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March 2024 by Winnie Tan
Han Oak comes with high praise and I had really high expectations about dinner.Banchan - the OTA beancurd dish was great, simply because the beancurd was just outstanding. Tastes like a creamy soy burrata - just makes me wanna go to OTA tomorrow! Appreciate that they did a simple chilli-vinegar dressing on it. Just let the star ingredient shine!The kimchi was a little underwhelming. Not much balance of heat, salt and acid… just alot of acid. I wonder if it would fare better with longer fermentation.The corned beef soo yuk is awesome - I can see the chef’s brilliance here. Great interpretation of a traditional dish. The thinly sliced fatty beef goes great with sliced veg. Great texture and flavour. The yuzu packs a punch and makes the corned beef work so well here… while not overwhelming the broth, which is just awesome - save it so you can have it with the rice later. This dish is 5star!Perhaps the gimbap is just not a dish that allows the chef to show his/her finesse and skill. Beef and pork were cooked and seasoned nicely tho the rest of the ingredients basically needed no cooking - a basic pickle, saute or served fresh.Personally, I feel a gimbap tastes way better in a roll cos the mouthfeel of a well packed roll - when you bite into the various flavours and the texture/ crunch just bursts in your mouth - is simply lost when deconstructed.Bingsu - it’s pretty standard fare tho here’s a suggestion… this would be way better if the pineapple and mango toppings were on top - as they usually are. Not hidden at the bottom.I thk it was gojucharu sprinkled on top - that does nothing for bingsu on its own. Well… maybe if there was more condensed milk, that could work. But chilli powder on ice? Hmm.Tho when you dig down to the fruity flavours at the bottom, then you can tell why the combi works. A clever twist on mango with spice but lost in the order of presentation.Tip - dig in quickly without toppling the bingu mountain! Small tweak that would hugely improve the experience.Maybe the chef was trying to turn the bingsu on its head creatively.. but I thk the usual way fares better.Good service with chirpy staff. May come back when they have a different menu and would recommend you to consider that.
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March 2024 by Cece Kiino
Such interesting flavors. Soothing or bursting. The thin beef in bone broth was incredible. And our server was so much fun and informative. Lovely evening. Have waited for this for months. Finally got in for a reservation. Worth the wait!
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March 2024 by Travis Brooks
Most of the time I see a scotch-based cocktail on a list, I order it, and it's often kind of disappointing or heavy-handed. This was one of the most well-balanced cocktails I've ever had; all their drinks were excellent. Great wine list, too. Food was fantastic, kimchi was on-point, and dessert was confusingly fluffy and wonderful. We'll be back.Wheelchair accessibility: There is a single stair, but most of the tables don't require ascending it.
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March 2024 by Darcy Joan Gabriele
The late night weekend gimbap party is absolutely the hidden gem of Portland. I’ve never had more fun while also eating some of the best food. The sweet potato bites? To die for. The meat? I think of it often. The website “warns” that during later reservations spontaneous karaoke might break out. I told my husband- we need the latest reservation they have. It was SO FUN. I laughed the entire time, and even did a song. And I won a t-shirt!! This place is the best.
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February 2024 by Christopher Partipilo
The best food and experience. Plan to take your time here and enjoy the delicious courses! They do occasionally rotate their menu theme so keep an eye on that.
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February 2024 by Bruno El-Bennich
A bit pretentious for the food given that I have eaten in Korea and visited many Korean restaurants around the world, but very well executed and great ingredients. Though not worth the price, I know equal quality for less in other places. But in Portland, I guess it's worth visiting.
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February 2024 by Samuel Bar
Delicious food all around, and in quantities that have you leaving stuffed. Amazing cocktails too, especially the Umami Mami. Only complaint was our waiter, who kinda ignored us and never spent more than 15 sec at our
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February 2024 by Ambigai M
Food was great, service and hospitality was absolutely fantastic. Dishes were served along with the details of ingredients and how to eat.I’ll reduce a star because its costly for kimbap though we get it with unique banchan , starter and amazing dessert .Golden hour coconut milk is the best in beverages.
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February 2024 by John Stuart
Wow- all the awards and rave reviews are not wrong- every single thing we put in our mouths here was absolutely delicious!
