table for us, and then taking it away from us without telling us what they did with it and charging us. Wait what? Where did you take my short ribs? Was it placed there as eye-candy for $20? The meats in my opinion were great quality but what they messed up on was they are lazy. The meats don't come out with any form of marinade or flavor. They just hand you raw garlic and say here, eat this and give us money. Really? I guess... We asked for our rice multiple times and they decided, "HEY! Let's bring them their rice, AFTER they ate all of their meat! Brilliant!" Dinner wasn't all that expensive but I actually went to Jack in the Box afterwards so I can have some food. The service here is god awful. They have their hearts of saints but the mentality of a potato. We had to ask for water like 10 times. I dropped my chopsticks and I asked the waitress multiple times for replacements, and they never really thoroughly explained to us how everything worked. Never coming here again. So glad I tried it though, I got to see how the worst of the worst functions. 0 Stars.
(1)
Sammy N.
This is one of those Korean restaurants that won't bring out the side dishes for you if you aren't Korean. Two Korean parties walked in 10 min after I did, and they immediately got side dishes. I had to specifically ask for side dishes. They also never refilled my water. Fuck places that do this. Food was good though. 4 stars for food. 1 star for being racist.
(2)
Dung N.
We only went here because Gooyi Gooyi (next door) was closed. What a mistake. Our party of seven were seated and were only given three menus. Between four different combos, given the language barrier, we asked if Combo III would be enough for all of us. The waitress didn't understand and shrugged her shoulders. I asked for Combo IV and if we could substitute jumuluk for short ribs, which were the same price and the waitress said that there were no substitutions. Odd. Combo III had the short ribs, so we ordered that. My brother dropped his chopstick and asked three different waitresses for a new one. They all nodded but never returned with one. We asked for six bowls of rice, we didn't get it until we were already done eating. Our soju bottle was still half frozen. Our waters, again, did not arrive until we were almost done eating. I looked around and the waitresses were having a grand o' time eating and drinking in the corner. One of them finally came over to continue cooking and still had food in her mouth while talking to us. Obviously, Combo III was not enough food for us. We ordered brisket and pork belly and the ladies seriously half-assed cooked everything as they kept walking away to stuff more food in their mouth. Ugh. Never coming back.
(1)
Jessy Jingxue S.
Really good. They are doing their best to compete with the near restaurant and this is perfect for customers. Excellent service, large quantities and good food!
(5)
Carol L.
Like most people, the first time I came here was because the wait at Gooyi Gooyi was too long. But the second time I came to Gaboja was for Gaboja! I agree with the Yelper who said the food is more home style. First time my husband and I got the kalbi and soondubu. Second time we got Combo #1 with brisket, beef tongue, and pork belly. We also added kalbi and octopus and ordered drinks. This was for 5 of us. Total came out to $137, so about $27 per person. Loved the kalbi. Beef tongue was a hit. Brisket good. Soondubu and steamed egg were good, too. My friends thought the octopus fell a little flat (a little undercooked) but I liked it! Minus 0.5 star: Our pork belly came out tough. I think the waitress flipped it too late? We actually flipped it ourselves before she came back (probably still too late) and even took the meat off the grill, only to be told later that we needed to put the meat back on because it wasn't done. It was confusing at some points to know whether or not the waitress was returning to continue cooking our food. Later we didn't touch the fried rice for a long time because we thought the waitress was going to tell us when we could eat it, but she didn't. So minus 0.5 star for this, although the service was good overall. Minus another 0.5 star: While the fried rice looked good, its flavor was less than expected. It was a little sour (from pickled veggies?) and I found the seaweed taste to be too strong. I think it needs meat and some gochujang so that it tastes more like bibimbap. Note that the combo came with steamed egg, fried rice, soy bean soup, and soju or another hard liquor. The soup and side dishes were yummy. I like the shredded potatoes. The waitress was kind enough to make a plate with all the side dishes on it for the end of the table, knowing that the people on the end wouldn't be able to reach the middle, especially since one would have to reach over the BBQ grill. We also ordered some beer - I think it was Hite - which I really enjoyed. Very smooth. Parking in the front is limited, but there is parking available in the rear, I hear. If the wait at Gooyi Gooyi is too long, head over to Gaboja! Or just go straight to Gaboja. You won't be disappointed.
(4)
Henry C.
Neat little Korean restaurant. Half of the whole restaurant is separated into rooms for private parties. We sat in the back room that had a direct access to the kitchen. I peaked in when they opened the door and it has a very home kitchen feel. I came here with my coworkers. The boss wanted a group dinner. He paid of coarse. My coworkers are Korean so I just let them order everything. All the food was pretty good, I really like this spicy squid plate. This was also where I was introduced to Korean blackberry wine. The stuff is like dessert wine. Everything was good but being that I didn't pay for it I feel like I don't know how to judge what to expect. I don't want to bring down their rating so 4 stars.
(4)
Shoumik P.
Went here last week at around midnight when the restaurant was pretty empty. Wasn't expecting anything spectacular but I received hands down the best service ever and great Korean food for a good price. I got the $100 combo with four friends and we were able to split everything easily. Everything was served very fast which was nice cause we were all starving. We even got a complimentary kimchi pancake. Luckily I had a Korean friend with me but communication should be fine since the waitress who served us spoke good English. I would definitely come here again.
(5)
Trung N.
Well... me and two others decided to come to this area to eat KBBQ.. and after finding out our first choice was going to be ridiculously busy, we decided to walk over and try this place out. The prices for the combos are fair and the amount of food you get is decent. The lady there helped us cook everything and was really friendly to all of us. The service was just excellent. Though the place is obviously less crowded, I don't know why the other place nearby is so much more busy... maybe better food?? I might not have a chance to find out.. oh well.
(4)
S L.
This place is nicer than some of the other "cook your own bacon on a grill" places that I've been introduced too since my Husband now works with tons of Koreans. If the place is recommended by real Koreans then i'm there! I think they've remodeled a bit since some of the pictures posted on Yelp they now have these large ventilation hoods above each of the cooking areas so the place doesn't fill up with smoke like some of the other places. You still leave smelling like BBQ but my dog loves that when i get home. The food was great, granted we didn't really know what we were ordering because the BBQ special was in Korean. I think it was like $45 for a large dish of meat you cook yourself and also included a bottle of Soju. They provided the normal side dishes, Egg omelet thing. We had 5 ppl so she gave us two of those, and two tofu soups. We ordered Kalbi and it was delish. They give you onions, garlic, and jalapeños to cook with; and the waitresses were very very nice. Granted they were kinda slow but she always apologized i got a feeling there were only two of them there and they were trying to cook, serve, and bus. The majority of the ppl were Korean, that's always a good sign! Def will be heading back but probably not to often! Eating fried bacon every week will cause me to have to buy a whole new wardrobe in the plus size section!
(5)
Les R.
I came here last Friday night with my girlfriend for dinner. It was empty when we sat down, but people started to trickle in a few minutes later. It's unfortunate that other people felt that the service was lacking because our service was definitely on point. Two workers always came by to make sure everything was okay, and they even drank with us. The soju was chilled, and even made us yogurt soju as well. The servers were so sweet, and even came out to give us hugs when we left. It was a good time. The food was pretty average priced for a KBBQ place. It wasn't AYCE, but the combo plates alone can fill up two people with big appetites. I'll definitely be coming back. Oh and they talked to us in Korean too. WHO CARES!? Language barrier or not, it was still a good time.
(5)
Erin K.
This place gets 5 stars for service 3 stars for food. The owner is really funny and friendly although unfortunately does not speak much English.
(4)
Wayne C.
came here because of the long wait next door... great move. friendly server, great food. would preferred open grill instead of cast iron grill, but food still turned out great.
(4)
Shop G.
came here with 2 friends because gooyi was completely packed. poor sanitation, poor service, poor food quality. 1)waitress will tend to those korean men more than other clients so service was very slow and rude 2)i saw one of them picked her butt and after dropping off our side dishes 3)food was very disappointing. you think, how can you go wrong with korean? its raw meat that you cook. WRONG. the side dishes were poor quality and they recommended their best appetizer (fried chicken) which was THE WORST fried chicken i've ever had. 4)none of us ate the lettuce so we didn't care but at the end of the meal, we noticed there was a worm on one of the leaves.
(1)
Tony M.
I happened to stumble upon this place while finding a place to eat with my girlfriend because gooyi gooyi next door was extremely full and i didn't feel like waiting. BEST DECISION OF MY LIFE. This is my new go to spot for korean food. It is family owned and run, which is rare nowadays, and you can really taste it in their food. Every bite is like an explosion of flavors in your mouth. SERVICE: ONE OF THE BEST. Every time i come in here I feel like I just came home for dinner. They talk to you, COOK FOR YOU (that's my favorite part :] ), they throw in little extras like a little omelette and an egg in your dish that's not normally included. They are extremely nice. I did eventually try the place next door and their service was lacking and felt like they were rushing me to get out, basically shoving food down my throat. FOOD: KIMCHI FRIED RICE IS AMAZING SEAFOOD RICE CAKES- soft but not too chewy like other places Combo #1- I LOVE MEAT and you can't go wrong with this. this will fill up 3 people. Stone Pot BiBimBop- i like the burnt rice :D they have a special sauce they mix in for you and it just brings out all the flavor. UNLIMITED SIDE DISHES- They have the best Kimchi i have ever had. It tingles on my tongue. I HIGHLY RECOMMEND THIS PLACE!!!!! I don't usually review places, but this place stood out so much that i had to go back and write one.
(5)
Maya K.
I really don't like writing bad reviews especially for places I haven't gotten to actually eat at. Came here because Gooyi Gooyi next door was totally packed. When we walked in there was maybe 3 other groups there and the restaraunt was more than half empty. The waitress came over to us and told us all the tables were reserved. That's fine I don't want to give you my business anyways! There was nobody waiting to be seated and they could've easily taken my boyfriend and I for dinner.
(1)
thien h.
Open late... And the lady cooks for you which is awesome. If your really really hungry my suggestion would be to go to korean bbq palace and get your meat fill in for basically the same price. Now if you are just trying to eat with portion control this is the place to be. After a long night of drinking I would definitely go here to get my fill. Yes the price is kind of steep 60 bucks for two people, but its kind of worth it. Warning late at night the floor are really slippery so watch out for that.
(4)
Alex S.
I really enjoyed my meal here with a large group. I think we had 7 people and ordered one of the specials. Our bill was $129 for the group of 7. Service was actually really good. We didn't have any Koreans in our group but 1 of the White guys in the group studied Korean for a while, and was our spokesman. But the staff there is perfectly fine with English. The banchan were good, wish there was a little more variety, no dried cuttlefish, but maybe's that expensive. We had really good service the food was really good. Can't really ask for more. I was stuffed. Went in at 7. The restaurant got a little more crowded, but I don think there was ever a line for the table on Friday night. Also parking can get crazy in that strip. Its a bit of a problem, but what can u do.
(4)
Anne H.
While out with friends in search of a place to eat dinner, we came across this restaurant. It turned out to be a good find with family style portions and incredibly friendly service. We shared seafood pancake, grilled mackerel, and fish roe stew. The tea was unusual because it was made from organic corn silk and leaves, and had a subtle taste similar to roasted green tea.
(4)
Vanessa P.
This place is pretty skeeeeetchhhhyyy looking from the outside. SINCE..Its next to a liquor store and a porn shop haha! Its hard to find but just look for a green shop next to a porno store.. I decided to try this place out after finding it to have 4 stars on yelp :) Inside its small and the service is FANTASTIC! I ordered the Korean bbq ribs and we received a lot of yummy sides!
(4)
Alex P.
I enjoyed high quality of beef. The beef name is Kok Galbi is really great which are marbled beef . It is good and enjoyed with that. Also we ordered pork with kimchi was great too.
(5)
Emma C.
Horrible service! After my family and I were seated, it took the waitresses about 30 minutes to give us some water and tea. It then took them an additional 20 minutes to take our order, even after we had tried flagging them down 5 times. In then end, it took about an hour just for our food to arrive. The food was mediocre--not good or bad--but definitely not worth the wait or trouble. Never again.
(1)
Ray V.
I came here because the first two choices were either busy/closed. But you know what, I am glad that I ended up here. Now I'm not gonna lie, I feel like for the portion size, it's a bit expensive, but the food tastes great! The lady serving us was very caring and attentive. It was empty so we thought the place might not be too good, but boy were we wrong~ We tried the galbi, bulgogi, squid, pork belly and spicy pork. It was all so flavorful. I left as a very happy and satisfied man. I would definitively come back, it's a nice kicked back environment.
(4)
A C.
PRO: -meats are pretty good -service is OK, but not great -decent size restaurant CON: -rip off! for the quality of the meat, the price is way too high -small parking lot, which is full on the weekends. if dinnertime, you'll need to park at the auto body shop next to the plaza.
(2)
Daniel S.
Good place to get late night gogi. The ajummas are really nice too.
(4)
Amy W.
This was an A-OK Korean BBQ joint. It's a little hard to find and parking is difficult. The restaurant is nestled between two adult bookstores and the parking lot is small and their spaces are allocated to each of the stores in the strip mall so parking may be difficult. I think there might have been more space in the back but it was kind of dark and quite frankly given the seediness of the location, I did not think it would be safe to park back there. We originally wanted to go to another Korean BBQ place called #1 in the neighboring strip mall, but they were closed, and Gooyi Gooyi next door had a 20 minute wait, so we came here to Gaboja. The main area is small, with about 6 tables. There was only one other party in here when we came in around 7:30pm Sunday night. The service at this restaurant was excellent. Recognizing right away that we were new to her restaurant, the owner helped us grill our meats. We ordered Combo #1 for $49.95 and it was more than enough for the 3 of us. We had no idea what was in it since the description was in Korean, but it sounded good when the owner tried to describe it in broken English. It came with thin sliced beef, seasoned beef, pork belly, miso soup and a large bottle of Hite beer. The meat was pretty good, especially when eaten with the oil and garlic sauce. Probably not the best quality, but tasty and tender nevertheless. The pork belly was my favorite, and then the seasoned beef. The banchan was about average. To finish off the meal, she brought a bowl of sweetened puffed rice. It was kind of like eating popcorn and was akin to Honey Smacks without all the honey on it. Nice way to end the meal. The owner was funny. When I told her I didn't want any beer, I think she thought I was underage because later she asked me how old I am and if I was 14! She was pretty shocked when she found out my real age. I was a little scrubby looking that day, but not THAT scrubby looking! Oh well, I'll take it as a compliment.
(3)
Skyttle D.
The food here is OK, at least to get through your hunger. The service was great!
(2)
Trinity G.
Nestled right in between 2 porn shops in the heart of what I consider San Jose's unofficial KTown, Gaboja is a breath of fresh air amongst a really skeezy part of El Camino. When you step inside, your party is greeted and brought into your own private dining room. The service is great. Food is good. It's what you expect from good KBBQ. Enough said. Banchan decent (my favorite was the kimchi radish). The one thing I don't like about it was that I came out smelling like smoke and kalbi, so make sure you dress very casually and that you're not going anywhere fancy afterward.
(3)
Caroline L.
3 star is being generous. Would give the food a 2 star and a 1 extra star for friendly service. Came here for a friend's birthday and quite honestly was shocked by the poor quality of the meat. The meat was so tough that I couldn't even bite through it. I thought, well, the kalbi has to be better, but nope, the kalbi was tough and super dry. I believe we got the combo meal for our large group. The pan chan (small appetizers) were standard. They gave lettuce which was a plus. I guess this would be more of a late night drinking place. I much much prefer #1 or Jang Su Jang.
(3)
Brian G.
Very kind and good service with nice food.
(5)
Y N.
Side menu is good (especially fried egg) Service is also good. Only sad thing is to grill a fish too much...
(4)
Serena L.
I was skeptical to try this place since there were only two reviews, one very good one, one very bad one. but I cant judge since again, there are only two reviews. so coming here I assumed that this place would be pretty dead. to my surprise, this place was packed on a thursday night. I guess the patrons dont yelp. this place is small, we had a room off to the side to oursevles, which was nice. the service is great here, the ladies are so nice and friendly. the bbq was very good, esp the ban chan, side dishes. I would def come here again, good service, good food, nice and clean.
(4)
Christie M.
I really enjoyed this restaurant. The service was nice and the food and Soju were delicious. The lady who was serving us was a lot of fun and very welcoming.
(4)
Susan C.
-1 star for meh banchan +4 stars for awesome meat So my bf and I canceled our prissy v-day reservation in lieu of the less romantic option of Korean BBQ!!! Unfortunately our go to place was closed so we checked out this hole on the wall place that our old
(4)
mark m.
We tried this restaurant last Saturday night. It was our first time here. We ordered galbi, bibimbap, rice cake and tofu soup. All the dishes were very good, except for the tofu soup--just mediocre. The service was so friendly and attentive. We will come back.
(4)
Ryan C.
Time to bash on another Korean restaurant who deserve mediocre to low rating but are falsely rated in 3 or more stars by ignorant hyped non-Korean reviews. Gaboja used be good when it was a hole in the wall restaurant way back, say, 6-7 years ago or even longer. No single chair was matching another and the menu was so limited with less than 10 items but the quality was there to back up the lacking selections. The mama-sans were a bit younger back then, and when they were flirting with the male clients of various ages it wasn't that bad at all, but you could expect some courtesy appetizers on the house on the way, where you ended up ordering several more soju bottles that you were never going to finish. The ladies hooked you up when you were in needs. Maybe it was my underdeveloped tongue palates, or maybe their BBQed meats were pretty good and edible back then. The place had a mystic charm surrounding it. Times have passed. Times are bad, economy is still reared up, and we should be grateful there is another K-BBQ joint called Gaboja we can go to if Jang Su Jang or Palace BBQ is rupturing its stomach digesting all that Chinese and Filipino moneys - right? Wrong. Food quality (primarily their BBQ meat) degraded along with the amount of food. Their menu have been expanded with insignificant and unmemorable additions. One thing they kept same over the years is number of side dishes, but they were already a few to begin with in the first place. I can live with their slow service due to lack of manpower, but it should have been traded with efficiency but here at Gaboja it's long gone down to the sewer far into the ocean. Time is not kind to human beings, especially aging women, and that fact has not forgotten about these mama-sans at Gaboja. I don't like seeing ladies in my mum's age flirting with male beings of all age sorts, usually "charming" the old geezers to feel young and macho again so they can order more food no one's going to eat up or finish. Hmm, maybe we should better think it as a reciprocal relationship of symbiosis occurring between the two parties who want to reminisce about their joyful past. The last company I worked for was so cheap, we usually had "company get together dinners" exclusively at Korean BBQ restaurants, and Gaboja was the CEO's first choice every frigging god given time. Whines, pisses, and disgruntled grumbles wouldn't barricade his grand waltz of victory into this place. They say it's because of his communal relationship of being a regular for the last 10 years but when I come to think of it, it may have been the lil' touch touch flirting poppop shit going on with one of the mama-san at Gaboja. I tried to keep it very concise by giving points why they deserve lower ratings, but my conscience wouldn't let me. I think Gaboja deserves and demands my thorough memoir to understand why I loathe this place. Thank you for reading my short review.
