Reviews of Gogi Yogi (Restaurant)

Elizabeth Kloser

Loved this place - great food, the banchan especially. I got the octopus which was so good in the lettuce wrap. My only compliant is that I got too full to finish it all. Sit in Michael B’s section at the bar or you’re missing out!

Stephen Zepecki

I am so happy that I live around the corner from this restaurant. The food and service was exceptional, especially for being a brand new establishment. I am excited to see how they fine-tune their menu and service as time goes on.

Leo Tonaki

My friends and I have been waiting for the first Korean BBQ joint to open in DC and it was worth the wait. Our server was Everett who despite it being his first job ever, did a great job of taking care of us. Whoever backed him up and delivered all of our banchan and meat dishes was fantastic: Johnny-on-the-spot with refilling our order and was super quick on the return--he is an MVP. One thing that I noticed but wasn't a huge issue is that they try to cook your food for you. If you let them know that you're handling everything, they will be on their way, but having to tell every waiter that walks by is a little annoying, but not a deal breaker. Outside of that, being able to cook the food yourself enriches the experience and is a big reason why we came.

Elizabeth Kloser

Loved this place - great food, the banchan especially. I got the octopus which was so good in the lettuce wrap. My only compliant is that I got too full to finish it all. Sit in Michael B’s section at the bar or you’re missing out!

Stephen Zepecki

I am so happy that I live around the corner from this restaurant. The food and service was exceptional, especially for being a brand new establishment. I am excited to see how they fine-tune their menu and service as time goes on.

Eric Hernandez

Congrats on a great opening day!

Leo Tonaki

My friends and I have been waiting for the first Korean BBQ joint to open in DC and it was worth the wait. Our server was Everett who despite it being his first job ever, did a great job of taking care of us. Whoever backed him up and delivered all of our banchan and meat dishes was fantastic: Johnny-on-the-spot with refilling our order and was super quick on the return--he is an MVP. One thing that I noticed but wasn't a huge issue is that they try to cook your food for you. If you let them know that you're handling everything, they will be on their way, but having to tell every waiter that walks by is a little annoying, but not a deal breaker. Outside of that, being able to cook the food yourself enriches the experience and is a big reason why we came.

Wesley Rogerson

Tableside Korean BBQ comes to DC. Exquisite service and plentiful bonchon comes to play at this fun and laid back establishment. Prices are above Annandale competitors BUT that's the price for having this delicious and lively gem in your neighborhood.

Federico Fraboni

Tasty food, nice beers, lovely music, great staff

Jayson Ramos

Terrible service, had to wait for food for 40+ min, messed up our order multiple times, and food wasn’t worth the price. Extremely disappointed. Do not recommend.

Chance Brilz

I went to the restaurant this evening with my friends. We had a fantastic server, Johan. He was very attentive, and helpful with the grilling. He was funny and charismatic. The food and drinks were delicious and the service was wonderful. I would definitely recommend the restaurant and Johan as a server.

Justin Shum

Food was great and reasonably priced. Service was a bit slow as to be expected with a brand new restaurant, but they were packed!

Jayson Ramos

Terrible service, had to wait for food for 40+ min, messed up our order multiple times, and food wasn’t worth the price. Extremely disappointed. Do not recommend.

patrick d

you're welcome if you are 4; otherwise, they tell you: go to the bar or on the table outside

Chance Brilz

I went to the restaurant this evening with my friends. We had a fantastic server, Johan. He was very attentive, and helpful with the grilling. He was funny and charismatic. The food and drinks were delicious and the service was wonderful. I would definitely recommend the restaurant and Johan as a server.

Natasha Sylvester

Great service and DELICIOUS food. The spicy pork is EVERYTHING. The ginger cocktail!! Refreshing Will definitely be back

Don Kay

Outstanding food. Warning make a reservation for the evening or you can wait up to 2 hours.

Courtney Douglas

Easily one of the best meals of my life. The food, drinks, ambiance and service were all outstanding. I came here on busy night, however, received a great service. I really enjoyed bulgogi, steak and baby octopus. Soju and Korean beer made my dinner even better. They also do a good job with ventilation, you don't smell like BBQ after eating here. Can't wait to come back!

