Korea BBQ
- Price Range: $$
- Accepts Credit Cards: Yes
- Parking: Street, Private Lot
- Attire: Casual
- Good for Groups: Yes
- Good for Kids: Yes
- Takes Reservations: Yes
- Delivers: No
- Take-out: Yes
- Waiter Service: Yes
- Wheelchair Accessible: Yes
- Outdoor Seating: No
- Good for: Lunch, Dinner
120 reviews
San Jose, CA
"ABSOLUTELY love this place. I'm a sucker for spicy food and their Nuclear sauce on the chicken wing (I'm not a big fan of white meat on…" read more »
32 Reviews for Korea BBQ
We came here for our friend's bday. My first impression was not that good. I brought the cake to them so my friend won't be able to see it, and they asked me to put it in the fridge by myself. @_@... Anyway, the reservation is ready and we don't have to wait at all. The food came out pretty quick except the kalbi, it came right after all the food is almost gone. We ordered kalbi, bulgogi, chicken soup, fried yellow tail, fried sole fish and etc. The pancake and appetizer is on the house. The pancake is very crisp. Yummy! The appetizer is a type of drink with wild rice in it. It tastes very sweet and served cold. I love it! I'm not quite satisfy with their service since they don't refill the glass without being asked. Two star for the food, one star for the freebies, one star for the cleanliness!
MmMm.. this place is actually quite good.
I ordered Korean BBQ beef and pork here (the pork was waay better). Ate it ALL. The tofu was so good too! And the cucumbers and seaweed and kimchee and the other 3 items that were completely foreign to me, but steeel goot!
And why is it that the WATER here tastes sooo good? It was definitely NOT tap, that's for sure. I wonder where they get their water from.. I would have asked, but who the h*** asks a restaurant what brand their water was?
The waitress was nice, but I wish she was more attentive. I drank my glass of water like it was nothing. I would've drank 5 more glasses if she came around more than once..
Oh, so I also had 2 bowls of rice, and the waitress was kind enough to get me even more tofu and cucumbers and such.. all this food for $25.90 for a party of two! Not bad at all.
It doesn't beat the taste from Koreatown in LA/Garden Grove.. but it's decent for the price.
We had galbi (ribs), daeji bulgogi (spicy marinated pork), and bbo keum bab (korean fried rice). The fried rice were a little bit too salty.. but the meat was good and their kimchi!.. and kimch is always a good indicator if the place is good or not..
I like their service.. we ordered for take out and they told me to wait for 10 -15 min (which means 20-25 min. in korean time)... they gave me their business card to call so I don't have to wait.. but I just came here after 25 min. and my food was just being prepared to be put in bags..
3.25 stars!
I was SOO hungry today, I didn't care what I had. You know that level of hunger that tears away at your tummy like a caged tiger? Well that was me today.
Two of the Sys Admin boyz were with me and we didn't know what to eat. Viet, Japanese, Korean...YES. Korean. I'm down.
I hadn't been back to Korea BBQ since my newbie experimental days circa 2000. I didn't eat anything but chicken and rice because I was scared of all the interesting and almost gross looking items called KIMCHEE.
Today, I am much more open to exotic foods and eat everything and anything. I tried the Dol sot bi bim bap (beef, vegetables, and rice in hot stone pot topped with an over easy egg)
Eh..not as tasty as other places. They kinda skimped me on the meat but the one thing I did like was how hot my meal was. I am big on hot food. So hot that its OK if it burns my mouth. The Kim Chee was good. My faves are the cucumbers, seaweed and the little minnows! Yup, I gobble those up like skittles!
Not sure if I'll return. I am glad however, that I got to review and give this place another try after so many years. On to the next!
People thought this was:
Useful (2)
Funny (2)
Cool (2)
wow, this place was gooooooood! brought my husband and son here for father's day, and since we were sharing with our toddler, i had to make sure some of the stuff was not spicy. i ordered the seafood and soft tofu soup mild, and most of the time, restaurants serve this mild soup pretty bland. but not this place! i was very surprised by how flavorful it was, and our son ate so much of it. we also ordered fried squid and kalbi, and loved both. i ate just the right amount, my hubby ate way too much, and we still had leftovers. super-friendly service. will definitely come back!
