There is no all-you-can-eat sushi along 95 east of New Haven and west of Norwich that I know of. Â So, when Yamadora offered it for this summer, it caught my attention. Â Unfortunately, it did not work out. Â
My wife and I went to Yamador yesterday, Saturday, July 14. Â I specifically was interested in the new summer special all you can eat sushi. Â My wife does not eat sushi. Â We waited 30 minutes for a seat; when she could finally seat us and I told her that I wanted alll-you-can-eat, but my wife wanted menu, she told us "we cannot do that". So we walked out. Â Our half hour wait was wasted. Â I give them two stars because of two previous positive visits.
Really glad I tried this--much better than Seoul for sure (and I think Midori too, although I haven't been to the latter lately so I can't say really). The banchan were awesome... our sundubu jigae and bulgogi were both good, and in the context of New Haven I'd bump them up to fantastic. Everyone else in the restaurant was speaking Korean, so that was definitely a good sign. Will update when I eat here again and have a better sense of their overall service and offerings (I'm looking forward to seeing how their dolsot bibimbap--so far the only bibimbap in the New Haven area I can stand is from Oriental Pantry and that's not stone plate!). I found this place because some of my Korean friends were saying that they like to come here when they want a taste of home cooking and don't feel like making their own food, and I'm so glad I decided to try it out for myself!
Review Source:To begin with, the banchan were fantastic (marinated spinach, fishcake salad, ggakdugi kimchi, seaweed salad, kimchi, sesame marinated bean sprout salad) and came out immediately after sitting down, just as it should be. Note that Seoul oftentimes serves the banchan with the entrees and leaves you to wait for your food for an inordinate amount of time without any appetizers to munch on in the meantime. Service was speedy and responsive in replacing the banchan for a second round as we waited for our food.
I ordered the seafood soon doo-bu which was delicious, but not as spicy as my Korean mother usually makes it. It was on the slightly sweeter side, but it was world's better than Seoul (in New Haven)'s salty jigaes. My friend ordered the kimchi bibimbap which was also delicious. The desserts are relatively generic, not specifically Korean, but the coffee ice cream was just fine.
Note: located in a strip mall. I echo the random location commentary.
This is my third time visiting this restaurant, and for the first time I am disappointed. My last visit was in early September, and it was very pleasant. Maybe they are trying to save money after selling all those living social deals. This time we had disposable chopsticks instead of silver ones. The side dishes were few and we had to ask 3 times before they brought out more for us. We ordered one order of the bulgolgi and they refused to turn on the barbecue stove in the table unless we ordered two grill items (this rule did not use to exist because I have ordered one grill item before). At $23 an order this is pretty ridiculous and defeats the purpose of going to a Korean BBQ. Instead they cooked the bulgolgi in the kitchen and brought it out, but it was not cooked with the cellophane noodles it normally comes with. When I asked about this the waiter said that when they cook it on the table they cook it with noodles but since we ordered one it had to be cooked in the kitchen, and that does not include noodles. I'm sorry but how does this all make sense?????? Â Because we ordered one of something on the menu they wouldn't cook it for us on the grill and somehow that means we get less food with our order???? The spicy short rib soup we ordered was okay, the meat was good but the broth was bland. Also the service was pretty terrible and in the beginning they weren't even busy. Our soup didn't come with a ladle spoon and they never brought us one after I asked. They also refilled our water cups only once the entire dinner. And of course it took three tries to have them bring out more side dishes for us, and they brought out even fewer than the first time. Last time we got a million delicious creative side dishes (including Pa Jun pancake!) and they immediately brought out more when we asked. Something has definitely changed in the last two months and I recommend avoiding this place until it's restored.
Review Source:No! Another disappointing overpriced Korean BBQ place! This time with confused servers.
Ordered an order of samgyupsal (pork belly), seafood soondubu (tofu soup), a sashimi platter, soju, and beer from a male server. A female server came by and said we couldn't just order one order of the pork belly, there was a 2 order minimum. Minutes later the male server sets up our BBQ table. The female server comes back and turns it off. She then suggests that we get two orders of pork belly and the sashimi plate. She also adds that she'll throw in a dengjang stew on the house. Awesome! All server confusion is forgiven!
