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Sun. 11:00 a.m. - 11:00 p.m.
"I'm giving this place 5 stars for the excellent food, this is truly meat lovers paradise. I had gone here for a birthday party with a friend…" read more »
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one thing about living in ktown is ur close to all the "authentic" kbbq and tofu houses. and one good thing about the newlyweds living in ktown is they're a stone's throw away from manna.. lucky.
picked up the newlyweds from LAX and one thing they missed the most was kbbq. so off we went after dropping off their 2 big luggages and a box and a carry on, make that 2, and another box?.. see, this would have been my first time here since they've been sooo busy with their wedding prep and all. now that that's over, they're finally freed up and well, they kinda got no choice since i picked them up..
got their around 11a on a weekday and there were only about 2-3 parties. i was expecting a crowd from all the rave reviews. but i guess they come out at night and the weekends. cool, less bbq smell for me.
one good thing here is they let u order the meat u like unlike some other places where they make u order all the meats the first round. we got ourselves some short ribs, brisket and pork belly. while cooking, we also got to enjoy the banchan. they have by far the best kimchi i've tasted. i tried eating with the rice paper too and decided that was too much work and i was better off with a small bowl of rice instead. the meat was so good i had to pat myself in the back for not finishing my rice. self control, baby! i was determined to eat the meat! sooo much good food i tell ya!
since there weren't that many people when we came by, the service was actually decent. there really wasn't that much to attend to anyway since we were cooking our own food. i do give them credit when our banchan was refilled in a timely manner.
after we paid our bill and headed out, i noticed the empty parking spot uphill next to the resto. after stressing out parking on the street... i *hate* parking on the street.... there was parking??? oh, oh better yet, there was valet parking????? dammit, i must've been too hungry to notice that when we got in!
this is one place i'd definitely consider going back and back and back..
I went here for a friend's surprise going away party and having never had Korean BBQ before, I went in not really knowing what to expect. I have to say that I was blown away! At first I didn't really see the point in paying someone to let me cook my own food, but once I got started, there was no stopping me! The meat they brought us was very tasty and the soju (also a new experience for me) was great.
The best part of the night was when we told the server that our guest of honor was celebrating his birthday. It wasn't really my friend's birthday but there's a reason for this little white lie. Apparently, if you tell them there's a bday they'll bring out a bottle of champagne, shake it up, and spray it all over the birthday boy (or girl). It's honestly the funniest thing to watch someone get sprayed with alcohol and even funnier wathcing the reactions of the unfortunate people sitting behind the birthday person.
The food and drinks are good, it's an excellent place to go if you're in a group, and the prices aren't that bad. Would definitely go back here again.
haha.. only so many words can describe this place.. unforgettable birthday - fair price (16.99) - random sides - hilarious asian pop music.
the end.
The restaurant looked alright from the outside until I stepped out into their patio seating. The table, floor, cups, forks were super sticky and I was trying to walk slowly to prevent myself from slipping on the nasty film of oil that collected on the floor. I was invited to eat Korean BBQ at Manna by one of my vendors, otherwise I wouldn't have ever gone. I was pretty excited to try it out though since I love KBBQ but after one bite of their not-so-quality meat, I was a bit disgusted. I'm not saying that it should be top notch meats since it was only $15.99 per person but at least something edible. Needless to say, I ate one piece of meat and opted to eat just the sides for the rest of the night.
Oh btw, don't go there if it's your birthday. They have a tradition where they spray you with a full bottle of bubbly. Yes, just for fun so just be prepared.
I live in Long Beach--and if I go to Manna, it's only for one reason: It's someone's birthday. Manna is all you can eat BBQ. The food is fine--good, but i've certainly had better Korean BBQ in Garden Grove. For the same price, you can head over to the OC and get seafood and a much larger selection of meats. But of course--this is merely a gripe of a South Bay resident.
