Ssam Korean Dining in Islington

Perfect to get lunch takeaway! Friendly service and healthy food.

Very surprised how quiet this place is considering how excellent the food and service is here. The portions are generously sized and extremely tasty - I don’t usually leave reviews but thought SSÄM deserved some praise.

Food was extremely yummy and so tasty. Felt like I was back in Korea for a minute.

Really good chicken katsu! They were also very friendly

Fantastic little cafe type place…. Food is excellent, especially at the price. Loved the pork bbq and the soy glazed kfc

Delicious and comforting dishes, very warm welcome.

Awesome food! The lady and the chef are very kind and welcoming! I’d honestly go there every day if I could 🥰

Lovely little place to eat in when in a rush. Had the bibimbap and ticked every box!

Came here by complete accident and have now found one of my favourite restaurants in London. The food was absolutely amazing the service was great, will be coming back !!!

Small and local Korean restaurant located in Holloway. Came on a Friday evening and it was only me throughout the whole time there. I had the small portion of soy glazed fried chicken. Lovely, juicy, slightly crispy and fair portion for its size and price. My beef bibimbap was good. Not the best I’ve had as depth of flavours lacked slightly, but overall very filling and affordable. It also came with a complementary miso soup. For affordable Korean food in North London, this is a good spot.

What an underrated gem! Went on a Thursday evening with a group of 6. food was AMAZING and staff very attentive and welcoming. They even stayed late till we finished out BYOB drinks. Defo recommend!

Such a lovely little restaurant. Delicious food and friendly service. Really recommend.

This is not a Korean restaurant run by Koreans. Don't go expecting the taste of Korean food. Service is good.

Great food. I’m coming back here in the future

Tiny. Like you're in somebody's side dining room (and like, not their main one) - but it's nice though! I can also recommend a nice can of K to wash it down. Available at the Londis up the road.

Got the fried chicken this evening and have had bad food poisoning since

Food was delicious and staff were very friendly and helpful. Will definitely coming back soon! :)

A lovely place for a last minute eat out. Very clean and lovely staff! The only negative is the food portions aren’t that big and somethings they can be out of stock on certain foods.

Very friendly staff, good food, will come back again.

Tiny, unassuming restaurant that is easy to miss on the busy Holloway Road, but serves very good Korean food. Informal, simple, with a good choice of food but on our visit a limited choice of non-alcoholic drinks (they had a super busy day - alcohol BYO is encouraged). Professional service, excellent bibimbap, and good bulgogi, at very reasonable prices. Will go back!

Local small venue, delicious food. BYO, very Authentic. Staff very friendly & good value for money.

didn't enjoy. They didn't have much to offer and the staff were extremely slow

My daughter normally doesn't eat gyoza 🥟, because she's picky eater, but these ones were good, (fried crispy). We also had volcano chicken 🐔 bites and they were hot and delicious

Trusty Holloway take away - it’s delicious and affordable. I would recommend the beef bibimbap :)

Amazing food, with a nice relax and family vibe

Oh hello! Best Korean restaurant I’ve found in London so far. Starters - love them! Go for the SSAM platter if you’re feeling hungry… Mains - salmon is great, as are the Korean fried chicken dishes…

Delicious bibimbap, fried chicken and got a. BK is an amazing chef - so warm, kind and talented! We’ll be back 👏

Very delayed and zero communication

Fantastic food - the Korean bbq chicken is brilliant as are the chunky cut chips you get along with it

Food tasted pretty good but a pity that portion sizes were a little sad… disappointing for the price that you’re paying.

Little Korean food place, also BYOB, the chicken was delicious

I honestly don’t understand all the 5 star reviews. It’s BYOB which is cool (£1 corkage per beer, £4 per wine bottle). Food, however, was bland. Nothing was bad but just so…mediocre. Also we ordered some fried chicken and never got it - didn’t even show up on the bill so clearly the waitress didn’t realize she forgot. Everything was so flavorless we simply didn’t bother with it. Much better bibimbap, gimmari etc elsewhere in London.

