Top Korean Restaurant in Castro Valley
Lake Chabot Public Market
18911 Lake Chabot Rd, Castro Valley, CA 94546, United States
I live right around the corner and I couldnt ask for more!Theres mainly Asian Cuisine here and I cant complain.Right when you walk in, theres the Pokeatery to the left. As you may suspect, its the standard Poke Bowl concept. Its rather good and portions are hefty compared to some other places.Continuing down the left side, is Milk and Cookie Bar. Im sure youve seen the colorful ice cream creations all over Instagram. Milk and Cookie Bar definitely has some Insta-worthy treats and most definitely some mouthwatering flavors. Im a HUGE fan of their Ube. Ice Cream flavors rotate in and out so youll have to check in to see what flavors they have for the day!Shumi Ramen is the next staple in the food court. Not the best ramen place but not terrible either. It hits the spot on a cold day and when I dont feel like driving to Oakland just to get a solid bowl of ramen. Shumi Ramen offers a pretty extensive list of items so Im sure Ill be back to try more!T4 anchors the wall to the back of the Public Market. Youre standard boba place with a few other food offerings like egg puffs. I would prefer iTea over T4 but I cant complain too much about having a boba place around the corner from my house. :0)Last but very not least, Mama Chos sells some AMAZING Korean-Mexican fusion food. They sell meat and now, finally, PRODUCE! They have a great section of beverages that lines the back wall. Pricey but nothing too crazy. Ill sometimes come here to buy their Strawberry Milk and kimchi. If you love Senor Sisig or the Kogi Truck, Mama Chos has a similar concept.If youre ever in the area, perhaps having taken a nice stroll through Lake Chabot, you should definitely stop by for a bite or drink! Theres outside seating so you can sit out with your doggie! (I believe its service dogs only, inside)Yes, there are restrooms!
Mama Chos BBQ
18911 Lake Chabot Rd, Castro Valley, CA 94546, United States
Pros:Cashier was friendly! They allow credit card/debit card usage. Plenty of seating. I liked the fish cake and seaweed salad was alright.cons:tried 3 kinds of korean-mexican tacos. $5/each including tax, so it wasnt a good deal. They werent much bigger than $2 tacos Ive had and certainly didnt taste better. I liked the marinated pork 1. The chicken taco was rather bland til I added salt to bring out the taste. Just tasted weird. Didnt like the taste of the taco. ( I didnt add too much salt in.) The taco in the middle tasted bad, but I finished it since I already paid for it.result:Id like to try the actual korean food, but Im not sure Ill come here again. Pretty pricey and the $ on yelp isnt accurate. Its more like $$. I dont like their +$1 policy for drinking beer at the restaurant/food court place.
Top other services in Castro Valley:
Milk & Cookie Bar
18911 Lake Chabot Rd, Castro Valley, CA 94546, United States
Great ice cream and unique flavors. Yum. Coffee Oreo cookie dough? Omg this is my favorite flavor ever. I want to stock my fridge with that banana Oreo and Thai tea. Miss the Vietnamese coffee flavor too. All employees working there have always had great customer service. Need to stock up when they open Saturday. This is probably the greatest coping with covid snack out there. If you guys want some unsolicited inspiration here's some random ideas.Creme Brûlée / CustardThai tea with bobaHoney pistachio walnutCinnamon raisin cornflakesShort bread and strawberryPeanut butter and jellyButter beerCarmel macchiatoThanks giving flavors:Maple graham crackerCandied yamsPumpkin spice OreoChristmas:Candy cane chocolateEgg Nogg and nilla waferGinger thin x toffeeRev 2:Pistachio OreoThin Mint Cookie X PistachioHazelnut cookie doughCaribbean Passion: Banana X strawberry x mango swirlDragonfruit powder x Strawberry x VanillaStrawberry x OrangeVanilla bean x lavenderEuro Road Peanut butter chocolate base x hazelnut chunks x marshmallow piecesUbe x Oreo x Peanut
Genghix Asian Fusion
20855 Redwood Rd, Castro Valley, CA 94546, United States
I have a long and personal history wit this place.I remember going to this restaurant back when I was just a kid, having just immigrated to the United States. Back then it was a buffet with Chinese, Korean, Japanese and European dishes thrown together. It was delicious.Genghix underwent many renovations as it transitioned over the years to become the traditional service restaurant it is today. They have kept many of the Chinese dishes they served before, and have expanded their sushi menu dramatically. The end result is a restaurant, whos offerings have matured and refined from its days as a greasy spoon buffet, into a rich and charming Asian fusion restaurant that offers some of the best dining in Castro Valley. Do yourself a favor and take someone you love to check it out.
