Seoul Chako

Seoul Chako

I've been wanting to try this place for few years now and suggested we go for my friend's birthday dinner. It was a monday night and we were surprised to see it being packed especially since it was freezing outside (this was a good sign).

Luckily, we had reserved before. We were 8, so got 2 tables next to each other with a grill each (each table had 6 seats). It worked out great for us because half of us eat halal, so our choices were limited to seafood and veggie dishes.

We went for supper All-You-Can-Eat (You can see all their menus here). You can order anything but you will be charged if you waste food. As for the grill... we mainly used our grill for salmon and fish filet. On the other table, they had a bit of everything: veggies, beef, chicken and salmon. The salmon was good but none of us liked the fish filet. My friends found beef tasted the best. Chicken was okay.

Beside the grill, we had a selection of appetizers, cold dish, sushi, sushi roll, deep fried. You get a number of pieces for certain items.

Since some of us were restricted to seafood and vegetarian dishes, we asked the waiter before ordering items that we weren't sure had meat in it. These were the items that I tried:

Appetizers:

• Edamame: I've had it before. It's just soybeans that are a little salty. You get quite a few, so we just ordered one and passed it around. Everyone liked it! 

• Seaweed Salad: It tasted like any other seaweed salad that I've had before. I like that it's a little sweet (salad in the picture)

Cold Dish:

• Kimchi: This was my first time trying kimchi. It's basically pickled cabbage covered in sauce. I didn't like the taste at all. None of us did! (See picture on the right, we got 3 on our table)  

Sushi Roll:

• Kamikaze Roll: It was a little spicy. I didn't like it but my friends found it was okay (Left in the picture)
• Dragon Eye Roll: This was my favorite. We ordered more because it was really good (right in the picture)! I noticed they don't have it listed on their online menu. 

Deep Fried: Served with sweet sauce and ketchup

• Spring rolls (2 pieces per each quantity): The spring rolls were vegetarian.  
• Onion rings (4 per each quantity): These were really good! We ordered it few times! It's not listed on their online menu though. 
• Fried Pumpkin: OMG these were so good! Reminded me of shrimp tempura. They are so filling so make sure you order these after. 

My other friends got sushi rolls too (cucumber roll, crab meat roll, spicy salmon roll). They also tried the friend dumplings (we forgot to ask if there was any meat in it). My best friend said it was really good but she couldn't tell if there was any meat in there. I will ask them next time I'm there. Most of us didn't really try their desserts because we were planning to go to Juliette et Chocolat (St-Catherine) after but one of our friends tried mango pudding and he didn't like it at all!

The service was good but they did mess up some of the orders or brought in the appetizers very late. Our waiter was very nice and helpful! Even though it was very busy, he took the time to explain us some of the dishes. He also suggested to order few items before and order again the ones we liked the most because we were charged for the waste.

I loved the ambience! The fact that you can grill your own food is just awesome! It looked so easy at first but it wasn't for most of us. Luckily we had some experts in our group of friends to help us out. It's not that hard but you have to make sure it's not undercooked. The only downside was our tables were near the door and window and it was really cold that day, so we were a little cold. Luckily we got some heat from the grill. Also, I wish they made better arrangements for a group. Maybe join 2 tables with a grill on each table.

Overall, we all had a great time! The food and service were good but this place has a great atmosphere. I will definitely go back! I paid about $35 ($23.99 per person, drink, taxes and tips).