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Originally published by Amy Lam. Last updated by Jen Paolini and Celia Lee.
Let’s face it, Hong Kong will always be hot for Korean food and with so many restaurants to choose from, ranging from fiery nibbles to KBBQs that will have you unbuttoning your jeans a little, we’ll never be short of ways to spice up our evenings. If you’re craving friend chicken, kimchi jjigae, sweet galbi, or home-style japchae, check out one of these sizzling Korean restaurants around town!
If you are looking for authentic Korean food, TST is the place to be, and Chum Chum Mi has got to be one of our favourites. Complete with indoor and outdoor sitting, relax and unwind after a long day of work with your friends while sipping on a glass of makgeolli. We are confident in saying all items on the menu are mouth-wateringly delicious, but if you really want recommendations, its seafood and leek pancakes (해물파전; haemul pajeon), budae jjigae (부대찌개; spicy sausage stew), and any flavour of fried chicken are guaranteed to impress. The restaurant also offers KBBQs for those in the mood for some sizzling hanwoo!
Chum Chum Mi, Shop 17–20 and 31–34, G/F, FHP Shopping Centre, 41 Mody Road, Tsim Sha Tsui
Soil to Soul is a Korean vegetarian restaurant inspired by the country’s influential temple cuisine. Helmed by certified temple food master and chef, Gu Jin Kwang—a protégé of renowned Korean Buddhist nun Wookwan—this cutting-edge concept focuses on traditional vegetarian Korean recipes using natural, organic, and plat-based ingredients: a food philosophy dating back a thousand years to the Goryeo dynasty.
The restaurant presents a menu of wholesome lunch sets, six- and eight-course tasting dinners, à la carte dishes, bar snacks, and unique beverages. Dishes to look out for include the ginseng tempura, tofu skin pocket stuffed with sweet potato noodles, and any item on its rice and noodles menu.
Soil to Soul, Shop 704, 7/F, K11 Musea, 18 Salisbury Road, Tsim Sha Tsui
Note: The restaurant is currently under refurbishment. Check its Instagram for updates.
Another relaxed Korean restaurant that takes chimaek to another level with as many as eight variations to the mouth-watering fried dish as well as a selection of quality pints! Signature fried chicken flavours include the sweet and spicy, the honey lemon, and brown honey garlic. If you’re looking for something else to nibble on while sipping on your soju cocktail, their tteokbokki and egg roll are perfect bar snacks.
Red Chicken, Shop B, UG/F, Pacific Building, 65–67B Kimberly Road, Tsim Sha Tsui
The first Korean fried chicken restaurants to arrive in the bustling city of Hong Kong, Iga still holds its own today amongst the growing Korean food scene with its classic, no-fuss menu. Banban chicken is the best option for small groups who want to sample all of Iga’s delicious offerings and all fried chicken flavours can come boneless when requested to spare you the mess when eating! Their cheesy egg roll is another crowd favourite, and many returning customers over the years have praised Iga’s unchanging standards.
Iga’s menu has expanded into other fields of Korea cuisine, offering patrons home-style bento sets, traditional rice and noodle dishes, jjigaes, hot plates, and more.
If you’re looking for an authentic Korean street food experience without getting on a plane, Sinsadong Pocha is the place to be. With interiors that mimic traditional Hong Kong dai pai dongs, Sinsadong Pocha combines Korean street food culture with our own to create a feel-good casual dining space for patrons craving quality Korean food.
Popular items include fried chicken, gimbap, and chapjae, but we also find the temple-style galbijjim and traditional jajangmyeon to be worth a try. If you want to end your evening on a sweet note, the brown honey kinako mochi bingsu is a refreshing choice.
Sinsadong Pocha, 10 Tai Ching Street, Tai Kok Tsui
Presented by ZS Hospitality in collaboration with chef Mingoo Kang of Mingles, Hansik Goo offers a dining experience that is meant to be shared with friends and damily, whilst showcasing the essence of Korean cuisine with a youthful and creative twist.
Hansik Goo offers an eight-course tasting menu with signature creations like dubu wanja (hanwoo, tofu, pyogo mushroom, potato soy soup topped with black truffle) and hanwoo and sundae with haesam bibimbap. Try out their innovative desserts such as goguma (Korean sweet potato hotteok with charcoal ice cream and cinnamon) and the Jang Trio with three sweet items made with traditional Korean sauce pastes: deonjang cremem brulee, ganjang pecan, and gochujang powder.
