Foodaholic!: Ka-Chi

There are three different Ka-Chi locations in downtown Toronto. All three are independent and are not associated with one another despite sharing the same brand. The location that I often frequent is the one on St. Andrew Street, and I reviewed it here. However, during the winter, there was an unfortunate fire at an (illegal) boarding house, and both Ka-Chi and Jang Su Chon were affected by the fire. Sadly, the latter is still close due to severe fire damage to the structure; I am not sure if the business will reopen.

Since that one was closed during the winter; we decided to check out the location in Chinatown. The menu and prices of the food were one of the same. This location was clean, spacious, and each table was reasonable apart from one another); similar to the other two locations.

Out of all of Korean restaurants that I have been to; I'd have to say that the bachan provided at Ka-Chi is my favorite. However, the bachan doesn't arrive prior to the meal, but at the same time as the first dish (my significant other's kimchi stew). This particular meal came with six different dishes of bachan (cucumbers, kimchi, potatoes, seaweed, spicy cucumbers and glass noodles).

The kimchi stew with pork, dumpling, and tofu ($8.50)

I opted for the Ka-Chi's spicy BBQ beef ribs (grilled marinated beef ribs with Ka Chi's sweet & spicy sauce) ($12.95). I thought that the portion was generous, as they didn't skimp on the pieces of beef ribs. Instead of long pieces of ribs; the ribs were cut into decent sized pieces. The meat was tender, and the overall dish was full of flavor; spicy with a hint of sweetness.

I also got the spicy rice cakes (rice cakes with fish cakes and japchae) ($6.50) for us to share. Once again, I was pleased with the generous portion. There was a good amount of rice cakes and fish cakes; good to share between two people. This dish was a lot spicier than I expected, which is always good if you can handle the spice.

The service wasn't amazing, but the servers did their job adequately and efficiently. They check up on you about once or twice, and they were quick to refill the bachan dishes which I appreciated. The overall service was quick; as our food arrived pretty quickly as well.

Address: 414 Dundas St W, Toronto, ON, M5T 1G6

Ka-Chi is a good place to go for both fast and authentic Korean food. Additionally, the restaurant is located conveniently in Chinatown. There is a total of three different ones and they are all downtown.

My friends and I got to Ka-Chi, and were seated immediately. The server brought over the water and complimentary bachan (kimchi, cucumbers, tofu, seaweed, potatoes and glass noodles).

Many of the Korean restaurants that I have been to doesn't offer glass noodles as bachan so this was a nice change, The glass noodles were delicious and I asked for 3x the refills of it.

I have been to this specific Ka-Chi location on several occasions and have always found the service efficient. The servers are friendly, courteous and are quick to refill appetizer requests. Below are my reviews of the dishes that I have ordered at Ka-Chi.

I ordered the Ka-Chi's spicy BBQ ribs (grilled marinated beef ribs with Ka Chi's sweet & spicy sauce) ($12.95). The ribs were well marinated, and had a lot of flavor. I thought that the portions were pretty generous and I thoroughly enjoyed my dish. This dish is a personal favorite of mine.

The pork bone soup came with a drink; with coke ($7.75) or nestea ($8.00). There were a lot of meat on the pork bones, but there was an overwhelming amounts of bean sprouts atop of the bowl. I like my pork bone soup spicy, and found that the one here is a little too mild. Although a little too mild for me, it was still tasty.

Ka-Chi also offers several lunch specials which I believe are only available until 3:00 pm. On another visit, I ordered the galbi (marinated beef) lunch special ($8.95) and an order of spicy salmon roll ($5.95) on the side.

The lunch special came with galbi pieces, steamed rice, four pieces of maki, salad, seaweed, and miso soup. For the amounts of food; it was a good value.

The spicy beef stew with vegetables ($7.50) would be a healthier alternative to the pork bone soup. Overall, this specific dish was hearty, spicy and had a good amount of glass noodles in it.

The menu also provided other selections of Korean dishes, and they are within the range of $6.99 to $14.00. I'd definitely recommend Ka-Chi for its affordable prices, well portioned dishes, and the food was also good.