Soon’s Kal Bi Drive In

This place has been around foreverrrr. And with no menu changes cause it’s pretty solid. Their prices have gone up significantly. But that’s the price you pay. It is my go-​to-​need-​plate-​lunch-​for-​plane-​ride meal. Sure you stink up the plane with the water mouthing smells of kim chee and deep fried meat jun, but everyone is just jealous and sad that all they have are peanuts.
I can’t say it’s the best meat jun on the island (because the one at Young’s Kalbi is pretty darn tasty) but it’s up there and you won’t be disappointed. They don’t have the full banchan (side dish) selection that some other Korean places have. It’s simple, bean sprouts, cabbage and kim chee.
Try eating a piece of meat jun wrapped with a piece of their cabbage. Delicious. But bring cash. It’s CASH ONLY.

We were in the area so we decided to order lunch here. I’ve read the Unilocal reviews for this place and most of them says that Soon’s have the best meat jun and mandoo, so I ordered the meat jun combo which comes with 3 pieces fried mandoo.
Food (4 out 5): let’s start with the good stuff: mandoo and side picked vegetables that comes with the plate. Both are very tasty and definitely my new faves! On the other hand, I was disappointed with the meat jun — it was razor thin, very oily and TOUGH! Definitely, not the best. In my opinion, the best meat jun is at Seoul BBQ in Wahiawa! Overall, for a $ 10 lunch plate they give quite a lot of food, but next time I come here, I’ll just order a mandoo plate. No meat jun for me.
Service (3 out 5): The girl that took my order at the window was not friendly at all. She didn’t smile nor greeted me. We waited for 5 mins. for our food, which I think is reasonable since we got there right when they open for the day.
Ambience (2 out 5): There’s only 3 booths available to sit down and eat and 1 of the table was dirty. I think this restaurant is meant for to go orders only and not a dine-​in place. But since they have tables available, I think it should always be clean.

Huge portions at extremely reasonable prices. My order had enough meat to feed two or more people, and it was very flavorful. I was surprised to find such a bargain on the island. There is limited outdoor booth seating. Food is ordered through a takeout window.

Very small place that not a whole lot of people know about. Really good local style food at competitive prices. I eat here regularly. Chill atmosphere…

Yup, Great Meat Jun. Also, I think the Fried Mandoo is one of the best. Nice flavor (plenty garlic)

The 2016 Unilocal 100 Review Challenge: ¹⁄₁₀₀ *1^st Review of 2016!*
Soon’s has THE BEST Meat Jhun I have ever eaten. I want their Meat Jhun to be part of my last meal or feast. I currently live in Vegas and I haven’t found any other place in Vegas and Cali that makes their Meat Jhun like this. This is the one place I make sure I visit while I’m on Oahu.
What makes their Meat Jhun different?
It’s the egg-​breading on the outside that doesn’t taste like egg, it’s a little crunchy and doesn’t mask the meat. Meat Jhun I’ve had at other places, it’s fried/​grilled egg dipped meat, a thick coating of egg. The side of sauce that comes with it is unique, tasty and goes well with everything they serve here.
I used to live in this area, the Salt Lake area as a child and I have fond memories of getting meat jhun, kalbi, mandoo and BBQ burgers here. Those were my favorites. Back then I thought this was Korean food, but I found out later that it’s Korean-​Hawaiian fusion food. Meat Jun is a Hawai’i thing.
This place has been around since the 80’s and I’m so happy they’re still in business. I’m surprised that they don’t have more reviews.

During our stay on Oahu, we frequented many Japanese cuisine restaurants, however, we definitely wanted to give Korean a try. I found Soon’s Kal-​Bi Drive Inn on a website list of «MUST TRY’s while in Hawaii» so I put it on my itinerary. It was perfect because it was super close to the Aloha Stadium and that’s where we were coming from after a failed attempt to visit the Swap Meet on a U. of Hawaii home game (swap meets are closed on these days). Soon’s was a short 10 minute drive and we were lucky enough to get there when there was no line to order.
Literally a drive — in with 3 booths available to eat at. We ordered 2 Soon’s Specials at $ 9.25 and boy, for that much for THAT amount of food — it CANNOT be beat. It came with rice, kal bi, thinly sliced meat dipped in egg, and man doo (looks like a pot sticker but tastes like an egg roll). The sides that this comes with is picked vegetables and kimchi.
Easily the top 3 places we dined at while on the island. Definitely a hidden gem and hole in the wall. Highly recommend.

