Joong Mi

I gave it a try because I had a groupon, but I won’t be going back. The food isn’t good, and there are plenty of better choices nearby. They don’t have Bibimbop, and the Galbi is steamed beef, not grilled. There was only one vegetarian choice and it was greasy and too sticky sweet. The steamed dumplings were the highlight, and they did offer a bowl of kimchee. I gave it one star because the server was attentive. The entrance is creepy, but inside it seems clean. There are posters on the wall of Korean food that they don’t have on the menu. If it were the only game in town, I’d go for dumplings and beer, but this is Annandale! Better places abound!

Marathoning through modern Korean dramas may lead to a side effect of cravings for Korean-​Chinese comfort food. Therefore, when it inevitably does arrive, my dining companion and I drive to Joong Mi to enjoy excellent renditions of the classics (Jjajang Myun and Jjam Ppong).
With large menu of Korean and Korean-​Chinese selections, Joong Mi’s signature dishes are the half-​and-​half bowls to enjoy twice the variety. Our go-​to dishes are Samseon Gan Jjajang Myeon (noodles with fermented black bean sauce made with seafood) and Jjamppong (spicy seafood noodle soup). We order the former whole and the latter as a combination with Tang Soo Yook (batter-​fried beef in sweet and sour sauce). The noodles are full, fresh, and lively, perfect for the hearty jjajang sauce and the decongesting jjampong soup. As the protein complement to the starches, Tang Soo Yook is strips of beef fried to a nice poofy crisp and in a tart, lightly sweet sauce.
Like a Korean-​Chinese counterpart to the popular dumpling-​centric China Bistro, Joong Mi is a little gem of a diner that makes really well-​prepared food made with pride in a humble space (basement of office building just to the east of the more well-​known 24 hour Yechon), pleasant service, and affordable prices to match (especially with a Groupon). Yes, it is hard to find as the entrance is on the west side of the building just north of the one facing Little River Turnpike and housing Wells Fargo Bank. However, it is a diamond in the rough to happily satisfy the cravings induced by watching one too many contemporary Korean dramas.

I’m glad we tried this place. My husband said the jjajangmyun (noodles in black bean sauce) was good and maybe even better than the other korean-​chinese places in Annandale. :) I had the jjampong and it was so yum! I usually just get the jjampong soup (spicy seafood soup sans the noodles) and it was HUGE. It was also only $ 2.99 or something ridiculously cheap like that. Bonus!

I got the groupon. We got the potstickers for appetizer; it was oozing with grease, like if I gently squeezed it, oil would drip out. My boyfriend got the bulgogi, but it was way too bland and not even halfway marinated. It cost $ 15.99 for bland bulgogi; c’mon if I wanted bland bulgogi, I could just make it at home. Lol.
And I got the jajamyun and jampong half/​half. The sauce for the jajamyun was kind of bland, but I liked the jampong and its soup which was full of flavor. Only thing I recommend out of the three that we’ve tried is the jampong. Also, the side dishes were minimal with three dishes; waitress did not bother refilling them. If you have groupon, tell the waitress about it before your meal or she’ll get an attitude.

So disappointed they wouldn’t let us use 2 vouchers even though the voucher’s Fine Print clearly states we can if we have 7 or more people. Please don’t offer this deal if you do not plan to live up to it. Your food is expensive and Annandale has many other options other than yours. I will never come back just to eat mediocre, expensive food.