The chicken on Fire
2836 Castro Valley Blvd, Castro Valley, CA 94546, United States
Chicken on Fire is a monthly go to. Was so saddened Covid-19 impacted its hours bc now I can only frequent establishment on Fridays while in the area. However, I have made the 40 mile one way trip on the weekends when the craving was at a 10.Chicken flavors are delish my favs being Soy Garlic, Sweet and Sour and Spicy. The chicken is cooked throughout with a slightly crunchy texture and sauces equally coating each wing ?. I believe they have fullsize and party wings although Ive only had party size. Order for one has approx 15 wings and for two 30 wings. I love having extra for the late nite binges. Leftovers at room temperature or tossed in the air fryer on reheat is a beautiful 12:32 a.m. ewww weee good eatin experience. The coleslaw is the absolute best. It is chilled and shredded with a slightly sweet dressing which the proprietor will not share the recipe even after 4 yrs of our asking ? I usually forgo the rice which comes with it and I double up on the slaw? oh and the chilled pickled radish or jicama (my colleague and I always ask which it is and forget as soon as we are told) is actually rather tasty and enhances the meal.
Tacos El Compa
2788 Castro Valley Blvd, Castro Valley, CA 94546, United States
This place is semi new to the area at the time that I write my review. So that means that it is new and super clean. So already doing great for that reason. The menu is high tech with pictures and electronics that show all the items very with the best menu I have seen in a long time. Excellent graphics and easy to decide! The tables are family style big woth six chairs table in the front and plenty of seating. I do hope that the city of Castro Valley allows outdoor seating for this place soon. They will probably manage it well. The high school kids will love the super nachos and the taco plate, both a great deal. Expect 10-15 bucks or equal to less than an hour of good, hard work at the Inn-n-Outs. So value is definitely there. The speakers and music was wonderful and put right back to my beautiful hotel I stayed at in Tulum just last spring. For that reason, parents should get a nice refresher but no alcohol yet. It's coming soon. Parking is plentiful so take the whole family out and don't forget the orange sauce on the salsa bar! Woooowza. In fact, the red salsa looks “meh” but it is really good with a hint of chocolate and smoky peppers!!
JPs Family Restaurant & Sports Lounge
3600 Castro Valley Blvd, Castro Valley, CA 94546, United States
Im not a guy who typically writes negative reviews but I am a guy that spent many years in customer service and have been a private contractor in the service arena for over a decade. Heres my experience at JPs today based on what happened just a while ago informed by years of working directly with customers - even the not-so-happy ones....Went in for brunch with my wife. The waitress was inattentive but not unpleasant. The food took an unusually long time to come out but a couple that came after us got served with no sign of our food. Shed also forgotten my coffee and my wife needed to get up and go ask for it.Wed waited so long that at that point I decided to cut my losses and go over to Dougs. As we were leaving the food finally came. I expressed my displeasure to the waitress and I understood that it wasnt her fault personally. She told me that there was a slow up in the kitchen and I said ok. Just because theres a slow up and it isnt your fault doesnt mean that Im still not annoyed...as other customers obviously have been because she mentioned that the kitchen has been slow all day. I never even implied it was her fault and even told her ok, Im just really hungry. She offered a discount to which I declined. I simply wanted to eat. I went in hungry and by this point I was hungry and a bit agitated. However, I wasnt loud or rude or anything. I was visibly annoyed.With my head down I start plowing into my food when the manager walks up and tries to explain the situation while Im eating. I was all good with her until she said dont ever talk to my server like that ....Thats when I blew. Talk to your server like what?!She hadnt been privy to the conversation that I had with her server any more than the people who were sitting right next to me. Not even halfway through my food I got up and proceeded to walk out. I did, regrettably start to get loud. Theres no excuse for that but to be accused of being rude to the server without even finding out what the customer viewpoint was was over the top for me. What the manager didnt/doesnt get is that what took an already annoyed customer over the top was when she accused me of having done something to her employee or talked to them a certain way which wasnt the case. Was I irritated? Sure. Was I abusive in any way to her server? Nope. Not even a little. Did I get loud after that interaction? Yes. I regret that part.There are at least two different, well established restaurants in the area that we usually go to for breakfast/brunch but wanted to give the new spot a try.Needless to say this experience was horrible enough for me to never step foot in there again which is a shame because this is the community that I live in and like to circulate my dollars. Whenever I want something as simple as bacon and eggs, hashbrowns and a bowl of fruit Ill take my money back to Dougs or Normans. When three places, all within walking distance all do the same thing it then comes down to service.Im sure that the manager and server have their own viewpoint but now that Ive cooled down a bit I really felt like getting that off my chest.
Shumi Ramen
18911 Lake Chabot Rd #1, Castro Valley, CA 94546, United States
Above average Ramen joint in Lake Chabot Public Market (a grocery store sized spot with a few other food shops/restaurants such as korean bbq and a boba joint). Has not been crowded in my 4 visits.Chicken karaage is good but they do not provide lemons. For sure worth a try even just to see the market itself.