Manna alone is kinda dirty. You pay for valet so you can eat in a tent. Yup...a tent. But it's not without its charm. Manna always hosts a loud and boisterous crowd--and you can definately have tons of fun here. But the draw of this place is definately birthday ritual. I'm not looking to ruin anyone's experience here, but if you're going here for your birthday, bring a change of clothes. If you are looking for a place to take a birthday boy (or girl--but she'll likely kill you afterwards) this is the place. Bring a birthday cake, and you'll get a deal on the Manna Birthday show. Even if you don't bring the cake, its well worth the price to watch the birthday show.
I was here for a birthday dinner--and while I wasn't too impressed with the food, I had a great time. The birthday boy sure had a birthday to remember, and we all have loads of pictures to document it.
I'm sorry for being vague, but i'm not one to spoil surprises. I'm sure there are tons of reviews on here that will detail this for you--but no one is going to damn "That yelper Angela T" for ruining a birthday surprise :)
Hi, my name is Vicky and I eat meat religiously. If society invented a religion based on meat worshiping, I would probably be the leader. That is why Korean BBQs are my ultimate weakness.
But why is everyone so riled up about Manna? Sure, it's outdoor..ish, but the BBQ stink (or meat perfume) still stays on. I'm generally not a picky eater but when it comes to chicken, I am. Don't ask why because I couldn't give you an answer. The chicken at Manna is (gasp) sweet. It wasn't a natural meaty sweetness, it was more of a marinated-in-actual-sugar sweet. Not good. The bulgogi was..well just regular bulgogi, nothing out of the ordinary. Brisket and belly was of mediocre quality, there wasn't a twinge of excitement when I ate those. I only liked about a third of the sides they gave and FYI, I've had better korean salads.
IMO, it's more of a trend to eat here than anything else. It's just an excuse for teenagers to put "At Manna with the homies in LA" on their Twitter. Sorry Manna, you may have 500 something reviews, but you're just...average.
I haven't eaten here in a while but I get flashbacks during my trips to Olympic Spa. I liked the atmosphere of being under tent like you're at a backyard BBQ.
I was with a group of 12 peeps who love to eat, so there was some serious throwing down at our table. We ordered bulgolgi, brisket, chicken and the ribeye. I wasn't too fond of the chicken or ribeye so I stuck with the brisket during the rest of my meal.
My favorite will always and forever be the brisket. I love the thinly shaved slices of beef. And just to make that meal extra special, I had to top it off with a bottle of Hite.
My only complaint is when my hair & clothes smell like KBBQ. Good lord...
Manna is not the best, but for that outdoor Korean BBQ experience you gotta give it try! I hear there is one opening in Arcadia soon - please let it be true.....
My friends and I meet here about once or twice a month. I'm a huge fan of Korean BBQ and the quality here isn't the greatest but it doesn't suck either. The birthday song is a tad annoying but it is always fun watching people get doused in champagne!
The portions are huge, the price is more than fair, the service is OK and it gives my friends and I an opportunity to sit around the large tables and catch up. My friends and I are fans of all-you-can-eat in general and we put the plates of meat back here like we are starving feed-the-hungry kids.
We are heading to the Manna in Culver City tonight. This will be our 1st visit there and we are all very excited.
I recommend this place to anyone looking for good quality and reasonably priced KBBQ.
it's good for what it is. but i've had better. their pineapple soju is bomb though.
One thing I really like to see in a restaurant is something that provides an interactive experience or an atmosphere that induces people to communicate. This place had both. Cooking your own meat on a grill in the center of the table is both unique to many styles of eateries and simply fun.
One thing I have noticed about places with this theme is that the quality of food tends to be diminished, but that was not the case here. I felt that all the cuts of meat served at our dinner were of very good quality. My brisket was not too fatty in the least (read some of the other reviews). The sides were delicious. I'm a kimchi fan and this was good kimchi in my opinion. It seemed to have the perfect amount of spice and vinegar.
If you don't want to smell like a meat BBQ its not the place for you, but I chalked that up to the experience. I recommend this establishment.
