Chingu

yvette vandenberg

Amazing energy, great food, excellent service and fun for small or large groups.

For vegetarians I highly recommend asking for bibimbap with tofu, it’s not on the menu (I wish it was) but extremely good.

thank you aaron for a great bday experience! we had originally planned on eating in SF but due to the crazy blackout that happened, we came down here to downtown sm instead. so happy we did, because not only did we have some fantastic kimchi jigae/beef ssam/tteokbbeokki/steamed egg, we also had a delicious soju shot courtesy of aaron’s recc. would highly recommend this restaurant! -the thankful ladies who were freezing out in the cold

The food and atmosphere were great! Staff was super friendly! The bibimbap and Korean fried chicken were amazing! We will absolutely be back!

Jeri Feng

thank you aaron for a great bday experience! we had originally planned on eating in SF but due to the crazy blackout that happened, we came down here to downtown sm instead. so happy we did, because not only did we have some fantastic kimchi jigae/beef ssam/tteokbbeokki/steamed egg, we also had a delicious soju shot courtesy of aaron’s recc. would highly recommend this restaurant! -the thankful ladies who were freezing out in the cold

William Medwid

For vegetarians I highly recommend asking for bibimbap with tofu, it’s not on the menu (I wish it was) but extremely good.

This late-night Korean spot was such a vibe, and I really loved the overall aesthetic. The atmosphere alone makes it a great place to hang out and catch up with friends over food. The dishes we tried were solid across the board, but the kimchi fried rice stood out the most. A lot of places tend to go heavy or too light on the sesame oil, but Chingu gets the balance just right, which really made the dish shine. Overall, it’s a fun, reliable spot for late-night Korean food with a great ambiance.

This was a great spot to feed a large group of 12 for $25 each including tax and tip! The food itself was delicious and we tried so many menu options by splitting everything family style. The space was filled with really cute decorations and I loved the Soju bottle wall that casted a light green glow. The only issues we ran into were slow service and they messed up our order. However, the food quality is worth the wait and the slight mishap. Still highly recommend eating here!

Cute spot for sharing small Korean plates with your chingu (friends :)). The atmosphere is quite nice and service is good. We got the bulgolgi stew, spicy pork, and chicken wings to share. I would say the stew was flavorful and the toppings were great but the meat quality was a bit lacking. The spicy pork was okay, pretty standard. The chicken wings were probably their best out of the three! Overall come for the vibes but don’t expect the absolute best Korean food.

New korean food restaurant at San Mateo downtown. We arrived before they opened. We got seated right away. It is interesting that it looks like they only have 2 copies of menus, and it is rotated among tables. We took photos of the menu. Menu is simple, and the dishes are similar dishes you find at korean restaurants. We placed our order, and the server didn't write it down and just memorized it. We ordered steam egg, bimbimbap, and kimchi tofu soup. The egg came in a reasonable time. It was good, but it looks like it is not as soft as it should be. The bancan is ok. They are not that special. We waited a while for our other orders. The bimbimbap is yummy. The kimchi tofu soup is good. It is not apicy. Overall, we enjoyed our dinner, but service needs to be improved. It seems the kitchen was overwhelmed. For our bimbimbap and tofu soup, we waited for more than an hour. There is an additional around $2 service charge on the bill.

Solid food for a late night spot in downtown San Mateo. Menu isn't the most extensive but they have solid options and it's a great spot for some late night food. Came here with friends and vibes were great! They also let you write on finished soju bottles to put up on their soju wall which was a cute idea.

Ziling Mai

This late-night Korean spot was such a vibe, and I really loved the overall aesthetic. The atmosphere alone makes it a great place to hang out and catch up with friends over food. The dishes we tried were solid across the board, but the kimchi fried rice stood out the most. A lot of places tend to go heavy or too light on the sesame oil, but Chingu gets the balance just right, which really made the dish shine. Overall, it’s a fun, reliable spot for late-night Korean food with a great ambiance.

Isabel Yanes

This was a great spot to feed a large group of 12 for $25 each including tax and tip! The food itself was delicious and we tried so many menu options by splitting everything family style. The space was filled with really cute decorations and I loved the Soju bottle wall that casted a light green glow. The only issues we ran into were slow service and they messed up our order. However, the food quality is worth the wait and the slight mishap. Still highly recommend eating here!

Lisa Huang

Cute spot for sharing small Korean plates with your chingu (friends :)). The atmosphere is quite nice and service is good. We got the bulgolgi stew, spicy pork, and chicken wings to share. I would say the stew was flavorful and the toppings were great but the meat quality was a bit lacking. The spicy pork was okay, pretty standard. The chicken wings were probably their best out of the three! Overall come for the vibes but don’t expect the absolute best Korean food.

