Tofu Village

This place is not closed, it is open and serving great Szechuan style Chinese food. We had dinner there last night, ate all we could of it and took the rest home. We ordered the eggplant dish, a dumpling in red oil dish, and mapo tofu. Everything was full of flavor and tasted fresh not frozen. The tea was really good too. Being Szechuan, most of the dishes on the menu have at least one red chili pepper next to them, going up to four. Eager to get back and try some more dishes…

Omg if I had known they changed management, I wouldn’t have came! Initially when I walked in, I noticed the elderly couple who usually greet me isn’t there anymore. Then I see the remodeled look of the place. Two Asian hosts that are chattering in Chinese. Weird.
Food:
We ordered the bulgogi beef, seafood pancake, and medium spicy tofu soup with beef and mushroom.
When the bulgogi beef came out on the iron platter, it wasn’t even sizzling and the onions were still raw. We ask the waitress why this is not sizzling? She brought it back inside and comes back with the platter semi-​sizzling. The beef tasted disgusting, burnt, and drenched in that marinade from trader joes… the beef looked like it been sitting there for awhile and they just reheat it! Gross overall.
The seafood pancake was alright. They literally gave us soy sauce with some green onions in it. Disgusting.
Now you can’t f up a soup can you? Taste watered down no flavor. Diluted. Actually taste like the powder ones you can buy at the Korean market. The soup sizzled for like 2 minutes… our egg didn’t even cook.
I believe they were taken over by Chinese people because I hear the cooks speaking in Mandarin. It was a waste of $ 40+ for this nasty ass food! I will not be back. 1 star for the service. Food is a thumbs down!

(I am so surprised why other people gave 1 or 2 stars at this restaurant. My friends and I were really ENJOY the food today. And I decided to write this review)
I always ask the waiter or waitress their recommendation when I visited any new restaurants I had never been to. I did the same thing today. I and my friends and my friend’s 12 year old son and decided to give it a try on this restaurant. Actually it was really good. (At the end of our lunch, and I accidently go to Unilocal and I was surprise they had a lot of bad review recently.)
When we came in, a young waitress set us down. This restaurant has really modern and clean design unlike other Korean food restaurant. The menu has big images and it really helpful for us orders our food. I like it really much. After we check the menu, all of us would like to ask for recommendation when the waitress came to our table for place order. (Because we would like to try the best food from the chef!!!) Than she suggested «dumpling tofu soup, BBQ Beef rib, Beef bibimbap and fire chicken wing).
After that, she brought us 6 little dishes to us (banchan) while we were waiting our orders. I love the spicy white reddish and the potato mud.
For a while, the food came. She brought us the first 2 orders. BBQ Beef Rib and Beef bibimbap. Ummm, the Beef Rib smells so good. And my friends can’t wait to try while I was still to mixing the bibimbap with special source. Both dishes tasted so good. I can tell they used really good quality beef. The meat was really juicy and soft. And we also love the bibimbap. Than after while the spicy chicken wings and the dumpling tofu soup came.
O, My God. The spicy chicken wings were soooo good. My friend’s son can’t stop to put his chopstick down. And the tofu soup was good too. But we order mild spicy, since one of my friends can’t eat really spicy. For me, I love spicy. But the soup was good too.
I would say, this restaurant is a Korean (Asian) fusion restaurant. There didn’t offer alcohols, and they offer other special fruit drinks and smoothies for those who love to enjoy cool smoothies while they have spicy food. From the music to the environment, it can tell this is a fusion, modern restaurant. It has a lot of their own personality.
The food was decent and I will come back again for sure!

Its very unfortunate the management had changed for this once amazing and authentic korean restaurant.
With that said, I would like to cast my utter disappointed review at the new management and food in this restaurant.
The food had become more expensive and less authentic, quality had dropped drastically, the tofu soup that my gf once enjoyed with utter zeal here had now became her worst nightmare.
The portion had became even smaller and the price increased, and the quality and service decreased by the same degrees.
Would never come back again. For those who had hope this place was the same as before, it is never the same.