I've been to this place on at least 5 different occasions and each time have left satisfied... smelly like any other Korean BBQ spot, but happy. You can't beat their brisket, relatively quick staff, and yummy pineapple soju. If you're looking for a nice and quiet dinner, come on a weekday when it's not too crowded. If you're ready for a partAY, Friday and Saturday nights are the times to come. They celebrate their guest's birthdays like no other restaurant I've seen before: corny game show type music and a champagne bath. Be careful, though, 'cuz if you're sitting close by you might get a little wet.. but a few drops of champagne won't kill you.
What I like a lot about this place is the fact that you can be yourself. You can sit the way you want, stuff your face like a pig if you please, or stand on top of a chair during the bday music and no one will give you dirty looks... AKA it's very comfortable.
The quality of the meat isn't as good as other Korean BBQ places in k-town, but it still has my approval. If you like Korean BBQ in general you'll like it anywhere, especially here.
People, if you like Manna, hold your thought til you try Tahoe Galbi.
No offense here....
I know a bunch of similar places have popped up in the area over the years but Manna will always be the one that popped my AYCE Korean BBQ cherry. Yea the quality of food isn't great, yea it's a little dirty, and yea the service is mediocre at best but that's what makes this place what it is. With merely a tarp acting as its roof, Manna's decor reminds you that this is not some pretentious fine dining restaurant you take the in-laws to. This is the place where you and your ambitious college buddies compete to see who can gorge down more meat. This is the place where you can make your birthday experience unique (song and spray). This is the place where you can take huge groups and basically be as rowdy as you want. Just accept it for what it is.
You can't expect the meat here to be amazing, but it's okay for me for the price you pay. The boneless BBQ beef would be my choice and only choice for this all you can eat BBQ semi-outside restaurant. None of other meats really kept you wanting to eat more.
I didn't mind how loud place was because usually I'm too busy trying to eat my money's worth, but the annoying song that plays every 5 minutes followed by the birthday champagne baths really annoyed me. I felt like I was winning a prize for getting a ring onto a rod at a carnival, but it wasn't followed by a giant Bart Simpson doll. I guess it was because our table was closer to the speaker and the music was combo punching my ear drums, but I wish they could have tone it down a little bit.
I've been here twice, once for a friend's graduation/leaving the country party, and once just because my friend and I were starving and thought it would be good to go some place to stuff our face & slightly stink up ourselves before going to the movies.
Manna is what you would expect of an 'all you can eat' Korean BBQ place. They have a variety of meats, and the staff does their best to bring everything out as quickly as possible. If it's your first time going, make sure a more experience eater doesn't take your rice paper away from you! The rice paper is the best part of K-BBQ if you ask me. I love to take a hot piece of BBQ dip it in the salt/oil mixture and wrap the rice paper around it! Can we say mouthgasm? Yeah, I invent words when existing words just don't cut it.
What makes Manna a little more special than any other place is the "Happy Birthday Champagne." When you hear the extra chipper music start to play, get ready for an awesome show at someone's expense. The waiters come out and place a cake like thing in front of you and as you prepare to blow out the candle, they pop a champagne bottle and hose you down. For my friend, we got 2 bottles and drenched the poor sap before he went to LAX for a 15+ hour flight back to Thailand. For those of you gasping in shock that I'd let someone smell of champagne & BBQ, don't worry. We planned ahead and he got to change and shower! Can't have him eff up the other passengers that way.
This place is definitely fun if you have a big group or even if it's just a few friends. Someone always gets champagned which makes for an interesting dining experience. The best is when they try to dodge the champagne but eventually succumb to the champagne bath.
My friends and I are ready for another champagne experience in October. Yay!
i wish i can give them neegative 5 stars if that was possible!!!
CONS:
quality of their meats is the worst ive ever seen (brisket - 90% fat 10% meat ... like.. am i supposed to eat this?! i mean.. i know it's an all-you-can-eat joint... but.. cmon...)
bad service,
BAD SERVICE
and BAD SERVICE!!!!
