It feels like Korea from the moment you walk in. Don't be scared off by the small waiting area with the AC unit roaring overhead. They seat you fast. Staff is always friendly and helpful. This is a great place to take a date. The granite bowl with noodles and a raw egg cracked over is the freaking bomb so is the pot roast. Take your date here and sit her on the floor! If your date doesn't like Korean or minds a roaring AC, get a different date! also the plum candies they give with the bill taste like improved jolly ranchers. Thumbs up.
Review Source:I came to Riverside Korean Restaurant to try to satisfy my cravings for soondubu. Â We came during happy hour which was nice because appetizers were half off. Â We ordered two. Â I forgot what they were called but we got the korean pancakes. Â These were delicious. Â Upon looking at their menu, I found that they only had one type of soondubu - seafood. Although a little unsatisfied with the lack of choices, I was still excited to finally get a taste of one of my favorite korean dishes. However, when my soondubu came, I was disappointed. Overall, it tasted okay but the best way to describe it would be "watered down." Â The flavor was simply not strong enough. Â Especially for the price, it was a let down.
Overall, the ambiance of the restaurant is nice. There are about 10 tables in the entire place, so the setting is more intimate. Â The servers are very attentive and are always glad to explain the different dishes on the menu. Â You are able to choose whether you want a regular booth or floor seating (which is what we went with). Â The experience was good overall, I just wish the soondubu had a bit more kick to its flavor.
It was a little expensive, but their service is awesome! Food is great and sooo tasty. Although I am Asian, I cannot differentiate "good" rice or "bad" rice. Every rice is the same. But for this restaurant, for the very first time I enjoyed "rice". Not something to stuff myself but something I should enjoy.
Definitely recommended for anyone who looking for great Korean food! I had tried their dish for two and it was AWESOME! Give it a try guys! ^^
A little pricey but the food is worth it! Spot on for authentic Korean flavor. (I lived in Seoul for 7 years) I'd say best in the Cinny area hands down.
The service is friendly and they have traditional korean bbq tables (sit on the floor and cook at your table ghalbi) with the traditional decor-- which adds some charm.
I'd recommend this place for lunch if you're looking to save a little, as their lunch specials are a good deal.
I was raised on Traditional american food, and am usually apprehensive with things that are not common. My wife had already tried the place and talked about it, so I decided to treat her for Christmas. I was apprehensive, but ordered the lunch box special. To say I was pleasantly surprised would be an understatement. The food was delightful, and the atmosphere was perfectly charming. I will not ever hesitate to eat there again!
Review Source:This is one of my favorite restaurants!
They have a large number of items on their menu. Â I usually get Dolsot Bibim Bab (heated bowl) and have a hard time not eating the entire entree.
They take reservations. Â If you prefer a booth to sitting traditionally on the floor, definitely make a reservation.
Riverside is one of those "I should really find time to eat there" restaurants that I drive past regularly. It had been a while since my last visit, so I was excited to see a Groupon pop up for their place. Not only was this the perfect opportunity to eat there again, but I could also introduce a friend to it.
We arrived for an early dinner on a Tuesday. As we walked through the door, there appeared to be more customers standing in the entryway than seated at tables. After a ten minute wait, the maître d' greeted us. We were told that since we were walk-in customers, we would have a four hour wait for dinner. Four hours!? You've got to be kidding me.
I explained how I had a Groupon and that it needed to be used within a certain time frame before it expired. Tuesday was the date that worked best for my friend and I to get together. The maître d' then informed me that I should have made a reservation, and therefore should just call up Groupon and ask for a refund.
I was shocked at Riverside's remedy for the situation. Had this been a weekend, I could understand the need for a reservation. However, we were there on a Tuesday and there were several empty tables in the dining room. I've eaten here before as a walk-in customer without problem, so I'm surprised we were turned away cold.
Whether Groupon or paying full price, I won't be taking my business to Riverside. If you're looking for great  Asian food with kind, personable service, head across the street to Amerasia.
This is my favorite Korean place in the Cincinnati area so far. The food was spectacular and the service was great. It is kind of hidden and super tiny so you really have to look for it. I will say there are very few seats so you may have to wait. They also offer you the option of sitting on the floor. That was not the most comfortable for me, but an interesting concept.