Then the male server comes by with our seafood tofu soup. Wait-what? Then the female server is back. More confusion. At this point, my bf and I just feel bad for the male server and we tell them we'll eat whatever was brought out. Bad choice. The soup is not hot, there is a raw egg in it that wants to cook, but can't because there just isn't enough heat.
The pork belly was good, but honestly how can you ruin plain, delicious meat.
The sashimi platter was fishy, not in a good way. The pieces were alarmingly warm. I warned my bf not to eat certain pieces because they seemed suspect.
And to end on a positive note, the beer and soju were delicious.
I really want to like you Yamadora, but you and me...we're just not going to work out.
This was a nice little find in the Trolley Square section of East Haven near Stop & Shop. This spot has seen more than its fair share of failed restaurants, but I'm hoping this Korena family can buck the trend. I came in for lunch and was pleasantly surprised by the size and quality of the food for the price (around $10). I can't wait to come back to try a full dinner, as some of the best parts of Korean food are the side dishes...
Review Source:I'm not sure what this Korean restaurant is doing in a fairly bland shopping center in East Haven ... but I'm glad it's there. I was a little worried about going since it's not cheap and the Yelp reviews are mixed. However, reading the reviews more closely, it seems that people gave lower ratings because they either 1). didn't like the sushi, or 2). had bad service.
Although we had to wait a little while for our table, we found the service to be very friendly and attentive. Like Sherry Z., we had a lot of people waiting on us. Based on previous reviews, we ordered BBQ (bulgogi, chicken) and spicy silken tofu stew. As far as the BBQ goes, the bulgogi was very tasty and flavorful. The chicken was fine, but it wasn't anything special. The tofu stew was very flavorful. My friend also ordered pa-jun, which isn't really my thing. However, she said she really liked it. The banchan were better-than-average.
I think Yamadora is definitely worth a try. You need to be a little picky about what you order (and I'd stick to Korean food).
Not very common to find a Korean restaurant in a shopping plaza in East Haven, so I definitely had to go check it out. I was pleasantly surprised how busy it was on a Friday night. Â I love Korean barbecue restaurants especially those with grill table tops and lots of banchan. This place had a few banchan plates but it was still good. We ordered the Kalbi and was pleased with the taste, although I've had much better (and cheaper) in Queens. Â I've had the bim bim bap also which was tasty - I had to ask for more spicy sauce because they don't just give the whole bottle there. Â Overall it's a great place that's closeby, and has decent food, good service and nice atmosphere.
Review Source:I am what they call a 'food adventurer,' which means if I see something I've never had before, I'll go all the way. "When in Rome," as they say. Having driven by the strip mall Yamadora lives in for months, I always wondered about the place, but never got around to it. Then recently, after seeing an episode of "No Reservations" in which Anthony Bourdain tried some Korean BBQ, I was inspired to go for it. I am so glad I did. It has now replaced Chinese as my second favorite food.
Aside from the very attentive staff, the food itself was wonderful. Do yourself a favor and make your reservation for the hibachi side of the joint and from the meats, go for #4 or #9 (yes, they're numbered on the menu). The sides are plentiful and trust me when I say that you won't need noodles or rice to go with. DEFINITELY use the fermented bean paste and don't be afraid of the kimchee. Both were delish.
The great thing about this meal is that you can eat like a king (or queen) and not walk out feeling like a blimp. The staff lagged a little on getting us our bill at the end, but that was the only glitch on an otherwise fantastic experience.
This place has a beautiful interior-- very well decorated. I think they also have outdoor seating though I didn't see anyone sitting outside when I went for mother's day.
The service was very fast-- I think we had something like 4-5 people waiting on us throughout the dinner. The one aspect of the service slightly lacking was the refill of barley tea (free) which came very sparingly throughout the meal and at various temperatures from room temperature to boiling hot. However, they were very good about promptly refilling side dishes and beverages when asked, so that more than made up for the lack of barley tea.