PROS:
valet parking is available?
im never going back.. yup.
Go to Choi's BBQ on Wilshire and St. Andrews Pl. They give cold noodles, egg-jjim, and soy bean paste stew.. yummmm
ugggggggggggghh ewww why would you go to this place. There is always a wait, the place is ghhettttooo, looks and is dirty, and the service sucks. Not worth the 15.99 all you can eat
So this was my first k-town bbq experience...pretty interesting I would say. It was a friend's bday dinner shindigg and she chose kbbq. This place is a meatlovers dream!
Manna seems a little odd at first because parts of the restaurant is outdoors and like some other reviews say..smoking is allowed but I dont think that was a problem last night. $16.99 for all you can eat with the traditional small plates that comes with the bbq (kimchi, veggies, steamed egg, rice, salad...etc)
So the server comes to your table with lots and lots of meat ...beef, chicken, pork...whatevs and then the cooking begins!
i couldnt eat much...i was full by the time i got to my 3 serving of meat and by then my stomach start to hurt :( but anyways...food was pretty good and i love kbbq for the fact that its a total socializing/cooking experience... i think the only downside would be service being a tad bit rude.
This place is great for large groups....especially if you're planning on celebrating a birthday. If you bring in a cake, they'll bring it out with this funky techno bday song (which is so embarassing) and they'll also give you a bottle of champagne...or rather they'll drench you in champagne. This poor girl last night got soaked but it was quite funny.
Be prepared to leave this place smelling like the person next to you.
I went here in 2000 & just went recently & I love it. And everyone I know who goes there says they love it & say they're definitely going back. If it's your birthday they play a happy birthday song shake champagne and try to spray it all over you & your guests! hahaha it's great. My favorite is the bbq chicken, short ribs & beef brisket..yum...I'm so excited cause were going there today! You will not regret it. Oh & try their pineapple soju that s**t will hit you before you know it so eat & drink slowly lol
PLEASE READ MY REVIEW!!!!! The food is good here. For only $16.99 you can have endless meat such as pork, beef and chicken. My fave is the delicious egg soup and the yummy cup of tea after your meal. Just to inform you, always expect the service to suck.
*Quality Rating* (1 poor - 10 excellent)
Food- 8 out of 10
Service - 3 out of 10
Cleanliness- 7 out of 10
I've never been to korean bbq before but I am now and forever a fan. All you can eat meat with yummy sides that you cook yourself at your table?!? I'm there.
It's loud and smoky and smells of meat. Don't bring a vegetarian date here. That would be dumb.
I'm getting a meat coma just thinking of this place.
It's fun, it's wild, it's dirty, it's good, it's delicious... it's Asia!
I have never been to a "restaurant" in the states that reminded me so much of Asia! The place is wild!
If you want to have a fun yet wild experience, a taste of Asia, this may be a place for you. If you are faint-hearted, then you may pass this place immediately.
Let me start by describing the setting. The place is wild. It's dirty like Asia, but not dirty to a point where you will be stepping on things every other step; however, it is definitely not your fine dining restaurant. You can either choose to sit indoor or outdoor; we sat outdoor. There is a big umbrella kinda thing so you definitely won't get wet if it starts to rain. The table were small and cramped, but it was fun a big group.
The price is rather cheap for Korean BBQ at night, $17.99 per person. Not to mention, it is all you can eat too. The quality of the meat is acceptable with a lot of choices. Bulgogi, chicken, ribs, briskets, pork belly... you name it they probably got it. There are also a lot of banchan, sidedishes, with unlimited refills. There are also mango, pineapple, and yogurt soju which people seemed to enjoy a lot.
I think one of the highlight is when the waiters/waitresses spray bottles of champagne on birthday people! It's a riot, because everyone in the restaurant would scream and shout while the person is being sprayed! The whole restaurant would smell really good afterward.