Everything I saw and everything I smelled seemed amazing. What I ate was even better.
I am going back for sure!
Oh how I love thee.
Riverside is so delicious! Â I've never had a dish here I didn't absolutely love. Â
I enjoy the setting it's very small and quaint nothing too fancy. Â
They did open the newer side to add tables during busier periods which I just found out about this past week. Â So if the traditional, older style isn't for you, go on a weekend and sit in their updated side.
Of course I've always found the less updated "fancy" joints always seem to have the best food!
Service has always been great.
I really really like this place - you can sit on the ground, order an amazing bowl and every time I come here, I leave the place in a happy mood. Also, the service is really good, all friendly people.
So why not 5 stars? Well, I'm a fan but I still only come here occasionally and that's probably because the place is a little bit old. It has its charm, but perhaps a little bit of refurbishing would be good?
I don't know, it's hard to explain, I love this place but somehow still only come here every 2 months. Anyway, you should come and see it for yourself. Order the hot bowl, you will not be disappointed!! The other lunch menu options are pretty good too, but I keep sticking to the bowl!
Another good Korean restaurant in Cincinnati area. I have heard great things about this place but never had a chance because it's in Covington where I do not visit very often. But I finally got to try today.
As for food, I think they are doing pretty good job of cooking Korean cuisine. The side dishes are plenty in number and taste great. Our group shared Bi Bim Bap, stir-fried octopus, stir-fried pork and squid, and bosam. You can't really go wrong with the bi bim bap since it's rice mixed with vegetables and choice of meat. So nothing much to judge there. All the stir-fried dishes we ordered them medium although we are all Koreans there are some people do not like too spicy. I don't think they are authentic which I do not mean they are bad. You are not selling the foods to Korean here but all other people. You don't have to be 100% authentic. That being said, I think Riverside Korean does great job of balancing two different worlds. I would say they are Americanized Korean foods with advantage of both cultures. Bo Sam was decent, too. I like the fact they cut the pork belly thick. That way you can enjoy the meat more.
I did not have any problem with service. So why 4 stars? I think it's the problem for all the Korean restaurants in Cincinnati area - too expensive. 15+ dollars for entrees is ridiculous to me. I really think Korean restaurants are taking advantage of being such a small numbers in Cincinnati. But it is really a personal thing, and I guess other people do not have problem with it since the restaurant keeps good business. Overall I think it's good restaurant to have, and I will come back to try variety of foods especially grilled items and soups.
Legitimate Korean, so i'm told by one of my Korean native friends. Karaoke, private rooms or regular tables are available. There is another section on the other side so if the front looks busy they might still have room in the other seating area.
The portions were large and I absolutely love their pickeled dish selection that comes with your table (sounds weird, I know but at least try a bite of each! They're surprisingly tasty)
It's been 14 yrs since I've been here. Back then I was more easily impressed. Food was pretty good, but after having been spoiled with Moon Garden and Asiana up North of Cincinnati, Riverside doesn't seem as good as I remember. Â Ban chan was good and the usual fare of black beans, cabbage kimchi, fish cakes, radish, dried squid. My wife loves her some kimchi jigae and we ordered that along with a squid dish. The first thing that struck us was the portion sizes when both dished arrived as they seemed on the small side given the prices. The kimchi jigae ($14.95)seemed on the small side. My wife started poking for the soup looking for the pork (she loves getting her grubby little fingers on the pork bone) and there was one, very tiny piece of grisly pork in the soup. On top of this is didn't have the spicyness or flavor that were are accustomed to. We aren't experts by any means but have eaten at enough Korean joints to know that it wasn't up to what we consider par. Â Quite a disappointment. Â On the other hand though the stir fried squid ($15.95 - O Jing Au Bok Um) dish we ordered was very good. Spicy but sweet at the same time, and the squid was tender and not overcooked. I'd definitely order this again. Â
Place was rather busy for an early Sunday and the couple behind us was really talking highly of the place to their friends who they met there who had never been to Riverside. I'll stick with the other Korean options in the city, but if you are in the neighborhood and don't want to venture to the great North, this is a decent place to eat, but it isn't going to knock your socks off if you've been exposed to much better Korean.
