Holy Moly Cafe & Lounge

I really wasn’t a fan of this place. When I first walked in, it was super dark and none of the waitresses even realized that anyone had came in. When they noticed us, they told us to pick anywhere to sit and all the available seats were extremely filthy, making it so that my friend and I did not want to sit anywhere. We finally chose somewhere to sit and the waitress took forever to give us a menu and later took forever to take our order. We ended up ordering some fried chicken wings and the cheesy corn. Both were very average and there was nothing special. As expected at that point, we had to walk to the desk to get the check and had to walk back to pay. The service was horrible, the ambience was terrible, and the food was just meh. I definitely won’t be coming back here.

Came here after eating at another korean AYCE place to drink some soju here.
First thing first, very limited lot parking so you’ll need to find street parking. They share a lot with a karaōke place, so perfect if you want to sing afterwards (although the karaōke place looks old an outdated)
My friends and I (5 total) were seated pretty quickly and we ordered their Yogurt Soju (YoJu).
Waitress comes back and tells us theyre out of Yogurt Soju but then she says: Wait hold on let me check again.
Comes back with a pretty small container of soju, we asked if it was the large and she said yes. A friend said he’s been here before and it used to be a pitcher size.
We all took a shot (expect our friend who forgot her ID) and were like: «This tastes like Yakult»
Basically, we couldn’t taste the alcohol.
After we finished the bottle we decided to go to SF to fulfill our Soju needs. The bill came and we saw a 18% gratuity charge and we were confused. But I saw that the waitress labeled us as a group of 6. After I brought it to her attention she fixed it and we were on our merry way to SF!
PS: The building is either very thick or there’s some kind of cell phone jammer, everyone’s phone had weak or no signal.

I had such high hopes, but ended up being so disappointed.
I’ve searched high and low for buldak in the Bay Area. After having a horrible experience at Coco Bang (really straight gochu paste on chicken is NOT bulduk), I found the only other restaurant I’ve even seen bulduk on the menu.
So across the bay I went.
We ordered ttoekbokki skewers (which were really good, with a nice kick), Kimchi Pancake, also tasty and well prepared.
Galbi which was no better or worse than I’ve had…
But the Bulduk… it comes out on a platter, covered with cheese, just the way I remembered it from Ilsan. It looked a bit greasier, but still all red and delicious…
And then I tasted it.
WAH WAHHHHH.
There was no spice, zero, zilch, as if they completely forgot the gochu, or any chili at all. It was milder than the ttoekbokki. Seriouslly… it was such a disappointment. I had been warning my friends for days about the dish so they could prepare themselves… and then nothing. They thought I was crazy.
I guess I’ll stick with the La Si Ni at Old Mandarin Islamic when I need some spice in my life.

Came here with a group of friends and had a really good time. The food is delicious — try the spicy rice cake with ramen, but make sure you get the boneless chicken with a pitcher of beer. Quality service and very friendly staff. I love this place!

I had no idea that Korean fried chicken existed only a short bus ride from where I live. This is a great place to order food family-​style and chat with friends. The food is kind of pricey, but that’s why you bring friends, right?
We ordered the cheesy corn, tteobokki with potstickers, small yogurt soju, and soy garlic chicken. The total came to be around $ 52 (including tip). The waitress kept disappearing, so it took a while to get our order in and get our check. They make sure there’s no underage drinking by bringing only enough cups for whoever’s over 21.
There aren’t many ways to get cheesy corn wrong. It came in a flat pan, so I don’t think there was much quantity. I loved the tteobokki and potstickers. They’re crunchy despite being drenched in sauce, and you can go digging for other goodies like carrots and cabbage. Of course, it would be even better if they tossed in a hard-​boiled egg, but I guess I can’t be too picky. The chicken was also delicious, with a thin fried skin that doesn’t seem too oily. I didn’t taste any of the garlic, though I could smell it.
Interesting ambience with blue lights and kpop music. Definitely bring friends so you can try out more things on the menu.

I love the vibe in this place! The music it great! Service was good! But the best was the quality of the food so flavorful and tasty I will definitely come back for more! And be friends!