There were 4-5 side dishes: bean sprouts, kimchi, some dark leafy plant, dried seaweed, and potato salad (very unusual for a korean restaurant...). They also seem to have a hidden side dish (tofu). The standout side dishes were the kimchi, bean sprouts, and dark leafy plants which all went very well with the meal. We got 2-4 refills on nearly all of the side dishes and they arrived pretty promptly.
The meal itself was simply ok. My friend got a tofu stew dish that was delicious and flavorful. I kept on stealing bites from his dish. Mine was the beef bibimbop that was pretty bland. I added a bunch of red sauce and every side dish I could get my hand on-- still couldn't completely finish the dish. It wasn't bad-- it just wasn't all that good. The beef in the bibimbop was delicious, so maybe if I went for Korean BBQ it would be okay.
Overall, I would go again, just perhaps get something other than the bibimbop.
The food is good, we ordered the Korean spicy soups and sushi rolls. The service however is horrible, The sushi came after the soups were serviced, the drink that we ordered never came and the waiter was nowhere to be found, and this was all on Mothers day - not good. I did complain however it was too late, the extra side dishes came after we were finsihed with our meal and though they did give us the drink on the house it was brought after our meal was finished as well. And, let me say that the restaurant was half empty. Â So, if you can put up with bad service, then give it a try, good luck !
Review Source:Spotless clean but it's in a strip mall so for any outsider it's likely a deterrent. Â The quality is high and sushi on par with much finer dining establishments. Â The flambed food option table side is great and likely a pull for locals. Â My biggest problem was that we were the only customers and the service was so SLOW at one point I thought they were going to the grocery store to buy the items we ordered! Â It took nearly an hour to eat nothing but sushi rolls...
Review Source:we were so excited to see a korean bbq place in ct with the grill on the  tables. when we got there, there was ample parking and the restaurant was nicely decorated.
waitstaff was very attentive and helped us order. we primarily ordered koren bbq. I was disappointed to find that there wasn't a large variety of bbq dishes to choose from - maybe 8 of them, covering beef, pork, chicken, and shrimp, but I was hoping for more. a few of is also ordered a couple sushi rolls and the hot stone  bibimbop. rolls were very good, bibimbop was a good sized portion. they cook the bbq on the table for you, which I liked, but my husband wanted to cook it himself.
servers were great. we got more kimchee and lettuce for the bbq without having to ask. Â I thought prices were fair.
it's not ny, but I would love to go back to try more korean dishes and anytime I have a korean bbq craving.
What an excellent addition to East Haven! Lord knows we have great Italian food in the area, but one can eat only so much pasta. Â I highly recommend the BBQ if you have the time. Â Otherwise try the Kalbi Dolsot Bibimbap (short ribs with rice and veggies in a sizzling stone pot). Â It is awesome with the hot sauce! Â Soups are great and fresh also, and the amount of side dishes they give you is very generous. Â Very friendly staff and convenient location and parking. Â Will definitely be back!
Review Source:Can't believe there's a place like this in a strip mall in east haven! Â
I recently discovered korean food, and I'm completely in love. Â My first few experiences were in the city and fort lee, so I'm definitely spoiled. Â While this isn't the absolute best korean bbq or kimchi jigae I've ever had, it's still absolutely delicious. Â I was surprised the star rating wasn't higher, and it looks like a couple people gave them one star for bad service which is a little extreme. Â I didn't see any bad comments about the food, and the service I've experienced has been outstanding. Â
I asked for this egg souffle thing as an appetizer that wasn't on the menu. Â It wasn't part of the banchan they were serving that day, but they made it specially for me. Â The waiter was attentive without hovering. Â
Overall it was a great experience and I can't wait to go back!
I am in East Haven for a weekend visit and was craving sushi, so I thought I would give Yamadora a try. I certainly won't go back.
When I walked into the restaurant at 2:30 on a Saturday there were only two tables dining - a group of friends and a family with small children. I didn't take the lack of patronage at a peak time to be a good sign, but I was already there and nobody can screw up a spicy tuna roll.