Food:
-Mediocre Americanized Korean
Price:
-Overpriced
Service:
-Slow
Decor:
-More Japanese than Korean
Recommendation:
-Go find a real Korean restaurant run by real Korean people in a hole-in-the-wall place that might or might not seem to pass health inspections if you want delicious authenticity, preferably outside of Kentucky
-Or, if you prefer overpriced mediocre Americanized Korean food, I guess this place is for you.
Best Korean restaurant I have found in Cincinnati
Pros:
1. The food is delicious and for the price you get more food than some of the other korean restaurants in town
2. The staff is very nice and the service is fast
3. You can either sit in a booth or on the floor
Cons:
1. They have written on their menu that you can cook at the table korean BBQ style, however all of their table grills were broken when we went to dine
Like I said above, best korean restaurant in town, I will definitely be back and hopefully they have the table grills up and running by then!
I probably should only give four stars, but I've been waiting SO long to check this place out, and I finished ALL of my bibimbap that I HAVE to give this five stars. Â Really, it was awesome. Â
We came here after a YELP event (Thanks, Alex for another fine time!), and although I wasn't hungry, I really wanted to eat Korean food. Â We walked in and had the choice of sitting at booths or sitting on the floor, an elevated platform. Â Fearing my husband wouldn't be able to get up again, I chose the booths. Â We're the type that likes to sit next to one another; geeky, I know. Â
After we ordered, our very friendly and helpful waitress brought out what my husband refers to as "the stuff." Â The stuff was very good. There were nine different dishes, enough to fill yourself before the meal. Â I had my bibimbap in a stone bowl, AS IT SHOULD BE. Â I could barely stop myself from eating even though it was super-hot. Â I just loved the Korean heaven in my bowl. Â
Even the after dinner plum candy is excellent. Â Oh my...great place.. thank you, Riverside!!
PS Husband had what he called Korean calamari, and liked it. Â Said he wouldn't eat it all, but he lied.
AMAZING, that's what I can say about Riverside Korean restaurant. I had lunch today with a friend on mine. I ordered the beef bulgogi lunch box. My main dish was made of grilled marinated tender beef with onions,garlic and other spices...yummy. Also came with the lunch box with steamed fresh white rice. I have eaten a lot of white rice and this is the BEST! There are two fried dumplings, I think there is pork in it. There is also dipping sauce that goes with your dumplings and also you can put over your steam white rice. OK, finally you get to choose 2 side vegetables. Here are your choices. Kimchee, sweet potatoes, cucumbers, bean sprouts, and other Ban Chan. All this for only $8.95 for lunch...what a great deal.
Make sure you order the hot corn tea, it enhances your food. You do not need to add sugar to it.
I would highly recommend this place to anyone. This Korean Restaurant  is the best Korean food in Cincinnati Ohio.
Love this place.
I lived in Seoul for a year, and Riverside Korean is the real deal!
Favorite dishes: soft tofu stew and dolsot bibimbap
I'm vegan, and they cater to vegans quite well.
This is my favorite restaurant in Cincinnati--hands-down. I've hosted large parties (20+) there twice. The staff is well-trained, and they handled our large party with ease.
Get the baek saeju (ginseng + herb rice wine) if they have it.
At Riverside, you can sit in a cozy booth, sit on little cushions on the low tables across the aisle, or sit at the tables in the adjoining room.
You get a nice spread of banchan with the food, and the evening we went, it was half price appetizers (score!). The dolsot bi bim bap was loaded with veggies and the husband enjoyed it very much. I had the soon du bu (my favorite spicy tofu soup), which was good but not nearly as spicy as I like it. We didn't order any grilled food but if you get 2 or more orders of galbi, etc, they will open up the little table grill so I plan on trying that out some time.
There's not a lot of Korean food to compare with in Cincinnati. As usual, it's a little more expensive for Asian food, but I still love it. I think I prefer Sung Korean a little bit more because it's newer and more modern... and I really liked their soon du bu, but Riverside is still great- a little more casual and has the Korean BBQ option.
Service was good and we got our food pretty quickly. I've also ordered lunch to go a few times, which is a little bit of a lunch splurge for me, but worth it.
Riverside is a fantastic place to get some Korean cuisine in the Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky area. It is a pretty small place but I've never had any wait time. You can either sit in a booth or take your shoes off and have a seat indian-style on a raised wood platform with low tables and big pillows.