I don’t write a lot of one star reviews, but I had a pretty unpleasant experience here.
First off, I don’t mind the non-​authentic, minimalist décor. It’s not traditional korean but that’s not going to impact the taste of the food. The prices are a little higher than I would like given the area, especially given the difference between lunch and dinner but it was nothing outrageous.
I initially ordered an iced chai, which they were out of milk for. They offered the matcha latte instead. That’s fine… went with the matcha, except they found out they were out of that too. So after a while I just got a black tea. We were served our food, it was fine and the banchan was enjoyable.
We were on a bit of a time crunch, and had to pack the hot, soupy tofu and rice separately. When the check came, it was missing the tea and I thought they had comped it since they didn’t have the first two choices… and I thought that was pretty cool of them. I gave them my credit card, and when it came back they had added the tea on and swiped my card.
Adding the tea is fine… I did order it. But swiping my card after changing the check from what was originally shown without telling me first is not.
After we received the two containers (one for soup and one for rice), and after paying for the check, I asked for a bag to carry them in. I was told…10 cents. I had just paid for the meal with my credit card and wasn’t about to use it to charge 10 cents. Neither of us had any change, and my friend stated that she thought bags were free for hot food.
Our server, who was nice enough, went to talk to a lady who seemed to be running the register and managing the room and I heard just shake her head and say «no…ten cents.»
So we left, holding the hot soup container in one hand and rice in the other.
And turns out not only were we right about the hot food… but left over food from sit-​down dining gets a bag too.
In the end, the food was decent but the crappy attitude and refusal to give us a bag that we should have gotten… or even if they were truly unaware, to throw in a comped 10 cent bag… ensures that I’ll never come back. There are too many places around here that offer comparable if not better food with a much more enjoyable atmosphere.
Ugh, an unpleasant experience and I will definitely not come back.

New ownership review
My girlfriend and I ate her often when it was owned by the old man. He was always kind and attentive. The food was decent and the spicy rice cake was the real reason I came.
Now with the new owner things seem to have taken a turn for the worse. The spicy pork was anything but spicy. The beef was dry along with the pork. When I say dry, I mean so dry I could’ve took this to the beach and started a fire with it. It was very bland and no flavor what so ever. They need to do something to the marinate or how they marinate. The wings though we decent. 4 side dishes. Dinner isn’t just meat, it’s everything. Make combos.
The service was bad, just going through the motion not really trying. Work on it.
–The Honest Opinion

I’d like to give –1 000 000 000 000 000 star for this restaurant if I could. My experience with this restaurant was horrible, horrible, horrible, horrible and horrible. Oh did I mention it was horrible? It was HORRIBLE. This is not a Korean restaurant. I can tell cuz I’m Korean. This is a restaurant that tries to look like one with a Korean signage. The foods were horrible. The service was horrible. I’m so sorry that I keep saying it was horrible but it was.
My boyfriend and I decided to go there by reading Unilocal reviews. When we came in, nobody welcomed nor assisted to have a seat. So we sit on a table that we wanted. A waitress who doesn’t look like Korean at all came to us and gave us menu without a word. Then we chose what we were going to eat and waited. Waited. Waited. Waited… I was getting upset. I tried to make an eye contact with the waitress. Finally I did. She blinked her eyes and looked around her back side. I told her, «we are ready». She finally came and took our order, two original spicy soft tofu soup. While we were waiting, she gave us banchan (side dishes) and water with a half of strawberry.
The banchan (side dishes) looked okay but tasted like shit. The rice was not moisture at all. At this moment, we got nervous because we couldn’t imagine that a cook who made those side dishes can make better main dishes.
The soft tofu soups came out. We put eggs in our soups and stirred with spoon. I had a sip of soup. It was… a full of MSG. It doesn’t taste like Korean food nor right food to eat. It was too salty and seemed like I will get sick after eating. My boyfriend had his first sip. Then we decided to leave. He gave his card to the waitress to check out. She didn’t bother to ask us what was wrong with their foods.
We didn’t want to tell the problems they have because there is no chance to make the food better unless they change the cook or recipes they have.
I will never ever ever go back because it was HORRIBLE.

