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This sprawling, dimly lit, upscale Korean barbecue restaurant has a little bit of everything. Jeong Yuk Jeom’s best offering is dry-aged beef, something of a rarity in Koreatown these days. The butcher’s pride sets take a page from New York City’s award-winning Cote, with prime and dry-aged cuts at three different prices. Jeong Yuk Jeom is a good high-end KBBQ alternative for those who are tired of Park’s, Daedo, or AB Steak and want to try something new. One of the older, more established premium Korean barbecue spots, this focused restaurant has fantastic lunch specials and versatile dinner combinations that won’t break the bank. The mostly Korean crowd considers this one of the most reliable restaurants in town.
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This guide has options ranging from temples of high-end meat to smoke-filled party spots, with details about what to order at each one. Behold, these are our 15 favorite spots for Korean BBQ in Los Angeles. At this point, there’s no better old-school Korean barbecue spot in Los Angeles.
Mun Korean Steakhouse
Here you'll find a premium KBBQ experience where cuts are roughly half the price of Park’s and the ambiance is more lively, without feeling like you're in a smoke-filled nightclub. Focus on the pork cuts from their a la carte menu (there’s beef, too, but you’re here for piggy). The on-top-of-it staff grills marbled pork jowl until it chars around the edges, and slices of pork belly (thick or thin) that render in delicious pools of fat. Meats come with a nice spread for ssam wrapping, including sweet perilla leaf, raw garlic, and spicy soybean paste.
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The beef combo is a good deal for the amount of food you'll get, and includes a light soybean soup, wagyu brisket that melts like a snowflake, and sweet-marinated short ribs with the marbling of Italian granite. Plan on ordering the kimchi fried rice and cool, salty naengmyeon with young radish, both a la carte. They're ultimately what you'll be thinking about on the car ride home. It's also big on feeding you to the point where you'll contemplate asking a friend for a piggyback ride after dinner. Meals here involve fatty pork cheek and brick-sized pork belly slabs that caramelize on the grill. Go with the $98 pork gyu combo, which feeds four and comes with the aforementioned cuts, plus beef short rib and a yuzu-drenched wagyu carpaccio.
Everything about the meal, from the banchan to the finishing fried rice on the tabletop grill, is engineered for maximum flavor. One of Koreatown’s most reliable barbecue spots, Yangmani has an expansive outdoor tented area for quality beef, pork, and offal cuts that younger diners tend to prefer in the neighborhood. Yangmani might be the best place if you want to take down bottles of beer and soju, and just have a good time with friends or coworkers. With granite tabletops, koi ponds, and a huge outdoor patio that feels like you’re in a rainforest, Chosun Galbee is one of the more upscale KBBQ restaurants in Koreatown. Yes, that means prices are higher, but it also means really good meat and a space where you could bring your boss or a big deal client. Plus, they have one of the only full bars in the area, which is ideal if you swore off soju in 2018 after that one weird night.
The Best Restaurants In Koreatown
The steak, as you might guess, is of incredible quality and pricey. Fancier cuts are aged in-house, like a giant tomahawk steak, displayed in a window near the entrance. And while the spread of housemade banchan here is solid, get the spicy kimchi fried rice or japchae to round out your meal. Come here for a glitzy meal with people who love top-shelf meat, or for an intimate dining experience with someone who appreciates being doted on by staff. This small Ktown restaurant is great for group dinners that call for controlled party vibes and K-Pop bangers. Nights at Dae Sung Ro feel like drinking beer in a cooler version of your friend's backyard shed (with glowing neon signs and the smell of barbecued fatty brisket rather than old fertilizer).
Using a similar wide cast iron grill that allows the juices and fat to slowly season and flavor spicy bean sprouts, onions, and kimchi to the sides, the show's star here is thick-cut Korean samgyupsal, or pork belly. The combinations here are very reasonable, about $100 for the combination beef and pork tasting that easily feeds four people. Plain and simple, Park's is the gold standard of Korean barbecue in Los Angeles. Sure, they might not have the party-like atmosphere of other nearby spots, and you’re going to spend some money here, but when it comes to the quality of meat, Park's can’t be topped. The large menu can be overwhelming, but concentrate on the combo platters (listed as P1-P3) and watch as a glorious parade of meats like bulgogi, short rib, ribeye, and all the necessary banchan starts arriving at your table.