Dharma M

New korean food restaurant at San Mateo downtown. We arrived before they opened. We got seated right away. It is interesting that it looks like they only have 2 copies of menus, and it is rotated among tables. We took photos of the menu. Menu is simple, and the dishes are similar dishes you find at korean restaurants. We placed our order, and the server didn't write it down and just memorized it. We ordered steam egg, bimbimbap, and kimchi tofu soup. The egg came in a reasonable time. It was good, but it looks like it is not as soft as it should be. The bancan is ok. They are not that special. We waited a while for our other orders. The bimbimbap is yummy. The kimchi tofu soup is good. It is not apicy. Overall, we enjoyed our dinner, but service needs to be improved. It seems the kitchen was overwhelmed. For our bimbimbap and tofu soup, we waited for more than an hour. There is an additional around $2 service charge on the bill.

Jade Chen

Solid food for a late night spot in downtown San Mateo. Menu isn't the most extensive but they have solid options and it's a great spot for some late night food. Came here with friends and vibes were great! They also let you write on finished soju bottles to put up on their soju wall which was a cute idea.

Very disappointed, overpriced. Was originally very excited about this new Korean restaurant in San Mateo. However, after spending $60 per person post tax and fees, I feel like there are better choices in San Mateo with the same price. Tofu soup - it has plenty seafood inside, but tastes very mid. Korean fried chicken - probably my favorite along the 3, but the honey flavor is too sweet / heavy for me. Grilled wagyu: it is very hard to chew at the beginning, then it’s overcooked later. There’s no way for us to tell when is the right time to eat it, and no one came to help / explain. A waste of money. The store itself is pretty cute.

We were super excited for a new place to get Korean food in downtown san Mateo. They’re currently doing a soft opening as they’re still figuring out a lot of kinks. However even considering the soft opening it left a lot to be desired. Service: They only had 1 person taking order, bringing food, providing to-go box, and handling the checks. As a result it was extremely slow, but we expected it. What we didn’t expect was waiting for over an hour for food. They were nice enough to give us 1 beer on the house, but had I known the wait for food would be this long I wouldn’t have come here Food: The food is below average across all the dishes. Starting with the banchan, the kimchi, potato and spinach were all extremely salty. Their kimchi jigae was equally as salty. What I found weird was even though we waited for over an hour for food, when they came out nothing was hot. The fried chicken was lukewarm, kimchi jigae could barely cook the raw egg with its heat (I’m used to it coming out bubbling but this didn’t even have steam). The fried chicken was also overcooked and a bit tough to chew. The buldak chicken was the only average dish of the night. Ambience was nice with good interior decor. They also open to midnight which is not common for most places in san Mateo. I would give it a few more weeks to sort things out. It’s definitely not ready to be at full capacity.

Karen Zheng

Very disappointed, overpriced. Was originally very excited about this new Korean restaurant in San Mateo. However, after spending $60 per person post tax and fees, I feel like there are better choices in San Mateo with the same price. Tofu soup - it has plenty seafood inside, but tastes very mid. Korean fried chicken - probably my favorite along the 3, but the honey flavor is too sweet / heavy for me. Grilled wagyu: it is very hard to chew at the beginning, then it’s overcooked later. There’s no way for us to tell when is the right time to eat it, and no one came to help / explain. A waste of money. The store itself is pretty cute.

Helen

We were super excited for a new place to get Korean food in downtown san Mateo. They’re currently doing a soft opening as they’re still figuring out a lot of kinks. However even considering the soft opening it left a lot to be desired. Service: They only had 1 person taking order, bringing food, providing to-go box, and handling the checks. As a result it was extremely slow, but we expected it. What we didn’t expect was waiting for over an hour for food. They were nice enough to give us 1 beer on the house, but had I known the wait for food would be this long I wouldn’t have come here Food: The food is below average across all the dishes. Starting with the banchan, the kimchi, potato and spinach were all extremely salty. Their kimchi jigae was equally as salty. What I found weird was even though we waited for over an hour for food, when they came out nothing was hot. The fried chicken was lukewarm, kimchi jigae could barely cook the raw egg with its heat (I’m used to it coming out bubbling but this didn’t even have steam). The fried chicken was also overcooked and a bit tough to chew. The buldak chicken was the only average dish of the night. Ambience was nice with good interior decor. They also open to midnight which is not common for most places in san Mateo. I would give it a few more weeks to sort things out. It’s definitely not ready to be at full capacity.