The waiters are always very willing to explain anything on the menu and help with the pronunciation of their different dishes. Their most popular dish, the Dolsat Bibim Bab, is always a good choice. You can choose from several kinds of meat or tofu, lots of different vegetables, an egg, and spicy sauce. It's served in a heated stone bowl so you get both crunchy and crispy rice.
My personal favorite is the Dak Bul Go Gi. It's basically just spicy, marinated chicken with rice on the side but it's great! Ban Chan, a set of dishes with different types of food like kimchi and potatoes are always served and go great with the Dak Bul Go Gi.
All is all, this is fun place to get some great Korean food!
Until yesterday, I'd never had Korean food, mainly because I've heard it's spicy, and I can't eat spicy. Â Seriously, if I chew cinnamon gum, I lose my taste buds for a week, so I was a little apprehensive about going to Riverside Restaurant. Â But my co-workers convinced me that I would be able to find something non-spicy on the menu, and since I'm all for trying new things, why not?
First, a note about the restaurant itself. Â When you first walk in, you see about 5 booths on the side, and then several tables on the other side with pillows on the ground for seats. Â We all decided we'd rather sit on a chair, so we were directed to the other side of the restaurant where there is another dining room. Â The place is much larger than it appears.
We waited quite a while before the server came over to bring us water, but by then we all knew what we wanted to eat, so we were able to order at the same time. Â Most of the menu included the word "spicy" in the title or description, but I did find one thing, the Bi Bim Bab, that had spicy sauce on the side, so I figured I'd be safe with that. Â
Again, we waited a little longer than I would have liked to to get our meals, but the server apologized for the delay, so maybe it was an off-day or they were under-staffed?
My Bi Bim Bab was a big silver bowl filled with lettuce, vegetables, beef, and a fried egg on top. Â When I mixed it all up, it was actually a great combination-- and not a hint of spice to be found! Â There were several small dishes served along with it, but they didn't look nearly as appealing, and I was already stuffed. Â My co-workers all ordered a lunch box, which included meat (I think they all got chicken), rice, dumplings, and two sides. Â All of our meals were less than $10 each, so definitely plenty of food for the money. Â
Overall, the service was slow, but the food was good, so I'd probably go back, as long as I wasn't in a rush.
My final meal in Cincy (Covington) was ruined.
Mediocre food. Slow as hell service. We were hardly checked up on and it took forever just to get the bill.
The seafood pancake was probably the only reason why I'm giving them 2 stars. The Galbi lacked flavor and was overcooked and dry. Their Dolsot Bi Bim Bap was so so. And their little side dishes just totally disagreed with me - anything other than the kimchee made me want to throw up.
Oh and one other thing, I made a reservation for two for a regular table. When I arrived, they said I either had to wait or sit on one of the floor traditional tables bc they messed up and gave away the regular tables to walk-ins. What?! What's the point in having a reservation then or even having a choice when in fact you dont?
I think this restaurant has been a little over-hyped. Â The food is very good; I don't know if it was top 10 in Cincinnati. Â I got a stone bowl. Â It was fun and delicious. Â I kind of wished we had sat on the raised-floor-traditional-style, but the wait was already 30 min on a Saturday night at 8:30. Â
Bottom Line: I'll be back when I'm looking for an interesting place to go.
I'd never been to Riverside Korean until this week. Â It just slipped through the cracks for years somehow. Â I've consistently heard good things, and it's been on my list for a while, so I'm glad I can finally check it off my list. Â My Urbanspoon rating is an "I liked it," and I did, but it comes with a few substantial caveats.
The Food: Â The menu at Riverside has loads of options, but I was the last one to arrive from our group and had to get in some greetings. Â The group chose an appetizer - the Ya Chae Pa Jun (a vegetable pancake with green onions, zucchini, onion, mushrooms, carrots, and long hot peppers), which comes to table with a sauce much like gyoza dipping sauce. Â This was a simple dish that was solid but not impressive.
Next came the Ban Chan. Â Before the entrees at a Korean place, small plates or bowls of spiced and/or pickled vegetable (and some seafood/meat) are brought for everyone at the table. Â The most famous of which is definitely kimchi, made with napa cabbage. In this case, we got eight options, including squid, potato, radish, daikon, and spinach. Â We finished off most of these before our entrees arrived, and then ordered another round (at some places they're free). Â I was told that these small plates can also serve as ways to blunt or increase the heat of the main dishes.
