POGU - Daly City

Review summary

1. A

   Arika

   San Francisco3 reviews

   2.0

   Dined 1 day ago

   1. Overall 2
   2. Food 2
   3. Service 1
   4. Ambience 3

   It was the soft opening. The host told us that only the two pages to the right side of the menu were available. She neglected to tell us that the Chef’s choice was also available - which had we known we would have ordered. We only found this out because the couple next to us had it. We tried 4 different dishes and they were pretty bland. From the hot pot menu there is a chicken and abolone soup, it comes in a very small bowl with a full small chicken. It’s very hard to eat in such a small vessel.
   

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2. T

   Terri

   San Francisco2 reviews

   3.0

   Dined 1 day ago

   1. Overall 3
   2. Food 3
   3. Service 3
   4. Ambience 3

   Mild flavors. Not the usual bold Korean home cooked feel or flavors. Overall good.
   

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3. K

   Kristy

   San Francisco1 review

   3.0

   Dined 1 day ago

   1. Overall 3
   2. Food 3
   3. Service 4
   4. Ambience 3

   After seeing all the one star reviews from opening night, I was very worried about my experience. I had booked a reservation for Sunday at 6:30 and almost considered cancelling. One con: there was no way to cancel and no phone number to directly contact the restaurant. I was pleasantly surprised that it was not a disaster! We arrived on time and the wait to get into POGU was only a few minutes. Service overall was great. The one thing we wished was different was that the dishes be explained to us. We opted for the Chef's Choice course, which consisted of a pumpkin soup, fish salad, buckwheat noodles, beef rib, and dessert. Both of us ordered drinks, however, they were out of all but one of their tea selections. Overall, the food was good! I wouldn't say it's the best for a Michelin star chef, but it's definitely enjoyable and worth trying! Was it worth the $200? Not really. But also it's okay. Additionally, the hustle and bustle of the grocery store surrounding the restaurant made for weird ambiance. It's hard to lovingly stare into your partner's eyes when the announcements are telling customers that there are six cash registers available.
   

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4. P

   Priscilla

   Central Coast36 reviews

   1.0

   Dined 1 day ago

   1. Overall 1
   2. Food 1
   3. Service 1
   4. Ambience 1

   Too many issues, this restaurant is not ready to serve the public. Food - soup was cold, apple chip and ginko condiments were stale and flat. Chicken salad tasted like they’re from Costco. Kalbi was well done, some were burnt, flavor was good though. Dessert has peanuts even though we had mentioned severe allergy to peanut numerous times. No waiter was assigned to our table, waited 20 minutes and hunted down Jason, who stepped up to take our orders. He did his best in serving his assigned tables and our party. Our waitress finally showed up after our 3rd course but did not do anything for us as Jason continued to bring our foods. Hope they can regroup and plan the operation so customers are served promptly and with foods at the appropriate temperature and doneness. For the price they charge for the omakase dinner $95/pp, they should provide better value, both quality & quantity.
   

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5. K

   Kaung

   San Francisco1 review

   4.0

   Dined 1 day ago

   1. Overall 4
   2. Food 4
   3. Service 5
   4. Ambience 5

   Food was decent enough for the price. Could improve better on the meat temperature and quality when served. Beef Fat texture and taste are not good when cold. Okay service for an understaffed location.
   

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6. C

   Clar

   San Francisco2 reviews

   1.0

   Dined 1 day ago

   1. Overall 1
   2. Food 1
   3. Service 2
   4. Ambience 2

   This so call Michelin restaurant is such a joke, the value, the quality , presentation and the taste are so elementary. We ordered the set dinner Soup maybe is cold soup but tasted like red beans soup but we were told is a pumpkin soup  it was OK but if dish are different because they missed items from each other  cold noodle was good and fresh is just too much sugar Main dish is a small piece of beef rib around 2 inches long and 1 inch thick , so over cook. Taste like beef jerky. We have to bring it home for my dog. My dog love it. Dessert , butter cupcake Really, they do give your whole piece of butter with a piece of cookie soak with sugar water and red beans .  Afterwards we went to Panda Express for dinner again Funny thing we ran into our next-table guest at the POGU, they ordered the sane chef set dinner just like us. Ha ha We feel this panda express $15 dinner is much better, taste, satisfying, than the POGU $100 set meal
   

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7. C

   Charles

   Toronto3 reviews

   2.0

   Dined 2 days ago

   1. Overall 2
   2. Food 3
   3. Service 2
   4. Ambience 2

   I went on day 3 after they opened on a Sunday afternoon, and the restaurant still hasn't worked out its kinks. Half of the menu wasn't available, and the wait staff were still a bit confused. The buckwheat noodles weren't made to order, it was pre-made and refridgerated, so when it was served, all the noodles were stuck together. Not very appetizing. I also got the blue crab appetizer, but the filling tasted and had the same texture of like imitation crab meat. The lay out of the restaurant is very awkward since it is in the middle of the grocery store, they should have put it on one side. There is a lot of foot traffic, noise, and there's 2 entrances to the restaurant, one of which isn't even used, so it's kind of pointless. I hope this restaurant turns things around, but I can't recommend anyone to go unless they change things up significantly.
   

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8. L

   Lisa VIP

   Los Angeles1 review

   3.0

   Dined 2 days ago

   1. Overall 3
   2. Food 3
   3. Service 3
   4. Ambience 4

   Its only been a few days since they opened, and I think they still need to find their rhythm. Their main ‘bansang’ items were not available so we were more limited as far as our options for lunch go, and they were also out of the seafood pancake appetizer. The food also came out suspiciously fast, and my buckwheat noodles took a little bit of shaking to separate. They looked beautiful in presentation but I did not find them to be particularly flavorful. My friend wanted a bag for her leftover soup container but they did not have one available. I want to come back and try their bansang items as well as the chef’s course menu, but overall I would wait at least a few weeks to try this place out.
   

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9. W

   Wilson

   San Francisco3 reviews

   4.0

   Dined 2 days ago

   1. Overall 4
   2. Food 5
   3. Service 2
   4. Ambience 5

   Foods are great. The restaurant is too new and the service arrangement needs improvement. Michelin star chef Tony Yoo is super friendly.
   

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10. H

    HANJUN

    San Francisco1 review

    3.0

    Dined 2 days ago

    1. Overall 3
    2. Food 4
    3. Service 3
    4. Ambience 3

    It's always tough to provide a review during the soft opening. Many menu items weren't available to us as they were sold out. Foods were delicious. Especially 2 appetizers we had (crab cabbage jjim & pogu hwemuchim) were very tasty. However, most main dishes (eel mixed rice, abalone mixed rice, kimchee noodle) came out had rice being not hot at all. Especially, the hot (temperature-wise) broth was poured over the noodle. However, the large cold bowl instantly made the broth cool down. I wish the bowl was either smaller or more hot broth was poured over the noodle. Service from the server was great. We could tell he was exhausted from working during the opening week. But he still checked us often and very courteous. However, receptionists weren't professional and lacks smiles. Both girls simply looked tired and failed to provide any attention to us. Overall, this place has a potential and we will probably visit again to try the menu items we couldn't try. However, we will wait at least 6 months or so for this place to settle down.
    

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