Hansik Goo, 1/F, The Wellington, 198 Wellington Street, Central
If you’re looking for the best cheesy and spicy Korean food, Goobne Chicken is a good choice, and there’s usually one branch nearby! The fried chicken restaurant is known for many of its delicious plates, but the UFO cheese hotpot is among the favourites. Friend chicken pieces arranged on the end of the dish make up the outline of the unidentified flying object, whilst melted Grana Padano, cheddar, and mozzarella sits in the concave middle.
Recently opened, Sul Jib is a new fine dining Korean izakaya located in Times Square. Serving a selection of authentic Korean food, one of the favourites include the ganjang seafood platter where crab, shrimp, abalone, and other jet-fresh offerings from the sea are prepared with soy sauce and Jeju suyuk (sliced boiled pork belly), both ideal options to pair with a pint or a bottle of soju.
Sul Jib, Shop 1302, 13/F, Times Square, 1 Matheson Street, Causeway Bay
Another new restaurant amongst the plethora of Korean restaurants in town, Surasang is a worthy contender. Perfect for a casual dinner with friends and colleagues after a long day of work, dig into delicious bites such as ganjang scallops, gochujang samgyeobsal, and cheesy egg roll before moving onto your sharing plates. We recommend the galbijjim, and wagyu rib eye. Round off your meal with some Korean café classics: strawberry or chocolate croffles.
Surasang, Shop 1028B, 1/F, Water Zone, Elements, 1 Austin Road West, Tsim Sha Tsui
This isn't a completely Korean joint, but we’re willing to look past that little fact for the quick and no-frills food fix that Seoul Bros provide. Get struck into kimchi fries and sweet and spicy chicken while you wait for the beef bibimbap, which also comes with tofu or shrimp instead. But the cherry on top? Seoul Bro’s social responsibility initiative happier hour ensures that for every dish purchased between 2 pm and 5 pm, the same dish will be given to underprivileged children in the local community through Foodlink. Now, how’s that for food with heart?
Oppa Coffee Bar is a casual dining spot serving all kinds of Korean goodness, from fried chicken to ttoekbokki, to various styles of gimbap and main dishes. Fun fact about the restaurant: its name is actually connected to their signature Volcano Cheese Fried Rice series. Fried rice with different ingredients is served in a circular plate, leaving plenty of room around the sides for the star of the dish: shredded cheese. The server, the oppa in question, will melt the cheese for you at your table with a blow torch.
Oppa Coffee Bar and Restaurant, G/F, 1F Kimberly Street, Tsim Sha Tsui
Hoo Pocha is another location for quick Korean street food. Sporting a modernised pocha interior, this is the perfect place to gather with your friends! Try out their authentic fish cake soup and spicy tofu seafood soup and if you can fit more into your stomach, don’t miss out on their adorable and delicious rice balls and egg roll as you sample across Hoo’s drinks selection complete with beer, soju, and makgeolli.
Hoo Pocha, 22/F, The Lamma Tower, 12–12A Hau Fook Street, Tsim Sha Tsui
True to its name, you can find some of the best modern Korean and pub food at Maru Korean Restaurant and Pub to go along with your drinks. Apart from your normal plain flavoured soju, we particularly like the fruit-flavoured variety, either peach or apple, mixed with Sprite or beer, a classic combination called “somaek” (소맥; taking the “so” from “soju” and the “maek” from “maegju” beer). If you’re not ready to give this boozy cocktail a try, you can always go with some classic draught beer if soju is not your thing or try the maekgolli.
Pair your drinks with signature items such as Maru’s fried chicken, galbijjim, and cheese buldak with chicken.
Maru Korean Restaurant and Pub, G/F, 48 Stauton Street, Central
Covering the hottest new eats, the best places to play, offbeat takes on local culture, and so much more, Localiiz is every Hongkonger’s destination for how to live a well-rounded life in our vibrant city. Why the strange spelling? Well, Localiiz is designed to be your “local eyes”—and for that, you need two i’s.
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