Regina Troy Barrios

Where To Eat Korean Food in Manila If You Actually Know Korean Food

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<p>Korean food in Manila has quietly grown up. The samgyeopsal era isn&#x27;t over, but it&#x27;s no longer the whole story. The restaurants worth your time now are doing something more specific: slow-simmered broths, regional dishes, the kind of cooking so deeply rooted it becomes part of your core memory.</p><p>We went looking for those restaurants, and here is what we found. A restaurant that has been perfecting bulgogi broth since 1938. A family-run noodle shop in Malate that K-drama fans will love. And 24-hour Poblacion spots worth visiting after a long night out. These, and the others on this list, are the Korean restaurants in Metro Manila worth eating at right now.</p><div><br/></div><div><span class="fr-img-caption fr-fic fr-dib" style="width:960px;display:block" width="960"><span class="fr-img-wrap"><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/1778483317208Sariwon Bulgogi.jpg" style="width:960px" class="fr-fic fr-dib" width="960"/><span class="fr-inner">Sariwon Bulgogi | Photo: Sariwon PH</span></span></span></div><h3><a href="https://www.instagram.com/sariwonph/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><strong>Sariwon </strong></a></h3><div><strong></strong><em>Bonifacio High Street Central, BGC, Taguig</em></div><p>The restaurant traces its origins to 1938, when grandmother Mrs. Bun-Im Koo from the town of Sariwon in North Korea developed her legendary bulgogi broth, made from twelve kinds of fruits and vegetables, and without a gram of sugar because it was created for her diabetic husband. More than seventy years and two generations later, it grew into <a href="https://english.visitseoul.net/restaurants/Sariwon/ENP002422" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">a multi-awarded institution in South Korea</a>, recognized by the <a href="https://www.sariwon.ph/about-sariwon/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Seoul Metropolitan Government as &quot;Best Korean Restaurant,&quot;</a> with its galbi declared by <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2008/07/22/travel/22iht-trseoul.1.14610796.html" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>The New York Times</em></a> as the most tender and succulent in Seoul. The Manila branch has been open since 2012 and has never disappointed since.</p><div><span class="fr-img-caption fr-fic fr-dib" style="width:960px;display:block" width="960"><span class="fr-img-wrap"><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/1778483570931Sariwon Seng Galbisal.jpg" style="width:960px" class="fr-fic fr-dib" width="960"/><span class="fr-inner">The Seng Galbisal | Photo: Sariwon PH</span></span></span></div><p>Order the <strong>Seng Galbi</strong>,<strong> </strong>premium USDA beef ribs, unmarinated, so you taste the actual meat. The <strong>Sariwon Bulgogi</strong> comes in thin, silky slices in a fruit-based broth refined till almost delicate. <strong>Banchan</strong> includes sweet potato and pumpkin mash, spinach, beansprouts, Korean anchovies, and two kinds of kimchi. The smokeless grills mean your hair won&#x27;t smell like lunch all day.</p><p><strong>Best for:</strong> A proper sit-down Korean meal for two or a small group. Reservations recommended on weekends.</p><div><br/></div><div><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/1778483638371Songdowon 2.jpg" style="width:960px" class="fr-fic fr-dib" width="960"/></div><div><br/></div><h3><a href="https://www.instagram.com/songdowonkoreanbbq/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><strong>Songdowon Korean Restaurant</strong></a> </h3><div><em>HK Sun Plaza, Diosdado Macapagal Blvd., Pasay; and 63 Eugenio Lopez Dr., South Triangle, Quezon City</em></div><p>Songdowon was named after Songdo, a city in Incheon, where the founder&#x27;s mother lived. This restaurant does not chase trends. Instead, the food here is made to taste exactly as it should</p><p>The <strong>Woosamgyup</strong> and <strong>LA Galbi</strong> are the standouts. They cook with charcoal, which makes a huge flavor difference, and the complimentary banchan arrives in around eight varieties, generous by Manila standards. The <strong>chapchae</strong> is consistently cited as among the best in any Korean restaurant in the city. The Quezon City branch has become a go-to post-concert stop for K-pop idols after their Manila shows. The Pasay branch runs 24 hours, making it one of the few serious KBBQ options when everywhere else has called last orders.</p><p><strong>Best for:</strong> Premium KBBQ. Good for groups.</p><div><br/></div><div><span class="fr-img-caption fr-fic fr-dib" style="width:960px;display:block" width="960"><span class="fr-img-wrap"><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/1778484052631Jumong.jpg" style="width:960px" class="fr-fic fr-dib" width="960"/><span class="fr-inner">Paejon | Photo: Jumong Korean Restaurant</span></span></span></div><h3><a href="https://www.facebook.com/jumongkoreanresto/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><strong>Jumong Korean Restaurant</strong></a></h3><div><em> 5650 Don Pedro Street, Poblacion, Makati</em></div><p>Korean-owned and open 24 hours, Jumong has stood on Don Pedro Street for years, and its best argument is a bowl of <strong>Yukgaejang</strong>, a traditional Korean spicy beef soup that is cooked low and slow until the broth builds its deep, irresistible flavor. Order it every time.