AB Steak by Chef Akira Back
One of the only barbecue spots in Koreatown that still cooks with charcoal, Soot Bull Jeep specializes in marinated baby back ribs that are sweet, tender, and not too fatty. The old-school grills give the meat a distinct smokiness—as oils and fats drip onto the fire, they sizzle back up into your food, adding another layer of flavor. The spicy pork and beef short ribs are also great, and the banchan spread (especially the bean sprouts) goes well with all the charred meat. Soot Bull Jeep is one of the more laid-back KBBQ restaurants in town, packed with families and neighborhood regulars. This fancy KBBQ spot/steakhouse sits on the ground floor of the Beverly Center, and with giant booths and gleaming golden chandeliers, it has all the glamor of a ballroom on the Vegas Strip. Expect smokeless grill tables where servers cook and slice your meat tableside, and cocktails are topped with smoke-filled bubbles.
The Best Places To Drink In Koreatown
Oz Korean BBQ turns to robot servers amid staffing struggles abc10.com - ABC10.com KXTV
Oz Korean BBQ turns to robot servers amid staffing struggles abc10.com.
Posted: Mon, 05 Sep 2022 07:00:00 GMT [source]
The staff handles the grilling, so you can chill, drink beer, and take in the room of loud friend groups and secondhand bacon smoke. And just when you think you've hit your wall, perfect kimchi fried rice and a pot of spicy hangover ramen will enter the chat. K-Team BBQ in Koreatown comes from the same owners as Park’s, but it fills a different and very useful niche.
With a spartan interior and bustling dining room, Mapo Galbi is a spicy chicken specialist, grilling tender chicken thighs cut into smaller pieces along with cabbage, rice cakes, carrots, and plenty of gochujang sauce. The whole pan simmers and reduces over time, with servers finishing meals with a fried rice loaded up with perilla leaves and seaweed laver. This very intentional Korean barbecue spot from Seoul serves just American-certified Angus prime beef, and only ribeye steaks at that. Seared on specialized cast iron skillets, diners will try ribeyes sliced into three distinct cuts and served with kkakgudi and other banchan that are fermented in Korea and shipped to the U.S.
When people ask what the best Korean barbecue is in Los Angeles, most people will mention Park’s BBQ first. It’s hard to argue against over 20 years of excellence, with an energetic vibe inside and fantastic meat quality from start to finish. Chef and owner Jenee Kim does an amazing job with the non-meat dishes as well, like the delicious spicy braised black cod or the gochujang jjigae. Park’s is truly one of the most consistent Korean barbecue meals in LA. Classic Korean barbecue Soowon might get a little overshadowed by its neighbor Park’s BBQ down the street, but the longtime restaurant still excels with high-quality beef and attentive service.
After a few drinks, tax, and tip, expect to pay around $60 a person, which is a solid deal these days. Hanu’s trick might be the banchan robots roaming the space, but the restaurant placed on the ground floor of one of LA’s larger spas serves some of the neighborhood’s best Korean barbecue menus. The smallest combination feeds potentially four people, and comes with an impressive array of jun, or fried vegetables and fish filets, and even galbijjim as a part of the package. The included galbijjim isn’t world-beating, but it’s nice to have on the table. Servers grill better-than-average meat (don’t expect Park’s or Chosun-level) but the whole table filled with dozens of different bites is what makes Hanu a fun meal. Magal strikes a nice balance between the rowdiness of Ahgassi Gopchang and the high-end steakhouse feel of Parks.
Concentrate on any of their prime combos, and if you’re looking for private dining rooms, those are available as well. A big chain in Asia, Magal BBQ continues to prepare some of the best mid-range Korean barbecue in town, featuring flavorful off-cuts and non-primal selections that still offer plenty in the way of flavor. The egg and fried rice volcano is a fun way to cap off meals here, too.
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