The Beef soup (Yu Kae Jang) is the best in the house....though the other stuffs on the menu list is good as well.....Grilled Mackerel, Raw Beef, Galbi (though you do not BBQ it yourself).
For dinner, they will serve complimentary cold rice desert
People thought this was:
Useful (1)
Cool (1)
My original plan was to try the Hankook Supermarket to satisfy my current Korean food craving, but something weird was happening on that block...like a blackout or something--so original plan out. I was unwilling to settle for anything less than Korean so I stopped at this place on my way home. The staff was super super nice. I ordered something to go, and while I was waiting they brought out this sweet rice drink for me. Yum.
I ordered the Bul Go Kee (barbecued beef) plate, which includes the typical Korean side dishes (my favorite was the fish cakes) and rice. The beef was tender with a subtle smoky quality to it. It was good, but maybe ordering something cooked with the bones intact, like the short ribs, might've been more flavorful. All this was for $12 or 13--and it was actually quite a lot so not too badly priced. I will probably come back to try the Bi Bim Bab, which is about $9.
People thought this was:
Useful (1)
Korea House was packed tonight, so we ended up here because a friend kept telling me how great this place was.
We ordered:
*Dol sot bi bim bap (beef, vegetables, and rice in hot stone pot) - BLAND, not much beef or vegetables
*Yuk kae jang (spicy beef soup) - BLAND BLAND BLAND
*Hae mool pa jun (seafood pancake) - BLAND
Even the tea and pan chan were bland. My nose didn't run once during this meal. Did the cook eat so much spicy food and smoke so many cigarettes that he no longer has taste buds? Must continue looking for a backup restaurant to satisfy my cravings for Korean food when KH's wait is longer than 10 minutes.
People thought this was:
Funny (1)
Cool (1)
Update:
Updating this review (from 2 to 4 stars) after this place superbly handled a lunch for close to 20 people. They gave us a room of our own. Looked like it could seat close to 30 people. Service was good (we got checked on every few minutes, water/tea refilled etc) and food was great. You can't go wrong with any of their grilled dishes. The seafood pancake was yum!
---
3 out of 4 at the table ordered the spicy pork with rice dish while the 4th person ordered ribs with rice.
The tofu in the soup (part of lunch special) had a unusual texture and taste..couldn't tolerate it after the first bite so left the soup alone. The spicy pork was good...only thing at the table that wasn't served cold. Guess they forgot to put in our order for ribs with rice because it took an extra 15-20 to arrive after the other dishes...and only because we kept asking them if they placed the order.
Price was decent.
People thought this was:
Useful (1)
Definitely WAY better than Palace buffet. The meat looks fresher and they have more veggie options. I had lunch here for $12pp, not bad for all you can meat buffet if you ask me. Will definitely be back. Oh and they have sesame oil/salt sauce, you just gotta ask.
You know those places that you pass by every day, but you never stop until we decided to last Friday night.
I've lived here in the valley all my life - and the nearby Sees Candy store has been there since my wee little brain can remember. but I didn't notice Koren BBQ until I read some of the reviews on Yelp.
The restaurant is definitely spartan in decor. There's a flat panel TV mounted above cashier. But, the place is clean and tables are bussed quickly after the table is vacated.
I'm pretty basic when it comes to ordering at a Korean restaurant - my favorite is the bi bim bap - kinda like a salad mixed in with slices of BBQ beef, vegetables and an egg over easy. You mix all this stuff up with some chili paste or sauce - and YUM! S. ordered the pork bul go gi, but found out that the spice they used didn't really agree with his stomach (he's got a sensitive tummy) and the owner was very quick and curteous about replacing his meal with something much milder.
The thing I love about going to a Korean restaurant is all the little pickles and condiments that tantilize my taste buds. The kim chee was very flavorful (not too spicy hot). The service was quick and attentive - our tea cups and glasses were kept full.
The only thing about this place is that the parking can be challenging. There's limited parking on the street and in the lot adjacent to the restaurant. I understand that there's parking in the back - but since we didn't park back there, I don't know how safe that area is.