Oh, just a tip.. remember to eat the meat with the rice paper. It's like a taste of heaven. Okay, maybe not, but close.
Overall it was a pleasant experience. If you want a taste of Asia.. I would recommend you to come. Also, prepared of smelling like what you ate when you leave!
New rule: I don't think I'm allowed to engage in all-you-can-eat korean bbq ever again. But if I do it'll probably be at Manna.
I almost didn't go here because of all the not-so-excited reviews. People were really critical of the service, but I went around 7 p.m. on a Thursday night and there weren't a lot of people there when we showed up, so we might have lucked out. the service was great.
The brisket and the pork short ribs were the best meats, and the sides were all really nice -- I really like the kimchi here, and that's not always true for me. I also thought the side dishes were all very tasty _ I kept digging at the noodles long after I felt full. And the cucumber pickles have a miraculous ability to be crunchy and soggy at the exact same time.
After experience going once here for a group birthday dinner, I was addicted and craving Manna.
Its best to go early or make reservation. You can either park on the streets if there's any available or valet which is free but you would have to tip.
All you can eat bbq for $17.99! Not bad for the quality of the meat.
Service is great and the employees are very helpful!
This place is entertaining when it comes to birthdays. If you tell them its someone's birthday, they get champagne and pour all over you! hahahahahah (its in good fun and laugh...)
My group of six and I stopped at Manna before hitting up Universal Studios Horror Nights, since one of our friends continuously raved about this place and was annoyingly gung-ho about it. Because of this, I was anticipating possibly some of the best food I've ever eaten in my life. Folks BEWARE: Don't wear any of your nice/favorite clothes here, the smoke will penetrate your clothing and get stuck in your hair, causing you to stink just as bad as coming out of Subway.
This place didn't look all that bad on the outside...but the front half of the interior looked like an unkempt Asian grocery store, while the back half felt like being under a swap meet tent. I shrugged it off, hoping the food would compensate and help me ignore the shabby appearance.
We started off with appetizers, and already I wasn't impressed. I took a bite of the salad and sneered at the salty and bitter taste; I haven't had much greens lately so I forced down a few more bites, holding my breath each time. The meat was also sub-par, having no flavor whatsoever. The only thing that satisfied my tastebuds was the egg soup dish.
The service (or lack thereof) was laughable. I'm not sure if the servers were stressed out (which shouldn't have been the case since we arrived long before it became packed), but if you're working any sort of customer service job, you should be personal, approachable, and friendly, even under high-pressure situations. Our server was inattentive and assured our requests with only a nod without ever really opening her mouth. I can understand if there's a language barrier from lack of adequate english-speaking skills, but why work as a server if you could hardly communicate with your customers?
There's a call button at the end of every table. I thoroughly enjoyed pressing that thing more than I did eating the food. Price was reasonable for what you're given though - all six of us paid $17 for the all-you-can-eat meat plate.
My friends and I drove up about three hours north from home in San Diego. My friend (the one who was having hard-ons over this place), asked every one of us if we thought it was worth it. My response? Hell to the triple dipple nipple NO.
I'm sorry... I frequent this place but damn... I am used to poor service but this is the end of the straw. I got full because the meat would never show up! Unbelievable. We had to ring the bell twice before getting help! I hate pressing that button but to have to press it twice and still have no one come by to help you is shameful.
Enough said... I do not know what I did to provoke their lack of action. Because of this experience the food sucked... things like this never faze me.
I will only go back there if somebody holds a gun to my head, or if it's somebody's birthday.
The food is good, the alcohol flowing, the birthday champagne baths entertaining.
My one-star rating has to do with my car which was valet'd there. I left my car in the valet and drove with some friends in a separate car to sober up in a nearby coffee shop. When I finally got back to the restaurant (12:30am) it was closed-- this was my bad.
