5 Famous Korean Restaurants in Chicago
The best Korean restaurant in Chicago is something to look forward to if you carve Korean food in this US city. Korean Cooking is described using five distinct Korean words (jjayo, salty; shida, sour; ssuda, bitter/acidic; dalda, sweet; maepda, spicy) because Korean cuisine is a mixture of these five distinct flavors. Although Korean cuisine is most known for its addictive barbecue, chicken wings, and kimchi. Chefs all around the country are experimenting with Korean ingredients, cooking methods, and even merging Korean dishes with other cuisines, like Mexican, to broaden the palate of Korean cuisine.
Chicago offers a wide variety of Korean cuisine, including mouthwatering barbeque, vibrant bowls of bibimbap, and some fried chicken. However, Chicago has much more to offer than Korean BBQ because of its enduring flavors in traditional Korean cuisine. As a result, we have compiled a list of the best Korean restaurants in Chicago that will more than likely satisfy your appetite for banchan.
Crisp – Chicago’s Top Korean Restaurant
Crisp’s most well-known Korean-style chicken wings are its Seoul Sassy wings. The Korean-style chicken served at this best Korean restaurant in Chicago is top-notch, fresh, and covered in three sauces: sticky barbecue, hot sauce-laced buffalo, and “Seoul Sassy” sesame-soy glaze. The Seoul Sassy, made with soy, garlic, and ginger and tossed with salty scallions, is the dish everyone loves. The unique way that Korean-style chicken is breaded results in wonderfully crispy and tasty chicken skin when combined with the batter. The wings are crisp, living up to the restaurant’s namesake.
Additionally, there is good bibimbap that is best eaten with “marinated” veggies, beef, an egg, and brown rice, as well as Korean-style burritos that feature fresh vegetables that are slathered liberally in sweet hot sauce.
Key Services | Crisp |
Website | crisponline.com |
Address | 2940 N Broadway St (btwn W Oakdale Ave & W Wellington Ave) Chicago, IL 60657 |
Phone | (773) 697-7610 |
Operating Hours | Monday to Sunday: 11:30 AM – 9:00 PM |
Cho Sun Ok Restaurant
Cho Sun OK is the North center restaurant that has a quality spot to chow down on tasty Korean BBQ made on grill-top style. It is the best Korean BBQ restaurant in Chicago that allows you to slice your own beef.
Before you even walk through the door, the enticing odors of soy sauce, sugar, rice vinegar, and garlic let you know this place is great. High-quality beef, pork, and shellfish are available on the tabletop cooking menu and are marinated in their house sauces. You can also have combos of proteins and noodles to make a dish that is more varied. You will really enjoy their bulgogi and chadolbaegi, and the seafood pancakes. The traditional, wood-paneled décor is meant to resemble a traditional Korean restaurant with an emphasis on food. The cost of food at this best Korean restaurant in Chicago is cost-effective, and the service is prompt. They allow BYOB, so you can take your preferred liquor!
Key Services | Cho Sun Ok Restaurant |
Website | http://chosunokrestaurant.com |
Address | 4200 N Lincoln Ave (at W Berteau Ave)
Chicago, IL 60618 |
Phone | (773) 549-5555 |
Operating Hours | Monday to Sunday: 10:30 AM – 10:30 PM |
Parachute – Best Korean Restaurant Chicago
Parachute, by chefs Johnny Clark and Beverly Kim is the Korean-American restaurant with one Michelin star. The Baked Potato Bing Bread, a spud-heavy take on the popular flatbread, is Parachute’s most well-known dish. All of this makes it one of the best Korean restaurants in Chicago. This recipe has bacon and potatoes in the stuffing. The husband-and-wife team produces creative meals like salt and pepper ribs with a yuzu-chili pepper glaze and boudin noir with kohlrabi, apples, and a seedy salad. Dolsot bibimbap is made with a variety of ever-changing toppings, such as tuna and n’duja, short rib, and foie gras. But Parachute’s uniqueness extends beyond its menu; it also has an innovative and carefully curated beverage list, reasonable rates, and a casual atmosphere that makes dining here enjoyable.
Key Services | Parachute |
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Website | parachuterestaurant.com |
Address | 3500 N Elston Ave (Troy) Chicago, IL 60618 |
Phone | (773) 654-1460 |
Operating Hours | Tuesday to Thursday: 5:00 PM – 10:00 PM
Friday and Saturday: 5:00 PM – 11:00 PM |
Gogi
For the best Korean restaurant Chicago experience, Gogi is the place to be. The fiery and sweet aroma, premium meat selection, and inventive side dishes, Korean BBQ never fails to impress (banchan). Similarly, Gogi offers Korean BBQ lovers in Chicago a unique culinary experience that is distinguished by its high-quality meats and attentive service. Due to their renowned kalbi, which has a flavour that is amplified by the charcoal grills they are cooked on, the Uptown restaurant won the respect of Chicagoans. The fun begins when the meat is through cooking, and whatever is left is combined with white rice, grilled kimchi, slabs of butter, an egg, and whatever banchan that are still on your table. Gogi is an excellent place to start if you’ve never had Korean BBQ because the staff will gladly assist you with prepping and grilling the meat at every stage.
Key Services | Gogi |
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Website | gogichicago.com |
Address | 6240 N California Ave Chicago 60659 |
Phone | 773-274-6669 |
Operating Hours | Sunday to Thursday: 5PM–2AM, Friday and Saturday: 5PM-4AM |
Dancen – One of the Best Korean Restaurant Chicago
But what really brings you here is its incredible selection of home-cooked Korean food and traditional and contemporary Korean beverages. This is Chicago’s best Korean restaurant with the best of the menu. The ‘fire chicken,’ a grilled-to-order dish that can be topped with cheese, is the most well-known modern Korean food. It is better than it sounds (what isn’t better topped with cheese?). Dancen also serves delicious dukbokki, which are chewy rice cakes covered in a hot sauce, and pajeon, a salty pancake with green onions and fish. They also provide a selection of offal and skewered meat that is ideal for pub food. There is nothing more satisfying than enjoying perfectly prepared kimchi pancakes, spicy chicken, and barbecued pork. Dancen invites you to try some delectable pancakes, yoghurt, and rice cakes. Customers may unwind at this establishment after a long day at work thanks to the welcoming ambiance.
Key Services | Dancen |
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Website | https://dancengrill.com/ |
Address | 5114 N Lincoln Ave Chicago, IL 60625 |
Phone | 773.878.2400 |
Operating Hours | Sunday to Thursday: 5 PM-11 PM
Friday and Saturday 5 PM to 12 AM Tuesday Closed |
Conclusion
The best Korean restaurant Chicago has to offer is just around the corner. Korean culture has a strong influence on food. Watching the table fill up with plate after dish of banchan is one of life’s most gratifying experiences. However, Chicago’s Korean restaurants offer much more than Korean BBQ, thanks to fusion eateries and upscale restaurants that give traditional dishes a touch of fine dining flair. Enjoy the mouthwatering meats that have been marinated in Korean BBQ sauce and the delectable cold noodle meals.
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