I was dining alone and instead of seating me at a deuce, the server sat me at a four-top right behind one of the two groups already dining. The group immediately stopped their conversation as soon as I sat because the place was silent and a stranger was now sitting less than a foot from them. The sushi prices seemed reasonable, but their specialty rolls weren't at all inventive and most centered around crab stick, not fresh fish. I decided on a spicy tuna roll, a salmon roll (as it was the only roll with salmon that wasn't smoked), and an eel & avocado roll. When the server came by and saw that my menu was open to the sushi page, he informed me that their sushi bar was closed. Really? On a Saturday afternoon? When your sign clearly says "Korean and Sushi?"
I ordered a glass of Sauvignon Blanc while I took another look at the menu. The lunch boxes seemed reasonable at around $10 a piece but are only offered Monday - Friday, so I settled on the Bulgogi meal at $14, which came with pre-selected sides. Meanwhile, my wine arrived and it was Pinot Grigio, not Sauvignon Blanc. Unfortunately, I didn't taste the wine until my food arrived, and once it did I wasn't approached by a server again so I didn't have the opportunity to ask for another glass.
The flavor of the bulgogi was ok, but I've definitely had better. Additionally, it was not as warm in the middle as it was on the outside and the block of rice was hard on the outside, leading me to believe that both the rice and meat had been put on the plate and then the entire thing had been microwaved. The sides were definitely nothing to write home about. The kimchi was not good, and the seaweed in the miso soup was soggy and limp, not firm or with a bite as it generally is elsewhere.
The service was poor as well. The sides had a bit of spice (and I did not choose them so I imagine the servers were aware), yet not one server refilled my water glass despite their presence in the dining room. The mother of the small children had to call a server over for more water during her meal. As I was eating and after the other two tables had left, the kitchen staff and servers all sat down in the dining room for lunch, which I find to be unprofessional even if there is only one customer in the dining room. The restaurant does not close between lunch and dinner (and it was only around 2:45pm at that point), so it wasn't as if I was there at closing time. Furthermore, one staff-person snorted his snot (sorry, I can't think of a better way to put that) throughout his meal, which was clearly unappetizing.
Meanwhile, I was thirsty and did not like my too-sweet wine, but both servers were too busy eating their own lunch to tend to mine, so no water or wine for me. Not once did anyone ask how I was doing after my food was brought to the table. Additionally, while I'm sure they saw me finish my lunch, nobody came to take the ridiculous amount of plates on my table (9 - which included a dinner plate, a bread plate, a soup bowl, and six side dishes) or bring my check until they had finished their own meals. I was a server for a very long time and always took advantage of and looked forward to my shift meals, but there is a certain etiquette which was not followed here.
Not that I wanted it, but I was not offered a dessert menu or coffee. When returning my credit card and receipt, the server did not smile or say thank you.
Long story short: the service was atrocious and the food was not good. If you're in Trolley Square, go to Aniello's for a slice of pizza instead.
East Haven!? Â Really... East Haven. Kind of a wacko location to have Korean food, but it was located in a brightly lit strip mall, and the parking lot had plenty of parking space. Â So in that sense, it beats the downtown location (Seoul). Â And yay~~!! Â Finally, more Korean choices in New Haven area besides Seoul and Midori.
The interior decor was very modern and clean.. almost upscale for a BBQ kind of enviroment. Â They had a great menu - long list of beverage and alcohol choices and wide variety of Korean food. Â The individual entrees are priced high compared to other typical Korean joints found in NYC, Chicago, or LA, but reasonable for this typical setting in a state where there aren't many Korean restaurants. Â The Korean BBQ prices, however, were obnoxious, I thought. Â $25-$29 per serving of galbi (short ribs) or bulgogi (marinated beef). Â And taste - mediocre, decent, and not impressive. Â My friend, however, thought bulgogi was fantastic. Â But I'm saying from my experience with better and tastier meats. Â In other words, do it if you wanna barbeque or for the experience, but not at that cost.
Also ordered hot stone bibimbop. Â This was surprisingly delicious. Â Not many places can go wrong on this, but it was one of my nicer bibimbops I've had in a long time. Â Â
Banchans (side dishes) were freshly prepared and pretty good. Â Not impressive, but not bad at all.
I'd definitely go there again when I need to satisfy my Korean cravings for soups, certain dishes, or noodles for they are not too badly priced. Â I don't think I'll repeat Korean bbq at that price. I was torn between 3 and 4 stars, and I'd give it a 3.5 if I could... but decided on 3 stars b/c of price.
