Moo Jin Jang

The food was okay. I like that they have a lot of side dishes. The lady was nice and sweet. She explained what’s on the menu. Overall, this Korean restaurants was great.

Their tofu soup is not as good as expected and got a parking ticket. Bad experience.

The first time I went, I thiught the food was amazing. However, the second time we went, I wasn’t too impressed with what I ate. The service was bit slow and the food tasted salty. I know that the owners changed and not sure if this affected in any way but the inconsistency makes me hesistant to return.

I wanted to try some place different but also in the mood for Asian so we decided to check this place out. Years ago, I remember picking up food for catering and they used to make this delicious crispy chicken dish, but since then, there’s been a change in owners and its no longer on the menu.
I ordered the DolSot BiBimBap. It was just average. You really can’t go too wrong with this dish. But I felt like they gave too much rice and put in too much sesame oil
My friends ordered the Jeyuk Bokeum and that actually looked pretty good.

My friends and I stopped here for dinner on our way to H Mart last night. If it hadn’t been for Unilocal,we wouldn’t have known Moo Jin Jang exists. The exterior of the restaurant doesn’t really stand out amongst the shops and houses on this part of Market St.
Here is a summary of everything we ordered:
Banchan (side dishes)
Although free, these small side dishes are that little extra touch that tells you how detail-​oriented the cook is. There were six in total: bean sprouts, fish cake, soy sauce egg, mushrooms, zucchini, and of course kimchi. None stood out as being especially good. We all commented that the mushroom and kimchi were the least appetizing.
Haemul pajeon (seafood pancake)
Our seafood pancake appetizer was okay flavor-​wise. Texturally, however, it was not good; the pancake was very thick, leading it to be soft rather than crispy. While it was certainly edible, this seafood pancake turned out to be the worst I’ve ever ordered at a restaurant. I imagine it would’ve been a great appetizer had the batter been spread more thinly.
Kimchi mandu (kimchi dumplings)
We ended up getting pan-​fried kimchi dumplings because it was the only kind left. Recalling the amazing kimchi dumplings I had in Seoul, I was excited to try them here. Perhaps unsurprisingly the kimchi dumplings here weren’t nearly as good. The texture of the filling was a bit mushy. The wrappers were oily and soft, despite being golden-​brown in color. Overall, just an okay dish.
Soondubu (soft tofu stew)
The soft tofu stew was just okay and ultimately not something I would recommend ordering here. The color, a deep red, was a promising sign of spicy flavor. But unfortunately that was it — there were no other dimensions of flavor in the dish. Other than tofu, the stew had small pieces of zucchini and mushroom.
Je-​yuk bokeum (pork and vegetables in spicy sauce)
This dish was beyond a doubt my favorite. The meat was fatty, making it flavorful and chewy. The spicy, sweet sauce cut through the fattiness of the meat and went great with the stone pot rice. No complaints can be made because it was so delicious!
The food here is authentic and more tasty than the Korean restaurants I have been to in University City. Still, all but one of the dishes we tried could have benefited from small tweaks in the cooking process. I would say try Moo Jin Jang if you are in the area and are having a Korean food craving. Meanwhile, I am still on the search for a great Korean restaurant in Philly.

I’ve been here a few times now, first with friends and then with the in-​laws. We all really enjoy this place — the owner is so nice, the food is always delicious and fresh, generous portions, and the prices are good. Everything tastes homemade like you’re in your mom’s kitchen, including the small side dishes. Nothing is fancy but just really tasty. Their specialty is the various fish stews («chorim») — it’s so good! If you ask the owner what fish is freshest of the day, she will tell you and you should order that — can’t go wrong!

I wonder if the owners changed is the first thing I thought as I was leaving the restaurant. It had been so long since I’d been here that I wasn’t sure but the food was bad, the service was bad, the air was … just everything was bad.
Well maybe not actually bad but mediocre at best. Nothing was as I remembered it and I left very disappointed with my two friends to whom I had bragged about this place up the wazoo.
Anyways, there are many other good options for Korean food in Philly so I’m afriad Moo Jin Jang has had my last patronage. Bye bye, until I hear otherwise.
PS. not surprised at Charlotte H’s review. One time I came here straight from the airport for good Korean food. It was a Sunday. They’re supposed to be open. They were closed for a club dinner. No sign. No nothing. I walked in, sat down, was kicked out. Even after I told them I had flown in from Michigan. Ok. Now writing it down it sounds obnoxious of me, but the food smelled good. I wanted some. But in retrospect, it’s all good. No need to have wasted my stomach and taste buds on the likes of them. Sigh. I’m sad. Cuz they used to be so good!