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February 2024 by K Haverty
This was one of my favorite dining experiences I’ve ever had. We went for a birthday and were the first people seated. We ordered two of the gimbap party, a soft shell, crab add-on, a sizzling, seafood, add-on and two cocktails. The first thing they brought was a bunch of little plates of deliciousness. There was kimchi, and while I do not like kimchi at all, this was absolutely delicious. There was also tofu. It was soft and had some kind of sauce and did not taste anything like grocery store, tofu. The roasted, sweet potatoes, and braised beets were also fantastic.Next, they brought the corned beef so yook. It was sliced so thin you could roll it up with the cabbage, and eat it like some sort of little meat roll up. When you finish that, they actually pour the rest of the broth it comes in in a bowl and I can honestly say I prefered the broth to the actual dish. The dish was delicious, don’t get me wrong, but the broth is the Star.Next they brought out the cocktails. I’ve got the Come Here Often, and as someone who doesn’t drink much alcohol, this was delightful. We also ordered a bottle of Jinro 24. It tasted like a gin and tonic to me so if you like that sort of thing, it’s a good choice. We definitely could not finish the bottle.Next, it was the main course, and there was a lot. The nori was also very different from anything I’ve ever purchased from a grocery store. It was thin and light and full of holes. It did not have a strong flavor, which was preferable to us, the bulgogi and koppa were both amazing they have perfect texture as well as good seasoning. The hokkaido scallops were not really to my taste. They were the only thing we left behind on the table. I’m sure they would be delicious to someone that likes raw scallops but to me they were not.They also brought a big plate of veggies and everything was thinly chopped . The sauces were fantastic. The hot mustard was my favorite. There was another thicker sauce that was also ridiculously good.The extras we got were a sizzling, seafood platter, and the softshell crab. The seafood platter was OK. The softshell crab however, was a game changer. It was better than any softshell crab I’ve ever had before, so if you’re going to pick one, I would definitely go for the softshell crab .The desert was Korean shaved ice, and I don’t even know how to describe it. It was lighter than snow, full of unusual and interesting tastes, and textures… And absolutely phenomenal. If I could change one thing it would have been that they would have brought us two separate bowls instead of having to share, because I wanted all of it for myself.The staff were very attentive, but not in your face. It seemed like every time someone came to our table. It was a different person, and they were all really great. They don’t wear uniforms, everyone is just wearing whatever they want and it was really interesting. The music was a little on the loud side but in a good way. There was a lot of pop/rap music, and it was all female artists while I was there. The bathrooms are clean, as was the entire restaurant. I would absolutely recommend. And I plan to revisit Han Oak the next time Im in Portland. (It was worth the hour drive in the rain) The only recommendation I would make is go early because there is absolutely nowhere to park.
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January 2024 by Jav Cat
The food is very good, but nothing really special. The location is great. The service is generally good, but some of the staff has some issues. The person “in charge of the wine” (surely not a sommelier) decided to open our wine somewhere in the kitchen and taste it over there… no cork brought to us and when asked argue with me that opening the bottle and having a short glass from my bottle is what is done now… I never seen that before!! I think they should let the customer taste the wine and watch how the bottle is open.The other issue is they decide to start a karaoke before we finish our dinner. I think they are trying be cool and fancy at the same time?? For their prices I would have appreciated to be able to enjoy the meal to the end without being disturbed like that. I think it is a one time restaurant. I came with high expectations, but I was disappointed…
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January 2024 by Amanda Hughes
We had such a phenomenal experience start to finish. The ambiance is beautiful and cozy, with rain tapping on the roof. The service was impeccable. And the food! The banchan and gimbap was so fun. Everything was both delicate, thoughtful, and filling. The umami mommie cocktail was unforgettable. Can’t wait to see what they come up with next!
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January 2024 by Tiff Chang
The 4-course gimbap party was so good! This was my first time here at Han Oak so I haven't tried their previous menus. The banchan were yummy-- the tofu was so good that I'm trying to re-create it at home. The corned beef was savory and so umami. The main course was, of course, the gimbap with kalbi and pork belly including all fixings & sauces. It was delicious and fun to try all the different combinations. The dessert was bingsoo-- solid palate cleanser after a rich dinner. The service was friendly and attentive and everyone working there was so cool. Will be back to try whatever they offer next!
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December 2023 by Robert Wilcox
An absolutely incredible dining experience. The vibes were high, the music was fire, and the food was incredible. Get the Red Monkey Makgeolli; it pours like blood and tastes like bricks ?
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December 2023 by Howard Fan
The food and service here was amazing. The servers were very knowledgeable and attentive, and the Sommelier was very knowledgeable about the wines and helped us choose a great one.The food was delicious, and the portion sizes were perfect, not too much and not too little.Would definitely come back again!