We definitely had a good dining experience and will be back again!
People thought this was:
Useful (1)
Cool (1)
It's only ok.. Try the Spicy pork.. Bul go gi was dry and not tasty... tofu soup is ok... slow service, has to ask for water 2-3 times before they bring it.... not a lot of side dishes too... I think Korean House is better
For good bulgogi, with a zillion little pickles, this is my go-to place.
Not too expensive, with good sized portions.
Nothing fancy, and the decor is clean third world, but you're coming here for the food.
People thought this was:
Cool (1)
This weekend after a night out a few friends and myself decided to go to eat some lunch. I hadn't eaten at a Korean restaurant so this was a completely new restaurant. We arrived there around 2, the enviorment was quite welcoming. We were seating in the back corner room, thank goodness because I was wearing the previous clothes from the night before and quite honestly looked like hell. Besides the point, upon sitting there was tea in front of us, someone referred to it tasting like "coffee tea" but i believe she said it was ginger tea? I'm not sure, it wasn't something i would normally drink it was ..OK. They then brought out some won tons and appetizers complementary of the house. We had about ten people so that was very nice of them. I decided to ordered the number 2. Which was beef BBQ and rice along with a bowl of soup. The soup was delicious, I enjoyed the broth and the tofu with it. I then was given i believe pickled cabbage and potato's, They were good, then came out our actual lunch. I enjoyed the lunch granted i didn't finish my whole plate. I never do. but it was a good meal that held me over until my next experience at a restaurant later that day. THE worst experience Ive had. well get to that later. All in all this restaurant was indeed a good lunch spot that I would decide to go to again. I always enjoy good customer service and good food.
That's it. I'm marrying a Korean girl.
But only if she makes awesome seafood pancakes like this place does.
People thought this was:
Funny (1)
Really good stuff. I have been craving Korean and hadn't had it for probably 7 months or more and we used to live 5 minutes from Korea town in LA. I was a tiny bit disappointed that we didn't have a table top burner to cook our food - I love that cook it yourself Korean bbq thing - but the food was awesome. We ordered the spicy red kimchee tofu soup and the short ribs. All together for my wife and I it was like 30 bucks. It was really pretty good food. Good service too. The atmosphere is nonexistent. The flat screen TV shows pure bizare-ness nonstop. But as a major plus in my mind, my wife and I were the only non-Koreans there last night. I'd give it a thumbs up for the food alone.
People thought this was:
Useful (1)
Cool (1)
Took the family here for my sister's birthday last night and was pleasantly surprised that the food was FANTASTIC. The 4 star rating is due to lack of the usual Korean bbq grills at the table that you would expect from the name, their selection on soju, and unlike any other korean restuarant, they did not supply endless kim chee dishes until the end of the meal.
Look past the minimal decor and you will find all the regular korean dishes on the menu that is nothing but regular. Order their special seabass...literally makes your mouth orgasism. I haven't eaten like this in months but so glad I did.
People thought this was:
Useful (1)
Cool (1)
The food here was good (although I can't vouch for its authenticity) and portions are pretty big. The waitress was good at helping us decide what to order. Because of the name I thought they would have only BBQ food. But they had a large selection of Korean food. I ended up having the bibimbap and my parents shared a grilled fish. This, in addition to the panchan made us stuffed! We had leftovers which still tasted good the next day.
They're open pretty late, and they have a flat screen tv that was showing a Korean show.
People thought this was:
Useful (1)
Funny (1)
Cool (1)
Bul Go Gi and Kal Beee..good stuff
We came at almost 9pm on Saturday night with 8 people. Right away she gave us the little private room...which was very nice.
Don't mind the strange parking lot and somewhat cheesy signage. The food is worth it.
mmmm this place is so close to my friend's house! When I came in I felt like I really was in Korean....I don't know why..then when I sat down this 20something Korean guy gave me this perverted smile and asked me where I lived...kowai ne? The service was really really good! since Diana T. asked for soju our waitress waited until those 2 20something guys left :P I ordered the kam ja tang (potato beef something). That one was bit of a disappointment to me because it looked like simple chinese soup my mother makes at home.. :( their korean bqq is really good. Appitzers were my favorite! It came with the potato thingy and pickled spicy radish, beansprouts, coleslaw, kim chi, seaweed, the tofu strips and I think that was it. My soup wa around $8.95?? and It's pretty close to han kook market! I love my waitress!!! :)
This restaurant has a generic name, but not-so-generic food. Beware though, there's another place with the name "Korea BBQ" and it's down the street.