I gotta say, they got some bomb ass chicken wings! It’s so savory, my brother loves it. My brother is the type of person that doesnt eat something unless it’s very savory… Good serve. Since i got take out, got the food pretty quick. And the boss was extremely nice! Explained what was what. The take out always came with side dishes. Although it is a bit pricey but the quality of the food explains it. Everything is well made.

What happened to this place? I used to love coming here for the spicy tofu soup/​bulgogi combo, especially when I’m sick. I have a really high spice tolerance, but this place made it so spicy and flavorful, it became one of only 3 places I’d order tofu soup from. The tofu soup is watered down now; even the spiciest level is doing nothing for me. It LOOKS like its supposed to be spicy, but its not. They also no longer include fried fish with it, which I did not expect. The bulgogi tasted like marinate (and only marinate) and the texture was weird. The menu has been cut down to just one page and I was one of two tables there, so I can’t imagine that it was due to an overload of ordera. I understand prices going up since the minimum wage went up, but I don’t understand dropping quality. Also, they only have 4 side dishes now in comparison to the 6 they used to give you and the water has stuff in it (that’s not even sanitary!) I know they used to charge 10 cents for water, but at least it was clean!

I haven’t been back here in a while and this is what i found. Sad news, this place has gone under a new management. No more television, no more Kpop music playing in the background, no more coffee dispenser, visible beverage refrigerator, etc. Wish I was there before the previous owner left =[
The interior is a more simple design with roughly five wall shelves, each containing three picture frames of artworks. So it looks good. Behind the counter it’s not as crowded as it was before. Atmosphere was different from the previous owners. The menu downsized to just one handout. Prices were okay-​ish for the food. Noticed some things were not offered like Dukbokki from the appetizers.
Food wise could have been way better! The rice was undercooked so it was a little hard and chewy to say the least. The barley tea started of strong and then just became watery since the waitress kept using the same tea leaves over and over again so it lost its taste and color. They soft tofu soup is a way smaller portion now, if any one has been to Han Il Kwan off of balboa, the soup is the size for their steam egg soup. Had order a mild dumpling soft tofu soup, was not mild at all. Dumpling meat was a little tough and dry. Had to ask the waitress (es) to bring over some kochujang just to give it some spice. It didn’t help much. Sister had order their mushroom soft tofu soup mild as well, wasn’t mild looked more like non-​spicy before she add the kochujang sauce to it and it was missing the enoki mushrooms. Dad had order the Dak Gui (broiled boneless chicken thigh). One word — DRY! The banchans that we received were the standard kimchi, tofu skin, and bean sprouts. The forth dish was i guess potato salad that was really cold and in a way mushy.
Overall I was a bit disappointed with the food. Most likely I will not be returning to here despite it being so close to my place for some Korean food. I’ll be driving to a further location when I get my Korean cravings.
SEE LAST SECTION FOR PICTURES!

I love this place! It’s cheap and food are delicious! I love Korean food!
I don’t really like the server man though his alright but I think a server needs to be more approachable and cheery type! Other things
I recommend this place, try beef soft tofu soup esp. @ cold season!

Food: The food is below average. I ordered Bulgogi & Tofu Soup combo. The beef was poor quality and the tofu soup was bland. The tofu soup at every other Korean place I’ve been to is always flavorful.
Service: The owner, an elderly man, was extremely rude. He was very short with us when we asked questions about the menu and was annoyed when we asked for water. Aside from his grandkids and their parents, we were the only customers in the restaurant. You would think he would have provided better service! His wife was very nice though. Too bad the owner was so rude that he made this a terrible dinner experience.
Bad food + poor service = I’m not coming back

Solid place. It’s a good 4 star place + 1 more since I haven’t found anything else in SF that comes close. This place has a good solid tofu soup. The broth is good, tofu is that right medium firmness. The banchan are good and they give you a small fried fish as well.
bulgogi I think is just ok. but hands down best place for tofu soup I’ve found!
The place does get crowded, so come early or be prepared to wait.

they should call this shop the small village. the shop is small like a hole in a wall.
the owner is a suuuuper sweet man! he knew that my son liked one of his dishes (chap chae) so he kept on bringing out more for him
the menu is simple but everything we ordered was on point.

