Sole Cafe Korean restaurant

There’s something about Sole Cafe that feels different the moment you sit down. No loud decor, no flash — just the quiet promise of a meal made with heart. The banchan arrives first, and it’s everything most places have forgotten how to do. Plate after plate, small and vibrant, each one a love letter to real Korean cooking. Fresh, spicy, pickled, tender — every flavor telling its own little story. Here, you don’t feel like a customer. You feel like a guest at someone’s family table. And then there’s the Dul Sot Bibimbop — served still sizzling, whispering at the edges of the stone bowl. You mix it together and the world fades out: the crackle of the rice, the richness of the egg, the slow heat of the gochujang. It’s comfort and memory and craft all layered into one perfect dish. Sole Cafe isn’t just a restaurant. It’s a reminder of what food can be when it’s made with patience, love, and pride.

In Iowa, we lack traditional Korean cuisine. Every time I travel, I seek out a good place to eat Bulgogi or Spicy Pork. I found Sole Food near downtown St Paul, and it did not disappoint. The traditional appetizers were delicious. My bulgogi came out steaming hot and tasted just like I expected it too. Service was quick and attentive. I will definitely stop by again when I am in the area.

Great place to get authentic Korean. I found this place years ago and it’s only gotten better over the years. The banchan is amazing and the entrees are so flavorful. Atmosphere is calm and cozy.

Great restaurant and friendly service. They were upfront with the time it would take for food to come out and it was much appreciated. 10/10 would come again!

We got the bulgogi and seolleongtang. Most places make their bulgogi very sweet but the bulgogi here was perfect and delicious. I am obsessed with their banchan. Their seolleongtang was peppery and warm like the kind of soup your grandma would make you if you were sick. I’m coming back to eat the rest of their menu.

Had date night here and the food was exceptional! Would return again. Love the family feel dining style and a water pitcher given to every table.

Price on the website doesn't match the price on the in-person menu (~$4 more). Food tasted great but again, for the price, I expected more (something unique or a larger quantity). Left not quite feeling full. Compared to other similar Korean restaurants the menu is also limited. Fried chicken options are not even available. The bulgogi did come on a stone plate, but the plate wasn't even warm. The wooden interior decor was nice despite being a bit old. The brassware was a nice touch. Everything was clean. Service was super friendly. Plenty of seating that was well spaced. Parking wasn't too bad. Overall a good restaurant.

Love the ambience, it is homey, cozy, feels like korean home. Restaurant is clean. Music is nice. There are like 10tables or so. Staffs are friendly, polite, attentive. Service is good. Food is awesome! Tastes authentic, flavorful. Good portion and very reasonable price! Street parking. Highly recommended!!!

Delicious authentic Korean restaurant! Visited Sole Cafe with a friend that had never had Korean food and decided to take them here. We ordered tteokbokki to share, a spicy pork dish and I got a bi bim bap for myself. The tteokbokki was divine. The rice cakes were cooked to perfection, chewy and full of flavor. The sauce was light, spicy and sweet but not too sweet. This so far has been my favorite tteokbokki I've had in MN. My friend loved her spicy pork dish, it was the first time she ever had Korean food and it left a good impression on her. She did say it was spicy (she eats spicy and handles it quite well, they don't go light with the spice level on this). If you like spicy food, you'll love this dish as much as she did. Flavor was amazing too. It is served with a portion of white rice. The bi bim bap I had was good, lots of veggies and good flavor. Would I get it again? Not sure. Next time I am going for something spicy and with meat. This restaurant is authentic and the interior resembles a Hanoi style restaurant like those in South Korea. It's small, clean and the waiter is attentive. Street parking available. If recommend checking this restaurant out for Korean food. Prices are a bit elevated but it's worth it.

Delicious authentic Korean food! Great service! Loved the pork bulgogi and spicy tofu soup!!! Yummy!!

I'm not sure if the owner had changed but my food today is so different from my other orders I've had before. I'm so sad and disappointed. I recommended this place to all of my friends and now its not the same. I had to call them and was told its a different chef. I don't think i'll be going there anymore. I'm just sad because there's no tteppokki as good as this place used to have them here.