My beef (no pun) has to do with the fact that the valet left my car in their open lot UNLOCKED. Had I not come back that night (i.e., I fell asleep, I got hospitalized, I got captured by UFOs, etc) I'm almost certain someone would have come to my car, opened the door, and ransacked it.
Is it really THAT much of a hassle to lock my car before you leave for the night, valet people? I mean c'mon!!!11 Luckily I had someone drive a spare key out to me so I could get home to write this negative review.
I may yet one day come back to eat here-- I just won't be the one driving here.
I just got back from a birthday dinner here. As far as service goes, I've seen better. Certainly not abhorrent by any stretch, but my group of six often found ourselves trying to get more kimchee or beverages. To be fair, as a group of K-bbq novices we didn't notice until the end the button to call for service . . . . I guess some pro-activity on the restaurant's part would have kicked it up a notch.
The setting itself is wonderful, feels really open, probably because it's sort of outdoor. We had a good time and my belly's extremely full.
Let me tell you:
I was excited to finally try out this Korean BBQ place, MANNA, due to all the rave regards from my friends that have eaten here. I ate at MANNA last night for a friend's bday dinner.
The food was OK--I've tasted better marinated meat from other Korean BBQs. It wasn't all that great.
SERVICE is HORRENDOUS. Our tables were literally ignored. We honestly kept ringing the bell six or seven times and no one was coming but we could clearly see them going to the tables right next to us! The only way we got service was when they were serving near by tables and our group were calling the servers over for help.
Some were rude--bumping into your torso (did that to my hubs) and we would be asking them to get us certain foods, and they were walking away!!! HOW RUDE! To top that, every 15 min we heard this ghetto tacky techno birthday song as if someone was ready to strip down naked like Pontious "Party Boy" from Jack Ass. OK!!! I want food not a freaking strip tease! GROSS! MANNA is NOT all that.
We didn't get a REFILL on our water pitcher until the BIRTHDAY BOY had to walk over to their pitcher and almost refilled our pitchers for us, the servers saw him and stopped him!!! WTF!
HAHAHA, by the time we had our 2nd bowl of rice, our group just grabbed the bowls off the server's tray as if we wouldn't get anymore rice for the next hr or something! HAHA. WE are civilized but we honestly felt like starving vultures!!!! VULTURES, I TELL YOU!!!!
Seriously, this place has OK, not the best, meat--but the service is BY WAR, INDUBITABLY, better else where. SHOOT, YOU'LL GET BETTER SERVICE FROM MCDONALDS!!!!!! TRUTH! My hubs and I love eating at Soot Bul Gui Rim 2 (Vermont Ave, next to Goldilocks Bakery). Fast, nice service and GOOD FOOOOD!!! Meat is plentiful at Soot Bul Gui Rim 2!!! NOT MANNA!!!
ALSO, OUR GRILL WAS NEVERRRRRRRRRRRRR CHANGED! The table next to us got their grills changed 5x!!! WTF, they didn't even ask, those servers just did it! The whole 2hrs we were there, no one changed our grill, gave us water, came to us unless we literally SCREAMED for service. I even tried calling a waiter and he freaking SAW ME and turned away and went to the other side! Our group was really mad... and this is a table of 7, SEVEN, PEOPLE!!!!! AS IF SEVEN PEOPLE ARE HARD! HELLO!!!!! PLUS, the sides were shady! The sides were SO SMALL AND LITTLE that a freaking elf from North Pole would complain. Manna is over rated. This is by far the crappiest Korean BBQ place I have ever been to... don't waste your money eating here!!!! It's SH!T. Worst service, worse than CHEESECAKE FACTORY! THAT'S DOWN RIGHT APPALLING!!!!
THEY ARE SO SHADY WITH PORK BELLY!!!!! 7 people, two strips of belly? HELLO!!!! There is waiter service at MANNA, but literally doesn't feel like there was--our group was basically ready to serve our selves and get our own freaking rice and sides and water!
First and last time going to this rude (BASTOS) place ever again!!!!!
haha, read my review for Soot Bul Gui Rim 2!!!