Wow, the worst Korean place I’ve ever been to. It should’ve been a red flag when the place was almost empty on a Friday night. Service was below average. The restaurant looked like it was decorated by a teen bopper, as the walls were covered with Big Bang posters. Food was extremely disappointing. Best thing about the meal was the impressive speed at which our orders came out.
The three of us split a Bulgogi & Tofu Soup combo and a Seafood Tofu Soup. The portions are tiny. Not only that, the food lacks flavor and ingredients (literally two pieces of small shrimp and two pieces of clams in my tofu soup). The bulgogi was just okay.
The most most disappointing thing was the kimchi banchan. It’s worse than the pre-​packaged kimchi you buy at the supermarket. The cabbage was not fresh and SOUR.

The soups are very good, but I think the owners are just little greedy.
I think it’s pricey compare to other places like manna, add rice +$ 1, side dish +$ 1 (I am not sure) I would go to manna for bibambap but come here for tofu soup (:

Pretty decent soondoobu for a neighborhood spot. I wouldn’t peg it as a destination, but if you live in the area and craving some Korean food, this is it! Your combo comes with 6 banchan and fried fish. I love fried fish! Mmmm. Service is pretty good and fast. Will try their bibimbap next time!

This place is amazing for so many reasons but before you enter remember this is a small family restaurant and there are some rules. Not obeying will cause unhappy meal, obeying will bring the best side out of the serious owner but will result in delicious meals.
Lots of traditional food like rice cake soup, beef soup, spicy rice cake and some unusual ones: like spicy seafood (squid) and steamed dumpling as well as pork stickers which are extremely good and come in bamboo steamers, with a piece of lettuce cover the bottom. The skin is very chewie and tasty.

Tofu Village is a nice little mom and pop shop in Sunset. My friends and I stopped by here to warm ourselves up on a rainy day.
The waiter (I’m guessing the owner) was very friendly and explained certain items on the menu clearly. It was a nice change of pace to the usual ajummas (older korean woman) that serve me at other restaurants. Something about his voice was very soothing.
We ordered some bulgogi, tofu stew, and dukboki. The meat and tofu stew were pretty tasty, pretty good for standard korean food. The dukboki could have used a little more flavor for their sauce. They added purple cabbage to it which gave it a nice texture. However it was a little bitter since it was raw and gave it a unique flavor that subtracted from it. The side dishes were pretty small, but they did give us a grilled fish which is always a plus.
If you’re craving Korean food and are in the area, I would stop by and give it a try. You get a decent meal in a cozy little restaurant. It doesn’t get too crowded so you won’t have to wait.

My favorite for tofu soup is My Tofu House on Geary but this will definitely be my 2^nd favorite because I don’t have to wait forever to get a seat! (Hey, who knows, maybe if I come here over Tofu House more often, it’ll upgrade to being my top choice.)
It’s closer to my house which is a plus. Service was great! The Korean man who served us (I’m assuming is the owner?) was extremely friendly and nice ever since we got seated. Wasn’t crowded for a peak dinner time on a Sunday night so I’m assuming other times of day are similar. They offer brown and white rice with tofu soup, not that it matters a whole lot to me, but I like to have options. We ordered 3 tofu soups and spicy pork bulgogi and beef bulgogi. I don’t believe the pork bulgogi says it’s spicy but like all other Korean restaurants, just take into consideration that it does have some spiciness to it, but it’s not too hot to handle. Our meals were overall pretty good. The fish that comes with each tofu soup is nice and pretty tasty. I like the saltiness! The place seemed really clean and didn’t feel stuffy at all or full of smoke like Tofu House sometimes gets when it’s crowded.
Overall, I’d come here over My Tofu House because of the location (being in the Sunset) and convenience of not having to wait. Who likes waiting when they’re starving and just want some tofu soup?! Plus their meat dishes are good here too so it’s safe to say that I will definitely be coming back here to satisfy my craving very soon.