We went to eat here because our homeboy Thomas C. was having a birthday party at 9:00pm on a Wednesday night - "what the random" right? Happy 30th Thomas! 30 is flirty!
So surprisingly ... the food was served promptly, they gave us free plates of chap chae, refills on side dishes, and even some sweetened fermented rice water at the end.
As for the highlights - the chicken was delicious, the bulgogi was tender and well-marinated ... and all 20 of us ate very well. This is a great place to take a group as they have a long room for birthday parties that is separate from the other part of the restaurant. We had a blast watching Thomas do his impressions of a jellyfish, velociraptor and frozen yogurt in that small space.
Anyway, go Korea BBQ and go Thomas. You're both pretty gosh darn cool.
People thought this was:
Useful (1)
Funny (1)
Cool (1)
I've eaten here twice and the food was damn good Korean food. I always get the same stuff like Seafood Pa Jun, Grilled Chicken and Sauteed Cuttlefish/Octopus. You get your average number of Korean side dishes. Come here for the food not for drinking soju or hite. I'd bring my mom here.
People thought this was:
Useful (1)
we randomly picked this place for lunch last saturday and the moment i noticed that there's a "BBQ" word on their name, i told him that i won't be doing any cooking/bbq'ing and that we have to order the bbq to be cooked in the kitchen.
fortunately, they don't have that "bbq gas devise" in the middle of the table! i was contented.
the menu was easy and fun to look at...large print numbers, though text are in small print, colorful, vivid visuals of different, delightful dishes.
we already know what we want to devour ( we were pretty hungry), so no need to keep flipping those pages back and forth. we asked for the bbq beef (bulgogi) of course! and it came generously on a sizzling platter. it was flavorful, very good indeed. we also had a plate of their pancake(binddaeddeok) but they have it mixed with squid & shrimp..it was also truly scrumptious as well! the banchan selections were just okay.
the place was clean, well-kept. the waitress was courteous and the food came out fast!
i have this perception now that anything that has a name of their country (korea in this case) always (so far, based from what i've encountered) delivers pleasing, prime selections of their dishes.
once again, another commendable joint to crave that is again, far from my place, which i don't mind driving and wasting some gas.
People thought this was:
Useful (6)
Funny (5)
Cool (9)
damn you, yelpers! i'm never gonna lose weight if you keep on giving 4 and 5 stars. now i wanna live on el camino real just so i could walk to this place. well, when i was eating the delicious korean goodness, i convinced myself that everything isn't high in calories because they were all pickled vegetables...lame, i know. there's this seafood pancake thingy that kicks tung kee noodle's egg taro cake's ass and the octopus bok um thingamagigger is so frickkin tasty. honestly, i don't think it's worth $19 for a platter of shortribs that i just swallowed as a whole because they were so chewy. btw, i had to go sit in my car during my breaks at school so i could fart. my farts smelled like kim chee. yes, i had this 24 hours ago.
People thought this was:
Useful (2)
Funny (3)
Cool (2)
One of the other places that I used to go when the Korea House was too pack. I like their Kalbi here better than KH. Good Stuff!
People thought this was:
Useful (1)
I took a bus to shopping with my friends and happened to find a BBQ of Korean restaurant . It was about time to eat dinner. Therefore, we entered the restaurant, and waitress brought us forward to seat. Suddenly, I felt the restaurant was the best choice for us. It was founded by Koreans. We could eat a variety of frilled meat and extra food, such as fried rice, clam chowder, and spring rolls. The restaurant was equipment with nice soaks of machine for customer. We would grill the meat without taking breath of smoke. The attendants were very kindly and have good attitude for me. The attendants always cared for our circumstance while we were eating. The setting was very suitable for eating with friends. It could satisfy our stomachs as long as we only spent ten dollars on eating dinner per each.