Let me start off by saying that this review is long, long overdue. I've been coming here for years and I am really on the fence on how to review Manna. My first instinct was to give a review of 4 stars out of sheer customer loyalty due to having so many happy memories here, but I thought twice and I'm taking the more honest route of rounding down to 3.5.
Honestly, there are a ton a places that are way better. Manna's meat quality is pretty bad compared to a lot of other KBBQ joints, but I've also seen a lot worse. Don't even get me started on the service, but the last couple of times we've been, it's actually gotten nominally better. If anything sticks out here as being better than other places, it would have to be the salad. No other KBBQ joint I've been to has salad as tasty as Manna's. Their dressing has the perfect amount of tang and sweetness to compliment bbq'd meat-- it's wild how such an easily overlooked part of the meal really makes so much of an impression on me here.
Manna's a great place to bring people who've never experienced KBBQ before because #1 it's cheap (but it's catching up to other AYCE prices now) and #2, it's great for them to have this place under their belt just for the experience of saying that they've been.
Bring your crappiest clothes and don't bother to go to any social engagements after coming here, cuz you're gonna smell worse than a bonfire after you're through.
Manna is your typical cook it yourself Korean BBQ joint. A couple of things Manna has over their competition is that its larger than most Korean BBQ places and it is sort of open air. The only thing about being open air, is that they allow cigarette smoking inside. You'll get a lot of younger kids, smoking in between bites, truly an Asian thing. I find it odd to smoke a cigarette in between bites of food.
Its pretty much standard fare at Manna, $16.99 for all you can eat meat and sides. The bulgogi by far is the best tasting meat they have. Not the best tasting of any Korean BBQ I've had, but best of what they have. The brisket is bland, the short ribs are tender but bland as well. The sides seem to be lacking, as I've been to other Korean places and have been bombarded with sides.
The service is not too bad as have been written by other yelpers. Of course this is a different story with a full house. I could understand their rudeness when you have 50 tables all ringing a bell at once. I found the servers to be quite pleasant on a semi busy Wednesday evening.
Bon Appetit
It is good, so good!! We had three home run visits (On weekends). We went once mid-week, and it tasted so so. Somehow not as fresh. We again went weekend, and it was awesome. I conferred with my Korean boss, and he suggested it was because the inventory turns over so quick on weekends, you'll always be getting the freshedst stuff, while it may not be as fresh on a weekenight. This sounds reasonable and conforms to our experience, so I give it 5 stars, as long as you go on a weekend (which is more fun anyway because of the dancing, popping of champagne bottles, etc)
I loooooooooooooove this place. I understand if some people dont like this but its such a great place. just NEVER go there for ur bday unless you enjoy being showered in champagne. I always go for the beef meats cuz its the fucken greatest! soju is a bit sweet so i always go for the Hite beer.
I've been to better k-bbq places where there is better service and you don't end up smelling like barbequed cow afterwards, but for some odd reason, we are always drawn to this place, maybe it's a cheesy pop korean music in the background or the server's eagerness to serve (or lack of), the freedom to smoke our lungs out or maybe the sight of a champagne shower for the poor unsuspecting birthday celebrants.
+1 star for the variety of soju!! salad is good and the side dishes are good as well.
nothing beats good ol' korean bbq, and a bottle of Hite and some soju.
Whatever you do, do not drink the water! It sits in an uncovered water jug and is scooped out with what looks like a very unsanitary bucket. eeww.
Hands down, the worse K-BBQ joint!
I don't understand how this place can get rated more than 1 star from patrons. The food is straight up, in your face, disgusting.
The quality of the meat is worse than a Mexican taco truck - worse than a TJ street corner carne stand, worse than Beef Bowl (enough said). What's even more unappetizing is the open kitchen everyone can peer into when you're walking to the filthy restroom and the 5+ sweaty, blood stained meat cutters & dishwashers who whistle and harrass female customers.