(2)
Rob C.
gaboja -- "let's go here" pretty much a korean only place and difficult to judge from the outside. front and last page not translated. serves tabletop grill style like llbunjee #1 with lettuce, garlic, ssamjang. not too smokey. just had some prepared kalbi and daeji bulgogi. panchan included buchimgae, and egg omelet i want spicy crab panchan, but guess can't get that up here kalbi marinade noted to be sweet and spicier than usual with a black pepper taste. daeji bulgogi less marinated as say SGD tofu. more raw onions good service, always refilling our panchan.
(4)
John-Michael C.
True.. this is hard to find. And when people tell you that it's next to an adult store... it's no joke. For real! On another note.. nothing like going here with crew who know what to order.... more importantly with crew who know how to cook... I found the food to be bountiful and great. It all goes so well with soju. Like I said, good thing I had friends who knew how to cook because this is all about self preparation, as food like this should be. Of course after that I always come across the problem of which sauce to dip my food into. And more dire than that is to go with crew who can drink. I think we drank my age in bottles of soju.... I always like my soju with a touch of flavor, be it cucumber or lemon. And then after enough of that is consumed anything is fair game really. Of course be careful when drunk off soju because the floor is slippery and the chairs apparently have a tendency to slip and fall. Which leads to standing outside and heading over to the adult store. Actually it's pretty damn fun going to the adult store after getting drunk from a case of soju consumption! *shudder
(4)
Ngoc T.
I actually love everything about this place. I usually order #1 combo. We always had a good time. The service was very friendly.
(5)
Jenn W.
After reading all the yelp reviews, A and I knew to drive slow and look for a korean place next to a porn shop. Interesting location...It's on El Camino, and look for a big white sign with green korean writing. When we first walked in the restaurant, it was surprisingly small, like only a handful of tables, but then we later learned that there are private dining rooms in the back. The room we had can probably fit 12 people comfortably. Anyway, the food. The side dishes were pretty average, but I am not complaining about free, refillable food. We ordered Combo #1 and #2 for 7 and it was the perfect amount. The lady substituted alcohol for more meat for us since we just weren't in the mood for drinking. I am fasting right now so I didn't try any of the meat, I know, why would I go to a KBBQ place when I can't eat meat...The whole meal was torture!! O and speaking of fasting, I ordered tofu soup without meat. The combo was supposed to come with soup but they just ended up skipping the free soup and gave me a regular size tofu soup instead. My friends seemed to really enjoy the meat. The waitresses came in couple times to check on us and made sure we were cooking the meat correctly. Beef first, then pork belly. I can't wait to go back as soon as my fasting is over and try all the delicious looking meat!!
(4)
david c.
This place is my favorite! I've been going here for years and I have not once not had a good eating/fun experience. The ahjumas treat me like a son and are the most friendly people you will ever meet. Once you become a regular customer, they frequently hook you up with free food and alcohol. My buddies and I love this place and we go weekly. I even take my co-workers and we get the back room for large parties. The atmoshpere is great - you can appreciate it more if you're korean but really if you love to eat and drink, you'll have no complaints. The service is outstanding, it's like eating at home with family. A good night of eating/drinking followed by karaoke with friends and it's a complete night. If you want to hang out with your friends and relax, this is the place to do it.
(5)
Law K.
Perched between two adult book stores and another similar looking Korean restaurant, Gaboja is located in somewhat of a shady location, but don't let that fool you. This is an awesome place to hang out for some soju, Hite and tons of meat. Price is very reasonable, service from the "unni's" are absolutely fantastic, and they always give you tons of free bonus dishes + drinks on the side. This is not meant to be a high-quality BBQ restaurant with premium cut meat - it's just a great place to relax, have fun, and enjoy food/drinks with friends. Make sure you take someone who speaks Korean for optimal dining experience.
(5)
A B.
It's a hole in the wall place that makes you feel at home with amazing service and good company. I usually don't like eating pork belly but it is amazing here when you have all the side dishes to balance out the rich fatty flavors. I love the chicken and potato spicy soup also! You are sweating and getting more addicted with each spicy bite!
(5)
Jessica L.
The first date of a very long, defining chapter was here, at Gaboja, under the slightly greasy air, exhaust fans and fluorescent lighting. I have to admit, I didn't realize at the time that the dinner was even a date. If I had presumed as much, I probably would have been initially somewhat disappointed; the parking lot is mostly reserved for the next door porn-emporium, and street lighting is sparse in this community of crumbling strip malls, leaving much to the evil and more sinister imagination. Not exactly Paris romance. Things inside are much, much warmer, friendlier, mostly due to the wait staff than the decor. Their motherly attitudes are sometimes comical, sometimes touching, sometimes too personal but I feel so comfortable with this manner and it makes Gaboja a very personal place to come to, rather than just another eatery. With this in mind, food tastes like home cooking more so than restraunt style dishes. I think this, along with the constant flow of soju and the antics of the wait staff, was and is the reason why Gaboja had become the default setting for various events of my date's life--it was his version of Cheers, the place where everybody knows your name, and where you go to for birthdays, welcoming back parties, going away parties, to kill time or to kill stress, or for no reason at all, or as in my case, for something like... a first date. Because of this, Gaboja is nearly impossible for me to truly review. It is for me, more than about food, it's where many great things happened and continue to happen for me. I love the people here, the late hours, the comfort and the closeness that comes with places steeped in nostalgia.
(5)
Rick P.
We ordered the combination meat platter to cook ourselves, one of their tofu soups (can't recall what it was), and their chap chae. The meat was flavorless...the kim chi was bland...the chap chae was decent...the tofu soup pretty good. I think I'll stick to Brothers in the city!
(1)
Daniel K.
You want traditional Korean BBQ, go here! Took some of my non-Korean friends and they were amazed that Korean bbq was so different from the marinated stuff they see all the time. Service is great. What other place comes by and asks if you've had enough and brings out more meat? Maybe it's because we know them and we drink soju 2-3 bottles at a time but come on, it's pretty sweet.
(4)
Susie S.
If you hate this place, go to Jang Su Jang, cause that's probably what you're looking for in a Korean restaurant. The very Americanized, overpriced Korean, typical KBBQ style. But if you're looking for something LEGIT, Gaboja is the best place you'll ever find in the Bay Area. You really can't go wrong with anything here. The meat combos with pork belly, jumuluk, and baby octopus is the best deal you'll find. We shared that among 4 people and we were so stuffed, we could not walk. They give you two kinds of pancakes (seaweed and kimchi) with it. And two of their signature dwenjangjjigae with this special herb called dal-lae, which you can only find in Korea. The ladies are super sweet and friendly! And the banchans are out of this world. Seriously, if you're down for some REAL Korean experience. check this place out!
(5)
Heather O.
The BBQ here was pretty good. I liked that the place was clean and the waiters were very fast at getting me what I need. I loved drinking my Makkoli the traditional way out of bowls. The only thing I didn't like was the seafood pancake.. I know all places make it a little different but I didn't like the one here so much. The food was a little more pricey than some of the other spots but still pretty good... I would say Gaboja and Gooyi Gooyi are pretty close to being the same as far as "which one is better" I will be coming back.
(4)
Caroline D.
First time came here and would never come back again . The service was slow , and they hella rude .
(1)
Susann M.
Having late night dinner with my family. So tired 8 hours rides from San Diego. So glad to be home again. I love kimchee here is so sour and all sides veggies are perfect. Pork belly and beef are cook to perfection by the kind waitress. Will definitely come back. Got combo 1 which is $49.95 and get soy beans soup n Korean sake or get more meats instead n bimbobob n three items of meats
(5)
Carys L.
I came to this restaurant only because had to wait another hour to get seated at gooyi gooyi n i was starving. Their service is terrible (not sure if the reason was I don't speak Korean). Their meat smells. I got diarrhea after having dinner there that night. I would definitely not come to this restaurant again.
(1)
Cary I.
Tried to go to Ilbunji but they were closed so we tried Gooyi Gooyi and they were packed. So Gaboja was right next door and tried them out. I want to give them a better rating because I love small businesses but the food here isn't really that great. Or I should say the night we went there the food wasn't great. We ordered the combo which gives you your choice of meats. We got two types of beef and the pork belly. All of them were just "ok". The side dishes were pretty bad though. Also the side soup it comes with was pretty bland and salty. Even though my standards for Korean food is pretty high (Lived and worked in Korea) this was pretty bad. The service was good and everything else was on Par. Maybe I'll try again next time.
(3)
Katlyn M.
TERRIBLE SERVICE. I would give negative stars if I could! We only came to this restaurant since Gooyi Gooyi was packed next door. We waited forever for our food, and not even the side dishes came out. Then I noticed the large party that came after us getting served their side dishes before us. Getting really hungry, I asked our waitress where our side dishes were, told me it was coming, then she continued serving the other large party. Then I asked her how much longer it was going to take and she actually told me to wait! After she continued to ignore us and serve the party that came after us, finally we just got up and left. She had the nerve to look surprised after her terrible service that we were leaving. This was the absolute worst service from a Korean restaurant when there are plenty of other Korean restaurants to go to around here. COMPLETE waste of time. Not only was the service slow, apparently if you're not Korean, you might not get your food before other people that came after you.
(1)
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Address :2333 El Camino Real
Santa Clara, CA, 95050
Takes Reservations : Yes Delivery : No Take-out : Yes Accepts Credit Cards : Yes Good For : Dinner, Late Night Parking : Private Lot Bike Parking : No Wheelchair Accessible : Yes Good for Kids : Yes Good for Groups : Yes Attire : Casual Ambience : Casual Noise Level : Average Alcohol : Beer & Wine Only Outdoor Seating : No Wi-Fi : No Has TV : No Waiter Service : Yes Caters : No
Andrew C.