My 1^st time here and we ordered dubu Kimchee (sautéed kimcee and pork belly in a sweet and spicy sauce served with tofu), sautéed gopchang (beef intestine sautéed with onions, garlic, and peppers), and gyeran mari (Korean omelette). The food came out piping hot and very quickly. The kimchee dish was seasoned perfectly! The gopchang was served very naturally without any impeding sauces. The omelet was crispy and moist with a surprisingly full flavor — I think it had ham and spring onions in it. Overall the food was very good. My only criticism is that the meal only came with 1 banchan– cold fishcake in a sweet sauce. It would have been nice to have some moo or some radish kimchee. Maybe this is because we ordered mainly anju (food you eat with alcohol). Also, no bingsoo! Shaved ice would have been the perfect ending to this meal.
Despite my criticisms, it doesn’t matter since the food was delicious and the KPOP was a nice touch. I would definitely come back with a larger group of people so that we could sample more of the extensive menu.

To be honest just doing this for the free food. Cool place though. Good chicken, good drinks, nice ambience.

When we came here for the first time, my wife and I were not sure if this place would give us decent food and service, in fact it looked kind of sketchy. We were wrong…
Even though this is a casual Korean style pub, the food is awesome and in general the menu items taste way better (and are more authentic) than other Korean restaurants in the Temescal area. At first glance this place seems to want to cater to college students (which we aren’t), the atmosphere is relaxed and we enjoy listening new K-​pop songs. It can be a bit loud at times but overall I don’t think it detracts from the mood or the atmosphere. It’s a for sure a fun place to drink and eat!
We go quite often especially because of the service. The manager is very friendly, polite and makes a point to take care of his guests. My only criticism is that they currently seem to be a bit short staffed; so service does slow down when it gets super busy. However, the food gets served quickly and is quite hot when it arrives at the table (meaning it hasn’t been sitting under a heat lamp). The manager often comes by and asks us if we need anything but never in a way that makes it like he is trying to push us out. We’ve been to some restaurants in the area where they silently drop the bill on your table and expect you to leave right away… Definitely not this place. That makes us feel so much more relaxed.
Definitely this will become our regular hang outs for our date night.

I especially recommend the yogurt soju; if you have never had it before, it’s a must try.
Overall, the food I’ve tried so far has all been scrumptious as well. I’ve only tried the Korean dishes, but what I’ve tried so far (budae jjigae, ddukboki, haemul pajun, fried chicken) have all been dishes I’d order again.
The service is also really good. On my second visit, the server brought out extra foods and drinks for free, and this has definitely kept us coming back to the same place every week. You can also request songs!
This is my go-​to place for good Korean foods and tasty soju drinks.

I came here with my BF. Korean severs are cute here haha and food is good. A bit spicy but it gets addicting. Parking is limited for this place. We got the ramen dubokki so good! Music is loud here, lights are dim. So for a special date you probably don’t want this place as you can barely hear anything.

I swear Holy Moly is playing with me because it all of a sudden just stopped being spicy.
Which in turn, is enough for me to take a star away…
I still enjoy their food and the drinks are ok… But why not give a spicy addict her fix?!

I thought this place was ok. We only decided to go here because my boyfriend and our friends wanted to drink soju, and the Unilocal reviews said they were good. My friends got the kiwi, peach, and strawberry soju flavors. Kiwi was the best flavor. The food was ok. I only tried bits and pieces of things since I ate before I came. The self serve rice balls are kinda weird. The chicken wings had good flavor. And the bulgogi was decent. I can’t really say much on the food since I didn’t really eat.
Ambience wise, the place is pretty cool. They play sad Korean music while you’re there but you can request music if you don’t want to listen to what they have. We got a good couple of rap songs in before they changed it up. And they dim the lights at 8pm.
Overall, it’s ok. I’d definitely give it another try since I didn’t really get to eat their food.

Service was good. We order:
Stir fried gopchang…5/5 perfectly cooked
Spicy seafood cheese rice cake ⁴⁄₅ lots of seafood in a huge plate…
Spicy stir fried jok bal ⁴⁄₅ good flavor with good sides (the sesame cabbage yummy)…
Fried chicken gizzard ⁵⁄₅ perfectly cooked (crispy on the outside and chewy inside)…
Overall good experience and will definitely come back… too many interest dish need to be tried.

Food was satisfying, service was dissatisfying. Maybe it was because I was by myself but no napkins, no utensils, not even a look my way.
The squid was good but a little tough. The noodles and chicken were delicious. A little too much sauce for my taste but the spice and flavor were great.

