Abbaee Soondae

"I used to hate soondae because where ever I went, the smell and the texture just made me nauseous. It was not until recently when I went back to Korea it sparked new love for it again. Abbaee soondae really captures the true soondae experience. They offer a few different varieties and I also like that they offer it as a combo platter as well. We opted for the jokbal (pigs feet) and abbaee soondae + tteokbokki spicy rice cake. I personally do not eat jokbal so I did not to try it.... but the soondae was so bouncy with the addition of the sweet rice. It also had a very mild flavor which pairs nicely with the salt or even the rice cake sauce! The tteokbokki was also very delicious!! The sauce was a good balance of spicy and sweet. The portions were generous and had a nice mix of rice cake, fish cake and veggies. It even came with an egg.. which does not happen often at restaurants. The service was also excellent! There were 2 women working the front and they were quick, friendly and made sure we were taken care of despite how busy the restaurant got. Another really great spot for lunch so if you're looking for something more casual and quick, I highlyy recommmennndddd!!!"

"TLDR: Authentic Korean eats in a cozy atmosphere. Come for the superlative soondae and jokbol. Vibe: 5/5. Tucked away on the bottom level of a office building, Abbaee has a simple layout making it the perfect place for impromptu lunch and dinner meetups. The restaurant is on the smaller side, with about a dozen tables for groups of 2-4 people. Large group dining would be challenging in this space, so best keep the group get togethers for KBBQ. Service: 5/5. The staff at Abbadae were great from start to finish. My party of 2 went on a Thursday for lunch and we were greeted by the staff and seated immediately. Korean is the preferred language for the restaurant, however English will do just fine. The menus are nicely laid out in both Korean and English with several pictures to use as guides for Korean food newbies. Staff was attentive throughout the whole meal, with orders taken immediately when ready as well as food arriving at the table not too long after that. Food: 5/5. Very authentic to the point it made me reminisce about the many soondae I had throughout Seoul and Busan. Abbaee offers several varieties of soondae, from the traditional, to a spicy and sweet rice variety. On my lunch visit, I had the traditional soondae, tteokbokki, jokbol and Seolleongtang. Everything tasted fantastic, with the jokbol and soondae taking awards for best in show. The soondae has a nice sought after squishy texture with a pleasant mild flavor and generous in portion size. The jokbol was perfectly cooked, with each bite emitting juicy pork goodness. The tteobokki was what you come to expect from the dish, mildly sweet sauce with subtle spice from the gochujang. The rice cakes were a little on the softer side vs chewy/al dente which is what I personally prefer. Seolleongtang was the most underwhelming of all the dishes, as it was extremely mild in flavor and required a fair amount of doctoring up with the banchan to get it where I wanted. Pricing is very fair for the area, with each dish costing around $10-12 for decent portions. Overall, Abbaee puts out some solid Korean comfort eats that make it the perfect lunch time go to."

"Pretty good! Service is excellent. The soondae tang (soup) was pretty decent in my opinion. I’d come back! My favorite was Chapsal soondae!"

"Huge portions for gamjatang. Not sure it's my favorite but ok. The Bossam was pretty good. Probably more for local Koreans especially older crowd that drinks with their meals. Not many choices for children."