Muguboka Restaurant
| Address: | 401 Balboa St, San Francisco, CA 94118, USA |
| Phone: | +1 415-668-6007 |
| Site: | sites.tablehero.com |
| Rating: | 4.5 |
| Working: | 11AM–10PM Closed 11AM–10PM 11AM–10PM 11AM–10PM 11AM–10PM 5–10PM |
Location
Photos 100
Reviews 11
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Irene Pang
We were craving Korean food and decided to visit this restaurant while we were in SF. The Restaurant is pretty easy to spot and parking wasn’t hard to find. We went in around 5pm on a Saturday and the place was pretty empty. The place wasn’t very big but felt cozy. The décor was basic and homey. The restaurant and bathroom was clean. Service: The two ladies who run the restaurant were friendly and attentive. We were really thirsty and needed the teapot refilled often. They were really nice about it and refilled when needed. If we finished one of the small side dishes (banchan), they’d offer to give us more. Food: They served a delicious complimentary Korean barley tea, which tasted great. They also included a good variety of at least a dozen banchan. The food was served hot. They gave us a free seafood pancake (hae mool pa jun), which was nice and crispy on the outside and not too dry on the inside. They have a decent selection of items on the menu. My go-to Korean food is the tofu soup (Soondubu Jjige) especially on a cold day. Their kimchi tofu soup was delicious with the perfect amount of spice. The tofu almost “melts in the mouth”. Portions were average size and looked good. A lot of places will skimp on the meat but Muguboka had a good amount. One of us had leftovers. They also topped off with a refreshing sweet rice drink for dessert. Prices: Pretty average prices for Korean food. Add in the free pancake and barley tea and it’s better than a lot of other Korean places. Overall: I’d definitely go back for more. Friendly service, free seafood pancake, barley tea, and affordable Korean food? Sounds great to me. Great place to eat after touring SF on a cold day.
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Ricky Shin
Very cozy, homely, non-descript Korean restaurant in a sleepy neighborhood in the Inner Richmond / Balboa Hollow. The place is run by an old Korean couple and it looks like the wife does most of the work while the husband is watching Wheel of Fortune on TV. Ah, good ol Asian patriarchy...just kidding. Wife and I were craving Korean food so we dropped by here for the first time and only one other table was occupied at around 8pm. Closer to 9pm more and more tables started filling up and the place was nearly full! I wonder if its b/c of the daylight savings time. Anyhoo, we ordered 2 dishes - a beef soft tofu soup and a spicy calamari dish sauteed with veggies. Both were delicious. They even gave us a complimentary plate of Korean seafood pancakes, mmm. The side dishes and food were all delicious and had an authentic home-made feel to it. I think we found our new favorite Korean restaurant within walking distance, score!
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STEVEN VONG
A family owned Korean kitchen that makes authentic home-style Korean cuisine. Even the neighborhood makes it feel like you are at a home rather than a restaurant. I came for an early dinner and was greeted by all the friendly Korean aunties. The banchan here was good and my table ordered a variety of dishes: SoonDubu (w/ bulgogi for myself), pork intestines with pork blood, and bibimbap. The portions here were a good size and all the food was hearty and had soul. My soondubu wasnt too spicy but still had nice flavor. The bibimbap was on point with just the right amount of crispy rice. I was too afraid to try the pork intestines, but it was an item that I havent seen at most Korean places. I think we also got a complimentary egg soup or rice cake plate but that was nice as well. A solid stop for Korean fare in SF!
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Brandon LaBerteaux
Every city has a hidden treasure tucked inside a hole-in-the-wall. Muguboka, for all Korean Bibimbap purposes, is the pearl cloistered in the shell of Inner Richmond. While San Francisco is known for its variety of Asian cuisine, Bibimbap is spotted as often as rain these days. Muguboka, with its congenial staff, laid-back environment, and quality food, is the tall glass of water you need in this drought. Favorites to try include the Dolsot Bibim Bob, the delicious deboned chicken bathed in special sauce, or the tender Korean Barbeque Ribs. Expect a generous serving of food, and to leave satisfied and curious as to what else the Richmond has to offer.
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Tamara Farhat
First of all parking is a nightmare there, more than most places in SF. But if you manage to find a parking space, you are in for some real good Korean food. The staff, unlike most korean restaurant, are extremely friendly. We came on a rainy and slow day around 9 and were the only ones there, even though they seemed at first they wanted to close early, they served us with a smile the whole way through. The spicy bbq pork is as good as it can be. They serve you a complimentary soup at the beginning which is nice, even though its not to my taste. And as they hand you the check they also have you some free Yokurt.
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Jiann Mok
Pros: - seafood pancake (crispy and full of squid and COMPLIMENTARY) - Korean fried chicken (tender and bursting with flavor) - galbi (short ribs) were tender, juicy, and not fatty - SUPER fast service - food came out really quickly - complimentary Yakult (probiotic yogurt drink) with the check - soon dubu (tofu soup) was decent Cons: - not a large dining room - no waiting area indoors (sucks if its cold outside) Bottom line: All-around good food. What kind of place gives you a complimentary seafood pancake AND Yakult for such reasonable prices. While this place is a little out of the way, Im sure Ill return soon.
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Denise Dang
We came here for dinner one night. Its a very cute mom-and-pop type of restaurant with complementary green onion pancake (yay!). Our dinner was okay, nothing too exciting from the food. My soup was.. interesting. The server must have mistaken my order of Kim Chee Jjige soup for the Sundae Gook soup. The sausages in this one were closer to blood pudding than sausage. Not bad, but not what I was expecting. Overall, still a nice place for dinner.
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Jason Lee
This is one of my favorite Korean restaurants in the city. The place is family owned and they are always extremely friendly. Additionally, this place is known for having lots of ban chan included in the meals. I love trying out all the side dishes. I normally get a meat with tofu soup combination. Ive tried all the meats before and it is excellent. If Im ever with a large party i also get the korean pancake with seafood.
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Maribel Garduno
I had to at least try Korean food in SF. Im really happy that I found this place out of randomness. The food here is so good. The prices are good and the employees are nice. The seafood pancakes are so delicious, you get one free when you order a complete meal, just FYI. Next time Im back in SF, I will definitely come back for lunch & dinner! Loved it. ❤️
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Albert Wang
These guys give you a crazy amount of banchan (side dishes), but none of them taste outstanding. In addition, they also seem to comp a seafood pancake sometimes too. The servings here are a bit small and the food quality is mediocre, but you get a lot of bang for the buck. This place is really popular and seems to often have a wait on the weekends.
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Tatiana Bergum
Amazing! I was visiting San Francisco with my handsome, intellectual husband. He chose this place for our anniversary. Once again, he chose a winner. Everything we ordered was amazing, I literally wanted to bathe in the sauces! Great value for your money. If you give Muguboka a chance, you will not be disappointed.