Love their bibimbap and fried chicken!

Called in advance to check if place accepts dogs - woman on the phone said yes. When we arrived the man from the back came to our table and said that no dogs are allowed. We were the only customers in the restaurant

Tasty but small portions. Byob.

Simple and small place, but amazing food and friendly service! One of the best bulgogi and tteokbokki in North London

I was at SSÄM with my mates who are very fussy with korean food. But the kimchi fried rice was tempting and we all liked it. The waitress, kripa was very good with the service. Would come again and again for real.

Had a very cute lunch here and there were lots of options to choose from! The staff were really friendly and accommodating as well 😊

Cute restaurant, great customer service and delicious food!! They were also very accommodating to my friend’s special request. Would 100% recommend!

Amazing place. I decided to have my bridesmaids reveal/proposal here, and the owner was really friendly and accommodating. He was kind enough to open up the place early, so we had the whole place to ourselves for about 2 hours, which played a huge factor in making my vision for the lunch come true. The food was lovely, service great and staff very flexible. Thank you again for a beautiful day!

Small portions with burnt rice. Spotted an ant on the table. Service quite poor and if you BYOB they charge you. Table next to us were disatisfied as well. Will it be returning. Much prefer wagamamas or itsu. £27 for 2 bibimbap and a drink is too much.

Cute little korean restaurant found near Holloway Road Station. I like the simplicity and the similarities of how small restaurants in Korea are. The food is tasty and filling without needing to order a lot of items. The staff are kind and polite. My only criticism is the advertised opening time and actually opening time are different. The site says 5:30pm but there have been a couple of times where I have waited until 5:30pm and the restaurant was not ready for service. Maybe it was on those "off" days.

Lovely little Korean restaurant, bibimbap is yum and the BBQ beef bulgogi delicious! Ah, and don't skip the fried chicken!

Sadly takeaway food quality and quantity has reduced over the year as their business has come back after the pandemic. They’re also hardly ever open… like 3 hours on some days.

Chicken dish Halal - told cooked separate from other meats etc... **Update, if there is concern please ask before hand, they do pick up their phone. May need to ask ** It can get busy, sometimes a short wait if ordering takeaway.[ not sure since first lockdown, but can now order online]. Lovely staff , friendly and polite. Family run buisness.👌

Sadly the Bimbimbap had no flavour and pork bbq only tasted like gochujang. Didn't taste like pork belly or like bbq. Fried chicken was ok

Nice food but an utterly depressing place to sit and eat

tiny place with no decor whatsoever. food was good but nothing special, and service was bad. nepalese waitress had a bad attitude and made us feel a bit uncomfortable

Tasty food but way to expensive. I paid £44 for 2 people and even after that I didn't really feel full. Service charge is 12.5% which is ridiculous for dining in, in place which is not really nice at all. It was freezing cold, i was eating in jacket and my nose was runny just because it was like 15°C... I understand its small restaurant but you need to put more effort in to it, place do not look cozy and doesn't look welcoming. I would come back if it would be cheaper as the prices are just to ridiculous.

Stumbled on this place by chance before an Arsenal game. Really, really good!

This cute little family run Korean place has now become my favourite Korean place in North London!! Will defos be coming back here!

The kindest man runs this humble hot spot. Service is fantastic and the food is authentic and perfect. Dont be fooled by the simple set up and decor, each dish is prepared with so much care.

I thought portions were totally fine. Food was good. Volcano chicken isn’t too hot and recommended. Bim mi baps were good.

Damn tasty and quick too. Really friendly server.... Oh and a fork for us non-Koreans.

It's sad that this place is no longer providing high quality food as it was in 2019... The food is more like cooked yesterday and heated with microwave to serve the customer. There are several flies in the dining area, and the entire place looks like a dead restaurant. It's sad I come all the way from west london to here for ruining my memory.