For my entree, I ordered the Galbi Jhim (on get in mah belly's suggestion) - short ribs with veggies and pine nuts in a pot that keeps on cooking as its placed on the table. Â The defining element of my meal though, the sauce - it's very sweet, but has a lot of depth to its flavor and is so good it could be drunk all by itself. Â Thankfully, there is enough of the juice to cover all the meat, veggies, and rice. Â Unfortunately, too many pieces of the ribs were laden with tough fat or cartilage, and I didn't really want to be chewing and spitting at the table. Â It would have been nice if the prep work would have been a bit more thorough.
Others at the table had Duk Man Du Guk (rice cakes and dumplings with beef broth and egg soup), Jhu Ku Mi Gui (grilled baby octopus with spicy tangy sauce), Â O Jing Au Bok Um (spicy stir fried squid with cabbage, long hot peppers, mushrooms, zucchini, onion, green onion, and carrots). Â This meal was not nearly so focused on the food as most of my trips to restaurants these days, but I did catch the following tidbits: the soup was a huge portion, and the squid was blazing hot (there's no scale, it just comes that way).
The Ingredients: Â There is nothing on the menu about local, organic, or sustainable. Â Just as we'd hope for the other restaurants around town - and particularly the highly rated, highly publicized places - it would be great if Riverside would source ingredients locally.
The Story, Setting, & Service: Â Riverside is located on Main Street in Covington, in a relatively nondescript storefront. Â When I was heading out the door, I asked Sarah how nice the place was so I could figure out if I needed to change clothes. Â She said she remembered white table clothes. Â It turns out that if you sit on the floor in the raised area of the restaurant, there are white linens. Â But, in the booths at floor level the tables are wood and have a metallic opening that appears to be for an on-the-table heat source. Â Overall, I was underwhelmed by the atmosphere and decor - it doesn't strike me as a place you would think of as "nice" and warrant dressing up for.
The service was pretty straightforward. Â We had a few jokes with our server, but there weren't many other people there on a Tuesday night, and generally we were on our own. Â Waters went unfilled at times, and we asked twice before getting another round of Pan Jun.
Because Riverside has been listed #10 the past two years in Cincinnati Magazine's list, I think my expectations just didn't mesh well with reality. Â Top 10 spots usually are "nice" - they tend to be more expensive and the decor + atmosphere usually = dress up a bit (wine me, dine me noted this when she wrote about Slim's and Cumin making the list in 2009, though she calls it "special"). Â I was expecting big, bold flavors from a Korean place, and in that regard, Riverside delivered. Â But the setting and service left something to be desired, surprising me that the total package put them in the Top 10. Â I also left thinking I could get a lot more bang for my buck than I did for that $35.
Lastly, the photos - not so good this time, I went sans Sarah and had to make do on my own. Â But, check out the slide show below anyway.
I will definitely be back to Riverside. Â I need to go as a dedicated eater, and I need to do it again sooner rather than later. Â The menu is chock-full of selections that sound amazing, and there are more than a few ingredients listed that I'm not sure you can get anywhere else. Â But until then, I'll keep wondering what those Cincinnati Magazine scores were.
If you enjoyed this review, there's more at Amateur Foodies.
If this is one of the least enthusiastic four-star reviews you've ever read on Yelp, then that's my cross to bear....
Food-and-menu-wise, Riverside Korean is pretty much standard-issue Korean. Â Don't get me wrong: Â This is a great thing, because Korean cuisine is one of my faves and I'm elated that the Cincinnati area has at least one half-way decent and authentic Korean place. Â This accounts for the rating. Â But it's a bit silly that Riverside Korean has appeared on Cincinnati Magazine's Top 10 list a few times, because I think the food is pretty average as Korean fare goes, both with respect to the menu and its execution. Â (At least in my relatively limited experience, which has been confined mostly to a few restaurants in Atlanta and NY that were largely even better.)
