If you’re looking for cheap eats, Awoolim in Koreatown Plaza is the place for you. With a menu where the lowest priced item is $1.15, you can easily put together a meal for $5.

I’ve always been fascinated by Awoolim  because of their exotic cheap eats. The lowest priced item, the fishcake and soup, always seems to be quite popular with the food court diners. At a $1.15 each, it’s almost impossible to pass up. Almost.

Awoolim’s got bulgogi tacos – $3 for an order of two. Two tacos for $3? It seemed too good to be true. Being a fan of Kogi’s tacos, which blend Korean with Mexican cuisine, I was very curious to see how these would taste. Except for the meat, the taco was pretty much the same as a Mexican taco, with corn tortillas and pico de gallo. The bulgogi meat did not taste like any bulgogi I’ve ever had. The tacos, I hate to say this, were not good. I could not even finish one, let alone two. Roy Choi, you can sleep easy at night.

More successful was the fishcake kimbap. Preassembled and wrapped in foil, there were about 10 pieces, filled with fishcake, pickled radish, carrot, egg, spinach and rice, wrapped in seaweed. At $3.50, it could easily be a meal for one.

My favorite dish was the takoyaki, the Japanese dish of balls with battered octopus, with takoyaki sauce, mayonnaise, seaweed and bonito flakes. It was my first time eating takoyaki, and I liked it.

Awoolim’s cheap eats are not enticing enough to make a special trip for, but if you happen to find yourself in Koreatown Plaza and could use a little something in your belly, Awoolim will do just the trick.

Location – 928 S. Western Ave., Los Angeles 90006
Website – none
Kid-Friendly – Yes
Kid’s Menu – No
Vegetarian/Vegan Friendly – Yes
Gluten-Free Options – Yes