Georgina Roth

The food here is really delicious! Absolutely on par with anywhere I’ve been to in Koreatown in NYC. The banchan were great and varied, I especially liked the salty beetroot. We had baby octopus, bulgogi, pork belly and beef belly. Everything was absolutely fantastic! The decor is great too, especially the graffiti wall art. Our waiter was very friendly and attentive, even though there were a lot of people there. My husband enjoyed the unusual beer selection. We really enjoyed our meal here! Will definitely come again, it’s super close to the metro too.

Victoria Brooks

Great overall experience!

Zach Long

Really good! Great food fast service. I particularly liked the spicy pork, and the seafood pancake. Wish they had litttle garlics for the grill and a bit more provided spicy peanut sauce and it was a litttle cold, but really good!

steven vermazen

Incredible BBQ Great atmosphere Great drinks Started with tempura onion rings and Korean BBQ wings both delicious. Honestly almost filled up on the appetizers without noticing and would be happy with just that. The main course we had beef belly, pork belly, spicy pork and the vegetarian platter. I was happily stuffed. Spicy pork definitely highlight of the meal. I suggest getting a nice soju to pair with the main meal.

Ashley McQueen

Food was good! the only complaint I have is about the seating and volume. The seats weren't as comfortable as I had hoped. The staff was nice and very attentive. Nice selection of bonchons.

Josh Kegley

Been to the restaurant twice. The first time was a nice experience during lunch hours (1pm). The food was quality and the staff was kind. The second experience was by far the worst restaurant experience I’ve ever had. At 6:50pm, my boyfriend and I arrived without a reservation. We expected a wait and didn’t mind ordering some beverages at the bar. However, the restaurant must of had some issues as there was maintenance men and ladders at the front door. The host/manager ushered us in and assured us we’d be taken care of. We added our names to the list and ordered a few drinks at the bar. There were at least 5 empty tables. 40 minutes after 7pm, I asked the staff the wait time and they said there was no way for them to estimate our wait time and that we were 2nd on the list. The restaurant still had 3 empty 4 tops. At 8:15pm, my boyfriend asked and they said they still haven’t started pulling from the waitlist but larger parties started arriving which made it feel increasingly less likely we’d be sat. At 8:30, over an hour and a half wait time, still one empty 4top, we decided to just eat elsewhere. We had a $65 bill for 2 drinks and a pitcher of half decent beer. It feels as if you only value party sizes larger than 4. Either take reservations for everyone or don’t take them at all and serve your patrons on first come first serve. The staffs recommendation at 8:50pm when they called to let me know the table was ready: “Next time, put a group of 4 or more together.”

Paris gatorade

Not allowed to dine because I’m a party of one. That is discrimination against introverts who prefer to go to places alone or people who are new to the city and yet to make friends.

David Jaramillo

I had super high expectations of this place since I’ve been to plenty Korean BBQ places in Los Angeles. Let me tell you, it is so worth it. The service is amazing. The food is delicious (including appetizers). We got the ribeye, the spicy marinated pork, and the tiger shrimp. The food came up fast and the sides made it all come together. This is definitely going to be a place to take friends and loved ones. If you enjoy drinks, order the Towers. It’s a combo of sake and Pilsner beer. A never ending sake bomb. So good! Great addition to U St!

John Stovall

Reservations are only allowed for parties of four or more. And BBQ tables are only available for parties of three or more. Both of which make it difficult from the outset to get in. If you’re a party of two you are restricted to sitting at the bar and ordering off the prepared foods menu. If you are a party of four and get a reservation there are some good qualities and bad qualities. Food flavor and quality is good. Staff were very friendly and accommodating, but a little inattentive. The three significant detractors were the portion sizes, cost and overall atmosphere. Appetizers started at 15 and ran up to 20. The meat dishes start at 20+ and run up to 50. For the amount of food you get in each dish, it’s barely enough to feed a group of 4 (which is again the minimum if you want to plan ahead and sit at a table). The sheer cost of every item and the small sizes made any enjoyment of the food insignificant. Additionally, given the cost of the meal, one might argue that you are “paying for the experience” of a sit down Korean BBQ place. But at 50-60 dollars a head I’d expect more than undersized tables, uncomfortable barrels to sit on, and paper napkins and menus.

steven vermazen

Incredible BBQ Great atmosphere Great drinks Started with tempura onion rings and Korean BBQ wings both delicious. Honestly almost filled up on the appetizers without noticing and would be happy with just that. The main course we had beef belly, pork belly, spicy pork and the vegetarian platter. I was happily stuffed. Spicy pork definitely highlight of the meal. I suggest getting a nice soju to pair with the main meal.