Dear Joong Mi,
Whenever I see you it’s like strolling down memory lane for me. Even though you’re not the most attractive place around and you’re located in the oddest place (wonder who’s great idea it was to put you in the basement of an office building), you used to fill my family’s belly time and time again with the freshest noodles in the DMV. They were perfection every time. Even for my six year old pallet, I knew no one else could ever be as good as you at the time.
Now that I’m older, I think it’s time we part ways. No… It’s not me, it’s you.
You know how with age you’re supposed to get better and wiser? But it seems the opposite has happened. You’re overpriced and I can’t even say your food is mediocre. I got my usual, pork ja jang. It was 95% vegetable and 5% pork, if that. Why?!? When did our relationship come to this? You know I like to have a good ratio of pork to vegetables.
As for your employees, the ladies working your floor are nice… for the most part. Maybe they were friendly because I look like a cute little pushover Asian girl. But little do they know… I see right through them. They’re eyes drunken with dollar signs. They’re just like those fake friends that will only talk to you if you have something they want. And if they do something wrong, they’ll just blame you for it. I know not to expect a discount or a replacement meal without paying for it myself when something doesn’t come out right.
It’s sad that it’s come to this but Joong Mi, I think it’s time we part ways. You will always be cherished in my memories, but you suck.
Love,
The cute little Asian girl

The food was mediocre. This place used to be my favorite place for chajangmyun and fried mandu for more than 10 years. I heard rumors of changing owners? I had returned few more times after my first disappointment. After all, the place brings back lots of memories. However, today will be the last time. Chajangmyun was just OK and extremely small portioned. Champpong was good size, but the taste was similar to spicy ramen. Suspiciously, the noodles tasted like regular spaghetti noodles. The broth lacked the authentic champpong taste. We ordered the sweet potato snacks covered in sweet sauce. Although small portioned, they looked appetizing. But the sweet potatoes weren’t cooked completely! That was the biggest disappointment. Good bye to our beloved restaurant ~

We tried this place on a Saturday afternoon with a Groupon in hand. First they said they would not honor the Groupon that was for 4 people because we did not have 4 adults. The Groupon itself did not specify adults only. We said the kids would be eating adult dishes so the restaurant would be charging us for 4 adults anyway. After several minutes of convincing they finally honored the Groupon. After all of that, the service was horrible (they totally forgot one of the kids meals and each dish came out individually so one person was done then the next dish came out) and the food was mediocre at best. Definitely not going back and will not recommend.

Horrible customer service!!! We were the only family there but yet it took them forever to get us water or the menu. Owner was not friendly at all. Food was OK but I had better for the price.
Location of this place is confusing, since it’s in a basement of office building and the entrance at night seem sketchy unless if you have been there previously.
Food is also overpriced! I see why they don’t have many businesses.

Joong Mi /​Lunchtime /​Jenny’s Deli is… interesting. It is located in the basement of an office building which is behind a Mcdonald’s. The décor is plain and outdated but hey, there’s a flat screen tv in there.
We found out about this place because of the Groupon deal. Many menu items are in the $$ range so having the deal definitely made it worth a try.
The fried dumplings were actually some of the crispiest and tastiest mandu that I’ve had in Annandale. The soon tofu soup had a watered down flavor and was nowhere near Korean-​style spicy.
My star rating reflects the service more than anything. There was only 1 other table of people in the place and our server seemed frazzled. I understand that she is new but that doesn’t explain why she was rude to us especially when she mucked up accepting our Groupon.