A common reason I read why folks go to Gaboja . . . "the wait at Gooyi Gooyi was too long" Yep, that's why I wandered across the shared parking lot too. What I had was a surprising and surprisingly good K-BBQ meal. Surprise #1 when I asked for one order of Jumulleuk (short steak marinaded in sesame oil, salt, pepper) and the waitress leaves and then comes back out and lights the BBQ table grill ( yelp.com/biz_photos/gabo… ) Usually places say min 2 orders for table top grilling . . . maybe 'cause it was Monday and slow? Then 6 plates of banchan appear ( yelp.com/biz_photos/gabo… ). Pretty standard with kimchi, sprouts, fish cake. I think the dark one on the left was doraji, or bellflower root, which is not too common. The well marbled meat is marinated with white and green onions ( yelp.com/biz_photos/gabo… ) and it looks like for smaller orders they use a flat, rectangular grill plate vs. the large round ones you see in most pictures ( yelp.com/biz_photos/gabo… ) Surprise #2 when a small Doenjang Jjigae (soybean paste stew yelp.com/biz_photos/gabo… ) is delivered. I took this to go. The servers take care of the cooking, but I grabbed the meat sooner to make sure it was rare to med-rare ( yelp.com/biz_photos/gabo… ). For non-marinated and these light marinated meats they bring ssam-jang (gochujang / doenjang based dipping sauce) and sesame oil with salt ( yelp.com/biz_photos/gabo… ). Very tasty and tender meat. I liked the chunkier pieces where I got it more on the rare side. And after I've been eating a bit, Surprise #3 appears. Gyeran Jjim (steamed egg casserole yelp.com/biz_photos/gabo… ) along with a couple more banchan ( yelp.com/biz_photos/gabo… ). This was a little overcooked and burned on the bottom, but still decent. Overall, a very good meal. 4.5 stars. Rounding up, because I'm easily bribed by "service" items.
(5)Susan M.
Came here with my bf because we wanted to try out Gooyi Gooyi next door, but it was super crowded. We decided to try out this place since we were craving for korean BBQ and boy did we regret walking in here. The cost of the food here is really high for the quality that you're getting. We ordered the tofu soup and it was not good. It was so bland that we could not even finish it. We also got an order of the Kalbi which was a bit steep at $25. Although it tasted good, it was not really the best quality meat and there were a lot of meatless short rib bones in it. For $25 I would kind of expect a lot more meat, not just bones. Lastly, service was horrible for there being a total of 2 people in the restaurant aka my boyfriend and I. We were shocked that we had to ask for water and tea almost 3 times. It finally came after they delivered us our food which came like 30-40 mins after we ordered it. A bit long for it being this empty. We also had to ask a few times to get the bill. Funny thing is when we paid, they seemed to come right away. We were both extremely disappointed with this place. When the bill came, it was pretty expensive and just not worth it. I guess you can't always strike out when trying out new places. I am a huge supporter of mom and pop restaurants, however, I would not recommend this place to anyone.
(2)Helen D.
The good thing about this place is it isn't as crowded at the other Korean BBQ next door on Saturday @midnight. I could see why after we sat down. Canned coke. Expensive menu. We ordered baby octopus and pork belly (2 thick slices) and our dinner came to around $60. Yowwws. Ripoff. And none of the meats were seasoned! Which is why you should ask for a bowl of salt n pepper. The side dishes were very good. Kimchi soup was part of it. They don't speak much English here, so you know. Parking is straightforward in the small front lot. I think there was parking in the rear too.
(3)Tina T.
Great place to go to for late night eats without much wait. Initially tried to go to the restaurant next door Gooyi Gooyi, but wait was extreme. Kalbi short ribs was tasty. Food was decent with a good amount of sides, but fried chicken was a definite miss. Meat was slightly red. Waitresses were nice though. Tried to recook the chicken, but results were the same. Therefore, paid for fried chicken that I did not dare eat.
(3)Akin B.
A nice little mom and pop Korean BBQ restaurant. The food is good, the customer service is nice, the place looks very clean, and they deliver (HUGE competitive advantage). The only bad part is they are located next to a perverted adult video store, so you see creepy men and women walking in-and-out of that place.
(4)Runxuan L.
it sucks. Service is terrible. I will not come here ANY MORE
(1)Nicole S.
Came here like others because the wait for Gooyi Gooyi next door was going to be an hour long. Part of me wishes I would have just waited, but we were hungry. Meat and banchan were okay hence 2 instead of 1 star. Gripes: Bad service overall. .. 1.) Why list bibimbap on the combo menu when its not really included? During dinner they asked if we wanted rice, and I said yes I wanted my rice. Then after the meats were done grilling they brought out the soup. We kept waiting for the bibimbap, while we finished our meats. It was taking so long so we finally asked for the dish. The waitress looked confused and took our half eating rice bowls away to show and talk to the the owner?? She then comes back to tell us that they use the rice, left over banchan, and left over meat to make a sort of bibimbap? WTF. Why did they list it on the combo menu as a dish? Why didn't they say anything to us before they gave us our rice bowls? This irritated me the most about our dinner. 2.) Under grilling meat. Or grilling meat and combing back too late so one side was overcooked. 3.) Having to ask for things like our lettuce when its automatically brought to other tables. Or not being given bowls for our soup, or even a serving spoon. Would i come back here again? NO!
(2)Phoebe T.
I can see why their business sucks. Was waiting for the rest of our group to arrive for dinner; stepped over to the next store, the woman came out to tell us to get out of the parking lot if we aren't eating here. Wth?! Seriously? Just for that, we ate at another place. Plenty of food nearby. Yes, they actually have a Mexican lady standing in front to watch the parking lot. Good luck with getting customers with that kind of attitude.
(1)Amanda T.
Amazing place. Good food and great service. Servers were super attentive. The replenishment of side dishes was instant. When I dropped my chopsticks into the flames, and trying to fish it out, they handed me a new pair right away. BEST thing about this place is that you don't walk out smelling like Korean bbq! Love that!!
(5)Mike K.
I got the $99 combo 3 with 2 other friends. The ahjuma spent the time to cook everything for us and was very accommodating. She had a large party that left just before we came in so it was a little slow at first coming out with our banchan or heck even taking our order. But at the end of it all, she did us 1up and gave us a free soju bottle that we basically ended up paying it back via a large tip. I think it's some what odd that there are 3 small kbbq joints within two very small plazas. It's like adult video store, kbbq, adult video store, kbbq, liquor store, kbbq. All in all, if this place is packed, just try going next door to see if there is less of a wait. They are all virtually on the same level.
(4)Dean C.
11/15/14: This place is really hit and miss. The KBBQ is definitely sub-par, but their other non-kbbq dishes can be quite good. 1. Combo I (picked 2 items: Brisket, Cow Tongue) $49.95: Size-wise this will probably make 2 people of average appetites decently full. Might be good enough for 3 or 4 if also ordering other dishes. Brisket: is not the typical 3in diameter pieces usually served--these are strips about as long but twice as wide as large pieces of sliced bacon. That part is cool. But unfortunately the meat is REALLY tough and there is a lot of connective tissue. Very hard to chew. My date took like literally 1min to chew each bite and couldn't talk most of the time. I cooked these pieces myself experimenting with doneness from rare to well-done, and no matter how I cooked them, they just sucked. Pretty bad quality meat. 2/10. Cow Tongue: my favorite KBBQ meat. This one tastes fine. Not especially tasty, but not awful like the brisket. Average taste. 5/10. 2. Seafood Pancake $18.95: It's huge!!! (yup, that's what she said.) More than 1ft in diameter... maybe about 1.5ft? The outside is super crisp, but not hard. The inside is about medium-rare, with some gooeyness. Full of small oysters and other goodies. I loved how the outside is fried oh so well. Delicious. I never had a Korean pancake/omelette fried so nicely! 8/10. 3. Fried Chicken (S) $?: Mmmmmmmm.... I LOVE the batter on this! Lots of batter, but not a mouthful of thick flour. Just layers and layers of crunchy, super fried but not burnt, savory goodness! The actual chicken is a tad dry/overcooked. So, this isn't the #1 Korean fried chicken (that honor goes to Hot n Sweet Chicken in Arcadia, CA), but it's damn good. 8/10. Service was super bad. I wouldn't say it was the waitress' fault--she seemed nice enough. But I think she might have been the only waitress for the whole restaurant!, which was about 3/4 full. That's just really bad management. Took us like 20min to get our check after asking. I think it might have been 30min before she gave us water and the tea we ordered. It was pretty bad. So... I think some of the dishes are worth the crappy service and maybe even the semi-high prices. But definitely DO NOT GET KBBQ here. 3/5. #Korean #kbbq #friedchicken #chicken #koreanpancake #wings
(3)Prashant K.
The place is a hole in the wall. Parking on a Sunday eve was an issue. The menu is limited, and the items are not only expensive, but the quantity of meat is small, as compared to the price. The food quality was so-so. Will not visit again
(3)Maruchi K.
This place deserves more business. The service and food is so much better than gooyi gooyi next door. Especially late at night. If youre not looking for a loud atmosphere and just wanna chill on some BBQ and have a good time come here.
(5)Peter Y.
It's been a while since I've been here and all I can say is wow at all the recent changes. They expanded their restaurant and now have a nice large back area suitable for large parties. They definitely invested well with their exhaust system as you don't walk out of there smelling like bbq. Their menu has also improved as their offerings are more varietal and meat quality is excellent. This place is located in the same plaza as Gooyi Gooyi, which I've also been to. However gooyi is much smaller and you definitely walk out smelling like bbq after eating. Gaboja is more traditional of a place, and has way better "banchan". The owner is actually well known in the community for having one of the best Kimchi. The side plates there are fresh and great in quality and taste. This place is probably the closest to LA KTown type of environment and the staff here are super nice. Rather than waiting next door for a table, I'd much rather always take my friends and family to Gaboja. I'll definitely be back now that they have a large room for big parties. This place is very authentic to restaurants in Korea. Come check it out, it will NOT disappoint!