Sole Cafe is a gem. This is a family-run and no-frills spot, with a cozy wooden interior and a TV playing K-Dramas or Korean Sports (at a modest volume--this is no sports bar). It's tough to wrong with the menu. If you're with a modest group, I'd suggest going family-style. Grab a grill item like their Jeyuk Bokkeum (spicy pork stir fry) or Kalbi (short ribs), a big Bibimbap, and stew like Seolleongtang (or Yukaejang for the spice lovers). Add a couple appetizers on too, their Tteokbokki and Mandu are both favorites of mine. Don't be afraid to ask the owner/server for recommendations or dietary restrictions either, they're very accommodating. The most special part about Sole Cafe though is that it's a real facet of the community. Don't be surprised when people drop in to just chat with the owner! I hope Sole Cafe remains successful in the tough years since the pandemic that have seen so many beloved restaurants go under. I'd highly recommend checking this place out whether you're looking for something new, or something familiar.

Again, this place is pretty good, but pricy. I understand due to the prices in everything. The dumplings are always a hit! This time i got the soup, and im not a big fan of both the soft tofu soup with beef and kimchi soup. It just taste like pepper with tofu. Kind of flavorless. The japchae was oka, it taste like sesame oil mostly. The bulgogi was good, i also got the spicy pork buligogi. It really help that those dish was there. Definitely a little family restaurant. It feels a bit slow because it is only the wife and husband. They make everything pretty fresh. I would definitely come back for the seafood pancake. This is a great place for it!

What you get for what you pay is just not worth it. Yelp pictures implied they had a lunch menu so we decided to go for lunch. When we sat down, they provided a menu that had some rather steep prices. I asked the waiter if they had a lunch menu and was told the menu he gave me was all they had. When our orders came out, portions were lacking. All the dishes with what was presented to us should've been at least $5 less each. Menu said Dol dot bi bim bap had beef...we had to dig around to find the few bits of minced meat. Yelp prices are inaccurate. Example, Dol sit bi bim bap shows as $12.95, it's actually $18.45. I don't normally complain about price. But if they keep this up, they are setting themselves up to fail. And it would be sad to see them go. We use to frequent the place, and they used to be a lot busier. But over the years, they've gone south. I actually think their food is pretty good. I know it's tough times, but at their price point for the food you get, no one's gonna visit. If they got their pricing right and their portions right, people would be flocking in. The last two visits, including this last one, we were the only customers there the entire time we dined. It's just too unfortunate, but I get why.

Didn't take pictures but was good. My friend liked the food. Service and ambiance were good too. .

A California girl in the Twin Cities, so of course I am always craving Asian food. We found this place by checking Eater Twin Cities where they had an article for 13 Essential Korean restaurants in the Twin Cities. We were going to order from the online lunch menu to find out that the online lunch menu doesn't exist. In fact, I don't think it is their website or it's definitely not up to date. But going back to the food, we ordered bulgogi and japchae. As soon as I picked up my takeout order, I could smell how delicious it was. Good portions for sharing with two people, and they included some banchan for us too.

Great food, poor service. Prepare to be judged and criticized while you eat here. The server told our table we ate to much kimchi and were cut off after our second 1/4 cup serving. I've eaten at countless Korean restaurants in America and Korea. This was the first time I've ever heard such a thing as a limit on panchan/side dishes. I wasn't to surprised after hearing the server inform another guest they were eating their food wrong because they weren't eating certain parts of the dish. Prices online are about $5 below whats on the current menu. Hope you have a better experience than we did.

Good genuine people here seen your video online and was inspired by your generosity God bless you!

Food was absolutely amazing. Each dish has its own umami taste- Seafood Stew and Squid Stir fry. As for the bibimbap, the fried rice was crispy and the sauce that was on the side it was super delicious! I def love love the squid here because it's such a big portion! Can't wait to come back and try other dishes The place was very authentic just like the food. Sadly no. AC in the building but they do have fans running and is constantly running around to making sure you have water!!

The menu here isn't as big as other Korean spots around town, but the kimchi soup and sundobu chigae here are my favorites in the Twin Cities. I love that it's a locally owned, no frills spot owned by a Korean couple who isn't afraid to tell you if you are eating something wrong. They're super nice and it feels like you're at a grandparents house. The restaurant itself is small with a few tables spread about and Korean shows on the TV. Parking is available on the street and neighborhood. I'll need to come back and try other menu items but it's nearly impossible for me to not order soup.

I can't believe I have never been here before. It's a hole in the wall but the food is excellent. I ordered the Bimipap and it was quite good. I have never seen a Korean restaurant in Twin Cities get the crispy rice so perfect. I will be back.