If I could give this place (Joong Mi) zero stars, I would. This place has the absolute WORST customer service I’ve ever experienced in my whole life. I’ve come across rude and ignorant people but, these people take the cake. First off the place isn’t that easy to find as it’s in the basement of a drab office building. When you walk in, the décor of the place is very drab as well (peeling paint, old & grimy antique tables). I went there with my fiancé and another friend. She had a Groupon which said it was good for $ 40 for up to 4 people. After waiting over a minute we were finally seated by this old guy. He came back almost 3 minutes later (without even bringing us any water). My fiancé showed him the voucher and he acted as if his English wasn’t that good and he indicated that he had to get somebody else to come over. After that an older woman came over (who I assume is his wife and part business owner).
Now this where things got from bad to worse. She looked at the voucher and then stated that since there was only 3 people in our party we could not use the Groupon. When we politely asked her why we couldn’t use it she said that the terms and conditions of the voucher dictated that 4 people must be present in order to use the voucher. I kindly pointed out that no where in the fine print did it say that 4 PEOPLE must be present to use the voucher. Then she contradicts herself by saying if we purchased the $ 20 voucher (for up to 2 people) we could have used that one despite however many people might have been at our table. Then I asked her the question, if I was by myself, I was able to use the $ 20 voucher which is supposed to be for up to 2 people and she said yes. I told her that her logic was clearly flawed and she went on to tell my party that we don’t know how to understand the terms and conditions of the voucher. Finally she said that the restaurant was extremely busy and didn’t have time to deal with us. Mind you the restaurant was half full if that.
I’m not sure why the review is under «Lunchtime» here but I will never EVER go back to «Joong Mi» again and I hope that Groupon (and Living Social) takes notice and avoids doing future deals with this business as they are clearly not a customer service oriented company. For a business owner to treat customers the way we were treated tells me you really don’t really care about your business.
If you already bought a voucher for this place, I would call Groupon or Living Social and get your money back. If you come across this place, don’t walk… run! They also didn’t seem to friendly towards white (Caucasian) folks either (I know it’s subjective but it definitely seemed that way). Even reading other reviews, you can see the lackadaisical attitude they have towards customers. There’s plenty of other quality Korean restaurants in the Annandale area that will treat you with dignity and respect you deserve.

Absolutely love the Jajangmyun here!
Otherwise the ban chan is minimal and the tang sooyeok is fab. The gampungee is a bit fatty and soggy though… so just order another Jajangmyun instead!

(Okay, we’re all in agreement that this in Joongmi Restaurant, I don’t know why it would be listed as Lunchtime on Unilocal when it doesn’t say «Lunchtime» anywhere at the restaurant?)
I was SERIOUSLY craving jampong (jjam bbong) the past 2 days, so I used my handy dandy Unilocal app to find this spot.
First of all, it can be a little tricky to find. If you follow Google Maps, you’ll end up in a parking lot behind an office building, staring at a McDonalds and wondering if Unilocal has led you astray. (Sacre bleu!) BUT, if you follow your belly and drive around the office building, you’ll see a sign proclaiming «JOONGMI» and find this Korean-​Chinese restaurant in the basement.
It’s definitely got that Chinese restaurant feel, décor-​wise. Not QUITE a Chinese restaurant, but definitely a Korean-​Chinese one, if that makes any sense. I immediately ordered my jampong and my boyfriend ordered one of their combos — jjajangmyun + fried rice. The lady suggested I upgrade my jampong for $ 1 to get more yummy seafood, so I did! She was really helpful overall. She also suggested some appetizers for us but I just wanted noodles. I’m not used to getting that kind of attention or suggestion at Korean restaurants unless I ask for it, so that was pretty nice. Any previous reviews stating that the menu or servers are not suited for English-​only customers are by now outdated as the menu is in full English and the servers speak it as well.
Little spots of kimchi and danmuji (yellow pickled radishes) and onion were brought out and I eagerly waited. Some reviews said the food took a really long time, but I found it was about average.
YUM JAMPONG CRAVING SATISFIED. It was very tasty. I don’t know how it usually tastes at other places, as the reviews said the broth was more flavorful than people are used to? This is exactly how I have had jampong in the past, so I was a really happy camper. You really do get a LOT of seafood with that $ 1 upgrade as well. I had something like 6 – 7 mussels in my broth along with shrimp and calamari. Lots of good stuff. It was a struggle to finish that $ 10 bowl of noodles. My boyfriend also struggled to finish his portion.
Our servers were also really accommodating in refilling our teas without us having to ask and in bringing me more danmuji when I asked for it. All in all, I know where I’m going to be satisfying my jampong cravings when I’m in the area now.

Decent Korean food here. Located in the basement of an office building (hole in the wall).
The food was pretty expensive. Most entrees were $ 15+ but fortunately I had a groupon… that’s a win
The restaurant also serves as a tornado shelter. See attached picture.

This place is fine for a quick bite if you are in the area, but nothing to go out of your way for.
The service was friendly and efficient, however there was a slight glitch getting more detailed menu descriptions.
The food was of great value– especially the ½ and ½ combinations– and tasted perfectly fine, just nothing extraordinary. Portions are generous. Banchan could use some variety.

