06/04/09

TERRIBLE, TERRIBLE EXPERIENCE

by nycfood

I had a mediocre meal at Hangawi. I was the last table to leave. 5 minutes after departing the restaurant I realized I'd left my iphone on the table. Upon returning the staff were unbelievably unhelpful, skeptical and went so far as to say that it must've been another customer that stole it!!! I won't go into details but it was a drawn out affair with me practically pleading to them that it was glaringly obvious someone who worked there must have my phone- (there were only 2 servers and 1 busboy working that evening)... and I left immensely frustrated and upset largely due to how they handled it. I have been the general manager of a restaurant in nyc for almost 9 years and was disgusted by the situation.

• Cons: DISHONEST, INCOMPETENT STAFF

11/13/08

Overpriced and boring food!!

by nycgirl99887

The ambiance is beautiful! so when I stepped in I was thinking the food would be exceptional as well...but I was wrong. There was absolutely no flavor in the food! Tasted like I was drinking flavored water...I was expecting so much more :( Priced way too high for what you get...there are better vegetarian places in the city.

• Pros: ambiance
• Cons: food!!!

09/04/07

Declicious pear mango salad

by anne97854

Hangawi is wonderful. The Pear Mango salad is delicious. It's my favorite thing on the menu. I especially like the three mushroom dish for the main course and the green tea icecream is a great way to top it all off. I would reccomend this place to any one who wants to try a vegetarian meal with a cool ambiance. You have to take your shoes off and sit on pillows on the floor which is a neat thing.

• Pros: Great food, cool ambiance, excellent teas and juices
• Cons: a bit pricey

03/17/07

Bland and expensive food - definitely overrated

by mpanich

Went there because have heard good thing about Hangawi that it's a Michelin recommended and got good review in Zagat. Came out disappointed as the food is bland, so don't really understand why it got recommended by Michelin. We ordered the Prix-Fix meal for $37.95/person and found pretty much all the dishes sweet and not spicy. However, the food were decorated very well and creative. The ambience is excellent esp. for a date. The green tea there is the best I have ever had. One dish I loved was pumpkin stuffed in persimmon -- very original and tasty. The dessert that came with the Prix-Fix was Chocolate Tofu Pudding, which tastes strange. Came out disappointed and wished I had gone to other Korean restaurants in Korea town where the food is much more spicy and cheaper.

01/31/07

Relaxing feel, but food is not up to cost.

by Gaijin84

Great atmosphere, but somewhat bland food compared to what I was expecting, Drinks were great. Recessed seating is interesting, but you'll want to sit in the corner so you can lean on the wall. Emperor's meal is not as open to choice as you think, as you are limited to a very few appetizers and entrees. I'd want to go back for one more try and switch up the entrees a bit

• Pros: Atmosphere, drinks, vegetarian choices
• Cons: Somewhat bland food, seating can be a bit hard on the back

12/10/06

good but expensive

by femnyer

great ambiance, a perfect night out with the girls or someone you want to have relaxed, pleasant conversation. everything is like a korean temple, with dim lighting, take your shoes off, beautiful food presentation. service was ok, though past 11 PM on a saturday the waiters did not want us to linger over our wine and were not so subtle about wanting to get us out. which was unfair, since we had spent over $150 for the three of us! really good food, interesting twist on the usual tofu dishes. food was not at all disappointing or boring. crowd was not very trendy but more granola-hippy. good date place.

• Pros: ambience, food
• Cons: expensive

07/11/06

Elaborate, Elegant and Expensive !

by gumdropeyes

We were impressed with the authentic decor and elegance of the restaurant - floor seating, but interesting enough has a well/pit under the table if sitting in the lotus position is not your cup of tea!

The Emperors meal was an adventure - at times bland, but the presentation, colors and flatware made us raise an eyebrow each time the server came with the next course.

What disappointed us was the *2 person minimum* for the emperor meals which are $37.50 per person - which limits you from experimenting with something else on the menu.

Overall very original !

• Pros: Ambience, Orginality
• Cons: Expensive

06/04/06

Huge Disappointment

by a281z

We were looking forward to try this restaurant after reading good reviews on both citysearch and zagat. Unfortunately, it was a total disappointment for us, not sure if this is authentic Korean cuisine. Every dish was unnecessarily sweet, especially the sesame porridge. It tasted salty and sweet at the same time. The Emperor's Roll was nothing but a few bland pancakes wrapped with shreds of steamed carrots, zucchini and pepper, dipped in a sweet mustard sauce. This is probably the worst meal that we had in New York.

• Pros: None
• Cons: Bad food, Poor service

10/31/05

Good food and Atmosphere

by angela_t

The food is good. The porridges are a must as a side dish. Very tasty. I enjoyed the experience of trying different items, but the main dishes are not extra special. The atmosphere is serene. The staff is pleasant but sometimes difficult to understand. I like to drink a variety of teas, but I've had some here that are really weird that I would avoid next time. The price can run high. Despite this, I have been there several times and have enjoyed it, although moreso the first time (many years ago).

• Pros: Good Food
• Cons: Pricey

10/02/05

An okay place...

by suebeelin

There's nothing to complain about, but nothing to rave about. The atmosphere is serene, comfortable, quiet. Decent vegetarian food (although my "mongolian hot pot" was tasteless, everything else was pretty decent. I particularly liked my moji red bean dessert-- YUM). If you're curious about vegetarian in a relatively upscale nice atmosphere, this is a good place to visit.

• Pros: quiet, atmosphere