Haroo

August 22, 2011
There aren't a lot of Korean restaurants in Richmond, so I'm glad a new place called Haroo has joined the list. It's in the same strip mall as Big Chef, but it's located on the 2nd floor. It's a small family style establishment run by a husband and wife team.


The menu is fairly extensive for a family restaurant, but only the first few pages feature individual size meals under $10. The rest of the items are generally more expensive and are probably meant for sharing.


We ordered both the Haroo lunch A and B, as well as a personal meal. I think the best deal was the personal meal because it came with a congee appetizer and 6 side dishes. The congee was served in a small lidded bowl with a cute wooden spoon. It was very fluffy and tasty with bits of carrot, cucumber and seaweed. It would be great as a comfort food.


The 6 side dishes were broccoli, kimchi, potatoes, pickled radish, fish cake, and salad, all of which were very appetizing. I especially enjoyed the potatoes and the fish cake. The place offers a one-time free refill for each side dish, but that wasn't really necessary because the set meal already comes with a lot of food. I was already quite full after finishing everything, so I just asked them to refill my favourites.


The meal we chose was the sundubu baekban ($9.95), or soft tofu set meal, but there was actually a lot of seafood. The soup was slightly spicy and I came across lots of small oysters, bits of octopus and even a mussel.


Haroo lunch A ($9.95) was a bento with beef and rice, spicy rice cakes, salad and pickled vegetables including kimchi. It also came with an appetizer of rice noodles in a clear broth. There was also hot sauce on the side, so the spiciness could be adjusted to our liking. The beef was well marinated and reminded me of Korean BBQ.


Haroo lunch B was kimchi ramen ($7.95) or ramyeon as the Koreans call it, and a small dish of spicy rice cakes and fish cakes. I found it interesting that the rice cakes were served cold, but that helped with the spiciness. I just loved the bounciness and chewiness with the thick sauce. The ramen, on the other hand, was not so great. It was no different from the Korean brand instant noodles I have at home, and the beef was not that tender or flavourful.


Overall I think this is a pretty decent Korean restaurant, especially since it doesn't have a lot of competition in Richmond. In terms of location, it's not as convenient as places like Kyung Bok Palace, but the food is definitely much tastier and better value. I also noticed that I wasn't thirsty for the whole day after the meal, which happens a lot at other Korean restaurants.

Haroo on Urbanspoon

4 comments:

  1. re: thirstyness post-Korean meal... MSG?

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  2. Perhaps it's MSG... or perhaps it's just all the spices and green onions and strong tasting foods that leave an aftertaste... Or maybe a combination of both!

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  3. How was the ghal-bee? I love Korean style beef, especially short ribs.....stomach grumbling.

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  4. I liked the flavour, but the texture was just ok. If you're limited to Richmond, then this place is a great choice. But if not, there are better options.

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