Super Seoul Cafe stakes its claim to the leafy Sathorn Soi 11 with promises of affordable, home-style Korean recipes in a warm, friendly atmosphere. The venue definitely nails the latter. During the day, its vintage-looking, antique-green shop-house with a slanted front-side fire escape sticks out like a sore thumb, while at night a bright florescent pink sign beams out on the street below like a beacon to wander inside. The roomy interior feels comfy and homespun thanks to large front windows, walls lined with old design sketches, cheesy potted plants and a squeaky wooden stairwell leading to the top floor.

 

The place was empty during a recent Friday lunch visit, but it can get packed on the weekends with hungry Sathorn party-goers looking to run through the restaurant’s modest list of local craft beers (B185), draft (B280/pint), gin, whiskey (from B275) and soju, a Korean rice liquor that can be ordered straight (B50/shot, B315/glass) or from a tiny cocktail list that includes tropical Tiki soju concoctions (B250).

 

Super Seoul touts its commitment to home-style recipes and fresh produce, but it doesn’t really show up on the plate. On our last visit, the Super Seoul spicy fried chicken (B175) was delightfully crunchy but way too bland to be considered a hot wing. The low-quality processed cheese melted on top of the cheesy tokpokki (a mixture of rice cakes and fish cakes with sweet chili sauce, B321) is also disappointing—thick, sloppy and mostly worth pushing out of the way to get at the cake bits underneath. We recommend ordering it without cheese (B195).

 

We like the springy, well-cooked noodles in the Seoul ramyeon (B185), but not so much the mushy dumplings and crumbling tofu inside. The kimchi fried rice (B395) with egg and sausage is one of Super Seoul’s strong points thanks to its fluffy rice, hints of gooey cheese and a slight chili kick. It’s partly cooked tableside, but the whole performance ends up being a rather forgettable bit of lunch theater. Do try the bulgogi jungol (pork stew with Japanese glass noodles, chilies, tofu and vegetables, B415/small, B525/large), which simmers inside a soothing, peppery broth that complements its mix of greens and meat well.

 

Super Seoul is no culinary adventure, but as a cool-looking bar to knock back Tiki drinks and chomp on sweet, spicy, carb-heavy comfort food, it offers a downbeat alternative to the more swanky Sathorn cocktail joints. Corkage B300

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This review took place in October 2017 and is based on a visit to the restaurant without the restaurant's knowledge. For more on BK's review policy, click here.