It’s been such a long time since our last visit and time to update my review so we decided to come here armed with a $ 20 voucher. The décor still looked a little plain but better than before. We sat at an old wooden table and the seats felt like they were going to squeak themselves apart!
The kan-​pung-​gi was pretty good. The Jap-​chae-​bap was good too, and certainly better than my jja-​jjang-​myun. I thought the water tasted a little different but not enough to make me stop drinking the water. Overall a satisfactory meal for me. Not so much for my wife so not sure if we’ll be here again anytime soon.

This place is in the basement of an office building a block away from Yechon. Very peculiar, but I love it! They have great ddukbogi and jajangmyun. Noodle dishes are on point! Very good prices as well

This place is a little bit difficult to find. Off Little River Turnpike behind the Wells Fargo building, it is down some stairs in the basement of the building in the back.
I’ve been coming here for several years for the jja jjang myun. It’s been a while since I’ve been back and I’ve been getting my JJM fix out in Centreville due to convenience.
I stopped by here the other day since I was in the area and remembered why I used to frequent this place. Service is friendly and the servers English is actually pretty good. The JJM comes out in a nice big bowl. The bowl was very pleasing to me. Sometimes there’s a bowl or a cup shape that just makes the food feel better… this is one of those bowls. Weird. But it’s true.
The JJM sauce is flavored great (not too salty, not too watery) and the noodles are the big and fat ones. The noodles are nice and springy in consistency and give the perfect noodle chew (is there such a thing). The potatoes and pork are also a lot better than the competitions.
I take away one star because I’ve never really had anything else here. I had a spoonful of the jampong and it was mediocre at best. If going only for JJM, however, I’d rate it 5 stars.

I love the ajumma there — she is so unbelievably sweet. I had the jjamjamyun (the jjajangmyun with the jjambong combo), the sogogi tangsooyook, and my husband had their jjajangmyun. The broth of the jjambbong is pretty okay, but in terms of consistency, it can be a hit or a miss. The seafood could have been more sizeable, but it’s all good. The tangsooyook was good, too (I asked for it to be well done); I love dipping it into their jalapeño vinegar/​soysauce mixture. I’ve heard that they handmake their noodles, so that’s always a plus! The service we received for dinner was very pleasant! The restaurant is in the basement of an office building off of Little River Turnpike, but don’t let that ward you off — inside, the dining area is brightly lit and very clean. They are opened late and is frequented often by the ESL students next door.
+handmade noodles
+located downstairs of business building
+friendly service: D

I grew up in Clifton, VA and my go-​to place for Korean Black Bean noodles was just a mile away and it was delicious!!! Since moving out of Clifton a decade ago, I have been trying to find a new spot to satisfy my Black Bean noodle cravings. Please message me if you know of any places near McLean! I refuse to suffer the traffic on 66 to get to Clifton…
My sister and I came here for lunch on a Friday and thanks to the Unilocal reviews, we were able to find it without a problem! We were seated immediately and our server/​owner? came to bring us drinks and take our order as soon as we were seated. We appreciated this because we were in a hurry. Unfortunately her english was not too good so she was unable to understand my question, «Do you still offer a combination bowl?» I didn’t see this anywhere on the menu and when she didn’t understand me, we decided to just order Fried Dumplings to start and the Black Bean Noodles.
Food came out quickly and LOOKED amazing. I repeat LOOKED amazing. Never judge a book by it’s cover… the dumplings, while huge, had no flavor. The meat filling was bland and the sauce it came with needed more sugar because it tasted like straight soy sauce.
The Noodles tasted fresh but the sauce tasted like nothing… bland and missing the authentic flavor that I am used to. I appreciated the chunks of potato and small bits of pork in the sauce but everything was just flavorless.
The ladies who worked there were eating at a corner table so we had to wait awhile for our check which was a bit annoying. We were the only table in the place so I think they forgot about us.
My search for black bean noodles continues…