A little corner spot behind everything in the plaza for quick fast food that was more impressive than they looked. After ordering, we got our orders within 5 minutes. We had the Kalbi mixed order which they have very few seats for so we ate in the car. I was mostly impressed with with the egg cooked around Kalbi so thinly! Was trying to figure out how they cooked it like that but it was tasty especially with their sauce. It came with rice and veggies for a complete meal. At the bottom of the egg covered Kalbi was one bbq Kalbi rib. By the time I finished all my egg Kalbi, I was too full to eat the Kalbi rib but I had to just to try it. Very filling and only costed $ 20 for two orders. It was on our way from the airport to our hotel so it worked out but probably not worth going out of the way for, but trying once would be good :)

I’ve been eating at soons for the last couple years. Being a certified strength and conditioning specialist, I am alway looking for food that will build, grow and strengthen my body – and the sheer content contained within the soon’s special never disappoints.
Whether you are looking to pack on some serious mass or just fill up after an intense training session, Soon’s is by far the best bet for a quick, easy, affordable and protein packed meal!

Runners, great job keeping the pace coming up on the third stop of Den’s Meat Jun Marathon!
Soon’s is a an absolute gem tucked away behind Safeway in the Salt Lake Shopping Center. Just like anything worth finding, a little extra searching bears you an unparalleled find.
The service is personable and the food comes out in marathon record time. It’s more of a take out place than a sit down restaurant. There’s a window to order and a few outside seating choices. We picked up our food and that was probably the best choice.
We got the kalbi and meat jun combo and the bbq chicken plate. The portions are larger than marathons are long. No joke. I turned my chicken plate into THREE meals. And the price? This monster was about the same price as other place’s ‘mini’ plates.
The food. The kalbi was tender and flavorful. The meat jun had a good ratio of egg to meat but needed sauce (but it didn’t come with sauce). But the winner in this race was my chicken. It was seasoned so well and oh so tender… just heavenly.
Since I stretched this meal into three meals, I got to enjoy this treasure for two extra days!!!

Why this is rated 4 stars, I’m not even sure. BEST KAL BI ON THE PLANET!
Tim’s and my favorite place to eat when we are in the area. My other half is from Philly so he didn’t know much about Asian foods before, and even now he is a little wary of some dishes… But one thing he cannot live without is Soon’s Korean food, and that’s coming from a man who came from the city with the best food on the east coast!!!
Oh, and I’ve been in Hawaii my whole life, rich with other Asian resources. and this is still my #1 choice. :)

I love coming here after a hike, I have been coming here for over 11 years, dining space is limited so I always order to go and take a quick walk by islanders and the nail salon where there are tons of outside seating. Meat jun and mandoo how could you go wrong 9+ tax with a scoop of rice and there house sprouts, cabbage, and Kim chee. If you love veggies like I do you order and extra side of veggies 2.50 but so worth the price. 2 sauces per and order, ask for the hot red paste, either trade in your sauce or pay and extra .25… Anyway just can’t say enough about the speed and accuracy. Sometimes sticking to old school way works… Must try

Yummy, yummy if you love Korean BBQ! Nothing like Good ol’American BBQ, but just as good, instead of BBQ sauce or a dry rub, the meats are marinated in a shoyu-​based marinade! The familiar «2 scoop rice,» plate lunch includes a small pouch of bean sprouts, cabbage & kim chee. A few picnic tables on the side 2 eat, best 2 call ahead & order, so you just pay & go home & grind, lol! Our BBQ Chicken plate was portioned with 4pieces of ckn, enough 4a hungry Kane or Wahine! Will b back!

This was my first time getting food from Soon’s Kalbi Drive Inn. I heard a few people raving about how good this place was so I decided to try it out. I was so hungry that I ordered:
Bi bim kook soo ($ 8.19): somen noodles, bbq beef, veg, Korean hot sauce. This was not bad. The portion was huge. I like spicy food and usually eat spicy food but there was a lot of heat to this dish. It was hard to really taste the flavors of the dish since my mouth was burning.
Side Order of Steamed Mandoo ($ 10.09) A side order comes with 9 pieces. I read real good reviews of this and I love mandoo! There is a good amount of filling to it but I did not like the taste of it. Soon’s mandoos have a distinct taste to it and I didn’t really like their dipping sauce as well. I was disappointed. I’ve eaten really good tasting mandoo on Liliha so I was kind of sad about this.
I’m not sure if I would come back here. If I did, I’d probably just stick with getting the Kalbi.