Currently only offering takeaway/delivery rather than dining in, it's quick and tasty Korean food. I've only had the gyoza and the bibimbap, but I've been pleased with both. Portion sizes decent and food tastes good. The gochujang / chilli sauce is delicious. Only criticism would be that each time I've ordered the fried egg on the bibimbap has had a hard yolk (and the tofu on the bibimbap was cold rather than fried). But good food and polite (and rather hurried!) service.

Portion is absolutely minute. Compared to other Korean restaurants in more central locations, the servings here are rather ridiculous. Basically my japchae barely filled half the container and I could finish it in 3 mouths. I’ve never seen a portion of fried chicken that small. In all honesty food was decent albeit rather salty. I’ve definitely had much better Korean food elsewhere in London. But the biggest takeaway was serving size is rather unacceptable. Paid about £30 expecting a meal for 2 but could only feed one person. And am not exaggerating . The picture attached shows the food before it was even consumed. Called them to ask if there was a mistake but they mentioned that it’s their standard size and it’s because Uber charges them a fee. I don’t see any other restaurant cutting down portion size despite the platform fees.

I've been/ordered from here a number of times. I've had something different every time and everything has been to a high standard. Good value too, definitely recommend (steer clear if you don't like spicy food)

Amazing, best Korean food I've had in London

Great food, especially the pork bbq but the portion could be bigger

Great food, great portion sizes and very quick service! I've called ahead to order and run into the restaurant a few times on my lunch breaks - I've never been disappointed 😁 My colleagues have been jealous whenever the smell of spicy chicken has filled the staff room 🤭

So delicious! very kind and professional service, right seasoning, quite big for one portion! Very yummmm I def will order again

Ordered collection over the phone and it was ready within 15 minutes. Really tasty rice dishes and fried chicken - try the volcano chicken. Good portions and value at £28 dinner for 3 with enough for lunch the next day. Thank you SSÄM!

Very friendly. Great food. Great price. Enough said.

Sweet chili chicken tastes lovely, volcano chicken has a similar taste but with more spice which I also enjoyed. If anyone is used to spicey food, volcano chicken might not taste very spicy, but its delicious. Tteokbokki was great, I tried the sauce with rice and in my opinion that was a nice combo. The last thing I ordered is hard to spell from memory, something along the line of seafood sundugbu jigae, (Soup with soft tofu, an assortment of seafood and an egg) the taste wasn't as strong as the other meals, but it wasn't watered down either (quiet spicy). Lots of seafood inside and tofu (so it wasn't just an empty soup with sprinkles of solid food inside) Everything was filling. And overall a great experience. Definitely returning.

Had a very nice take away. Good taste and quality, friendly service.

Fantastic food, fast service, and very reasonably priced. NB it is currently takeout only due to COVID-19.

Lovely Korean food at a good price! We come here regularly.

Ordered take out, it was delicious. Delivery girl Fran has helpful and super friendly. Could offer morevegetarian / vegan options.

As a Korean, this is my favorite Korean food in London. It’s a small place so unfortunately they don’t have do it yourself bbq tables but all their dishes are very well done and tasty. It was BYOB last time I went which is the icing on the cake

One of my favorite restaurants (also the one that I went to the most frequently) in London. Delicious Korean food at reasonable price, especially for the lunch set of £6.95. Almost tried everything they have in the menu and none of them ever disappointed me. When ordering delivery, the packing was always proper. Can’t name any flaw of it!

So tasty, never disappoints and can’t wait to go back. Small little place that’s all about the incredible food

SSAM is back doing takeaway and delivery after pausing for Covid. This is easily my favorite Korean food in Islington - full flavor, food portions, fair prices.

Great food, friendly staff and quick

Fantastic little Korean restaurant with BYOB and attentive, quick service . Small and very casual but excellent quality sticky Korean fried chicken. £10 for a big plate. The bi-bim-bap and korean bbq were also great but the chicken was in another league.

From a takeaway point of view there was nothing better than mediocre in our order, which is a shame, but perhaps it's worth one more shot when eating in the restaurant.