(5)Vana A.
Great late night food! I went here on a late night date night and they didn't disappoint. The food and drinks were so good. I suggest ordering few little things, and enjoy :-)
(4)Judy V.
Monday night -- 99 chicken is closed (forgot to check!)...Korean BBQ is the next best thing while on El Camino. We decided to check out Gooyi Gooyi becos it was close, we haven't tried it yet and there were good reviews. It was busy there and with a long wait..really..on a Monday night?? So we decided to go next door. It seemed busy here, but we didn't have to wait long for a table...or so we thought! We didn't get to order until 20 mins later. The lady kept letting us know she'll be with us, but we were hungry and getting cranky lol. Ordered the 1st combo with the soybean soup, choice of 3 meats, soju or makgulli, rice or bibimbap. We decided to try the makgulli since we had no idea what it was lol and other meats...on a foodie adventure :) The lady brought us our makgulli and two bowls. Ummm, are the bowls for rice or soup. Neither! She said they were for our makgulli. Tasted pretty good, like yogurt soju except there's a rice taste to it. We were loving the fish cakes and seaweed ban chans. The lady cooked us the meats at our table. She's really friendly when she's at the table. We loved the pork belly and the meat. Not so much the intestines (tripas?). The food was good, not the greatest but worthy of another trip back if in the area. Towards the end of the meal, she gave us some korean popcorn :) she was eating it with us which made us laugh but also felt like we were guests at her house. We teased her about that. Food was surprisingly good. Don't let the service keep you away.
(4)Alex M.
Place is not very good at all. I would suggest eating next door at Gooyi Gooyi. Service was not at all as expected for it being so empty. The lady just kept standing at the door making sure no one parked in "their" parking spot even though there are no signs indicating it was for that restaurant only.
(2)Cynthia L.
Instead of focusing on providing great service and food to customers, this place hires an employee who just sits in front of their door chasing people away from their designated parking spots. Advice to the owner: "If you have no customers, there is no use having tons of empty parking spots." What an absurd way of running a business.
(1)E. T.
We had a wonderful dinner experience here last weekend. Came with the whole family (husband, me and 3 kids). Bbq meat was delicious (we ordered brisket and pork belly) and also bulgogi that was cooked in the kitchen. Kimchi was very strong and tasty. Server keep checking on the grill to make sure meats are cooked properly. And the kimchi fried rice prepared on the grill is really delish. The lady owner was so nice to us. She gave me a tall bottle of Hite for Mother's Day... :) and gave ice creams for the table. My 10 yrs old daughter just love the lady owner and already tells me to go back there to eat again soon.
(5)Joel R.
Food is just ok here. The other korean restaurant next door is much better. I recommend just sticking with the bbq. I parked my car in the parking lot that belonged to the business next door because Gaboja's parking lot is tiny and was all full. My friends made me drink too much soju so I had to call a cab to drive me home after dinner. I returned the next morning and found my car gone. Car was towed and it costed me 300 bucks to get it out!
(3)Hanna Y.
You know, if you can't get into Gooyi Gooyi this place right next door in the same lot is not too bad. They don't have much non-marinated meet but I think it's still pretty good. It's not as poppin' but the price is right and the soju is chilled. Just the way I like it. Parking situation is not that great given it's in small lot but we got here at 9 p.m. and we found a spot as others were leaving. The service is good and they come by and cook the meats for you most of the time. Would come again. =)
(3)Angela F.
This is a great mom and pop Korean restaurant. With all the Korean restaurants in this area, it's definitely hard for one to stand out above the rest. The food here is good and they have a few unique dishes such as the fried onion chicken. However, the customer service definitely deserves some recognition. The lady who served us so friendly and nice. She was also very attentive and kept coming back to refill our water and dishes. The prices are very reasonable too.
(4)jay n.
Gaboja is our go to Korean eat out in town! We love how they make all their side dishes fresh, even the kimchi. The owner ammie is so thoughtful and nice. Service can be hit or miss depending on who is your server. They are really prompt tho but they do get busy. The ambiance is chill unlike Goya gooyi. We tried pretty much all of the Korean places on elcamino and gaboja is definately the go to place. We come here about once a week and never been disappointed. Thanks gaboja for always taking care of us!
(5)Kimberly M.
WOW! I have never had the worst kbbq experience until I came here. First off I have never had to pay so much to get such little portions. Not to mention that their sauce for their meat was extremely bland! Might I mention that they cannot accommodate large groups! They were not considerate that there was a large amount of people and the only two grills that they placed were at the very ends of the table! Isn't that great?! The people seated in the middle starved like crazy! I literally paid $16 to eat half a strip of pork belly! The only thing I enjoyed was their kimchi tofu soup and fish cake. So I guess if you only like those two things definitely come here!
(2)Jeff J.
Best meat in South Bay bar none. Don't come here for service, don't come here for ambiance. Just come to eat meat. The baby shrimp banchan are pretty swell too.
(5)Fidela C.
Horrible service. Inconsiderate wait staff. Eat elsewhere. Wish I didn't have to put 1 star, not even worth that.
(1)Kenitha Y.
Gooyi Gooyi was packed so we decided to come here instead since it was in the same plaza. The service was great! Our waitress was accommodating and extremely friendly. She was the highlight of the experience and that's saying a lot. Anyways, the food was typical Korean-fare. We couldn't eat any of the combos since we weren't THAT hungry. Side note - the combos include alcohol (woot woot). We ordered the kimchi fried rice which was yummy and galbi. The galbi wasn't super greasy so I was happy. Our meal came with banchan - kimchi, baby shrimp, bean sprouts, seaweed and fish cake - a bowl of white rice and steamed egg. I wished they had the glass noodle as a side dish cause I would ask for like a million refills.. But overall it was good and I would come back.
(4)yulun t.
This restaurant just so selfishï¼ I was parking right side of the parking lot ( face to el camono) as soon as I walk to the restaurant next to them, one lady yell at me and said "u can't park here!" hello WTF! It's public parking!! They should focus on their food and service not their parking
(1)AJ D.
I've been looking for a Korean BBQ place in the Bay Area that's similar to Shik Do Rak in SoCal, and I would say that this place comes close. $50 for a combo of 3 different kinds of meat and soy bean soup. The food was great, no complaints about that. I wish they would have: had rice noodle paper, been more generous with the sesame oil/salt thing, had more than 1 person serving all the tables on a Sunday night, and been all-you-can-eat. But overall, I stand by my 3 stars, and I would come back here.
(3)DanThu D.
We actually came to Gaboja because it was right next to Gooyi Gooyi which had 2 hr wait for no reservations. We got seated right away for party of 3. The restaurant is new and clean looking. It doesn't look spacious, but it has more space than it looks because they have small private rooms. Just like other Korean BBQ places, Gaboja menu has several combo options for you to choose or you can just order by each category on the menu. For the party of 3, we ordered combo 3 which includes kimchi pancake, egg pudding soup, beef ribs and skirt steak with soju other alcohol drink. We didn't want any alcohol drink, so we switched to 2 cokes and 1 hot tea with the same price. As usual, the banchan came out first, and we was kind of disappointed at first with the unfamiliar items besides kimchi..but they brought more items after awhile. For the BBQ part, the ladies there cooked for us and served them on our dishes. The ladies were very friendly, nice and attentive. However, I wish they would slow down their service a lil bit. They cooked too fast making me feel like I couldn't catch up with the food. I had to eat fast. Plus, when meat was cooked too fast, and you don't have enough time to eat right away, it became dry and not as hot and as good. The meat was actually very flavorful and thick. They were high quality meat also. The egg pudding soup was good if you like that type of soup. Kimchi pancake was okay. It was not crispy enough. We also got a second soup of our choice (second egg pudding soup or miso). We chose miso, and it was a lil bit salty and different from the typical miso we had. We wanted fried rice, and at the end they brought the beef ribs to the back and make fried rice for us. They brought out the pan with a lot fried rice. It was hot, tasty, and I liked the herbs they used. It was still good even 2 days later ;-). Gaboja has happy hour from 9pm to midnight with $5.99 for Soju and few dishes, btw.
(3)Nancy M.
The pork belly and sliced beef is so good!! And they have happy hour from 9pm-2am!! $5.99!!! Service is really friendly and they are very accommodating to people who know nothing about Korean food. This is only my 2nd time eating Korean food but it's absolutely my favorite! I will definitely be back especially for the side dishes!! Great or parties too they have private rooms you can use and really clean bathrooms! Definitely a place to visit with friends and family!!
(5)Christopher T.
I prefer Gaboja to Gooyi Gooyi. Meat portions are bigger, everything feels handcut and vs a restaurant, Gaboja feels like you're eating at home, which is a good thing for me. I think if you are a regular at Gooyi Gooyi, it's worth coming here at least once.
(4)Mike M.
My meal of BBQ pork and rice was good; the meat was tender, albeit it was a bit heavy on the fatty side, but it's pork. My fiance's meal was the fried bibimbap. The flavor was good, but the "beef" was not. Let me put it this way... I've had beef jerky that was more tender. It was hard, gristly, chewy--with no flavor. When we asked if this is supposed to be this way, the hostess said something like "it'll be safe for our stomachs". I don't think that was a good reply--we were expecting a replacement serving of beef that was more tender. They did not replace the beef. Was it beef? Couldn't really tell, actually. It was certainly not what we were expecting beef to be like. Pork was good, as was most of the kim chee dishes. That beef was a deal breaker though. Update: they refunded the price of the bibimbap, which was nice of them.