This place is so so good. The owners are great - so welcoming. Every dish we had was delicious - full of flavor! I'll be back for sure!

Went her on a first date, service was great and fast. The women serving us was very nice and funny. They did bring out the wrong plate, but my date didn't complain. He still very much enjoyed the soup (said it was delicious), other than that everything was correct. The food is great, I love it. It was my 2nd time going and I really enjoyed it

Very good Korean meals, authentically spicy and flavorful. Our group tried several things, Galbi, Bulgogi, Bibimbap, and also were served a selection of sides. This is a small placed owned and run by a couple of- he's the chef, she's everything else.

Love the mom and pop vibe that it gives off. Very homey and food tastes great! The owner lady is nice and offers great customer service.

The food tasted great! The sides (banchan) were good and you could get up to two refills. The staff was very attentive and provided excellent service. There was free 1-hour on-street parking out front of the restaurant.

As authentic as it gets. Delicious food with quick service. I wasn't expecting the ajumma to have dry humor, and saying "no" when I asked for banchan. It felt like I was visiting someone's home and eating their food. Her and her husband were very nice people. I would come back and have more food.

If I could give 5 more stars I would, amazing hot fresh flavor-filled food with the greatest spice levels and open to adjust hotter if needed. Was so small intimate but full of love you could feel it when u sat and ate. Owners are so kind and welcoming. I wanted to order everything but it gives me reasons to return again and again.

Service was much faster this time! The beef stew was so good! I had this favorite restaurant in South Korea that has the BEST beef rib stew and this is very similar to it!

The only Korean restaurant I often go to is this one. The personnel is quite nice and the place has a cozy air, similar to entering a traditional Korean home. It's the greatest Korean restaurant in Minnesota, of course.

I had the pork bulgogi Very good flavor and more spicy than I expect in Minnesota but I liked it with the white rice. Four of ate and all enjoyed their meals. Service was good. We wanted hot tea but were told they do not have tea. We had water.

GOOD EATS. So good. Yum. Service was good. Cool people. Nice music. Ambience was a vibe

You know a place is good when they have a huge TV on the wall, the tiniest bathroom, and only about two staff members. As far as I know, Sole Cafe has one chef in the back (the owner) and one server (his wife). If you were looking for the definition of mom and pop, look no further - it's right here. Came here for lunch with some friends and ordered tteokbokki, kimchi jjigae, and japchae for the table. The tteokbokki had a great heat to it - not too spicy, not too sweet, and with plenty of fish cakes to appease everyone. The kimchi jjigae came out boiling (as it should) and was pretty heavy on the gochujaru but was perfect for sweating out my demons, and god knows, I have a lot so that was perfect for me. The japchae had great flavor, but the noodles were a little overdone and I felt like there weren't many noodles to begin with, so they were extra shrunken. Overall though - fantastic place to get some homey Korean food, and reminded me greatly of mom and pop shops run in Seoul. No one bothers you while you eat, and you can listen to the chatter of other tables or watch whatever variety show is playing on SBS at the time. Be patient and relax, because the food is worth the wait.

Had the Pork Bulgogi and Tofu and Pork Stew. Both excellent. Bulgogi portion was larger than other places. Service was fast and friendly.

I absolutely love this place. Everything that I have tried is superb and the service is next level. There was a super sweet lady who was my server and she made excellent recommendations and made sure everyone was happy. I have already came back a second time and will continue to do so

Disappointed in food and service. Not sure if owners changed, but we've ordered to go before and the food was amazing. That was years ago. The woman that served us just seemed so annoyed every time she came to our table.

This place is not that great. It's a mom and pop run type place. It's very salty and small portions. The service is ok but the food needs a pick me up along with the serving size. Lastly it's very pricey!

The food is delicious, service was great. The owner made sure our cup of water is never empty and made sure we enjoy the food. Very pleasant man. We ordered more than we can eat, so we took most of it home to share & have for dinner. The restaurant had Korean music playing in the background, not too loud but enough for us to chit-chat & have a good time. Definitely recommend and will visit again

This is the most authentic Korean restaurant in the twin cities. There are a few cheaper restaurants, but those lack in quality & authenticity! Sometimes the food takes a while to come out of the kitchen and to the table. There's only one chef, who is also the owner. However, the food is always fresh and hot when it arrives! The service is about what you would expect for a more "hole-in-the-wall" restaurant. There's usually Korean TV playing on a big screen. There is a one-person restroom but it is small. Parking is available out front, and in the back.

