Good selection and good food. I came the first time for sashimi subsequent times the bibimbap as well. The steak bibimbap is the way to go. The last time I’ve gone there, they’ve actually changed the ingredients in the bibimbap(added a few more), but the staff were very friendly and wanted to make sure you knew about the new ingredients when ordering. Be sure to get the red sauce on the side so that you can adjust the flavoring/hotness to your own liking. Overall one of the preferred lunch destinations when we’re feeling for some Japanese/Korean.
Allison P.
Place rating: 3 New York, NY
Just an fyi, the 3 stars instead of 4 is because the waitress spilled my dining partner’s left-over miso soup on me(my pants, my leather purse — inside and out, and on my scarf — thank goodness it missed my silk blouse!). The chicken bibmbap — very good. The egg doesn’t quite cook the way in the US but the smell and taste — like chicken fried rice! Add some sriacha or ask for hot sauce too to add some flavor(not that much heat). Note — this is served with miso soup and one portion of kimchi so it’ a good value. And it’s a big portion. I wasn’t sure what korean nabe was but thought braised beef stew couldn’t be bad. My waitress(same one who spilled the miso all over me and took five minutes to give me three crap napkins) made a face when I ordered it but when i inquired why, her reasoning as she does not like meat like that(?) made me want it. Good call. It had a little heat but was a wonderful stew. Not much beef, not much vegetables, not too big but somehow, the dish, served with a side of rice, filled me. Very nice flavors. I don’t know how this pricing compares to places in the neighborhood but I would definitely go back. I really enjoyed the food. Oh and we went late — 1:35 for lunch. The food came in maybe 5 minutes. No joke. So if you are worried about time but want a home cooked hot meal and to sit — you won’t be glancing at your watch here.
Kristi C.
Place rating: 3 Sydney, Australia
Great space for a nice bip n’bap lunch and green tea. It was quite busy the day I stopped by for an early lunch, but we were easily seated at the quieter tables outside. I love good veggie Korean and had come with high hopes. The gyoza was yummy and the bip n bap was ok but I have had much better and much more authentic elsewhere. Nice spot though for a change from Wagamama if you are tethered to one of the nearby office buildings.
Sherene J.
Place rating: 4 London, United Kingdom
Clearly this place is less crowded through dinner hours but at lunch hour, the City crowd flocks here in herds. Despite the several warnings about the place informing everyone of a long wait, I found the service adequately efficient and quick. Not a place where the wait staff will linger for a chat about the items on the menu, I reckon, but one hardly looks for that sort of an experience for lunch, yes? This place offers both Korean and Japanese but the one time I visited, I decided to go for a Japanese starter, the prawn gyoza which was nice but nothing to write home about, really. For mains, I went for the Korean bibimpap, a stone hotpot which keeps the food cooking even as you eat it. I had ordered the ribeye steak bibimpap and amazingly enough, the meat to the table came thinly sliced and very raw. The staff then mixed the various ingredients in the pot(rice, mushroom, courgette, spring onion, carrot, egg, sesame seeds and chilli sauce, served with miso soup and kimchi) with the steak at our table and I could see the meat cooking to a tender texture right in front of my eyes. I thought it rather a fancy and exotic meal for lunch and I was well-pleased with the food. The portion sizes are not large and between a starter and a main, I found it just right but I suspect it might fall short of the expectations of someone expecting larger lunches for the price range. That said, the flavours are delightful and fresh and if you’re a fan of Asian food like I am, I’d say it’s worth a visit. I look forward to re-visiting the place sometime for dinner for a more leisurely-paced meal.
Mwl201
Place rating: 4 London, United Kingdom
Love the Japanese/Korean menu here — I usually get the bibimbap which comes in a devilishly hot stone bowl that will cook all the raw ingredients as you mix them together. I used to order loads of sashimi and the soft shell crab roll, but prices kept rising, so now I stick to their lunch sets which are usually around a tenner.
Nassim K.
Place rating: 4 London, United Kingdom
In the past two weeks, have had dinner here twice with great experiences both times. First time ordered a tofu bento box that was yummy. Came with the tofu, rice, salad, bean sprouts, spinach, and a peanut-based sauce. Added a shrimp maki roll that was very well prepared. Companion at dinner had a selection of nigiri that was very fresh. Second time around ordered the«makimono» which consisted of 12 pieces divided into 4 different types of rolls. Very delicious, especially the tuna rolls. There isn’t a huge selection of actual rolls here, though this may be a UK thing. Most of my sushi experience is in CA where there are pages of different sushi rolls and most are made to look like beautiful designs. However, I think Blossom is good for dinner no matter the company b/c everyone will be satisfied. People who wants rolls will order rolls, people who want warm food will go with a bento box or a curry. It’s all relatively affordable as well. One note of caution: they had signs warning of their lunch rush of customers, so if you go around lunch expect to wait a lot. This wasn’t a problem for dinner since this neighborhood quiets down in the evenings.
Gourme
Place rating: 4 London, United Kingdom
In my view Blossom is head and shoulders above Wagamamas(which it is next door to). The food is Japanese/Korean which sounds a bit weird but it means that you can get bento boxes or the famous Korean bibimbaps which are hot stone bowls filled with rice, raw vegetables, raw meat or seafood and egg. Your waitress will mix it all up for you and it cooks while you eat it. Fantastic.
GoalGu
Place rating: 3 Ipswich, United Kingdom
Found this Japanese/Korean restaurant the other day — wanting a change from the usual eateries. It is situated next to Wagamamma’s — and to be honest we chose Blossom because of the shorter queue more than any other reason. The service was fast and friendly and the menu is a mix of Korean and Japanese dishes. I tried the chicken teriyaki bento box which was pretty nice, my colleague had the tofu bibimbap(which is a Korean rice hot pot) which he highly recommended. As to my opinion — well the food is good, the service is quick and efficient and there is plenty of buzz around the place. The downsides for me were that it was extremely noisy(not helped by the chap sitting next to us — you sit on bench arrangements along long tables, so you can end up next to complete strangers — not coming with a volume control!). Also I thought that the prices were a little high compared to similar, nearby restaurants. Pretty good but prefer other places!