Amazing food, the soy chicken is a great lunchtime choice if you're in the Highbury area

맛난 치킨과 비빔밥, 그리고 샐러드가 있어서 좋았어요. 한국음식이 그리운 런던여행자들, 강추합니다. 점심에 포장하는 사람이 많아서 일찍 가셔야해요.

Expected the bimbimbap to come in a hot plate...instead m food ended up couple after 2 mins

The staff was not able to be professional and had a condescending way of approaching us when asking questions.

Great food and amazing value. The lunchtime deal for a main w/ a drink at £6.95 is tremendous. Push up to a side of kimchi, which is excellent.

The worst service. They take ages to serve you and you have to ask for the menu. You try to get someone’s attention and they ignore you or tell you 1min and then take more time to approach the table. It would be understandable if the restaurant was packed however it was 80% empty. Decided to leave, and the staff knew to follow me and close the door behind me but not to serve or offer a drink or food.

One of the best Korean places in London

새우튀김과 김치볶음밥 스위트치킨 너~~ 무 맛있게 먹었어요~ 사장님도 친절하시고 한국와서도 생각나네요~~ 대박나세요~

El servicio fue rápido y amable y la comida era muy buena, pero no demasiado picante (como coreano va de todos modos). Es un espacio pequeño, así que quizás reserve una mesa. . . Nos lo pasamos muy bien

Best Korean food I've had in London, especially the Korean fried chicken which was amazing Wasn't too busy on a Saturday evening which was a nice surprise They will charge £1-4 corkage depending on what you bring though, quite steep

人気のコリアンレストランです。チキン系の料理がおいしく、特にピリ辛チキンがクセになる味です。 そこまで人気はないせいか予約なしでも入れました。

Servicio rápido, personal amable y bien iluminado. Jigae era muy salada, bulgolgi no auténtico con lechuga de mantequilla en lugar de perilla, etc. Buena comida, pero no es el lugar para traer amigos coreanos allí. Solamente efectivo.

Great food, great service, great price!

I have been to this place twice and both times have been a joy! I will be going again and can't wait.

The food and service were terrific. I’d recommend the sweet and spicy Korean fried chicken. We were too eager to try it before taking this pic. It’s worth noting the lunch deal doesn’t extend to the weekend, but it’s still great value for money.

가격도 착하지만 특히 사장님께서 추천해주신 제육볶음 정말 맛있습니다~ 감사히 잘 먹고 갑니다~

사장님도 좋으시고 음식 맛도 좋았어요! 한국에 돌아왔는데도 기숙사 앞에 있던 SSAM 한식당의 순두부찌개가 생각나네요ㅎㅎㅎㅎㅎㅎ

Great food! Nice and pleasant staff!

Great food and warm service. I must say the Korean food here is very authentic! During the meal, there must be at least 10 Deliveroo orders and it goes to show the popularity of the place!

A lovely addition to the area, quite a small place but good service and really nice food. Price is fair, gets really busy at 1pm.

Small but cosy, tasty food, quick service and friendly staff

Cheap lunch deal throughout the week - decent price for the area

Consistently delicious food and the fastest service you can get. The bibimbaps are very nutritious and at a low price - I always return for the kimchi one.

This little place is a real gem. For a start, it's great to find authentic Korean style chicken in London - I'm sure there are other places that serve it, but this was as good as anything I've eaten out there. The bibimbap and various BBQ meats were also delicious, although this wasn't Korean BBQ in the traditional sense (as in cooking the meat yourself at the table). All the appetizers were also delicious, and I think we pretty much tried them all. Although the standout was definitely the seafood pajeon. My only complaint was that the portions of Kimchi were a bit on the stingy side. In terms of atmosphere the place is plain but cosy. The service was swift and everything came with a smile. We only drank water but booze was BYOB with a small charge per bottle. We booked a table early evening and a queue for tables was already forming when we got there around 7. Prices are pretty reasonable too, especially for the quality. Can only see this place getting more and more popular. Let's hope they can keep up the quality. We'll be back.