I'm a big fan of the Korean seafood soups, and what I've had so far at Riverside has been a bit uneven. Â The cod soup (dae gu mae un tang) was a bit on the bland side, and "bland and Korean"is an oxymoron that just does not compute. Â But the yellowfish soup (jo gi mae un tang) I had on this last visit had a delicious, bold broth that perfectly balanced the spicy-hot, sour, and salty flavors that characterize a lot of Korean food. Â Only problem with this second bowl was that it contained only a pitiful sliver of yellowfish and a single giant clam, which isn't too much seafood for a soup with a $16 price tag. Â
Bibambap (mixed rice with veggies, meat (or tofu), and egg) seems to be the go-to and entry-level Korean dish for a lot of people, and what I've sampled from other folks' bowls seems to represent a perfectly respectable and tasty version of it. Â
Riverside has a few of the gas grills for self-grilling the Korean BBQ, which is on the menu. Â But sadly, the grills appear to be out of commission--I've never seen any diners using them, and no Yelpers here mention them--and it looks like your meat will be cooked in the back with everything else. Â A damn shame, because sharing a grill with a group at a Korean BBQ place is a singular and great communal dining experience. Â (I haven't yet had any of the BBQ dishes at Riverside.)
The banchan "appetizers" have always been one of my favorite parts of a Korean dinner, but I think Riverside largely drops the ball with this stuff. Â Willam B. is on the money: Â Riverside appears to have dialed down the spice levels to account for its mostly Caucasian clientele, and a couple of the items seem to be Westernized and even blander (these are items I haven't seen in Korean restaurants frequented by majority-Korean crowds). Â
Service at Riverside has been friendly and informative, but not always attentive or efficient. Â This last time, 30-minute chunks of time slid by between drink orders, banchan, and entrees, with little explanation and no apology. Â
Since the previous time we went, Riverside has opened up a second dining area that you enter by walking the length of the original dining area and traversing a labyrinth-like hallway at the back to enter the new area, which is brighter and more open than the somewhat claustrophobic old area. Â It's like two-restaurants-in-one, which is pretty cool.
Overall, Riverside Korean is a great asset for the Cincinnati area. Â But I gotta say that those who have experience with this cuisine elsewhere might be a little disappointed if they've seen all the sky-high praise here and elsewhere before walking through Riverside's doors for the first time.
I really love Korean food and after hearing rave reviews about this place (even made the top 10 restaurants list of Cincinnati Mag), I was amped up about trying it out.
As typical, I ordered Bulgogi (marinated beef slices) while my husband ordered the Kalbi (short ribs). Â The ban chan (small side dishes) were great, especially the cold beef dish. Â The bulgogi was decent but not a standout dish. Â The flavor lacked a little seasoning and the beef looked pale compared to the beautifully browned / crisped edges of my husband's Kalbi.
The Kalbi was great - good barbeque-y flavor, coloring, and seasoning. Â Why only 3 stars? Â It might be harsh but this just didn't live up to the hype and I was disappointed that it seemed like any other ok Korean joint. Â For the price ($20 and $17) and the somewhat smaller portion, I'd rather go to Chung Ki Wha and eat my heart out with meat cooked exactly how I like it.
Really good! I live in Dayton, and the bfriend came to visit this weekend. Dayton is pretty lacking, and the bf , loves korean food as do I, so we treked to Covington and checked this place out. It was awesome! Really pretty building, cozy, intimate, and yet bustling. The panchan was delicious, and some different offerings than what I'm used to. Also, the presentation was thoughtful and different-- the panchan was served in three circular serving dishes, which was great because they nestled into each other and you didn't have a million little dishes all over the place. Our server said they switched over to the new serving trays because it was easier and the presentation was better.
The food was great.
If you have eaten great Korean food in Chicago or San Francisco or New York, don't expect Riverside Restaurant to be up to your standards. Â The basic ingredients are there, and the ban chan were full of some interesting vegetable dishes, but somebody has gone through and carefully excised anything that might be too spicy, too sour, or too stinky. Â Even the kim-chi.
I ordered my dolsot bi bim bop "spicy," (the choices were "mild," "medium," and "spicy,") and even after I upended a quarter cup of cayenne pepper and an extra dish of hot sauce into it I would say it only made it to medium-spicy. Â At that point, it was pretty good.
This is probably the best Korean restaurant in Covington, and maybe even the greater Cincinnati area. Â Three stars for that achievement.