(3)James N.
Worst Korean Restaurant in the World Award goes to these guys. Hands down. I came here with my family for an early family Christmas dinner. The place next door was closed so we settled on this lovely abomination. You walk in, there's a small amount of tables and seats, understandable. The workers don't really speak English since they are running on a Korean based strip. No problem, I completely understand where they are coming from. Bringing out meat, leaving it on the table for us, and then taking it away from us without telling us what they did with it and charging us. Wait what? Where did you take my short ribs? Was it placed there as eye-candy for $20? The meats in my opinion were great quality but what they messed up on was they are lazy. The meats don't come out with any form of marinade or flavor. They just hand you raw garlic and say here, eat this and give us money. Really? I guess... We asked for our rice multiple times and they decided, "HEY! Let's bring them their rice, AFTER they ate all of their meat! Brilliant!" Dinner wasn't all that expensive but I actually went to Jack in the Box afterwards so I can have some food. The service here is god awful. They have their hearts of saints but the mentality of a potato. We had to ask for water like 10 times. I dropped my chopsticks and I asked the waitress multiple times for replacements, and they never really thoroughly explained to us how everything worked. Never coming here again. So glad I tried it though, I got to see how the worst of the worst functions. 0 Stars.
(1)Sammy N.
This is one of those Korean restaurants that won't bring out the side dishes for you if you aren't Korean. Two Korean parties walked in 10 min after I did, and they immediately got side dishes. I had to specifically ask for side dishes. They also never refilled my water. Fuck places that do this. Food was good though. 4 stars for food. 1 star for being racist.
(2)Dung N.
We only went here because Gooyi Gooyi (next door) was closed. What a mistake. Our party of seven were seated and were only given three menus. Between four different combos, given the language barrier, we asked if Combo III would be enough for all of us. The waitress didn't understand and shrugged her shoulders. I asked for Combo IV and if we could substitute jumuluk for short ribs, which were the same price and the waitress said that there were no substitutions. Odd. Combo III had the short ribs, so we ordered that. My brother dropped his chopstick and asked three different waitresses for a new one. They all nodded but never returned with one. We asked for six bowls of rice, we didn't get it until we were already done eating. Our soju bottle was still half frozen. Our waters, again, did not arrive until we were almost done eating. I looked around and the waitresses were having a grand o' time eating and drinking in the corner. One of them finally came over to continue cooking and still had food in her mouth while talking to us. Obviously, Combo III was not enough food for us. We ordered brisket and pork belly and the ladies seriously half-assed cooked everything as they kept walking away to stuff more food in their mouth. Ugh. Never coming back.
(1)Jessy Jingxue S.
Really good. They are doing their best to compete with the near restaurant and this is perfect for customers. Excellent service, large quantities and good food!
(5)Carol L.
Like most people, the first time I came here was because the wait at Gooyi Gooyi was too long. But the second time I came to Gaboja was for Gaboja! I agree with the Yelper who said the food is more home style. First time my husband and I got the kalbi and soondubu. Second time we got Combo #1 with brisket, beef tongue, and pork belly. We also added kalbi and octopus and ordered drinks. This was for 5 of us. Total came out to $137, so about $27 per person. Loved the kalbi. Beef tongue was a hit. Brisket good. Soondubu and steamed egg were good, too. My friends thought the octopus fell a little flat (a little undercooked) but I liked it! Minus 0.5 star: Our pork belly came out tough. I think the waitress flipped it too late? We actually flipped it ourselves before she came back (probably still too late) and even took the meat off the grill, only to be told later that we needed to put the meat back on because it wasn't done. It was confusing at some points to know whether or not the waitress was returning to continue cooking our food. Later we didn't touch the fried rice for a long time because we thought the waitress was going to tell us when we could eat it, but she didn't. So minus 0.5 star for this, although the service was good overall. Minus another 0.5 star: While the fried rice looked good, its flavor was less than expected. It was a little sour (from pickled veggies?) and I found the seaweed taste to be too strong. I think it needs meat and some gochujang so that it tastes more like bibimbap. Note that the combo came with steamed egg, fried rice, soy bean soup, and soju or another hard liquor. The soup and side dishes were yummy. I like the shredded potatoes. The waitress was kind enough to make a plate with all the side dishes on it for the end of the table, knowing that the people on the end wouldn't be able to reach the middle, especially since one would have to reach over the BBQ grill. We also ordered some beer - I think it was Hite - which I really enjoyed. Very smooth. Parking in the front is limited, but there is parking available in the rear, I hear. If the wait at Gooyi Gooyi is too long, head over to Gaboja! Or just go straight to Gaboja. You won't be disappointed.
(4)Henry C.
Neat little Korean restaurant. Half of the whole restaurant is separated into rooms for private parties. We sat in the back room that had a direct access to the kitchen. I peaked in when they opened the door and it has a very home kitchen feel. I came here with my coworkers. The boss wanted a group dinner. He paid of coarse. My coworkers are Korean so I just let them order everything. All the food was pretty good, I really like this spicy squid plate. This was also where I was introduced to Korean blackberry wine. The stuff is like dessert wine. Everything was good but being that I didn't pay for it I feel like I don't know how to judge what to expect. I don't want to bring down their rating so 4 stars.
(4)Shoumik P.
Went here last week at around midnight when the restaurant was pretty empty. Wasn't expecting anything spectacular but I received hands down the best service ever and great Korean food for a good price. I got the $100 combo with four friends and we were able to split everything easily. Everything was served very fast which was nice cause we were all starving. We even got a complimentary kimchi pancake. Luckily I had a Korean friend with me but communication should be fine since the waitress who served us spoke good English. I would definitely come here again.
(5)Trung N.
Well... me and two others decided to come to this area to eat KBBQ.. and after finding out our first choice was going to be ridiculously busy, we decided to walk over and try this place out. The prices for the combos are fair and the amount of food you get is decent. The lady there helped us cook everything and was really friendly to all of us. The service was just excellent. Though the place is obviously less crowded, I don't know why the other place nearby is so much more busy... maybe better food?? I might not have a chance to find out.. oh well.
(4)S L.
This place is nicer than some of the other "cook your own bacon on a grill" places that I've been introduced too since my Husband now works with tons of Koreans. If the place is recommended by real Koreans then i'm there! I think they've remodeled a bit since some of the pictures posted on Yelp they now have these large ventilation hoods above each of the cooking areas so the place doesn't fill up with smoke like some of the other places. You still leave smelling like BBQ but my dog loves that when i get home. The food was great, granted we didn't really know what we were ordering because the BBQ special was in Korean. I think it was like $45 for a large dish of meat you cook yourself and also included a bottle of Soju. They provided the normal side dishes, Egg omelet thing. We had 5 ppl so she gave us two of those, and two tofu soups. We ordered Kalbi and it was delish. They give you onions, garlic, and jalapeños to cook with; and the waitresses were very very nice. Granted they were kinda slow but she always apologized i got a feeling there were only two of them there and they were trying to cook, serve, and bus. The majority of the ppl were Korean, that's always a good sign! Def will be heading back but probably not to often! Eating fried bacon every week will cause me to have to buy a whole new wardrobe in the plus size section!
(5)Les R.
I came here last Friday night with my girlfriend for dinner. It was empty when we sat down, but people started to trickle in a few minutes later. It's unfortunate that other people felt that the service was lacking because our service was definitely on point. Two workers always came by to make sure everything was okay, and they even drank with us. The soju was chilled, and even made us yogurt soju as well. The servers were so sweet, and even came out to give us hugs when we left. It was a good time. The food was pretty average priced for a KBBQ place. It wasn't AYCE, but the combo plates alone can fill up two people with big appetites. I'll definitely be coming back. Oh and they talked to us in Korean too. WHO CARES!? Language barrier or not, it was still a good time.
(5)Erin K.
This place gets 5 stars for service 3 stars for food. The owner is really funny and friendly although unfortunately does not speak much English.
(4)Wayne C.
came here because of the long wait next door... great move. friendly server, great food. would preferred open grill instead of cast iron grill, but food still turned out great.
(4)Shop G.
came here with 2 friends because gooyi was completely packed. poor sanitation, poor service, poor food quality. 1)waitress will tend to those korean men more than other clients so service was very slow and rude 2)i saw one of them picked her butt and after dropping off our side dishes 3)food was very disappointing. you think, how can you go wrong with korean? its raw meat that you cook. WRONG. the side dishes were poor quality and they recommended their best appetizer (fried chicken) which was THE WORST fried chicken i've ever had. 4)none of us ate the lettuce so we didn't care but at the end of the meal, we noticed there was a worm on one of the leaves.
(1)Tony M.
I happened to stumble upon this place while finding a place to eat with my girlfriend because gooyi gooyi next door was extremely full and i didn't feel like waiting. BEST DECISION OF MY LIFE. This is my new go to spot for korean food. It is family owned and run, which is rare nowadays, and you can really taste it in their food. Every bite is like an explosion of flavors in your mouth. SERVICE: ONE OF THE BEST. Every time i come in here I feel like I just came home for dinner. They talk to you, COOK FOR YOU (that's my favorite part :] ), they throw in little extras like a little omelette and an egg in your dish that's not normally included. They are extremely nice. I did eventually try the place next door and their service was lacking and felt like they were rushing me to get out, basically shoving food down my throat. FOOD: KIMCHI FRIED RICE IS AMAZING SEAFOOD RICE CAKES- soft but not too chewy like other places Combo #1- I LOVE MEAT and you can't go wrong with this. this will fill up 3 people. Stone Pot BiBimBop- i like the burnt rice :D they have a special sauce they mix in for you and it just brings out all the flavor. UNLIMITED SIDE DISHES- They have the best Kimchi i have ever had. It tingles on my tongue. I HIGHLY RECOMMEND THIS PLACE!!!!! I don't usually review places, but this place stood out so much that i had to go back and write one.
(5)Maya K.
I really don't like writing bad reviews especially for places I haven't gotten to actually eat at. Came here because Gooyi Gooyi next door was totally packed. When we walked in there was maybe 3 other groups there and the restaraunt was more than half empty. The waitress came over to us and told us all the tables were reserved. That's fine I don't want to give you my business anyways! There was nobody waiting to be seated and they could've easily taken my boyfriend and I for dinner.
(1)thien h.
Open late... And the lady cooks for you which is awesome. If your really really hungry my suggestion would be to go to korean bbq palace and get your meat fill in for basically the same price. Now if you are just trying to eat with portion control this is the place to be. After a long night of drinking I would definitely go here to get my fill. Yes the price is kind of steep 60 bucks for two people, but its kind of worth it. Warning late at night the floor are really slippery so watch out for that.
(4)Alex S.
I really enjoyed my meal here with a large group. I think we had 7 people and ordered one of the specials. Our bill was $129 for the group of 7. Service was actually really good. We didn't have any Koreans in our group but 1 of the White guys in the group studied Korean for a while, and was our spokesman. But the staff there is perfectly fine with English. The banchan were good, wish there was a little more variety, no dried cuttlefish, but maybe's that expensive. We had really good service the food was really good. Can't really ask for more. I was stuffed. Went in at 7. The restaurant got a little more crowded, but I don think there was ever a line for the table on Friday night. Also parking can get crazy in that strip. Its a bit of a problem, but what can u do.
(4)Anne H.
While out with friends in search of a place to eat dinner, we came across this restaurant. It turned out to be a good find with family style portions and incredibly friendly service. We shared seafood pancake, grilled mackerel, and fish roe stew. The tea was unusual because it was made from organic corn silk and leaves, and had a subtle taste similar to roasted green tea.
(4)Vanessa P.
This place is pretty skeeeeetchhhhyyy looking from the outside. SINCE..Its next to a liquor store and a porn shop haha! Its hard to find but just look for a green shop next to a porno store.. I decided to try this place out after finding it to have 4 stars on yelp :) Inside its small and the service is FANTASTIC! I ordered the Korean bbq ribs and we received a lot of yummy sides!
(4)Alex P.
I enjoyed high quality of beef. The beef name is Kok Galbi is really great which are marbled beef . It is good and enjoyed with that. Also we ordered pork with kimchi was great too.
(5)Emma C.
Horrible service! After my family and I were seated, it took the waitresses about 30 minutes to give us some water and tea. It then took them an additional 20 minutes to take our order, even after we had tried flagging them down 5 times. In then end, it took about an hour just for our food to arrive. The food was mediocre--not good or bad--but definitely not worth the wait or trouble. Never again.
(1)Ray V.
I came here because the first two choices were either busy/closed. But you know what, I am glad that I ended up here. Now I'm not gonna lie, I feel like for the portion size, it's a bit expensive, but the food tastes great! The lady serving us was very caring and attentive. It was empty so we thought the place might not be too good, but boy were we wrong~ We tried the galbi, bulgogi, squid, pork belly and spicy pork. It was all so flavorful. I left as a very happy and satisfied man. I would definitively come back, it's a nice kicked back environment.
(4)A C.
PRO: -meats are pretty good -service is OK, but not great -decent size restaurant CON: -rip off! for the quality of the meat, the price is way too high -small parking lot, which is full on the weekends. if dinnertime, you'll need to park at the auto body shop next to the plaza.
(2)Daniel S.
Good place to get late night gogi. The ajummas are really nice too.
(4)Amy W.
This was an A-OK Korean BBQ joint. It's a little hard to find and parking is difficult. The restaurant is nestled between two adult bookstores and the parking lot is small and their spaces are allocated to each of the stores in the strip mall so parking may be difficult. I think there might have been more space in the back but it was kind of dark and quite frankly given the seediness of the location, I did not think it would be safe to park back there. We originally wanted to go to another Korean BBQ place called #1 in the neighboring strip mall, but they were closed, and Gooyi Gooyi next door had a 20 minute wait, so we came here to Gaboja. The main area is small, with about 6 tables. There was only one other party in here when we came in around 7:30pm Sunday night. The service at this restaurant was excellent. Recognizing right away that we were new to her restaurant, the owner helped us grill our meats. We ordered Combo #1 for $49.95 and it was more than enough for the 3 of us. We had no idea what was in it since the description was in Korean, but it sounded good when the owner tried to describe it in broken English. It came with thin sliced beef, seasoned beef, pork belly, miso soup and a large bottle of Hite beer. The meat was pretty good, especially when eaten with the oil and garlic sauce. Probably not the best quality, but tasty and tender nevertheless. The pork belly was my favorite, and then the seasoned beef. The banchan was about average. To finish off the meal, she brought a bowl of sweetened puffed rice. It was kind of like eating popcorn and was akin to Honey Smacks without all the honey on it. Nice way to end the meal. The owner was funny. When I told her I didn't want any beer, I think she thought I was underage because later she asked me how old I am and if I was 14! She was pretty shocked when she found out my real age. I was a little scrubby looking that day, but not THAT scrubby looking! Oh well, I'll take it as a compliment.
(3)Skyttle D.
The food here is OK, at least to get through your hunger. The service was great!
(2)Trinity G.
Nestled right in between 2 porn shops in the heart of what I consider San Jose's unofficial KTown, Gaboja is a breath of fresh air amongst a really skeezy part of El Camino. When you step inside, your party is greeted and brought into your own private dining room. The service is great. Food is good. It's what you expect from good KBBQ. Enough said. Banchan decent (my favorite was the kimchi radish). The one thing I don't like about it was that I came out smelling like smoke and kalbi, so make sure you dress very casually and that you're not going anywhere fancy afterward.
(3)Caroline L.
3 star is being generous. Would give the food a 2 star and a 1 extra star for friendly service. Came here for a friend's birthday and quite honestly was shocked by the poor quality of the meat. The meat was so tough that I couldn't even bite through it. I thought, well, the kalbi has to be better, but nope, the kalbi was tough and super dry. I believe we got the combo meal for our large group. The pan chan (small appetizers) were standard. They gave lettuce which was a plus. I guess this would be more of a late night drinking place. I much much prefer #1 or Jang Su Jang.
(3)Brian G.
Very kind and good service with nice food.
(5)Y N.
Side menu is good (especially fried egg) Service is also good. Only sad thing is to grill a fish too much...
(4)Serena L.
I was skeptical to try this place since there were only two reviews, one very good one, one very bad one. but I cant judge since again, there are only two reviews. so coming here I assumed that this place would be pretty dead. to my surprise, this place was packed on a thursday night. I guess the patrons dont yelp. this place is small, we had a room off to the side to oursevles, which was nice. the service is great here, the ladies are so nice and friendly. the bbq was very good, esp the ban chan, side dishes. I would def come here again, good service, good food, nice and clean.
(4)Christie M.
I really enjoyed this restaurant. The service was nice and the food and Soju were delicious. The lady who was serving us was a lot of fun and very welcoming.
(4)Susan C.
-1 star for meh banchan +4 stars for awesome meat So my bf and I canceled our prissy v-day reservation in lieu of the less romantic option of Korean BBQ!!! Unfortunately our go to place was closed so we checked out this hole on the wall place that our old
(4)mark m.
We tried this restaurant last Saturday night. It was our first time here. We ordered galbi, bibimbap, rice cake and tofu soup. All the dishes were very good, except for the tofu soup--just mediocre. The service was so friendly and attentive. We will come back.
(4)Ryan C.
Time to bash on another Korean restaurant who deserve mediocre to low rating but are falsely rated in 3 or more stars by ignorant hyped non-Korean reviews. Gaboja used be good when it was a hole in the wall restaurant way back, say, 6-7 years ago or even longer. No single chair was matching another and the menu was so limited with less than 10 items but the quality was there to back up the lacking selections. The mama-sans were a bit younger back then, and when they were flirting with the male clients of various ages it wasn't that bad at all, but you could expect some courtesy appetizers on the house on the way, where you ended up ordering several more soju bottles that you were never going to finish. The ladies hooked you up when you were in needs. Maybe it was my underdeveloped tongue palates, or maybe their BBQed meats were pretty good and edible back then. The place had a mystic charm surrounding it. Times have passed. Times are bad, economy is still reared up, and we should be grateful there is another K-BBQ joint called Gaboja we can go to if Jang Su Jang or Palace BBQ is rupturing its stomach digesting all that Chinese and Filipino moneys - right? Wrong. Food quality (primarily their BBQ meat) degraded along with the amount of food. Their menu have been expanded with insignificant and unmemorable additions. One thing they kept same over the years is number of side dishes, but they were already a few to begin with in the first place. I can live with their slow service due to lack of manpower, but it should have been traded with efficiency but here at Gaboja it's long gone down to the sewer far into the ocean. Time is not kind to human beings, especially aging women, and that fact has not forgotten about these mama-sans at Gaboja. I don't like seeing ladies in my mum's age flirting with male beings of all age sorts, usually "charming" the old geezers to feel young and macho again so they can order more food no one's going to eat up or finish. Hmm, maybe we should better think it as a reciprocal relationship of symbiosis occurring between the two parties who want to reminisce about their joyful past. The last company I worked for was so cheap, we usually had "company get together dinners" exclusively at Korean BBQ restaurants, and Gaboja was the CEO's first choice every frigging god given time. Whines, pisses, and disgruntled grumbles wouldn't barricade his grand waltz of victory into this place. They say it's because of his communal relationship of being a regular for the last 10 years but when I come to think of it, it may have been the lil' touch touch flirting poppop shit going on with one of the mama-san at Gaboja. I tried to keep it very concise by giving points why they deserve lower ratings, but my conscience wouldn't let me. I think Gaboja deserves and demands my thorough memoir to understand why I loathe this place. Thank you for reading my short review.