Will not go back. The service was terrible. The waitstaff were constantly on top of you, as if they were hurrying you so they could get the next party in. We were not even done with our meal and the check was put down in front of us. Maybe this is due to being new, but they have a lot to learn on the customer service end.
The food was average at best. You could tell their kimchi is not made properly, as the cabbage tasted as if they just cut it while prepping our meal. No fermentation whatsoever. Seeing as how kimchi is a staple of the Korean menu, to not get it right is a bad first impression.
Anyone who has actually experienced traditional Korean food may not care for this place. They are trying to pass it off as a trendy Asian/Korean sushi restaurant. If you enjoy this type of atmosphere, you may not mind the place. If you are looking for traditional Korean food, look elsewhere.
Wow! I'm so happy to have a good Korean place in the area. It's too bad they're not closer to my place. It's the first in the state with grills in the table too! The food was super tasty, if a tad overpriced (otherwise it would have been 5 stars). We had multiple dishes including grill-your-own Kalbi, bibimbop, and JhapChae (spelling??)
Visit!
FINALLY!! Strange location but the restaurant itself is very nice. Â My husband and I enjoyed the Korean BBQ (they actually had pork belly-an item I don't normally see on the menus) and the waitress was very nice. Â They were a little slow but I think they were busy that night.
Overall, I'd go back in a heartbeat!
Finally! Â A Korean restaurant in the New Haven area that doesn't suck and serves something more than bibimbap or bulgogi. Â While I dont think the food is mindblowingly amazing, it is definitely authentic, tasty, and offers a good selection of Korean dishes that I would keep coming here to satisfy my Korean cravings. Â
The waiters were all courteous, perhaps less than attentive, but not in a bad way. Â They took our orders, refilled our waters, and took care of the check in a timely, but not rushed matter.
As for the food, the side dishes served were standard fare, tasty enough, but nothing too exciting. Â For the entree, I tried the maeuntang, which is a spicy soup featuring cod, and galbi jjim, Korean style braised short ribs. Â Both were well seasoned and very clean tasting without being too spicy or muddled in any way. Â I thoroughly enjoyed both, and this is coming from someone who is quite picky when it comes to Korean food.
The only minor criticism may be that the prices were a bit high, but based on the ambiance, I think they're trying to pull off something nice-ish. Â I'd prefer a no nonsense, cheaper joint, but I'll definitely still come back.
I don't know why a Korean restaurant opened in East Haven of all places, but it's good. Â I was encouraged to see Korean writing on the menu outside and a Korean owner and Korean wait-staff. Â The menus are just like the ones you'd see in Korean BBQ in LA or NY K-Town. Â The grill is a modern looking thing (not necessarily a good thing). Â The owner did say that once the weather warms up and they get their patio set up, they'll fire up charcoal grills, so I look forward to that. Â We ordered 2 types of kalbi (one that was marinated overnight, and one that was freshly marinated). Â The one that was freshly marinated was more expensive; intuitively this didn't make sense since you want to marinate meat to get the flavor of the marinade in. Â Somehow though, the meat managed to taste over-marinated. Â We also got samgyeopsal, which was average. Â All the other fixings were what you'd expect from a Korean BBQ restaurant. Â Good banchan. Â
I'm Chinese, not Korean, so I won't claim to be an expert, but I went to Korean church for 6 years, many of my friends are Korean, and I've been to several top-notch Korean BBQs, so I do know a thing or two. Â If I were rating this restaurant relative to other choices in CT, it would definitely be a 5 star (maybe even in a category of its own, since CT flat out doesn't have any other Korean BBQ places). Â But, I don't want to mislead readers into thinking that this is on par with the traditional Korean BBQ you're used to in big cities. Â
All that being said, I'm definitely going back again.
excellent service, great food, an abundance of tasty side dishes. Â not really for the young, little ones. It's an elegant meal. YUM!
not sure how East Haveners will handle it, but hopefully, people will come in from out of town. Take-out  menu available.
I don't think they have their liquor license yet. Lots of Koreans dining there- a good sign IMO.
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