10/10 The food were delicious. The ahjumma is very kind and great service too. This will probably be our favorite Korean restaurant in MN. If you're thinking about trying this place out, you definitely should! It is quite pricy as each dish is $12-$15+ The only thing I would say is... the bathroom is very tiny (unisex). The bathroom definitely need a upgrade. It's VERY cramped. Make sure y'all use the bathroom before coming here.

The restaurant has a very warm and homey feel, with a Korean variety show playing on the tv during dinner. The restaurant is a good size for the location and has a bar counter. It is street parking only, though. COVID precautions: staff wore masks. I ordered the beef dol sot bi bim bap and it was delicious! The server was very instructive on how to mix and eat the dish (which is nice for first timers) and came back to help me mixing after watching me struggle (lol). The taste was very well rounded and probably one of the best tasting bi bim baps I've had. Most places include a fishy tasting plant called fish wort that I am not a fan of, but this place substitutes it with juicy mushrooms. They also used quality earthenware, because the rice continued to sizzle throughout the meal. No other place I've been to in MN has had such heat efficient clay pots. I always prefer dol sot (clay pot) over regular bi bim bap (metal bowl) because of the crunchy bottom rice from the heating of the clay pot. The only thing I didn't like was the lack of meat. I didn't see any meat in my dish. Usually, this would be a major con for me, but the flavor of the dish tasted so good that I didn't mind the lack of meat (although I do feel cheated for the price). The banchan was standard; I thought the kimchi was ok, but I liked the pickled radish. They also gave potato strips (savory) as banchan which not many MN Korean restaurants do. Overall, it is a yummy, authentic restaurant!

A delightful and small restaurant run by what I can only assume is an older Korean couple/family. One woman taking care of the serving and bussing, the gentleman, cooking. The menu is easy to navigate and offers a good variety without being overwhelming. My partner and I started with dumplings and rice cakes. The dumplings were nice and crunchy and paired well with the sweet/spicy sauce of the tteokboki. For entrees he ordered the Pork Bulgogi and I, the Seolleongtang. Both items were seasoned very well, the soup having a nice peppery broth with large pieces of beef, some clear noodles, and a bunch of green onion. It would be a great soup for hangovers and bitterly cold days, which resembled closely to the day we went. The pork bulgogi was delicious, sweet and meaty and had lots of nice toothsome veg which paired wonderfully over a spoonful of rice. Of the side dishes (they were all wonderful), our favorite was the bean sprout which was simple and offered a nice crunch with a nutty sesame aftertaste. We'd definitely go again.

This place is owned by a sweet old couple! The lady that runs it will tell you how to eat the food correctly and I love it! Food is so good and you can tell that it's authentic. It's def a hidden gem.

Came here during a dinner rush. I believe there was 6 tables not including us. The restaurant got slammed with a lot of people groups coming in at once. It's a small restaurant. I believe there was one big group that got turn away due to it being busy and no more seatings. Service took a little longer but it was understandable since there was only one person waiting tables and taking orders. We got the pork bulgogi, japchae, fish, and stew. Portion size was just a little bit smaller than mirror of Korea. Flavor of the food is not bad. Staff was nice and very friendly.

They have the BEST sul lung tang !! The owners are so friendly and they always give us extra kim chi when they see us finish them fast. We also love the onion pancake!!

Solid 4.5/5. Having just come back from South Korea, I had higher than normal expectations for Korean food. This hole-in-the-wall place definitely hit the authentic aesthetic of the restaurants I went to in Seoul. It was run ma/pa style with only two people running the whole show (on a Friday night) so do not expect fast service. My friends and I got the vegetarian Korean pancake. Portion was huge and good for 2-4 people depending on how much you eat. Price was higher than places I've been to, but worth it because it was really flavorful and packed with veggies. For my main, I got the tofu stew (it was SO spicy) and delicious. I enjoyed it a lot...cleared up my sinuses on a cold day, HA. Definitely not "Minnesota" spicy, so beware if you aren't able to handle the heat. My friends loved their stews too, beef and dumplings/rice cakes. I would come back for sure for the bimbimbap and japchae.

