Ddong Ggo Street Pub and Karaoke

Had no idea what to order — staff was super helpful — had a great meal and great time. Definitely will go back and try more dishes.

I love this place from the food menu to the atmosphere!
I love the staff members and to be honest, they are understaff but that’s the only complaint I would have.
I come back time and time again, the food is deliciously consistent and the service is superb. I take all my friends here especially out of town because it really gives you that Korean «pocha» feel with authentic Korean food!
I highly recommend this place!

I dropped by here for drinks and a snack before some heavy drinking. Ddang GGo is a sooljip (Korean drinking establishment) next door to previously reviewed Beer Belly on Western in KTown. They specialize in fried chicken.
We ordered the fried chicken combo ($ 28 | whole fried chicken, fries, and a pitcher of beer), and kimchee tofu (pork kimchee & tofu). I forgot the price of the latter item. However, the entire bill was $ 61 (inc tax), and we also had two bottles of Chamisul ($ 10/​each).
First of all, the fried chicken was just OK. I had Howlin Ray’s Nashville Chicken the day before, and DG’s version paled in comparison. The birds here are small, not soaked in anything noticeable, nor are they coated in seasoned flour. Nonetheless, the bird was not too dry, and if you dipped it in hot sauce, it added flavor: 3 Stars. Secondarily, the fries were pretty good. They arrived hot & crispy like fries should: 3 Stars.
Likewise, the kimchee & tofu was good, but not great. Toe Bang is the standard for this type of food, and DG’s version was not as flavorful, nor was the portion as large: 3 Stars.
On the other hand, the service from Josh was excellent. We struck up a convo and found out he is related to the owner. He also comped us a bottle of Chamisul: 5 Stars. The ambiance is open air, and DG is a big place. There are all types of nooks and crannies to sit with your friends or new friends: 4 Stars.
So why they 4 Stars despite the so-​so food? Well, we met these two girls and started drinking with them and ended up going to a karaōke bar later. One of them is getting married and they invited us to Vegas for the bachelorette party. But in the meantime, we had a pre-​party…
ROTFLMAO!!!

They have a good deal for fried-​rotisserie chicken and fries + beer pitcher, but the food isn’t quality. It’s greasy dive food so go there to drink and hang out later in the night. Not a place for dinner.
It has the traditional Korean-​style street food ambience, so you sit «outside» under a tent. There are heat lamps to keep you warm (sometimes too hot). There are bells to call on servers underneath the roundtables so utilize them to get their attention. Otherwise, they’ll completely ignore you.

It’s great to see an outdoor look alike indoor Korean bar-​restaurant in Korea town. Shouldn’t expect too much from this place, especially because it’s like ever other Korea bar restaurant. Can’t say service is great cause… There was only 1 waitress when I was dining with 5+ friends.

Am I in ASIA??? The whole outdoors setting remind of the street restaurants in Asia. I’ve been here twice and tried different foods every time. My favorite dishes are the fried gizzards ($ 14), bbq chicken wings ($ 18 for 12 pc), honey butter fried chicken ($ 15), and seafood pancake ($ 14). The crunch in their fried chickens are just right and the sauce for their dishes are mouthwatering savory. I honestly can’t find any flaws in the taste. Although the food was fantastic, the service here was not so great. The staff were super friendly BUT service was painfully slow. I came here twice, once when the place was super packed and another time when the place had just opened (hoping that service would be faster). I understand why service would be slow during the busy hours but slow service during opening hours is another story. Both times they messed up at least once on my orders. The second time I went they messed up 2 of my orders (instead of fried gizzards I got stirred fried gizzards, and bbq chicken wings instead of fried chicken and cheese). When we told them they made a mistake, they looked super pissed but it wasn’t even our fault we specified what we wanted. When we asked for the check they took forever to get us the check, to swipe the card, and to give the card back to us. That whole process took about another unnecessary 30 mins and this was during their slower hours. Their food is fantastic but they really need to step up with their service game. I don’t think I would come here again unless they do something about their service.
Tip: if you don’t want to pay for valet, there are plenty of street parking around the block, make sure you go over your orders with the waiter because they will most likely mess up (they try to memorize instead of writing orders down)

5 stars for food! We ordered the BQQ Spicy Chiken Wings, Honey Butter Chicken, Stir fry gizzard and seafood pancake. The average price is ~15 per dish. This is like family style; its great if you come with some friends to chill. It has a nice vibe but there is a smoking area nearby. Its a downside specially if you don’t like the smell of it. The food had great flavors and texture. One of the best chickens in LA.
It wasn’t too busy when we came. The service is in a slower side so it takes some patience. Overall, I would come back to this place again. Tasty food and a great place to hang out with your friends.