This was the first of three restaurants to be hit in one evening, and it was a gem of a find, thanks to Yelp.
We were early at 5:10pm, so there was no one but us. We decided to get steamed dumplings and an order of bulgogi. We were going to share the food since we knew we were in for a belly stuffing night.
Out came the banchan and my first thought was they sure don't give you very much. Bear in mind, I'm used to having Korean food in places were the portions of banchan were sizable. Here, if you run out of something, you get two refills before they start to charge you for any more. Ouch. We both liked the kimchi, so we got extras of that.
The dumplings were good, but how can you mess those up, right? Well, there was plenty of filling and not an excess of wrapper. The bulgogi was a great hit; we were all over it. Since my friend doesn't get to have Korean food as much as I do, I let him eat the majority of it. The meat was lean, marinated very well, and the portion was just right for two people to share.
Service was good and the menu had enough variety that if I were in town, I would come back again to try something different. In the time we were there, several other patrons showed up and it seemed the bi bim bap is a very popular dish to order. Hmm...next trip.
Check out my photos!
Street parking is available.
I have to admit I've overlooked and underrated Covington. Â While most of it remains dominated by liquor stores and tobacco outlets, certain parts are delightful and just as worthy of a visit as anywhere in Ohio. Â Greenup Street is one of those places, but after you've hit Jean-Robert de Cavel's twin restaurants there, Riverside Korean should be your next meal.
You have to go shoeless to eat at the low table, reclining on silken cushions, so be sure to don fresh socks and non-running shoes before coming. Â With how tiny the place is, you won't offend many people, but you will offend all of them.
I don't know anything about Korean food, so I stuck with the recommendation I was given when I was told to come here: bulgogi beef, a classic (or so I hear). Â It came with a myriad of side dishes that I really ought to have asked about. Â I do know kim chi, and that was delicious. Â But mostly, things were just spicy and different. Â I can't say I really love this cuisine, but I did love the absolutely unique, rather warm, and intimate atmosphere. Â Definitely a fun experience so long as you aren't expecting something simple and easy.
This place is great, pretty much what everyone else has said.
I had the Bul Go Gi and it had amazing flavor and it wasn't too fatty.
The small apps were all great, and the service was solid.
The atmosphere is good too.
It's a bit hard to find non-chain restaurants in Cincinnati that are any good, this is one of those places
Riverside Korean is my favorite restaurant in Cincinnati. My sister took me there the first time I went, and then we both took the rest of our family. It's fun to sit on the floor Korean-style, although my dad had a hard time with that and had to scoot around the table so that his back was against the wall.
You start out with a smorgasbord of Korean appetizers, the number of varities of which varies depending upon how many people are at your table. They're all delicious, including the spicy seaweed, the kimchi, and the caramelized potatoes.
Both times I've gone I've gotten the dolsot bibimbap. It's a rice dish, topped with vegetables, beef, and chili paste. It's served in a stone bowl that they heat in an oven beforehand, so that when they serve it to you the rice gets crispy as it sits on the bowl. They also crack an egg on top when they serve it, and it cooks as you stir the dish. It is awesome.
Both times I went, the servers were very friendly and nice, although one of them had limited knowledge of English. Another server stopped and helped out when we were having trouble, though, so it turned out fine.
I highly recommend this restaurant to anyone, even if they're a little afraid of Korean food. Just go with something less exotic (read: not containing beef intestines).
I was working on location in Cincinnati, OH and Covington is just across the river. We stopped at this Korean restaurant for BBQ and it was great! They even stayed open late for us during lunch time. This is a small town with not a whole lot going on during the day (or night for that matter) so I was surprised to find such a great restaurant on a sleepy little street.
The bulgogi and pork BBQ was great! We also had chop chae (noodles) and it was delicious too. The panchan (sp? - side dishes) we all tasty as well - I can't think of a bad thing to say about the food. The service was friendly and fast and we had a great time chatting with our waitress.
This is a small, intimate restaurant and you can choose a traditional style table where you sit on the floor or a "regular" table with chairs. My split of the bill cost me around $25 with tip and I ate enough food for about 4 people - I'm NOT exagerrating at all. I highly suggest this restaurant and if I'm ever in the Cincinnati/Convington area again, I'm there!
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