I have been coming here for years and it was always delicious. This place was our go to for meat jun each time we are back in Hawaii. Today’s visit was terrible. The meat jun’s meat was extremely thin and it was very dry. We also felt as though the meat Jun was not cooked fully; I had bites of undercooked batter.
We won’t be back for awhile. We were so disappointed by today’s visit.

Definitely the best Korean place around the airport. It is tucked in the corner of Salt Lake shopping center but they carry crispy yet tender meat jun. Chicken BBQ is also very tender with a good flavor. Too bad there is no dine-​in space except a small outdoor table outside.

«The Peace Makers» by Joseph E.
Tonight, in an act of solemn desperation, I called Soon’s and ordered the fried mandoo side dish and the steamed mandoo side dish. The side dish is just the dumplings, 9 per order, no rice or banchan like what would come with the meal had I ordered it. I didn’t want to trifle with anything but dumplings for I meant business tonight. These babies were plump, stuffed full, and well seasoned. The skins where a tad on the thick side, but I’ll admit I’m not a mandoo expert. Rather I’m just comparing these skins to the typical skins found in a gyoza. Perhaps mandoo skins are supposed to be thick and chewy? Not complaining, just making the observation. Also, the dipping sauce was unforgettable: it was the typical soy sauce, vinegar, chili oil trinity but with a dash of sweetness. Maybe sweet rice vinegar? Maybe Japanese mirin? Don’t know but it was perfect. (I even saved the left over sauce and drizzled it over steamed tilapia fillets… Fuhgetta’bout it! It was delicious!)
So which did I like better: fried or steamed? I think the steamed wins by a tad because it was more «honest» in that I could taste the spices and textures of the filling and didn’t get «distracted» by the crunch. Both types were great and all 18 performed their mission successfully.
What mission? What duty lay ahead for these brave and savory comandoos? Well, I charged them with the task of defeating hostile forces behind enemy lines. (The Mrs and I were in a «not trivial» argument and I feared for my safety!) One bite of these and her anger was defeated and we where happy once again. Thank you Soon’s! From now on, your mandoo will be known as the Peace Makers! Can they bring peace to a house full of turmoil? These mandoo can do!

Like most great food places in the island, this place is a hole on the wall and would largely considered by mainland people as a dive joint. This place buried on the back of Salt Lake shopping center so if you’re lost looking for this place; just follow your nose or look for the giant plume of smoke coming from the roof.
What makes this place different from every other Korean BBQ place on the island and worthy of my 5* rating? The Meat jun!
The difference is in the preparation; most places do meat jun either pan fried or on a grill, making the egg fluffy (mainland people think meat omelette) Sun’s is distinct because their meat jun is deep fried giving the meat jun a nice crunchy exterior.
Everyone will have their opinion on who has the best meat jun in town. This is my hands down favorite meat jun on the island!
The mandoo and kalbi are also decent selections by most palates. Every now and then I will get the kalbi combo or meat jun mix to change things up. The constant for me is always the meat jun here.
The little tin foil pouch of mixed veggies (aka ban chan) served with the plates is another nom nom bonus. I always end up ordering an extra set because it is never enough.
Last minute tips:
1. This place is Cash only but lucky for you there is a bank right around the corner.
2. You will want to order an extra meat jun sauce (10 cents extra) since the cup is so tiny and there is never enough to make it through the entire meal.
Eat with confidence.

I had high hopes for Soon’s. Stellar ratings and positive reviews led to very high expectations. I even see multiple claims for best meat jun on the island. I could not be more disappointed by the dryness of literally everything I ordered.
I ordered the #1, Soon’s special with all of the popular items as well as a bbq cheeseburger. All of the things I see people raving about in reviews. The mandoo was average. The meat jun was very dry and the kalbi was way overcooked. Neither of which were enjoyable. I did like the bbq chicken though. They managed to not screw that one up at least. The cheeseburger was dry and bad as well.
Overall, I disliked almost everything I ordered, which was pretty much all of their top items. I’ll be passing on this in the future.

Friend keep bragging about this place that the meat jun is sooo good. Yea it’s you Joei. Haha So we went there after a hike.
Decided to get the Mix plate: BBQ chicken and meat jun. It comes with 2 scoops of rice and a side of kimchi and bean sprouts. Meat jun, yes there is something different. The flakey coating of it. Its not fluffy egg layered, its flakey. I actually preferred the fluffy layered one. But overall it’s not bad.
Seating are limited. Three tables only and this place can get packed. It’s decent pricing with reasonable portion and good quality.