Ashley McQueen

Food was good! the only complaint I have is about the seating and volume. The seats weren't as comfortable as I had hoped. The staff was nice and very attentive. Nice selection of bonchons.

Ashley Artrip

Great place! Will definitely be back.

Theodore Chang

I was very excited to hear that DC was getting a Korean BBQ place within the city and close by to Logan Circle! But I also would guess that the prices would be a bit high due to the location, and sure I was right. But at the end of the day, I'd pay money, feel satisfied, IF the food was good and worth it! Well was it worth it? My friends and I decided to check this place out one night to try out the drinks, food, and of course, korean-style marinated meats! Cocktail: Yuzu flavored cocktail was DELICIOUS! I couldn't get enough of the delicious flavors! Yummmm! Definitely go back to get a drink here in the future. Appetizers: - Fried Onion Rings: Meh. Pretty standard. Nothing special. Came with a spicy mayo sauce. Taste was good. - Korean Pancakes: Avoid! It was soooo soggy and the texture and consistency was off. Not a lot of ingredients in the pancake at all. I think the chefs used the wrong batter or just did not use enough oil to pan-fry it so it comes out gummy and soggy. It should be crispy on the edges and outside, but a bit chewy on the inside and packed with ingredients....this disk was a huge miss! Flavor of the sauce it comes with was good though. Definitely not worth the money. Banchan: - Kimchee: Delicious! Spicy, tangy, and packed with flavor. Truly a korean-style kimchee. I am assuming this was probably bought from a third-party vendor? I'd be surprised if it was made in-house. - Stewed Soy Sauce Potatoes: Delicious! Exactly how it should taste at any Korean restaurant. Packed with flavor and seasoned just right! Potatoes were cooked to the right texture and it was served a bit chilled, just as how it was supposed to be served. - Beets: Was a little thrown off by this being served, but it tasted pretty good! - Bean Sprouts: Lacking sesame oil flavor and needs a bit more salt. - Onions: Was pretty good. Used it with the lettuce wraps. Went well with the meat. - Pickled Daikon (radish) and carrots: Lacked the sourness balanced with the sweetness that I am usually accustomed to. May need to add more vinegar and sugar, or have it pickle longer. Meats: - Beef Bulgogi - Delicious! Marinade was perfect and the meat was seasoned very well! Quality of the meat was really good (compared to the ones you get at an AYCE place in VA). You only get 8 oz of meat, which isn't that much, considering the price you pay, but the taste can justify its cost. - Spicy Pork - Delicious as well! A bit on the spicier side (which I loved) and not too salty as well! Marinaded well and packed with flavor. The pork is not pork belly, but still tasty! Good quality and I think it was worth its cost (considering it is in DC). Service - No too bad. We had to wave down the waiter a couple times to get refills. The waiter doesn't really have time to cook for you (as how they do in Annandale) because of all the tables he has to go to. Overall, I think I will stick with driving out to VA for my Korean fix. I do love the bar at Gogi, great drinks. The food however was a bit of a miss, especially the appetizers. If they start doing deals where you get a combination of meats for a set price, I think I'd return to try that out.

Flickr the Nuri

Had 12 teams in front of us when we got there around 8 on Saturday night. They couldn’t give us the estimated time and we ended up waiting over an hour. The marinaded pork belly, the dipping sauses and some side dishes tasted like the ones in Korea. Their spicy marinaded meats or side dishes tend to be very spicy. (The chief might have some connections with Kyeongsang area.) The spicy marinated pork belly was so thin that the pieces of meat burns are very quickly and ⅓ were too tiny pieces that I had to try keeping them away from the holes on the grill top. Never seen that much of thiness for the dish while growing up in Korea and obvious that they used frozen pork. For the sidedishes, whereas the potato made me miss Korea, some side dishes were too old to be served or wrongly made (ex) spicy cucumber, bean sprouts etc.) and the wrapping leaves were wilted. I also not sure what purpose of the leeks served with meat on the grill other than for decoration. It burns in a minute.