</p><p>The menu covers <strong>galbi jjim</strong>, <strong>pajeon</strong>, <strong>dolsot bibimbap</strong>, and<strong> samgyeopsal</strong> alongside soups and stews. Order two main dishes and the banchan becomes unlimited and refillable. The dolsot bibimbap arrives properly sizzling, rice crisping at the edges the way it should. The kimchi jjigae is deliciously alive with fermented acidity.</p><p>They don&#x27;t accept credit cards, and parking in Poblacion requires either patience or good shoes. These are the only complaints worth making.</p><p><strong>Best for:</strong> A no-fuss, full Korean dinner in Makati especially for groups who are bored with just straight-up barbecue. </p><div><br/></div><div><span class="fr-img-caption fr-fic fr-dib" style="width:960px;display:block" width="960"><span class="fr-img-wrap"><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/1778484096532Buk Geyong 3.jpg" style="width:960px" class="fr-fic fr-dib" width="960"/><span class="fr-inner">Photo: Buk Gyeong</span></span></span></div><h3><a href="https://www.instagram.com/buk_gyeong/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><strong>Buk Gyeong </strong></a> </h3><div><em>Dakota Residences, 555 Adriatico Street, Malate</em></div><p>The best <strong>jjajangmyeon</strong> in Manila isn&#x27;t at a Korean barbecue restaurant. It&#x27;s here, in Koreatown Malate, at a family-run spot that has been operating for over twenty years and still makes its noodles fresh every day.</p><p>When the proprietors&#x27; grandparents moved to the Philippines in the late 1980s, they started selling Korean and Chinese noodles. The chefs working today were trained by the family to preserve those original recipes. The restaurant draws its culinary tradition from Incheon—historically home to a large Chinese community in Korea, and the city where Korean-Chinese cuisine, the jjajangmyeon, jjamppong, and tangsuyuk you see on every K-drama table, developed into its own distinct form.</p><p>The <strong>jjamppong</strong> is briny and properly spicy. The <strong>tangsuyuk</strong>—sweet and sour pork, crisp and generous—is nothing like what you&#x27;ll find anywhere else in the city. The kimchi tastes like it was made in Seoul, and the dining room draws a largely Korean clientele. That, alongside a twenty-year track record, is the most reliable endorsement a restaurant can have.</p><p><strong>Best for:</strong> Korean-Chinese classics, especially jjajangmyeon and jjamppong. They’re a revelation if you&#x27;ve only ever known these dishes from instant noodle packs. This is a no frills place. Come in a group: the servings are built for sharing.</p><div><br/></div><div><span class="fr-img-caption fr-fic fr-dib" style="width:960px;display:block" width="960"><span class="fr-img-wrap"><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/1778484235732Goreyo 2.jpg" style="width:960px" class="fr-fic fr-dib" width="960"/><span class="fr-inner">Goryeo Korean Dining | Photo: Okada Manila</span></span></span></div><h3><a href="https://www.instagram.com/okadamanila/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><strong>Goryeo Korean Dining</strong></a> </h3><div><em>Restaurant Promenade, Okada Manila, Parañaque</em></div><p>This is the one for a special occasion. Goryeo takes its name from the Goryeo dynasty, renowned for luxury and sophistication, and the interiors deliver on that with the plush seating, art pieces, and design details that gesture toward Korean heritage. There are four private dining rooms. The kitchen is led by Chef Hakjin Lee, a Korean national who has worked across Asia and cooked for the Korean president.</p><p>The <strong>all-you-can-eat KBBQ feast</strong> includes unlimited servings of samgyeopsal in multiple preparations, marinated pork shoulder, and pork spare ribs, alongside traditional banchan. There are smokeless grills at every table. The <strong>beef short plate</strong> and steamed egg are consistent standouts. Service is hotel-caliber: attentive without hovering.</p><p><strong>Best for:</strong> Special celebrations, client dinners, or any occasion where the setting matters as much as the food. The Okada fountain show running outside is a bonus. Reservations strongly recommended. Parking at Okada is validated.</p>

<p>A food editor’s definitive guide to Korean dining in Manila, focused on restaurants that take technique seriously—from charcoal grills and slow-simmered broths to hand-cut noodles—chosen for one standard only: would you send someone here without hesitation.</p>

A food editor’s definitive guide to Korean dining in Manila, focused on restaurants that take technique seriously—from charcoal grills and slow-simmered broths to hand-cut noodles—chosen for one standard only: would you send someone here without hesitation.

Where To Eat Korean Food in Manila If You Actually Know Korean Food

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Where To Eat Korean Food in Manila If You Actually Know Korean Food

Troy Barrios

Published May 11, 2026 03:28 PM PHT

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Updated May 12, 2026 11:34 AM PHT

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