(2)Rob C.
gaboja -- "let's go here" pretty much a korean only place and difficult to judge from the outside. front and last page not translated. serves tabletop grill style like llbunjee #1 with lettuce, garlic, ssamjang. not too smokey. just had some prepared kalbi and daeji bulgogi. panchan included buchimgae, and egg omelet i want spicy crab panchan, but guess can't get that up here kalbi marinade noted to be sweet and spicier than usual with a black pepper taste. daeji bulgogi less marinated as say SGD tofu. more raw onions good service, always refilling our panchan.
(4)John-Michael C.
True.. this is hard to find. And when people tell you that it's next to an adult store... it's no joke. For real! On another note.. nothing like going here with crew who know what to order.... more importantly with crew who know how to cook... I found the food to be bountiful and great. It all goes so well with soju. Like I said, good thing I had friends who knew how to cook because this is all about self preparation, as food like this should be. Of course after that I always come across the problem of which sauce to dip my food into. And more dire than that is to go with crew who can drink. I think we drank my age in bottles of soju.... I always like my soju with a touch of flavor, be it cucumber or lemon. And then after enough of that is consumed anything is fair game really. Of course be careful when drunk off soju because the floor is slippery and the chairs apparently have a tendency to slip and fall. Which leads to standing outside and heading over to the adult store. Actually it's pretty damn fun going to the adult store after getting drunk from a case of soju consumption! *shudder
(4)Ngoc T.
I actually love everything about this place. I usually order #1 combo. We always had a good time. The service was very friendly.
(5)Jenn W.
After reading all the yelp reviews, A and I knew to drive slow and look for a korean place next to a porn shop. Interesting location...It's on El Camino, and look for a big white sign with green korean writing. When we first walked in the restaurant, it was surprisingly small, like only a handful of tables, but then we later learned that there are private dining rooms in the back. The room we had can probably fit 12 people comfortably. Anyway, the food. The side dishes were pretty average, but I am not complaining about free, refillable food. We ordered Combo #1 and #2 for 7 and it was the perfect amount. The lady substituted alcohol for more meat for us since we just weren't in the mood for drinking. I am fasting right now so I didn't try any of the meat, I know, why would I go to a KBBQ place when I can't eat meat...The whole meal was torture!! O and speaking of fasting, I ordered tofu soup without meat. The combo was supposed to come with soup but they just ended up skipping the free soup and gave me a regular size tofu soup instead. My friends seemed to really enjoy the meat. The waitresses came in couple times to check on us and made sure we were cooking the meat correctly. Beef first, then pork belly. I can't wait to go back as soon as my fasting is over and try all the delicious looking meat!!
(4)david c.
This place is my favorite! I've been going here for years and I have not once not had a good eating/fun experience. The ahjumas treat me like a son and are the most friendly people you will ever meet. Once you become a regular customer, they frequently hook you up with free food and alcohol. My buddies and I love this place and we go weekly. I even take my co-workers and we get the back room for large parties. The atmoshpere is great - you can appreciate it more if you're korean but really if you love to eat and drink, you'll have no complaints. The service is outstanding, it's like eating at home with family. A good night of eating/drinking followed by karaoke with friends and it's a complete night. If you want to hang out with your friends and relax, this is the place to do it.
(5)Law K.
Perched between two adult book stores and another similar looking Korean restaurant, Gaboja is located in somewhat of a shady location, but don't let that fool you. This is an awesome place to hang out for some soju, Hite and tons of meat. Price is very reasonable, service from the "unni's" are absolutely fantastic, and they always give you tons of free bonus dishes + drinks on the side. This is not meant to be a high-quality BBQ restaurant with premium cut meat - it's just a great place to relax, have fun, and enjoy food/drinks with friends. Make sure you take someone who speaks Korean for optimal dining experience.
(5)A B.
It's a hole in the wall place that makes you feel at home with amazing service and good company. I usually don't like eating pork belly but it is amazing here when you have all the side dishes to balance out the rich fatty flavors. I love the chicken and potato spicy soup also! You are sweating and getting more addicted with each spicy bite!
(5)Jessica L.
The first date of a very long, defining chapter was here, at Gaboja, under the slightly greasy air, exhaust fans and fluorescent lighting. I have to admit, I didn't realize at the time that the dinner was even a date. If I had presumed as much, I probably would have been initially somewhat disappointed; the parking lot is mostly reserved for the next door porn-emporium, and street lighting is sparse in this community of crumbling strip malls, leaving much to the evil and more sinister imagination. Not exactly Paris romance. Things inside are much, much warmer, friendlier, mostly due to the wait staff than the decor. Their motherly attitudes are sometimes comical, sometimes touching, sometimes too personal but I feel so comfortable with this manner and it makes Gaboja a very personal place to come to, rather than just another eatery. With this in mind, food tastes like home cooking more so than restraunt style dishes. I think this, along with the constant flow of soju and the antics of the wait staff, was and is the reason why Gaboja had become the default setting for various events of my date's life--it was his version of Cheers, the place where everybody knows your name, and where you go to for birthdays, welcoming back parties, going away parties, to kill time or to kill stress, or for no reason at all, or as in my case, for something like... a first date. Because of this, Gaboja is nearly impossible for me to truly review. It is for me, more than about food, it's where many great things happened and continue to happen for me. I love the people here, the late hours, the comfort and the closeness that comes with places steeped in nostalgia.
(5)Rick P.
We ordered the combination meat platter to cook ourselves, one of their tofu soups (can't recall what it was), and their chap chae. The meat was flavorless...the kim chi was bland...the chap chae was decent...the tofu soup pretty good. I think I'll stick to Brothers in the city!
(1)Daniel K.
You want traditional Korean BBQ, go here! Took some of my non-Korean friends and they were amazed that Korean bbq was so different from the marinated stuff they see all the time. Service is great. What other place comes by and asks if you've had enough and brings out more meat? Maybe it's because we know them and we drink soju 2-3 bottles at a time but come on, it's pretty sweet.
(4)Susie S.
If you hate this place, go to Jang Su Jang, cause that's probably what you're looking for in a Korean restaurant. The very Americanized, overpriced Korean, typical KBBQ style. But if you're looking for something LEGIT, Gaboja is the best place you'll ever find in the Bay Area. You really can't go wrong with anything here. The meat combos with pork belly, jumuluk, and baby octopus is the best deal you'll find. We shared that among 4 people and we were so stuffed, we could not walk. They give you two kinds of pancakes (seaweed and kimchi) with it. And two of their signature dwenjangjjigae with this special herb called dal-lae, which you can only find in Korea. The ladies are super sweet and friendly! And the banchans are out of this world. Seriously, if you're down for some REAL Korean experience. check this place out!
(5)Heather O.
The BBQ here was pretty good. I liked that the place was clean and the waiters were very fast at getting me what I need. I loved drinking my Makkoli the traditional way out of bowls. The only thing I didn't like was the seafood pancake.. I know all places make it a little different but I didn't like the one here so much. The food was a little more pricey than some of the other spots but still pretty good... I would say Gaboja and Gooyi Gooyi are pretty close to being the same as far as "which one is better" I will be coming back.
(4)Caroline D.
First time came here and would never come back again . The service was slow , and they hella rude .
(1)Susann M.
Having late night dinner with my family. So tired 8 hours rides from San Diego. So glad to be home again. I love kimchee here is so sour and all sides veggies are perfect. Pork belly and beef are cook to perfection by the kind waitress. Will definitely come back. Got combo 1 which is $49.95 and get soy beans soup n Korean sake or get more meats instead n bimbobob n three items of meats
(5)Carys L.
I came to this restaurant only because had to wait another hour to get seated at gooyi gooyi n i was starving. Their service is terrible (not sure if the reason was I don't speak Korean). Their meat smells. I got diarrhea after having dinner there that night. I would definitely not come to this restaurant again.
(1)Cary I.
Tried to go to Ilbunji but they were closed so we tried Gooyi Gooyi and they were packed. So Gaboja was right next door and tried them out. I want to give them a better rating because I love small businesses but the food here isn't really that great. Or I should say the night we went there the food wasn't great. We ordered the combo which gives you your choice of meats. We got two types of beef and the pork belly. All of them were just "ok". The side dishes were pretty bad though. Also the side soup it comes with was pretty bland and salty. Even though my standards for Korean food is pretty high (Lived and worked in Korea) this was pretty bad. The service was good and everything else was on Par. Maybe I'll try again next time.
(3)Katlyn M.
TERRIBLE SERVICE. I would give negative stars if I could! We only came to this restaurant since Gooyi Gooyi was packed next door. We waited forever for our food, and not even the side dishes came out. Then I noticed the large party that came after us getting served their side dishes before us. Getting really hungry, I asked our waitress where our side dishes were, told me it was coming, then she continued serving the other large party. Then I asked her how much longer it was going to take and she actually told me to wait! After she continued to ignore us and serve the party that came after us, finally we just got up and left. She had the nerve to look surprised after her terrible service that we were leaving. This was the absolute worst service from a Korean restaurant when there are plenty of other Korean restaurants to go to around here. COMPLETE waste of time. Not only was the service slow, apparently if you're not Korean, you might not get your food before other people that came after you.
(1)