The banchan (side dishes), totally pathetic. The shredded radish banchan is dried up and wilted, the jap chae (vermicelli glass noodles) have been reheated so many times on a frying pan to stop it from going rancid, that it tastes like rubber.
The whole time I'm there I'm in total shock that it's completely crowded, mostly with non-Koreans. Every 30 mins or so you hear that annoying techno Happy Birthday song playing loudly followed by people screaming from the tables because the waiters are dumping a whole bottle of cheap champagne on top of the poor birthday schmuck's head. Feels like I'm in TJ.
Service was terrible as expected with only a handful of waiters running around such a huge place.
If you're looking for shitty food made with filthy hands, then Manna is the place for you. I can overlook a lot of things - bad service, sexual predators locked in the kitchen, filthy restrooms, but when the ambiance is this bad and the food is even worse, I don't care if it's my dying BFF's last birthday - I'm staying away.
The quality of the meat was pretty bad. For $15.99 there are better places in the Rowland Heights area for AYCE korean bbq. I rather cough up a little more money and eat at Gyu Kaku instead.
It's all about the price at this place. Definitely the cheapest all you can eat Korean BBQ I've been to.
But for the price you pay ($16 a person), the quality also suffers.
We tried the pork, beef and chicken. I would definitely stick to the thinly sliced beef and pork. The chicken just didn't taste very good, and we ended up leaving half the servings behind. The thinly sliced beef was the best, but even that didn't taste superb to me.
Brace yourself for a meat overload. There are absolutely no vegetarian dishes here. If you want veggies, you really need to go elsewhere.
Two things I did like:
(1) The whole place is outdoors. With 5000 grills going, it's nice that we're not trapped in a smoke filled, stuffy room.
(2) For birthday boys and girls, you get a champagne shower! We watched from our table as a guest at another table get drenched. It's pretty fun! (but if you're the birthday boy or girl, just make sure your cell phone is out of your pocket!).
Hi meat, would you like to hang out with my other meat on the grill? Oh, and you brought your friends? Awesome.
Skipped out on the $10 "plate" of korean bbq at the KBBQ festival, and went ahead and got the $17 "buffet" of korean bbq. No better place to stink up an entire outfit, or to get drunk off your ass while at the exact same time trying to fill your mouth with more meat, kimchi, and salad.
Probably not the best cuts of meat, but hell, what do you expect. The service is pretty good at understanding your pointing at things, and speaking your english really slowly.
Alright so 3 stars for the food because its the avg Korean BBQ. But one exta star for their awesome bday celebration. As usual my goal is to consume lots of meat, so screw the beer which is a filler. I think what I did like about this place is that it is outdoor so its like you're in someones backyard cooking up some meat. Fun times! I think the smell is still coming out of my pores! eeek.
I used to think Manna was the most amazing place on the planet. The feeling is akin to your first kiss or lover, there's no better feeling...until you find someone with better execution.
Manna brought me into the AYCE korean bbq world. I loved it for a long while, but it's lackluster at best after i cheated on it with others. The meat is fine, there's nothing wrong with it. But that's the major problem with Manna, everything is just fine. Why spend money on 'fine' when you can get 'good' or 'great' for the same price?
The atmosphere is definitely a bit better than other KBBQ places for larger parties that want to be loud because the seats are mainly outside in tents. However, it is for this reason that it is not as nice as other AYCE kbbq restaurants.
My biggest gripe is their service. I honestly believe that unless you go with someone who speaks Korean, just don't go. They are rude, slow, and not attentive unless you have a Korean with you. I've gotten many screwed up orders and some orders that didn't come until my 4th asking. I've had grills that were blacker than tar without anyone to change the grill.
Try tahoe or road to seoul. it's just better. believe me.
Neighborhood: Koreatown
Category: Korean
Los Angeles, CA
Category: Korean
Neighborhood: Koreatown
Category: Korean
Los Angeles, CA
Category: Korean
Los Angeles, CA
Category: Korean
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