They dishonestly charged me extra tip without asking, even though the poor service. They also charge credit card fee. Only got two banchan dishes—that’s the least I’ve ever had at a Korean spot. The fried calamari was weird, more like onion ring, and the tofu stew didn’t come with rice or a raw egg like the menu said. The only good thing is they’re open until midnight

We had a weird experience last night here at Chingu. We’ve been here many times before, but this time was just odd. We came in asking for a table of 3, and we were told we had to wait for 30 minutes. There were a few open tables, but it seemed like the host was holding those tables for his friends. We finally got the call to come back as a table opened up, and the host was passive aggressively kicking the chairs around to make space for our party. He didn’t seem happy to get us a table. It was busy and loud, so he may have been irritated by the crowd that night. We get seated, and the first thing the host does is tell everyone keep it down. He did the whole “if you can hear me clap once…clap twice” thing that you do in classrooms. He said it’s too loud, and he needs everyone to talk with inside voices and to keep it down. He proceeded to sit with his friends at a table and laugh and hang out with them. Very weird experience. I’d most likely come back because I do like this place, but not sure if Saturday nights or that specific night was a special quiet hours night.

J H

We had a weird experience last night here at Chingu. We’ve been here many times before, but this time was just odd. We came in asking for a table of 3, and we were told we had to wait for 30 minutes. There were a few open tables, but it seemed like the host was holding those tables for his friends. We finally got the call to come back as a table opened up, and the host was passive aggressively kicking the chairs around to make space for our party. He didn’t seem happy to get us a table. It was busy and loud, so he may have been irritated by the crowd that night. We get seated, and the first thing the host does is tell everyone keep it down. He did the whole “if you can hear me clap once…clap twice” thing that you do in classrooms. He said it’s too loud, and he needs everyone to talk with inside voices and to keep it down. He proceeded to sit with his friends at a table and laugh and hang out with them. Very weird experience. I’d most likely come back because I do like this place, but not sure if Saturday nights or that specific night was a special quiet hours night.

Z DaDa

They dishonestly charged me extra tip without asking, even though the poor service. They also charge credit card fee. Only got two banchan dishes—that’s the least I’ve ever had at a Korean spot. The fried calamari was weird, more like onion ring, and the tofu stew didn’t come with rice or a raw egg like the menu said. The only good thing is they’re open until midnight

Actually horrendous Korean food. I’m writing this review as I’m sitting in the restaurant still. The sundubu jigae is just water with a block of tofu. I know this was by accident but the waiter also spilled it all over my bag and scarf.

Kate T

Actually horrendous Korean food. I’m writing this review as I’m sitting in the restaurant still. The sundubu jigae is just water with a block of tofu. I know this was by accident but the waiter also spilled it all over my bag and scarf.

Ordered Kimchi Jjigae and bibimbap last night, and got food poisoning from them. I’ve been puking and having diarrhea with an intense stomach ache. Not sure what it was but the meat in the bibimbap was so tough that I couldn’t chew through them and kimchi jjigae tasted off.

Not a good place to order takeout from! We originally wanted to dine in but saw there was a wait and decided we could order takeout. When we placed the order it was originally a 20 or so min wait. However it shortly updated to be 45 mins. 45 mins later I come into the store and no one acknowledged me for a good few minutes. There was only one server working the floor and it seemed she was too busy with the dine in customers to acknowledge anyone waiting to be seated or picking up an order. Definitely is much understaffed. Waited for 1 hr and still did not get my order. Finally the staff acknowledged me and apparently my order was ready for a while (it was already getting cold when I picked it up, definitely was not hot anymore) but no one was there to even pay attention to me in the first place to even ask what I was here for. Will definitely not be coming back.

Duck Ju Kang

Ordered Kimchi Jjigae and bibimbap last night, and got food poisoning from them. I’ve been puking and having diarrhea with an intense stomach ache. Not sure what it was but the meat in the bibimbap was so tough that I couldn’t chew through them and kimchi jjigae tasted off.

Shirley Kwan

Not a good place to order takeout from! We originally wanted to dine in but saw there was a wait and decided we could order takeout. When we placed the order it was originally a 20 or so min wait. However it shortly updated to be 45 mins. 45 mins later I come into the store and no one acknowledged me for a good few minutes. There was only one server working the floor and it seemed she was too busy with the dine in customers to acknowledge anyone waiting to be seated or picking up an order. Definitely is much understaffed. Waited for 1 hr and still did not get my order. Finally the staff acknowledged me and apparently my order was ready for a while (it was already getting cold when I picked it up, definitely was not hot anymore) but no one was there to even pay attention to me in the first place to even ask what I was here for. Will definitely not be coming back.