I'm always trying to search for good Korean spots in the Twin Cities and Sole Cafe definitely is one of the best I've tried. It's a quaint little spot in Midway which I would never think to walk into. But when you step in it seems very homey. The menu is reasonably priced and portions were a good size. I ordered the spicy beef stew. Which had beef, kimchi, egg, some glass noodles, bean sprouts and some other stuff in it. It was very tasty. We also shared a Korean vegetable pancake which was delicious. Crispy and flavorful. The only thing is that the service is slower but it is a small place and there was only the 1 server and seemed to only be one person in the kitchen. So I give them props for being able to serve all these people with only two people working. I can tell the food is prepped fresh and it makes it special. I'd definitely go back! If you go, do expect a wait but understand they are working hard to get you your food. I felt bad for the waitress because one table ordered then they left out of no where. They probably had already started cooking their order. Please be respectful to local business owners.

The BEST Korean food I've found in twin cities. Very mom and pop vibe and family style eating. Favorites are seafood pancake, tteokbokki, and bulgogi

Really 4.5 stars. Such a labor of love here! Excellent Korean food: bulgogi, kimchi, and japche and scallion pancakes are all top notch. It is a one woman show that makes you feel like an auntie is taking good care of you. Because of this you need a big window of time to eat here but it is well worth it!

Great service, food authentic not Americanized! Spicy pork with vegetables, tender and delicious I ate it all up! The owner is wonderful- best part was eating with my daughter who loves Korean food and dramas!

Very cute small business. Quaint and authentic. The food was delicious. When we went only one lady was serving- my guess is the owner and two others were working so the service was a little slow. Felt very family ran. Overall we had a great time but I wouldn't come here if I was in a rush.

Really liked this place. Great seafood pancake, bibimpop....bulogi... trying to leatn more about Korean food and I loved the simplicity of this place. Waitress could not have been nicer and my party all were pleased...easy parking, wasn't too crowded, simple design, lovely and tasty good. I will be back. My only small complaint was there were not as many side dishes as I remembered from the places I used to go to Chicago

The most delicious and fresh tasting Korean food I've ever had! I've been here 5 times and every time the service is wonderfully, the food is delicious, and I'm left excited to come back. Everything is served family sized and the owner was impressed by my buddies appetites. From the main dishes to the sides it's all addicting! This place is seriously worth a trip.

Classic mom and pop shop with a cozy interior and warm, comforting food. We were instructed to sit anywhere and were immediately served. I ordered the yukgaejang and it was warm, spicy, tasty, but lacking beef. The food was delicious but the server was a bit rude to us and the serving size of bulgogi was a bit on the smaller size for the price.

I moved to St Paul a year ago and was in need of a good soon du bu. The food hit the spot! We order Soon Du Bu, Seafood pancake, dumplings and the spicy pork bulgogi. We're very happy with our dinner. It was a quite Wednesday night with only two other tables. Food came out piping hot. This time of the year is normally when my boyfriend and I visit South Korea. We both agree it taste just as good as South Korea. Give it a try. Don't let the outside of the restaurant scare you away. The inside is reminds me of mom and pops restaurants in South Korea, the only difference is we're sitting on a chair, not on the heated floor.

Sole Cafe serves up familiar Korean dishes, and they do it well. When you step in, you feel like you're at your Korean friend's house and their eomma (mom) is cooking for you. It's not a big place, but there is an assortment of dining tables/chairs that seat 4 each, plus one group table. There is Korean TV on, Korean newspapers available, and traditional Korean displays. We got the seafood pancake, pork bulgogi, and dolsot bibimbap. We loved the service and all of the banchan (side dishes). The seafood pancake was so generously packed with seafood of all sorts. I recommend getting this to share! Though the pork loin in bulgogi can easily be kinda dry and bland, this was not this case with Sole Cafe's. The lean pork was still very tender, savory, sweet, spicy, and not dry. Knowing how much effort goes into individually preparing each ingredient in bibimbap, I thought mine it was terrific and perfectly executed. I'm sad I found a hair in it though ughhhh. But maybe the hot stone sanitized it??

I had the pleasure of dining at Sole Cafe and let me tell you, the pleasure was all mine. What a yummy little divey place to enjoy some sizzling dolso bimpimbap, the side plates of delicious banchan and a giant plate of veggie mandu dumplings . the kindly waitress/owner even mixed my bimpimbap up for me, and stood nearby to ask me how things were going. I wish i had a crew with me so that i could order more things off their yummy menu, but alas, it was just me, and i ate every last crispy piece of rice up while entertaining myself with the Korean TV show on the bigscreen on the wall. I hope to return someday and try even more things on the menu, and i'd advise each and every one of you to do the same