This place completely blew me away. The jaeyook bokum is one of the best dishes I’ve had in my life. The service was very good, and the portions were generous and inexpensive.

The service is so good here — she makes you feel like you are having a meal at home. Also, if you are on a bland diet for health reasons — I recommend you get the soondoobu! They can make «white soondoobu» for you so you can get your korean food fix without the spicy.

I was in Glen Mills for a business trip and found this place to be the closest well-​reviewed Korean place relatively on the way from the PHL airport to Glen Mills. I was particularly craving Korean tofu soups, and while I’m not Korean, I’ve been to so many tofu soup restaurants in highly populated Korean cities. I really wanted to love this place, but unfortunately it didn’t meet my expectations.
First, I called to make sure they were open on a Sunday. The lady told me to come in, and when I arrived, the door was locked. It was only 8:30PM. Surprised, I tried calling to make sure I was in the right place (though I had to have been since that is the only Korean restaurant within a mile radius). No one picked up. Finally, out of desperation, I knocked on the door really loudly. As I was about to walk away, the lady I presumed to be the owner opened the door. It was a very strange experience, but I was excited to be out of the cold and to eat that I didn’t mind that I was the only person in the silent restaurant. The lady went back to folding dumplings at the table next to me as I decided what to order. At least I know they make their dumplings themselves.
All in all, I thought the food was OK at best. I ordered the tofu soup ($ 9) and the bulgogi ($ 15). I’ll start with the ban chan. I really hate to say this, but it was not very good. Most of them tasted overly fermented and not fresh, and there wasn’t much variety (only had 6 dishes compared with the 8+ I’ve gotten before). Then while the mushroom tofu soup had a lot of different mushrooms, it lacked flavor. I did like that the rice that came with it automatically came in a stone bowl. The bulgogi was also a little disappointing. I’m not sure exactly what’s authentic for bulgogi, but in my experience, the meat typically is pan fried with onions and maybe carrots. This bulgogi had a lot going on and didn’t taste pan fried. It had a bunch of various vegetables (which is fine) and noodles (random, never had that before). But the vegetables must’ve leaked water, so the dish ended up tasting a little wetter than I wanted. If the dish didn’t cost $ 15, I’d have forgiven it, but it was incredibly disappointing for how much it was.
Again, I’m really sad that my food experience was less than expectations. I’m all for mom and pop shops, and the owners seemed like really kind people, but I really expected better quality from a seemingly authentic Korean restaurant.

I think this place is a gem! This is a little hole-​in-​the-​wall restaurant that is easy to overlook. The interior is small and dark, and has a décor that looks like you crossed a traditional Japanese tea house with a state office building in Harrisburgh, and then stuffed it into a small Upper Darby storefront. I actually find the décor and ambiance oddly charming and very pleasant.
The menu is small and straightforward. Prices are very reasonable! The people who work here do not speak very much English, but they are still able to communicate.
They are very generous with both the variety and size of the side dishes. Three of us ate here and there were eight side dishes, and all of them were top-​notch, and they had their own various original spins on them – not quite like anything I had tried anywhere else.
I got a soft tofu stew and my two friends got bibimbap. Both were very good! The ingredients were all very fresh and the servings were generous.
I think this has become my favorite Korean restaurant around Philly, away from the Korean neighborhood in far north Philly.

i’d say the best k food outside of north philly area. authentic taste, good fish dishes, great service, and good portions for the price. the only minus was that i thougth some dishes were a bit on the bland side. otherwise, a good place to go for good banchan and korean food :)

Traditional. Plenty of banchan with the sundubu. I’m a fan.

They don’t stop bringing food!!! TONs of food — VERY traditional. The server wasn’t very friendly but I think it was a communication barrier. I’m sure in this neighborhood they deal with their fair share of lousy customers and it shows in there demeanor and expectation of you. I wanted something different while in this area and I got it… not sure I’d go back.

This is a hidden gem, not many people outside of Korean people know about this place. It is right off milbourne station on the market frankford line. The service is great, but can be a little problem for non speaking koreans, they speak very little english here. The soon dubu (soft tofu soup) is on par and as good as Jong Ga Jib. Another plus is they serve their rice in the hot stone pot so you can get the crispy rice at the end of the meal. My favorite dish from this place is stir fried octopus noodles, it is real good, its a dish with udon noodles topped with spicy marinated octopus. It is spicy and sweet at the same time which is the best combination. I would say this feels like a place you would want to go to if you want that «home cooked» feeling. I have been a regular since it opened.

Moo Jin Jang was great!
My husband and I went to dinner there on our way to a concert at the Tower Theater. We don’t speak/​read Korean and we had no problem ordering. The food was tasty, the service was excellent and the price was comparable to other Korean restaurants we’ve been to. My husband loved his bulgogi and my pork with vegetables had just the right balance between savory and spicy.
If you are going to an event at the Tower and need a place for dinner, I recommend Moo Jin Jang.

We passed this place so many times on our way to the H-​mart and always wondered what it was. Honestly the only way I know the romanized name to this place is because it’s on the receipt — otherwise, I’d have no idea what it was called other than «that Korean place that seems to be open at random times». One time we passed it, it was actually open so we headed in.
Boyfriend and I have eaten here twice and both times we were the only non-​Korean people here (which I think says a lot about the food). I’m really not experienced in Korean food all that much, but my boyfriend liked the pork-​katsu type dish (don’t know the name in Korean) and I liked the bi-​bim-​bop (with no beef). What really stood out though, was the whiting fish soup, which we both enjoyed immensely. The staff consists of middle aged Korean women who really don’t speak that much of anything else, but always seemed happy to help us out.
Wouldn’t mind going back.

The restaurant is called «Moo Jin Jang» now and has new owners. They basically specialize in Soon Dubu (Tofu) and Saeng-​sun Jo-​Lim (Braised Fish). They do have other items to choose from and they’re decent. Everything comes with Dol-​sot Bap (steamed rice in a cast iron pot) that is served with all the Bori Cha (Barley Tea) you want. The price is great and the service is great as well but then again, I do speak Korean. For the non-​Korean speakers, you may encounter a different experience just due to the language barrier of the wait staff. The menu is in English and Korean though.
The ban’chan is always pretty good and better than nagwon up Rt. 3 but the only down side is that they use alot of MSG.

It’s no longer called Jung Sung, but as the new name is in Korean and my Hangul is shameful, let’s just say that the address is the same. Follow Walnut Street out of the city, take a right at Cobbs Creek Parkway, and a left under the EL tracks and past the chaos of the never-​ending/​barely begun construction. About a ¼ mile on the right side is the homiest style Korean place in this area. They serve a very basic menu of grandma style foods. Jigae’s (a kind of hot stew) in different varieties, bulgogi (marinated beef), pajeon (a savory pancake) and in the summertime, mul naeng myun (a cold buckwheat noodle soup — highly recommended) and other kinds of simple, nutritious foods. The ban chan (free appetizer dishes) are generous and varied and the rice always comes in a hot stone bowl — a nice traditional touch. To be ultra Korean, scoop the rice out of your stone bowl into the dish provided, then after eating, pour some of your tea into the bowl to soften the layer of crispy rice that coats the inside. Eat this concoction with your soup spoon and find yourself soothed after all the spicy flavors.
The staff here is a little shy about non-​Korean speaking customers, but are friendly and helpful and the menu (sitting on the tabletop) is in english. Also, this is a favorite destination for many of the parishioners of the local Korean churches, so keep that in mind when relating the tale of your latest evening out.

Black Goat Soup. Bimbim bop. la kalbi. pagulki. that’s all I have to say, the food was a little pricey, but it tasted excellent. It looked like a traditional korean home, with the waitress dressing in traditional clothes. I would really love to go back here. been here a few times while visiting friends in upper darby, and our friends had never tried korean. we liked it, i dont know about them.