"Hands down the best fast casual dining experience I’ve ever had in New York City, perhaps anywhere."
"Large, tasty portions for such a reasonable Manhattan price."
"If you're looking for an affordable and tasty meal, I highly recommend checking this place out."
"OMG. Everything is so good .service and food. I can’t believe I could have this quality & generous quantity at this affordable price."
"FOOD was so delicious and it was like my mom's cooking on New Year's day."
"The food is FRESH, Delicious, & has a GREAT PRICE."
"Food is surprisingly really good and flavorful! The portions are big."
Cons:
"Food was salty. I needed something to break up the saltiness of the marinated galbi."
"However, the food, while decent, doesn't quite live up to the high expectations set by the innovative setting."
"While it was a huge serving, an Asian restaurant freezing/microwaving rice is very poor form, how hard is it?"
"The flavors and variety are average, leaving a bit more to be desired for a truly memorable meal."
"No idea why this place is rated this high. We had their bimbipbop bowls. Taste wise, nothing special."
"However a huge pet peeve for me is being served food that isn’t hot or at least warm."
"A good concept, but it doesn't deliver. Food is ok, but everything is lukewarm."
Service
Pros:
"The staff here are so kind!!"
"Easy to order using their tablet and the employees helped explain the ingredients, meal seats and ordering process."
"Staff very friendly and clean restaurant environment."
"The service from staff here are amazing - they are very friendly and accommodating."
"The staff here are so kind!! The food is also amazing and the portion size is just perfect."
"The service here is always the best and tries to impress for customers."
"Service is phenomenal and fast."
Cons:
"Whomever that is, needs to be more alert."
"No lane in store, so crowded, hard to reach the front line to speak with someone to pick up my order."
"As soon as I walked into that establishment, I was greeted with suspicion and it felt like they expected me to steal something."
"The only part I didn't appreciate is the server who brought my food, checked twice with the only other customer in front of me and never came to my table 2 ft away."
"Wait one hour if you order online. Poor management."
"The worker that began putting my food together, grabbed the seaweed strips and sprinkled it on my food with his bare hands!! NO GLOVES... I was very unpleased at this."
"Worst of all is that this place is very, very slow."
Value
Pros:
"Koba’s prices are super affordable and the serving size to me could feed 2."
"Their Ssam Bap Set is hands down the best meal in NYC. It’s only ~$15 and it’s so well balanced, like a homemade meal."
"Super affordable & as someone who eats a lot of Korean food, I can confirm this is very authentic."
"Man what can I say, the price/portion of a $99 Korean BBQ grill place for only $16 after tax."
"Great food at great prices."
"I love that you can ask for ALL the toppings and it’s the same price."
"For 'fast' Korean food, everything we got was so delicious. The portions were 100% worth it for the price."
Cons:
"For $23, the lunchbox is nowhere near as good as KTown lunchboxes I have had."
"$20 is not cheap but it gave us a BIG bowl."
"A set of grilled ribs (Korean BBQ) that was distributed free of charge for the Lunar New Year."
"The choosing menu you fill out is too small."
"Food remains delicious, however, ordering for pickup is a nightmare. My food was scheduled to be picked up at 12:10pm; someone did not start working on it until 12:20pm."
Ambience & Cleanliness
Pros:
"super clean! even the bathroom is super clean!"
"The food is always delicious, restroom and dining area is clean, and employees are incredibly sweet."
"It looks very clean and spacious."
"Interior was clean and the lunchtime ambience was pleasant, with nice background music."
"They have an unassuming casual take out restaurant vibe but I have no problem dining in."
Cons:
"Its almost always packed here so atmosphere does tend to be be a bit rowdy at times but the staff keeps the place spotless and well-maintained."