One of my favorite places to drink and eat in Berkeley! The owner is a super sweet Korean lady that treats everyone like her long-​lost grandkids– so sweet!
The ambience itself is really cozy and inviting; perfect for catching up with friends.
For the food, I’d really recommend the potstickers (7 for $ 6.95). Sure, they’re a little pricey but they. Are. INCREDIBLE. I could easily pop these babies day after day for YEARS. The skin is really light and crispy and the filling is just savory and to die for.
The other highlight of holy moly has to be it’s cheap and delicious flavored sojus. Particularly, I’d recommend the mango and strawberry as my favorites (I’ve sadly tried them all).
Overall, a really fantastic place to drink, eat, and socialize at decent prices. Plus, if you’re itching to hang out more afterwards, there’s karaōke right next door! Now, who can say no that! :D

This used to be my 2^nd home while attending Berkeley. I’ve seen it go through so many different managements and was sad to see each of them go one after another since I was such a frequent customer.
If I were writing this 3 years back, I would have given it 2 stars for the great food and drinks but the lack of service, when this one short server girl who had short hair and big round eyes used to work there. She would treat a group of girls sooooo differently from a group of guys («oppas» to her obviously) who came in for food/​drinks. Thank god she left after my third year in college because the service greatly increased afterwards.
This place is great for both small and large groups because they can rearrange the tables for you on the spot. However, the prime time is usually 10 after and so expect it to be crowded on Friday/​Saturdays and for there to be a wait or if unlucky, no available tables at all for the night (college kids drink till the end and then hit up the karaōke next door).
Beware, this is a Korean bar and a really big hotspot for those Korean international students so if you’re not a fan of K-​pop, sometimes house music, playing in the background, music videos brightly playing on their tv screens, the table next to you being rowdy while playing their Korean drinking games, then this place might not be for you. But if you’re like me and you love all of the above, then this is the perfect Korean bar to go to! (I am one of those rowdy Koreans playing those games next to your table lol)
I usually order the budaejjigae (army base stew), garlic soy chicken, cheese buldak (its like a spicy chicken dish with veggies and cheese, which is SOOO GOOD), and the haemul nurungji tang (seafood roasted rice soup). You can’t really go wrong with any of those. As for the alcohol, the prices are reasonable and it’s cheaper than what I have to pay at a korean bar in Ktown LA so I can’t complain. AND here’s a tip, the more you order, you can ask your server if you’re table can get «service» which is like an «on-​the-​house» complimentary food/​dish/​snack/​soju/​beer.
I feel like the location is great compared to the other Korean bars around Oakland. At least it has a parking lot right? However, when you come at the peak times there might not be any available spots since the bar shares it with the kbbq restaurant next door, a japanese sushi restaurant, as well as a karaōke. But no worries, because you can try to find parking in the residential areas or even on telegraph (however, if parking on telegraph make sure to read the street signs because there’s one where you can’t park past midnight)
Oh so many drunken memories I have of this place… i miss it :’) I always stop by and will continue to stop by when I visit Berkeley.
Hope to see you soon, Holy Moly.

New owners, please work on being consistent!
Holy Moly had a change of management and consistency is nonexistent. Every time I’m back the soy garlic chicken wings I once loved so much are different sizes or not as tasty as the last time. I used to be obsessed with this place and hell I even celebrated one of my past birthday dinners here but it’s just not what it used to be.
I come back specifically to order the jok bal, my favorite dish ever. I feel like a lot of Korean restaurants don’t offer this dish so I continue to come back and hope that the food gets better.
On a positive note, they have great happy hour specials and I really like the spicy seafood ramen soup.
Pull your shit together Holy Moly! You have potential and consistency is key.

This place is good for late night eats and drinks. The décor is lacking but the service is really good. As for the food, I would say it’s 3.5 stars.
On two occasions, I’ve had the spicy rice cakes which were not very spicy and a few rice cakes that were hard. The tofu and kimchi which was on the salty side. The soy and garlic and spicy wings which were lacking flavor. However, the fire chicken with cheese is the star of all the dishes. Had the right amount of spice and the mozzarella cheese on top was interesting but added a nice touch.

To my surprise, this place was pretty good. It use to be the old cyber café, which is a little small. Fortunately, I was able to go when it was less crowded. At night, around 8pm, it starts to get crowded. People already made reservations too.
The food was pricey, but once I received the food it was understandable. It was big portions. I can’t say that all of their food is good, because I did not try it. However, the chicken cheese was surprisingly delicious. Well worth trying.
Overall, it was a pleasant place to eat.
Rating:
Food: 4
Price: 3 (Pricey)
Service: 5
Overall: 4
The service made it worth it. Plus, it’s more for the younger crowd, 20s and early 30s.