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Every year, CityBeat publishes the Best Of Cincinnati®, wherein readers and staffers alike pick which bars are the booziest, which people are the coolest and which shops are your best bet for dropping a pretty penny. Whether you’re looking for authentic bibimbap, dolsot or bulgogi or Korean cuisine fused with American or Mexican fare, you can find it at one of Greater Cincinnati’s top Korean restaurants. Here are the top 10 favorites among our readers.
Kim’s Korean
10548 Harrison Ave., Harrison
For delicious, authentic Korean food in Greater Cincinnati, you can’t go wrong with Kim’s Korean. This strip mall eatery has everything you could want from a hole-in-the-wall restaurant with its drop-tile seating, cozy booths, Asian-inspired art on the walls and a menu that doesn’t stray from the classics: savory dishes of bulgogi, bibimbap, Korean soups, seafood with rice and more. Photo: facebook.com/Kims Korean RestaurantNo. 9 Best Korean Restaurant: Dolsot Bistro
7876 Mason Montgomery Road, Mason
Must Try: Kimchi & Pork Belly Dolsot: Stir-fried pork belly and kimchi, with butter and red wine and topped with lettuce, bean sprouts, toasted seaweed and a sunny-side-up egg. Photo: facebook.com/dolsotbistroNo. 8 Best Korean Restaurant: Korea House Restaurant
11371 Montgomery Road, Symmes Township
Must Try: Jap Chae: Sweet potato vermicelli stir-fried with vegetables and your choice of chicken, beef or tofu, served in a soy-based sauce. Photo: facebook.com/koreahousecincinnatiStone Bowl Korean & Ramen Restaurant
3355 Madison Road, Oakley
SPECIAL #1: Tofu bento (vegan) ($19)
SPECIAL #2: Dumplings bento (vegan) ($19)
SPECIAL #3: Chicken bento ($19)
SPECIAL #4: Wings bento ($21)
SPECIAL #5: Pork bento ($20)
Each bento box comes with seasoned potatoes, beans, fruit, tomato, pickles, a crunchy dumpling, sweet potato noodles and salad mixed over rice. Photo: facebook.com/stonebowloakleyKanji OTR
739 Elm St., Over-the-Rhine
Kanji focuses on sushi and Korean cuisine inspired by local restaurateur Inho Cha’s desire to offer Cincinnati a glimpse into the culture and flavors of his home country, South Korea. The menu features some familiar rolls from Drunken Bento — another of Cha’s restaurants — including the Big Baller, Sunday Morning and Zen Garden. In addition to sushi and nigiri, the menu boasts familiar Korean dishes like dolsot bibimbap — Cha’s favorite dish — served in a hot stone bowl with crispy rice, vegetables, choice of protein and a sunny-side-up egg, as well as chicken, pork or fish katsu; bulgogi; and tempura udon. Photo: facebook.com/KanjiOTRDecibel Korean Fried Chicken
100 E. Court St., Downtown; 922 E. McMillan St., Walnut Hills
$10 Featured Dishes:
1. Sampler Platter
2. Kimchi Fried Rice with Chicken
3. Four-piece Chicken Combo with two small sides
4. Corn Dog (Pictured) and Mozz Stick Combo Photo: acw.asianati.comBest Sushi
1. Ichiban Japanese Cuisine, ichibancinci.com
2. Cloud 9 Sushi, facebook.com/cloud9sushi
3. Green Papaya, greenpapayacincinnati.com
4. Wild Ginger, wildgingercincy.com
5. Izens Drunken Bento, searchable on Facebook
6. Wabi Sabi Covington, facebook.com/wabisabicovington
7. Kyoto Sushi Bar, kyotosushibar.com
8. E+O Kitchen, eokitchen.com
9. Dancing Roll (TIE), dancingrollsushi.com
9. Teak OTR (TIE), teakotr.com
10. FUSIAN, fusian.com
Photo: facebook.com/ichibanjapanesecuisine Photo: Facebook.com/IzensDrunkenBentoFood Truck
1. Red Sesame Korean BBQ, redsesamebbq.com
2. Tacos Locos Food Truck, tacoslocosfoodtruck.com
3. Stellar Street Eats, steller-street-eats.business.site
Photo via Facebook.com/RedSesameFoodTruck Photo: Facebook.com/RedSesameFoodTruckBest Korean
1. BIBIBOP Asian Grill, bibibop.com
2. Riverside Korean Restaurant, riversidekoreanrestaurant.com
3. Red Sesame BBQ, redsesamebbq.com
Photo: facebook.com/bibibopuniversityofcincinnati Photo: facebook.com/bibibopuniversityofcincinnatiRiverside Korean Restaurant
512 Madison Ave., Covington
Riverside serves excellent Korean cuisine in Covington. The menu offers traditional rice-based, steaming hot Dolsot Bibimbap with mixed vegetables, a sunny-side up egg and your choice of beef, chicken or tofu. All entrées are served with a delightful selection of traditional side dishes called Ban Chan. Photo: Facebook.com/RiversideKoreanRestaurant