Bernadine Vermazen

My first experience with Korean BBQ, food was excellent, service excellent, fun atmosphere. I really liked TokTok

Deirdre Orceyre

Excellent food and service. I've been to lots of Korean BBQ and this one is great.

Collin Slep

The service and food was amazing!

Brian Gaston

Can’t really rate the food because I never got a chance to dine. This restaurant discriminates against parties of two by only allowing reservations for parties of 4 or more. So when I arrived with my dining guest at 5:30 pm, we had to be added to a waiting list. When I asked how long the wait could be, the hostess refused to give a time estimate. She would only tell me that we were 7th on the list. In the meantime, my friend and I had drinks and appetizers at the bar (you can’t order meals at the bar because the grilled bbq pits are on the tables - totally makes sense). Almost an hour later I checked back with the hostess to see what our list status was. We had moved up only 1 spot in almost an hour. Realizing it would be a long time before we would get seated, we decided to leave and go somewhere else. Around 8 pm — when we were actually finishing up our dinner at another restaurant in the neighborhood — I received a text message from Gogi Yogi saying that our table would soon be ready - 2 and 1/2 hours after putting our names on the wait list. Clearly this restaurant has zero interest in serving parties of two and discriminates against parties of two by not allowing reservations for such parties. So if you do go to this restaurant, be sure to be a party of four and make a reservation. You will be taken care of.

Lyndsay Carreno

I was very excited to try this place out but was pretty disappointed. some of the food came out cold, the service was horrible and they came over and did the grilling portion for us? not really the point I don't think and made the experience really awkward with someone looming over the table.... took 30 mins to get a beer from the bar, had to ask for things over and over. they forgot things. double charged us, etc. on top of all of that for two people to eat I t was $160........ that is so insane for what this place is? it looks like a chipotle inside and the food isn't amazing. if you're going to spend $160 on dinner go to a nice sit down spot in the area and honestly save money?

Hannah Yoo

2 hr wait always even on a Tuesday night. Food comes out super slow and of hot. Drinks are small. Tried this place twice I really hoped for the best but also backless stools why?!

Jacobo Lopez

You get to experience the reality of making your own food however in a much more tasteful way

Cynthia S.

Very fun!

allison nielsen

All in all I'd say this was probably a 3.5 star experience but the meat was actually really high quality and the drinks were good so I'll round up. This is a new restaurant in a pretty happening spot of town so it was very busy. They don't accept reservations for parties with fewer than four people which is a little strange to me but waiting at the bar was fine. I ordered the Suyu later which tasted like lemonade. After an hour waiting we finally got seated. We started with the pajeon pancake (pretty good) and the onion rings (very good). For meats we ordered the bulgogi and the spicy pork. I was impressed by the quality of the meat! Unfortunately, the service was not what I'm used to at Korean BBQ and we had to flip and cut our own meat. The banchan was just okay. Nothing really blew me away. I think you probably get better bang for your buck out in Virginia but this isn't a bad spot.

Hannah Yoo

2 hr wait always even on a Tuesday night. Food comes out super slow and of hot. Drinks are small. Tried this place twice I really hoped for the best but also backless stools why?!

Michelle Morgan

Experiencet the best restaurant in the Shaw area food is enticing delicious delectable along with the music creates the Ambiance of this restaurant one of the most positive experience especially with the server David and Benet very professional and knowledgeable

Shane Kim

This place is underwhelming. The rice was mushy and meat portions were skimpy. The galbi was marinated well but I wouldn’t pay 27 for two pieces of LA kalbi. Perhaps some early growing pains but I wouldn’t call this an authentic Korean BBQ experience.

Jonathan Dillard

Sat at the bar and asked the bartender for the menu so I could order a drink, took a few minutes to look over the options and was ready. Sat there for another 15 mins and waited to be served, but it never happened even though I made eye contact several times with employees, no one followed up. Very confusing experience. Not sure what to make of this place. Terrible first impression and most likely won't be going back again.

Sandeep Satija

worst KBBQ I have been too