Pine Tree House

Pine Tree House on my way back to Tahoe from the Bay Area was a delightful discovery! I arrived around 1-2 pm and was pleasantly surprised to find no wait. We were seated immediately, but there was a line forming around 2-3 pm, which could be due to the restaurant's popularity among people returning to the Bay Area.Marinated Short Rib (5/5): This is my absolute favorite dish! The generous portion size and the exceptional marination of the meat make it one of the best short ribs I've ever had.Cold Noodle (3/5): While the cold noodle is a popular dish here, I didn't find anything particularly special about it. It was still delicious, but I might not order it again.Seafood Pancake (5/5): This dish is packed with seafood and bursting with flavor. It's also one of the best seafood pancakes I've ever had.In addition to these main dishes, there are many small complimentary dishes. I particularly enjoyed the kimchi, and they were very generous with the refill small dishes.Parking: There are plenty of parking spaces in front of the restaurant, but unfortunately, there were homeless people quite close by, which made me feel a bit uneasy. Fortunately, I managed to park right in front of the restaurant.Service and environment: The service was excellent compared to many Korean restaurants in the Bay Area. The staff was friendly, attentive, and the overall atmosphere was relaxed and inviting. The restaurant also seemed clean and well-maintained.

Pine Tree House: An Ajumma's DisappointmentListen, I wanted to love this place. I really did. I walked in, ready for a meal that would transport me straight to a cozy Korean home where an ajumma would fuss over me, insisting I eat more. Instead, I left feeling like I had just sat through a halfhearted family reunion where the food was... fine, but nobody really tried.Let's start with the haemul pajeon--a seafood pancake that was mostly just a thick, doughy blanket smothering any trace of seafood. It's like it fell asleep in the pan and never woke up. The only saving grace? The dipping sauce, which carried all the flavor that the pancake forgot to bring.Next up, galbijjim. Now, I've had galbijjim that was so rich and velvety that it felt like a warm hug. This one? More like an awkward handshake. The sauce was watery and way too sweet, like it skipped the "deep, savory umami" memo. It had meat, sure--but it wasn't the kind that falls off the bone like a love-struck K-drama lead. You had to work for it.Then came the fried chicken, and finally, some hope. Perfectly crispy, coated in a well-balanced sweet and savory glaze--it was the one dish that made me think, "Ah, someone in the kitchen cares."But then, the bossam arrived and took that hope away. Dry. How is boiled pork dry? It should have been tender and juicy, but instead, it felt like it got lost in translation. At least the radish salad and ssamjang tried to help, but even they couldn't fully save it.The haemul jjigae? Lacking that beautiful complexity of spice, brine, and deep seafood flavor. More like "meh"-mul jjigae.And the banchan--an array of small side dishes meant to delight and surprise--was plentiful but forgettable. They were there. They existed. That's about it.Now, the service? Incredible. Attentive, friendly, and warm--exactly what I had hoped the food would be. But great service can only do so much when the meal feels like a missed opportunity.Would I come back? Probably not. But if I did, I'd stick to the fried chicken, smile politely, and pretend the rest never happened.

This restaurant solves all your Korean food cravings. From seafood pancakes, spicy pork, squid, bossam, and bibimbap, I have never been so satisfied to eat here. Highly recommend the bossam if you have a big party. The pork is so delicious and paired with the fresh cabbage and kimchi, it knocked me off my feet. The seafood pancake was a great balance of seafood and batter. Budae jiggae was a hit, love the umami taste and serving size!The banchan here is great. I love the selection and you can ask for refills whenever you want! It 100% made this experience so much better. I did knock down just one star because I did feel a bit rushed when eating since the lady handed me the check and kept circling back to see if I finally placed down my payment. But otherwise, HIGHLY recommend!

Is this the best Korean food I've ever had? Maybe! Pine Tree House is an amazing Korean eatery with a (deserved) reputation for their bonchon. However, it's not just the side dishes that are great here, the main courses are good too. Their soups are amazing; I had the kimchi jjigae one time and a spicy pork bone soup (I forget the name now) the second, and both were amazing. They have a huge menu, and I am hoping to work my way through it eventually. The bonchon were, of course, amazing: not only was there a huge selection of them, but they all tasted great too. Service is fast, and while the inside is fairly bare-bones, it's comfortable enough. I can't want to come back again.

I love this family owned Korean restaurant! So delicious and they're all so sweet! One thing I love about Korean restaurants is that they provide appetizers which are delicious. I highly recommend

We came here after a coworker's recommendation. We were seated right away and had high expectations after the Banchan spread was brought to our table. They were all yummy and the romaine lettuce salad was the winner. The dressing is so unique and full of umami. We ordered the seafood pancake, beef intestine tofu soup, beef bone soup(galbitang) and gomtang. The seafood pancake was ok. It was seasoned well, I would have liked it to have more crunch because it looked good. The beef intestine tofu soup was also ok. The beef bone soup was seasoned well but the meat was so tough. No amount of salt and pepper could save the taste of gomtang soup. It was just bland! Sorry, Pine Tree House, I struggled with my 3 stars review as I really want to like this place.

I was craving authentic Korean food and my coworker highly recommended Pine Tree.We came in on a busy Friday evening and the space was full, but the ladies were all friendly and seated us right away. The ladies really hustle at this restaurant and are no nonsense. They quickly took our orders, delivered banchan and served our meals within 20 minutes. We ordered the seafood jeon, bulgogi and raw marinated crab. I really liked the texture on the seafood jeon. It was incredibly crispy and a huge portion. There was a lot of octopus, calamari and other unknown seafood in the jeon. However, it tasted fish-ier than other seafood jeons I've had. The smell was very strong. Bulgogi was served on a sizzling plate and the portion was very generous. The meat was tender and very flavorful. It was our first time having raw marinated crab, but it was instantly our favorite. The sauce was spicy and tangy. The crab pieces were a good size too. It was a little messy to eat but they did provide gloves. It was sooooo good, I couldn't stop eating it. The sauce was my favorite part and was tasty with just plain rice. They gave us a large variety of banchan and we took it home and turned it into bimbimbap the next day! I was so happy with my experience and I'm begging my husband to go back for more raw marinated crab and to try more of their extensive menu!

My new favorite Korean restaurant! It's traditional and homey, and the staff treat you so well. The food is also delicious! I've come a couple of times (back to back even) and every dish I've ordered has not disappointed. I've tried their Menu Combo: Yook Soo Bulgogi + 2 Cold Noodles, and you get A LOT for the price. It comes with steamed egg and, of course, their side dishes. I highly recommend this place if you're looking for a place to enjoy a private, high-quality meal.

This place is warm and inviting. The food is high quality and well portioned. The banchan is pleasing and Sean is a delight.

The restaurant is very quaint and quiet. The workers were all really attentive in making sure you had everything you needed and even checked if you wanted refills on the side dishes.The food was all great and I was already full just from the side dishes alone! Would highly recommend this restaurant to anyone looking for some good and authentic Korean food!