Woogienae Korean Restaurant

This place has changed hands and is now a different restaurant. I haven’t been there yet.

We tried to go to yeh yehs but for some reason they close at 7? They left the door open and let us in before telling us. Oh well. Anyways, we drove down 99 and decided to go here instead. I was always meaning to go to woogienae, and when we got there I was pretty confused. Looks like they changed ownership, its called Gilsan (sp?) now. Very dark lighting, guess to make it look fancy or something? I dunno. They have numerous bbq tables. We opted for a regular table. I got the soondubu, they had a interesting choice w/​ham&sausage, so I thought I would try that, the pretty lady got the galbitang. So when I take my first bite of my soondubu I taste a familiar but out of place meat. I dig deeper into the soup and gather 2 huge chunks of HOT DOG! wow, can you really label something sausage and serve sliced ballpark franks? The soup was not spicy at all and lacked flavor, it needed some more hot pepper, salt and even maybe some migraine inducing msg could have helped. The galbitang was huge in size but lacked the rich flavor of the properly made version. She ate maybe half of it and didn’t enjoy it. The banchan was average and service was good, waitress was very nice and attentive. Price was similar to the local area. I noticed everyone else was getting bbq, I’m pretty sure its there bread and butter. I will pass on any soups here in the future, it is not their thing at all. We might be back, maybe for bbq only.

I think this place has changed ownership/​name. I was here last night and it was called something else… there’s still signs for woogienae here and there, but the new name… can’t remember –_​– …are everywhere.
Anyhow, it’s a good Korean restuarant. We were in the mood for SoonDubu soup and drove out to Shoreline to Hosoonies, but after seeing the long line of people we decided to go a bit further north.
I had remembered eating here years ago, but haven’t been back here in quite a while. After sitting down, we ordered one soondubu and couldn’t resist ordering some BotSahm! For you that don’t know, it’s just boiled pork… well if you were to boil pork in goodness. The result? It’s tender pieces of pork that has been gently simmered to break down any tissue fibers with garlic, ginger and other ingredients. Tender and delicious, it is usually eaten with KimChi or a spicy Asian Pear slaw with oysters thrown in. I hadn’t had BotSahm in years and it really hit the spot. They didn’t have the pear slaw unfortunately.
The Soondubu was really good as well. The banchan or side dishes were just okay. I mean I was surprised that there weren’t that many people there. Just a group of Korean guys and a Mexican couple I think. My fellow Koreans might hate me for spilling the beans about this place, but I think any lover of pork should give BohtSam a try. Just be prepared for the garlic.

Today was my second visit to Woogienae.
I was so happy about my first experience there, that I ordered the same beef bulgogi plate as last time. I wasn’t disappointed.
My introduction to Korean food was the homemade variety from a Korean couple I used to know many years ago. Kyung-​Ju would spend hours painstakingly preparing the meal for us and the results were amazing kalbi, bulgogi, kimchi, and lots of other wonderful dishes.
That being said, I don’t really consider myself an expert on Korean food. Yet I DO know how good Korean food can be, prepared properly. That’s why I’m willing to travel twenty miles from my home to eat at Woogienae.
During busy times, this tiny place is crowded with Koreans. The signs are all in Korean, and forks/​knives are only available upon request. I found the atmosphere to be charming and unpretentious. My brother, who has been to South Korea, says it was exactly what you would expect at a typical BBQ place over there.
As mentioned in other reviews, the waiters are friendly and attentive. My brother and I gobbled down all of the wonderful side dishes (great kimchi!) that preceed the main course. Not only was the waiter happy to replenish them right away, at no extra charge, he seemed pleased that we were enjoying the food. The bulgogi itself came next, and it was great.
Woogienae is the real thing.

This place is the shit. The grill plates are excellent. The Kalbi is so good! My husband gets the spicy pork grill plate, and he says it’s the best he’s had since he was stationed in Korea. The service here is also great.

I’ve been to seemingly every Korean restaurant around the Seattle area, but this one really stands out. The bbq is outstanding, service is always good and they provide lots of sides.

There’s nothing like happening upon a restaurant that surpasses all your expectations. The décor is nothing special, but it’s clean and has the standard Korean BBQ grill and hood configuration. There’s maybe 10 – 12 tables, and exterior looks like it’s been converted from an old used car dealership, but judge this book by its cover.
I found the service somewhat charming, we were served by some young twenty-​something guys, and they were very friendly and helpful. If you’ve been to other Korean restaurants, you’ll be lucky if they smile at you and not put your hot sizzling dishes halfway hanging off the table and make you catch the plate before it falls off the table or on you.
My wife and I ordered the marinated kalbi, a seasoned chicken dish that was HOT, HOT, HOT and a seafood tofu chige soup. This was by far some of the best tasting Korean food I’ve ever had. The small pickled dishes tasted very fresh and flavorful. Then the marinated kalbi came with a lettuce/​onion salad with a dipping sauce. The salad had a nice tangy and slightly spicy dressing that married with the kalbi beautifully. The seasoned chicken dish was spicy, the kind of spicy that grows on you like any great spicy food and you just can’t stop eating it. It had a nice balance of spicy — sweet and a 5 alarm spiciness that makes you keep on eating more. Oh, our server recommended we order it mild as he warned us it was going to be extremely spicy, good thing he did.
I found myself walking out the door stuffed like it was from Thanksgiving dinner and extremely satified all around. It’s a bit of a drive, but well worth it and hands down, it beats Hosoonyi, just ½ mile away — and I go there a lot.