What a fun place to chill at! We had a horrible time over at ZanBeer just before coming here. 17 of us showed up here without a reservation and they found a way to get us settled in as quickly as they could even while the place was already pretty packed~Super sweet of them! (Josh-​the owner was really chill, accommodating, and worked it out for us, thank you!!) Had a blast with the karaōke, their yummy flavored sojus and that honey butter chicken… Talks out deliciousness all up in my mouth! Great time with great people at a great place! Definitely made our night 100x better!

Ever been experience drinking and fun in Korea? No? Well, if that’s the kind of fun and ambiance you’ll get here. The staff are super nice, tap tables frequently (tapping refers to waiters checking on their tables) and got Korean service.
Be advised that if you go with a large group of friends, they only take 3 credit cards (like most establishments) so make sure your friends either bring cash, or venmo each other.
Josh, the owner, is super friendly, accommodating, and make sure that we were being taken care of.
The butter chicken is one item I HIGHLY recommend. Your tastebuds can thank me later.

I love this place. I can going to be as simple as I can. Food was very good. My ordered food such as spice chicken w/​cheese, fried whole chicken and spice pock stew. It was very tasty yummy food. Highly recommended!!!

Solid Korean bar food, typical prices, and a fun environment. A nice ktown pub with tons of seating.
The fried chicken gizzard was the standout dish. The gizzard was fried perfectly crispy, and had a really savory and delicious batter. Went perfectly with the sesame oil and what I think was sriracha ketchup.
Stir fried squid was whatever, mostly cabbage and veggies and not too much squid. Flavor was good though.
Korean ramen was very basic, literally just spicy cup noodles. Not army soup like I expected, I would skip this dish next time.
Korean style chicken came with a sweet and savory glaze, a bit heavily sauced and battered but otherwise very tasty. Goes great with beer.
Fire chicken with cheese was very tender and well seasoned. The chicken went really well with the cheese and it was fun to eat. Was getting a bit drunk and full by this point though, so it’s hard to judge, but I definitely think I enjoyed it.
Overall, fun, upbeat place to hang out with a group, with better food than some of the other ktown lounge/​restaurants.

I love the food and ambiance of this place. It reminds me of the feel whenever I am in Seoul. The only drawback is the smoking. I hope the restaurant owner will put the designated smoking area far away from the eating spot.
However, ultimately, they won me as a regular customer here. And hopefully this place will stay for good in Ktown.

Ddong Ggo here!
This spot needs to have its head examined — if it had a head. Instead what you get is a bunch of (very young) rude servers, who are disrespectful, disinterested, disorganized and like to «diss» the customers when they think we don’t understand Korean.
Food is not great but would be ok if it was priced about ¹⁄₃ of what it is. Flavored Soju doesn’t have much alcohol content but is way overpriced. Fried chicken is DRY!
Scene is super-​über-​Ktown-​hipster. Why is everyone still wearing those gansta trucker hats and sunglasses at night? Are these people stuck on a rerun.
Dan Sung Sa is 10 times better than this. And so is Heu. Suggest anywhere but Ddong Ggo.

Hidden behind Iota, and next to Beer Belly, and a hop skip away from Frank n Hanks is Ddonggo (literally translates to butthole, LOL.) Parking is a valet lot next to a Korean bank or pray for some metered street parking. I hope the Ddong Ggo they are referring to is chicken gizzard, one of the featured menu items. The outdoor pojangmatcha (street tent pub) setup is very reminiscent of Korea, and service is snappy with a smile. Popular items are listed on the front page of the menu and consist mainly of fried chicken and asado. Drink options are wine and spirits.
Fried gizzard with rice cake comes with ketchup and (Tabasco upon request) is deep fried and makes for a pleasant contrast between the chewy rice cake and crunchy gizzard texture.
The chicken wings were basic, but the accompanying fries were decent and salty.
The boodae jjigae (military soup) totally hit the spot on a cold day. It came with the usual sausage, spam, onion, kimchi, ramen noodles, and cheese in a spicy kimchi broth.
The crowd ranges from old to young, Korean to white, fobby to hipster, chill and douchey so beware that it can get loud and a bit rowdy especially on weekends. Regardless, you can’t go wrong with chicken and beer. I plan to return to try their fire chicken soon and purported karaōke.

