ILCHA

Cuisine	Korean
Price	$$$ (31-50)
Rating	8/10
Last Visit	Jan. 27, 2026
Location	SFBA: San Francisco: North

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General Notes

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Excellent Korean restaurant in the Marina. The food does not pull punches and honestly reminds me more of the food I had in Korean than almost any other Korean restaurant I've been to in states. Everything is just really good and comforting. Great vibes inside as well.

Sadly, this restaurant is closing as of 2026-02-14. I managed to come here one more time, for my second visit, and it was just as good as the first visit.

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Dishes Tasted

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• ★★★☆ bulgogi tater tots -- Waygyu beef bulgogi, tater tots, mozzarella and pepper jack cheese, pickled red onion, soy pickled jalapeño, scallions, gochujang mayo, sour cream.
• ★★☆☆ hotteok -- honestly tasted nothing like a hotteok because it had very little filling / nuts and was topped with ice cream, but in a vacuum it was delicious, and surprisingly large portion for $10 too.
• ★★☆☆ bulgogi jeongol -- Soy marinated waygu beef bulgogi hotpot, mushrooms, napa cabbage, onions, carrots, tofu, japchae, rice cakes, chrysanthemum. Flavor of the soup was nice, quite comforting. Beef was quite overcooked + dry, not a big fan of using this cut in a soup setting like this
• ★★★☆ Korean Fried Chicken -- served with cabbage salad, pickled radish, soy pickled jalapenos, gochujang, garlic soy sauce. Fried well, juicy, and the sauce is nice. The first time I came here the chicken was a little dry because it was mostly white meat, but the second time was amazing
• ★★☆☆ Budae Jigae -- spicy ramen hotpot, kimchi, spam, sausage, bacon, napa cabbage, bean sprouts, onions, mushrooms, rice cakes, baked beans, chrysanthemum, American cheese. Budae jigae is almost always pretty good but this one was not my favorite; felt like there was too much "other" stuff and a little more watery than I would have liked. But the flavor is still decent.
• ★★★★ La Galbi -- soy marinaded flanken cut black angus beef short ribs, assorted ssam. Super tender + flavorful, nice smoky char.
• ★★★☆ Bossam + Oysters -- braised pork belly, half dozen oysters on the half shell, assorted ssam. Components are pretty good, I'm a little bit confused by this combination (are you supposed to eat them together), but everything is prepared excellently.
• ★★★☆ Soy Marinaded Crab -- very similar to the shrimp, delicious
• ★★★★ Ganjang Saewoo + Gyrean Bap -- soy cured shrimp served with egg yolk rice, crushed seaweed, sesame oil. So yummy, one of the greatest dishes ever. It's like soy marinaded crab, but with shrimp. Excellent texture.
• ★★★☆ Corn Cheese Tater Tots -- corn, tater tots, mozarella and pepper jack cheese, pickled red onion, soy pickled jalapeno, scallions, gochujang mayo, sour cream. Tastes kind of like a baked potato on steriods, it's super delicious.
• ★★★☆ Dubu Kimchi -- sauteed kimchi and pork, tofu.
• ★★★☆ Cheese Tteok Koochi -- mozarella filled rice cake skewer, American cheese, condensed milk. Lightly sweet from the condensed milk, which gives it a nice touch.
• ★★★☆ Kim Mari -- fried seaweed spring rolls filled with glass noodles, gochujang sauce. Fried well, excellent texture, great flavor.