You know the restaurant is gonna be good when the person who chose it IS Korean and loves Korean food....
Korea BBQ is a place not known for its ambience or decor, but come for the AWESOME food. We got the usual array of kimchee and cured cucumbers and fish (sorry, don't know the names of all of the food) as appetizers. Plus, the "seafood pancake" and wontons were very impressive as far as taste!!
I ordered the Korean BBQ beef, and it was perfect!! I happily ate almost all of it (the portions were huge!). And I chugged along on my O.B., and this rice drink that starts with a B (Bek Sen Ju???----sorry!). It was funny cuz I went with a big group and the girls all ordered meat plates while the guys ordered the dainty bowl dishes!! Ha ha! But everyone left satisfied with their meals.
People thought this was:
Useful (1)
Cool (1)
My 25% Korean blood wants me to rate one star but I'll rate it two because it is slightly better than mall food. Let's just say it was not the Korean food I remembered having at my grandmother's house every Summer and Winter vacation in Korea as a kid. The beef was dry. The chicken was tasteless. The kimchi wasn't pickled right. The other appetizers were disappointing. Well, except for the pickled radish. I would recommend Korean House over it any time.
This restaurant is located on El Camino Real, alongside some strip malls and across from the Clutch Mart. It's not a fancy place, just a simple restaurant where you can get a very satisying meal. I noticed recently, that they added a flat screen tv, right above the cash register, airing Korean programs. Spend some time perusing the menu, because there are plenty of offerings. The BBQ Pork is good, a bit spicy, but marinated almost perfectly. I like the Bi Bim Bap served in the stone pot. Let the rice sit for a while, after it is brought to the table, so that the rice can crust a bit more. The tofu stews are perfect for a cold evening. I tried one of the goat dishes, which was surprisingly good.
You may have to ask them for the pre-meal soup or dessert soup, since they sometimes don't automatically bring it. If you feel you have the room to finish it all...
Don't over order, because you start off with the pan chan, the various appetizers in little dishes. A suggestion is to order one dish per person. So that you can have some variety, but you may still end up with a doggy bag to take home.
You just don't know how happy I am to have found this place! Well, actually, it was through a recommendation, so I can't take all the credit. I readily bring my friends here, whenever the opportunity arises. I believe this is authentic Korean homestyle cooking. I'm not an expert, but am basing this from the menus, which have limited English on them and the dishes depicted in the photos, many of which I was never aware of.
I love kalbi. I haven't found a korean restaurant that serves long rib kalbi. I'm not Korean, and I've only been to 5-6 other korean places. But I love love kalbi and in my mind this place is the best place for kalbi in San Jose.
By the way, don't put money into the novelty toy machine, can't win. But I won't let that sour my rating.
We arrived at the restaurant around 8:30PM on Saturday and only one dirty table was available. They quickly cleaned it and we were seated within 5 minutes.
SERVICE: Service was slow because the restaurant had a tour group the evening we went. Took about 15 minutes to get our order taken and about 30 minutes to get our 2 dishes of grilled meat. The owner (?) kept apologizing for the slow service due to how busy the restaurant was.
PRICE: Average
FOOD: Both grilled meats were quite tasty
We ordered:
Sides - OK - nothing special, no chap chae side which I missed
Kal Bi ($19) - LIKED IT - beef was tender and nicely marinated
Grilled Chicken ($11) - LIKED IT - chicken had a very delicious grilled flavor
GO AGAIN?: Maybe
Three stars because the food was only OK.
The side dishes were nothing spectacular. The kim chee was not spicy at all. All of the dishes didn't have much flavor, mostly bland.
No decor, no parking. Just an OK place.
Located on El Camino near a very small strip mall.
People Who Viewed This Also Viewed...
Hot and New
- Aki's Bakery
188 reviews
San Jose, CA
- Gombei Japanese Restaurant
165 reviews
San Jose, CA
- Vip Oriental
63 reviews
Santa Clara, CA
- Hoshi
105 reviews
Santa Clara, CA
- El Paisa Taqueria
34 reviews
San Jose, CA