Monalisa Z.
Yelp
Warning: this place REQUIRES you to CLEAR your table.
Finding this place was hard because their sign is in Korean. From Old Denton Rd, it's hard to see where this place is. After you get closer, yes you can see a small "Arirang" sign in English on the door (above the door, the big sign is just in Korean). Everything in here is in Korean. The Menu does have English description on it, so I am grateful for that.
This place is self-serve. I kinda figured it out by seeing a rice cooker, utensils, water cooler that's open to everyone. All signs on the walls are in Korean, Don't know what they mean/say. We got our water, chopsticks, rice and what not.
Ordered hand-made noodle with chicken, another one with dumpling, and a 5-piece pork dumplings. The food itself were very fresh and healthy (read: a little bland). They skimped on spices/seasonings. The dumpling hardly had any taste to it; I had to add soy sauce/jalapeno mix to make it better suited to my palate. The noodles resembled Udon. My younger kid asked me, "Is this udon?" Portion was fair, it came with some julienne veggies. I'd rate the food 3/5.
The problem was when we finished eating and wanted to exit. We were among the first customers there, and the one or two who left before us, I didn't really pay attention to them. Not knowing this place expected us to clear our tables, we just left. The cashier, yelled at us, "Excuse me!!" At this time, the place was packed. Folks were looking at us. I can't really blame her for our embarrassment, but I really regretted that this place didn't make it clear and post signs, "Please return our bowls/tray" in English whatever it is.
There are many Asian fast-casual restaurants where we have to get our own water, condiments, utensils, but they don't expect us to clear our table. Example: Burning Rice, Secret Recipe, What the Pho, and many more. Ahjumma Kim Bop restaurant in the same retail complex, they post a sign, "Please return your tray". Not just one, each table has that sign.
So Arirang, please do ourselves a favor and start posting such a sign if you expect customers to clear our tables. This is just common sense. In the USA, please don't expect everyone to read Korean.