So ever since I heard about this place, I’ve wanted to visit… BUTTTTT on a rainy day. The reason is because this pub is a very Korean-​style bar just like the ones you would see in Korea. The seating areas are all outside, so it is very convenient for smokers. And also, when it rains, you can hear the rain drops falling on top of you, but you wouldn’t get wet! Hahahahaha. Pretty cool outdoor atmosphere.
My first and only visit here was on a weekday after work. It was pretty empty when I got there around 6:30, but as the night progressed, more customers started to walk in.
I thought the service was really good. They didn’t come to check up on us, but when we ordered something, we got it right away. The service was quick. This is a Korean pub, so don’t expect them to come check up on you. You’re gonna have to get their attention if you want something.
I think the food was pretty good for pub food. Here are the things that we ordered:
SPICY SEAFOOD SOUP: omg this thing is gigantic. Between the three of us we couldn’t even finish more than half of it. The soup was PRETTY spicy, but it paired really well with the soju and worked well as a chaser haha. The soup came with variety of food like mussels, octopus, udon noodles and etc. ⁴⁄₅
We also ordered the popcorn chicken which came with a bed of salad. This was pretty good. The chicken pieces were pretty big and the inside was juicy. It came with a side sauce which was yummy. ⁴⁄₅
I wish we were hungry enough to order the spicy beef short rib with cheese because CHEESE. They bring you out the ribs and you dip it in the melted cheese… omg I want!
Overall, I really enjoyed my experience here. I will definitely be returning.

The name translates to butt hole so that was a bit alarming but this was a much better experience than the negative reviews posted by others. A major plus is the outdoor seating; the pop up tents remind me of a roadside stand.
The service was good and attentive and fast. The food and drink are the main draws. Their fried chicken is some of the best Korean style fried boneless chicken I’ve had in LA. I tried three different variations, if you’re with a large or hungry party, get them all. Honey Butter Chicken, traditional spicy fried chicken (the sauce isn’t overwhelming and yet the chicken is still crispy), and a spicy chicken with cheese. When the cheese melts, you’re in fondue heaven.
This is a good place if you’re with a large group.

Walking int this place took me back to The streets of Korea where the tables are round and metal and they sell ddukppoki (spicy rice cakes) fish cakes with the broth and soju! I ordered the kfc from here and it was soooo good. The sauce on it was seriously bomb and they gave plenty of pickled white radish. I really enjoyed the atmosphere, the service was good the lady working was so sweet, and the food was so good I’ll probabily be taking out of towners to this Gem. I love everything about this place but just one thing. I with they sold fish cakes like out of a cart, like in korea, where ppl can hover around the cart and enjoy fish cakes with the soup. It’s just a thought haha.

I’ve been here a few times now and can definitely see why they have such mixed reviews.
The first few times we sat outside on a weekday and although there were not many customers, the servers were nowhere to be seen and we would have to flag them down as they were dropping off drinks/​food at other tables.
Food was also very «mehhh». With the variety and different bar/​restaurant options available in Koreatown, I feel like their food needs a step up. They do have a few items that are pretty good but now a days, pretty good doesn’t really cut it.
The best part about this place is the atmosphere of the outdoor tent style «pocha» area. You can drink, smoke, and enjoy the night.
Now, this past weekend, I was here with a larger group and we sat indoors (only spot to fit our party) and the servers were more friendly but our order of dae-​chang bokkum took over an hour to come out! We had the servers check on it 3 – 4 times and it finally came out. Then they brought us an order of chicken wings that we already received, but luckily they gave it to us on the house since it was their mistake.
Overall, this place does have a LOT of potential to be a great spot but there are several limiting factors. I really hope the owner reads the reviews about the poor service and does something about it or else we may be seeing a different café in a few months.

This place is right behind IOTA café and next to beer belly. Valet parking at the same place for iota and beer belly and it is $ 3.
I think this place can be good when you want to experience the Korean street food tent experience. However, when I went, they had less than half of the items on the menu and the service was extremely slow… Like super slow even though there wasn’t anybody there.
I feel like I need to come back when they have their menu fully ready…

Attended their opening today which started with a bang as a «Ktown Backyard Party» complete with a flea market (fashion/​jewelry/​handcrafted goods vendors), music stage, alcohol and of course, street food which is what Ddong Ggo is all about.
Like the Ddong Ggo in Buena Park, the restaurant itself is in the back patio of another establishment. In this case, it’s the back patio of IOTA Brew Café.
Parking is valet right next door and it’s shared with Beer Belly and the boba place. Remember to get your ticket validated!
Tried the following:
— Bulgolgi Rice Bowl
— Grilled Corn
— IOTA Bomb Fries
— Honeybutter Chicken Fries
— Fishcake Soup
— Mussel Soup
My favorites where the grilled corn and both variations of the fries. Really nice flavoring & texture that would go well with beer (which I didn’t have).
Because this food was part of the mini festival, it was pre-​prepared and offered at a much cheaper price than regular menu price.
Overall this would be a good spot to check out with a group for drinking and snacking!
Full review and higher quality pictures on my blog: