The Owl of Minerva

Quite disappointed with the porkbone soup here. It’s lacking ingredients and flavour. The pork meat itself has no taste absorbed into it. The lady working here was nice but the food is bleh. Will find a better korean place to eat at.

It’s my first time at an owl place. I went with my family. Mom and I got the pork bone soup. I think my sister liked that one, too. It’s actually quite good. But the banchan is definitely lacking since it was 3 plates of banchan.
I also got the tangsuyuk. BIG MISTAKE. I still can’t believe that I got that dish, and wondered if it was my fault or not, cuz I thought it’d actually be good. But the meat was so chewy that it was uneatable, and most of it was just dough. Not the good kind of dough, since it was chewy and uneatable and didn’t do any justice. It doesn’t have flavours and was only covered by sweet sauce. I think it came with apple pieces. This abomination should be quarantined away from the menu selection.
Dad got the kalguksu. It doesn’t taste anything special at all.
Pajeon was not good and I ate two small pieces and gave it to dad.
The servers are hostile and seemed like they were expecting spies from North Korea. They were humming to that one T-​ara song that was playing. I don’t think it was the ones I liked, but that doesn’t contribute to the 1 star, of course.
Dad talked to one of the servers. He asked for a slip of paper and the server was like «why». Mind you, I came here with my whole family, not with 1 or 2 friends. Bich was like «why» lol. He still bothered to give tips before we left. He always tips.
I might come back for a bowl of kamjatang, but definitely not with my family.

Their pork and potato soup is pretty good and very filling but the other dishes aren’t as great. Food is always hot but some are a bit bland and the flavour isn’t very special.

Did not enjoy it here. Prices were a bit higher than other Korean places and food was below par. Service was also not really there. Would not recommend this place especially since there are so many other Korean restaurants to choose from.

I’ve heard not-​so-​great about this restaurant but I actually thought it was a decent place. I don’t like pork bone soup so I will not rate my experience on that — even though that is what it’s known for. My dad did get the pork bone soup — he thought it was decent with a mild spicy taste. Not bad. But not as amazing as a place he used to go to.
I went with the kalbitang which is the pork ribs soup. I actually really enjoyed it and thought the meat was tender and sweet. Other places I’ve been to usually overlook it and it gets all tough.
Only three side dishes. But they weren’t bad. Not sure if we can get free refills on them but I probably would want to know if I go again.
It’s a small restaurant — I would suggest going out a little earlier to eat. We got there at 6:30 and the crowd started coming in after 7.

Decided to give this place a try as it is conveniently located at the hub of Asian food in Scarborough. I’m a pretty big fan of authentic Korean food so Owl was a must try for me as I’ve seen many locations throughout the GTA. We came a little before closing and there were still quite a few tables occupied. We ordered 2 dishes, pork bulgogi and pork bone soup. This place to our surprise doesn’t give many side dishes with the orders, just the typical kimchi and cucumbers so that was meh as I’ve been to places where they give 6 – 7 different kinds of side dishes to try. Both the pork bone soup and bulgogi were super flavourful and authentic. However, the bulgogi was a tad bit on the oily side. The prices are average — about $ 10 per dish. However, I feel like I overpaid about $ 1 – 2 for their franchise more so than the food quality, service or value.

I am never coming back here again! I am very disappointed with my dinning experience here. I came here on a Thursday night with a group of friends for a late dinner after badminton. For one thing, walking in to this place there were messy unclean tables everywhere. This place is a small place. The menu is a standard Owl menu, and I’ve been to a few different locations. I ordered a Pork Bowl soup and my boyfriend ordered the beef bogoui. My dish was satisfactory, I have to say I definitely had better pork bowl soup elsewhere. The dish my boyfriend got was a an item that almost all korean restaurant would have. But his dish was just bad! The beef was super tough and the sauce… I don’t think there were any. We told the korean lady working there that the dish was not good and he wasn’t able to eat it. Her response was rude (benefit of the doubt maybe her English wasn’t that good) … and basically said to us, «so what» … most servers anywhere would of offered to take the dish away and either provide a fresh one or get you to pick another item on the menu. In the end, they did give my boyfriend another dish, but I am not comimg back here fpr sure. Not good experience at all! very disappointed.

I’ve been to The Owl of Minerva before, but the First Markham Place location. I wasn’t very pleased. Terrible service and the food pretty much sucked.
This one as a bit more impressive. The food was pretty great and tasty, a lotttt better than the First Markham location. But the service still sucked. Everytime I come into Owl of Minerva, I always feel like I’m bothering the servers in some way. Not very welcoming.
It wasn’t too packed when I went, but there were a few people.
It’s a clean, cute space with a tv playing Kpop. Everything is reasonably priced, no complaints.
In comparison to a lot of other Korean restaurants in the area, the lack of banchan is laughable. 3 dishes, that’s it. And the kimchi isn’t even that great!
All in all, unless I was super desperate for Korean food and was stuck in the Midland/​Finch area, I’d go here. But if given the choice, there’s better options.

Best part side dish radish and cucumbers. Big bambap and pork bone soup is meh. The service is acceptable… Not really a good flavour compare to other places I’ve tried. Disappointed. The prices were a bit pricey too. The reputation is way to hyped, the food is about mediocre.

There are not too many good Korean restaurants in the area where I live so I’m glad that this one is here. I had another craving for pork bone soup. I seem to get these cravings at least once a month. $ 8.99 for pork bone soup is pretty standard price all around. The soup was not overly salty but I thought it needed a bit more heat in terms of spiciness. There was a good serving of fall off the bone meat. Also got a small dokboki for $ 6.99. It was pretty decent but nothing special to point out.
One thing I don’t like about The Owl of Minerva is the side dishes. Although they do taste good I just wish there were more options. The side dishes you get here are radish, kimchii and pickled cucumber. When compared to other places like Nak won who serve 8 side dishes this place just falls short.

It was unfortunate and disappointing coming to this location. After hearing much positive things about this restaurant we decided to give it a try. I’ve been to other Korean restaurants just like theirs (in terms of casual dining, simple set up, menu, etc.) and O of M did not come up to par.
We ordered the pork bone soup, beef bibimbap, and a kimchi pancake, currently priced $ 8.99, $ 10.99, $ 10.99 respectively. Firstly the soup was pretty tasty, 3 huge chunks of pork bone in the bowl. It came with a side of white rice. Bibimbap was loaded with the basic vegetables (cucumber, carrots, mushrooms, bean sprouts, radish) and topped with a fried egg, but sadly not a lot of bulgogi. I was hoping to get more beef in it, I didn’t even get a tablespoon worth. The meat wasn’t even flavourful as I’d hope it’d be, in comparison to other bibimbaps I got from other restaurants which were marinated flavourfully (which were also wayyy cheaper in price, with a lot more variety of vegetable toppings — the downtown Korean restaurants are really good with this). The kimchi pancake wasn’t really seasoned well, but it came with a tiny bowl of soy sauce with green onions and sesame seeds for dipping. Even with that, I didn’t get a second serving. I thought the pancake was a bit overpriced considering the uninteresting flavours and ingredients used for it.
Our orders also came with 3 side dishes: kimchi, pickled vegetables, and kimchi radish. I was also hoping for more variety of side dishes, as that’s what I happily look forward to eat at a Korean restaurant — along with the main course, of course :)
Lastly, the most dissapointing part (kinda offending, actually) is how we were outed by the server for not tipping enough, saying we have to give a certain amount, and telling us it’s not included in the bill. I usually tip based on how well the service and the food was, but honestly, the service was unsatisfactory and minimal here. I don’t know much about service etiquette but I’m pretty sure you don’t count the money right by the guest, come back to their table and ask the customer straight out to give you more money for service — in front of other customers too, may I add. Best advice is maybe disclose that «service charge» somewhere in your menu or even add it to the bill — I’ve seen full service restaurants do that. But for a casual dining restaurant, with lack of dining atmosphere (basic tables and chairs, small eating area, no thought of design/​fitting décor anywhere… there were still Christmas decors up too), I don’t think they should expect much from their guests. I guess the only exception of good service was that our food came pretty quick (but also take into account that there were only 3 tables of customers getting served at the time). We were so embarrassed that we just tipped whatever more she wanted and left. For 2 people we spent ~$ 40. I can get better food and incredible service for less, elsewhere. I don’t think I’ll ever be back to this establishment, sorry.

First time visiting this particular location. Definitely not impressed with the service. Food portions were smaller compared to the yonge/​finch location. As an example, ordered 2 pork bone soups for takeout and received only 3 pieces of kimchi in total to share. What an embarrassment to the OWL name. Won’t be coming back to this location.

Food here is good, not as salty as the other franchise that used to be in Scarborough. Service is always friendly and quick as well. Although the place doesn’t look very appealing from the outside, the restaurant is clean and well taken care of.

The Owl of Minerva is my favorite Korean Restaurant in Toronto. I would definitely recommend the Kamja Tang, but everything I’ve tried is good. It’s just what you expect from a Korean place: good food, plenty of side dishes, decent service, and constant K-​pop TV. Prices are fair and service is quick. Park in back!

The pork bone soup is definitely what you want to come for. You get 3 pieces of pork bone in a peppery soup with a bowl of rice. The side dishes (radish, cucumber, and cabbage kimchi) are also pretty fresh and tasty. Great place to munch at a decent price. However, it does get a bit messy eating as you have to peel off the meat from the bones.
Also available until late at night as it is open ²⁴⁄₇

Evening of emptiness in thy Tummy growls concerns to the Cerebral Cortex.
Near Brainlessness, w e a k signals were transferred in code…
P B s P b S p B s p b s
I blank out to leave my own vehicle on Hunger auto-​pilot.
I woke to a Black bubbling cauldron of Red soup.
… Owl of Minerva’s Pork Bone Soup[$ 7.99].
I sat alone at the lone table left and it so happens Three empty seats come with.
A solo Female strides in and I instantly sense a request of sorts from staff.
Diagonally across a -=Stranger=- with common Korean Food needs.
The understanding of -=Leverages=- will lead to Bone cleanliness.
Long spoons act as effective shucking silverware but beware.
Your range of arm motion becomes much more widen.
In my short time there of Gamjatang ravaging.
Bang. Bang. -=Cartpushing=- lady bangs.
All Table corners in her path of sight.
Possibly a couple elbows as well.
Keep arms inside at all times.

I decided to drop by for a quick meal since I live in the area and to see if it was any different from the other Owl of Minervas I have tried around the city.
I ordered the Bulgogi DupBap ($ 7.99) which is essentially bulgogi with vegetables on rice with a fried egg. The dish was pretty good, the bulgogi was nicely marinated and sweet but not too sweet and it was a decent quality of meat that wasn’t dry. The portion size was also decent.
The one thing I don’t like much about the Owl of Minerva chain is the minimal amount of banchan you get. I only received 3 banchan dishes which is normal for this chain and they were not bad but a little bit on the salty side.
All in all, it’s definitely a welcome addition to the area since there are no real Korean restaurants in that surrounding area from what I know. I’ll definitely go back to try the other dishes on their menu.

The Owl of Minerva is really popping up everywhere! I have been to most of the time and this Scarborough location is definitely one of the better ones!
Food I found all of them are quite similar in quality, with an identical menu and same pricing. The reason this Owl stands out to be the best because of the super friendly waitresses.
My Kimchi JJigae (8.99) which I request extra spicy came out boiling hot! Plenty of fatty pork inside and with tofu, glass noodles and of course kimchi!
Now they have a Grand Opening Special till end of August $ 5.99 for Pork Bone Soup. Definitely take advantage of this special if you are in the area.