Address: | 6905 Blanco Rd, San Antonio, TX 78216, USA |
Phone: | +1 210-366-4508 |
Site: | ilsonggarden.com |
Rating: | 4.2 |
Working: | 11AM–10PM 11AM–10PM 11AM–10PM 11AM–10PM 11AM–10PM 12–10PM Closed |
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Jeff Turpin
Ive visited Ilsong Garden a few times. This review is on our most recent trip. Aside from the owner telling another table how they were the best Asian restaurant in San Antonio as well as how Korean steak is better than American steak (both points incredibly debatable), we had a rather enjoyable meal. The wife had beef bulgogi while I had jap chae. As far as my jap chae, it was fairly good. The sweet potato noodles were cooked well enough and well sauced. The portion size and price was reasonable, and there was more meat than I expected. However, not all of the ingredients were properly cooked. With a stir fry, timing is everything, and the carrots most noticeably were not cooked properly, as they were far too hard. The beef bulgogi was grilled with onions and served on a cast iron skillet. It was absolutely delicious. The only problem is that its not authentic bulgogi. Authentic bulgogi is cooked in a pan with the sauce. It is not grilled with the sauce then painted on later. (Visit Chongs for a proper bulgogi). Regardless and again, this dish was very tasty and pairs well with rice. In short, you will get tasty food at Ilsong Garden in larger than average portions at prices that are a bit steep for what you get. While not the best Asian restaurant (how can you even make that comparison?) and definitely not the best Korean restaurant in town, Ilsong Garden remains in my top 4 Korean restaurants: 1) Chongs Korean, 2) Arirang Korean, 3) Kiku Garden, and 4) Ilsong Garden
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Syntax Error
What to order: Beef Bulgogi Been eating at Ilsong Garden many years now and have been consistently happy with the food. Prices are a bit higher than other places locally, but I would consider this restaurant the classiest of the Korean restaurants in town. The owners here operated other Korean restaurants in San Antonio over a decade ago, and I used to eat at them until they were sold. I was happy when I found this location when I learned it was the same people. The pickled cucumbers here are awesome and one of my favorite items. Sometimes I order a pint or quart to go. The banchan items here are some of the better ones in San Antonio. While dinner plates are a bit pricey, the lunch specials are a good deal and make up the majority of my visits. Wait service here has been really good on almost every visit, & food quality excellent which is what brings me back. Ilsong Garden has some of the more authentic Korean food here in town. This restaurant makes a great location for meeting business associates as its nicely decorated, very clean and has a good north central location, that is easy to get to, right off the loop. If your looking for a classy, authentic Korean dinner, this is a great place to go.
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Dennis Cao
Dont come here if you want authentic Korean food. I came here with my family and we ordered a beef bulgolgi, pork bulgolgi, and beef kalbi along with a spicy seafood soup to share and were disappointed with pretty much everything. The first thing that is strikingly apparent is how each of our food looked almost exactly alike, but with a different sauce. The pork bulgolgi was the most disappointing of all of our orders. It was a sad piece of pork drenched with Korean hot pepper paste that you could get in the ethnic aisle of your supermarket. The spicy soft tofu and seafood soup was thin and watered down. Lastly, when you go to a Korean restaurant, you are usually greeted with a barrage of side dishes. Sadly Ilsong Garden gives you only a handful, all of which were lackluster. Do not come here if you want to eat true Korean food nor a good deal. It lacks the flavors, the quality, and the appearance that true Korean food hold for a price that is more of a joke than an indicator of what youll be getting in return.
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Tim Baker
Im a huge fan of Korean food. I was born in Korea and can cook most of it. I do not live in San Antonio but do business here once a quarter and I have always just picked up the food and have taken it back to my hotel. This time I brought my father with me and we ate at the restaurant. At every Korean restaurant, I also get boricha (barley water - cold) instead of regular water. When the bill came to the table, I saw two charges of $1.95 each. I asked what they were and they told me it was for the boricha. I was utterly shocked. I have eaten at MANY Korean restaurants and not one has EVER charged me for boricha. So if you drink boricha and are not expecting to paying $2 for it, just remember this review. They would not even consider budging. "Its on the menu they said." They went down a notch from what I have been telling everyone about them. OWNERS take note... consider dropping this price or offering it for free. The food was pretty good but this time, the bulgogi was overcooked.
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Sami Connolly
ITS CHANGED!!! I used to go to the Location off of Rittiman, when the new location opened up on Blanco I was so excited. They still had the sushi guy, and the brothers could still be seen working the kitchen. NOT ANYMORE. THE FOOD WAS AND STILL IS GOOD, However my lunch experience today was most disappointing. SERVICE IS ALWAYS SLOW, I know and expect that…But its not worth going if the portion of Kimchi, and sides they give you is a one fork bite. they would not allow more sides without explaining that they had to charge me.I felt as if I had to argue with the server to just get me another side, finally saying sternly "Its fine, I will pay for it!" Since the service is so slow, it then takes several minutes for the refill they argued to give me in the first place. I wont be returning for Lunch or Dinner, But will consider to purchase the Kimchi as an individual side. They sell it in different sizes TOGO.
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A Private User
Food here is not what it seems. Place is overrated and too expensive. The lady owner of the store charged us and additional 8 dollars more per entree of chicken bilgogi that already costs 15.95. She goes to our table and tells us that rice is expensive and that since it was a party of 8 she had to recover costs.... When I go to the register to pay I come to find an overrated sum of $ 41 dollars for food that is not even worth digestion. Long story short... the lady is tricky and you may order a platter a food that costs 15.95 but some how she will add all sorts of bullsh.. charges that will make your bill sky rocket... Like all asians... they are all about 100% profit! CONSUMER BEWARE!
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A Private User
The food and service at Ilsong Garden were excellent. The restaurant is spacious, quiet, and the menu is fairly good sized so I had a hard time deciding what I wanted as it all looked good. Eventually, both my friend and I decided on the Rib Eye Beef Bulgogi from the last page of the menu and split a roll of yellow tail sushi. The rib eye steak was excellent and the vegetables that came with it were flavorful and well cooked. Additionally, we received 7 small bowls of cooked vegetables with the meal. These were quite good as well. The service was prompt and the restaurant had free wi-fi. We will undoubtably be back soon.