Best all you can eat korean bbq nyc

Tabletop grilled meats and banchan galore

by Updated Feb 23, 2022, 4:01pm EST

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At its best, Korean barbecue is a one-of-a-kind, sizzling experience perfect for rowdy groups and dates alike. There’s nothing like a tabletop full of marinated meats waiting to be grilled and accompanied by loads of complimentary banchans, or side dishes. Once the grills are lit, a parade of dishes come out for a do-it-yourself experience that’s perfect for sharing. Some restaurants specialize in particular cuts of meats while others offer dishes — noodle soups, stews, and more — that round out this comforting meal. Here in New York, several spots even have private karaoke rooms, are open late, and offer uncommon options like live octopus. Here’s a guide to NYC’s standout Korean barbecue restaurants.

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Daori BBQ is one of the few Korean barbecue restaurants in the city that specializes in duck. Diners can order three different types of duck to barbecue: sang ori gui (grilled duck), ori jumulleok (marinated grilled duck), and spicy ori jumulleok (spicy marinated grilled duck) The restaurant also offers dak galbi, a spicy chicken stir-fry, as a barbecue option with a side of kimchi cheese fried rice (for an additional cost) that is cooked in the same pan with residual marinade. Unlike other items, dak galbi is the only barbecue option that comes with cheesy, kimchi fried rice as an addition because of its spicy, flavorful marinade that coats the grill, ideal for making fried rice at the end. Other notable dishes that highlight duck include ori gopchang jeongol (beef intestine, tripe, and duck hot pot) and hengi beseot baeksuk (boiled duck with rice and nenugi mushrooms). The latter requires a reservation, but it’s worth it.

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The Cast Iron Pot is all about cooking meat on a sot ttukkeong, the lid of the traditional Korean cast iron gamasot. Because of the large circular surface of a sot ttukkeong, a variety of meat gets cooked all at once along with bean sprouts and onions, creating nice char. Options range from curry-spiced chicken to marinated short ribs, attracting hungry carnivores. Unique barbecue items like butter squid and chorizo are also available to order. The all-you-can-eat menu costs $34.95 at dinner and $22.95 at lunch.

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This no-frills, casual Korean barbecue spot is famous for its duck, served either plain or marinated. The big menu features lots of traditional Korean dishes, but the specialty is naeng myun — chewy buckwheat noodles in icy, beefy broth that pairs well with a meal of grilled meats.

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GooGongTan is a perfect spot to feel transported to the streets of Seoul filled with sounds of hit K-pop songs and delicious sizzles of all kinds. As soon as guests are seated, complimentary steamed eggs and radish soup arrive at the table. An expansive barbecue menu ranges from gopchang (beef intestines) to seafood platters. GooGongTan is a unique barbecue restaurant where diners can enjoy mozzarella-topped clams with dollops of tangy sauce, duck breast over chives, spicy tteokbokki, and of course, pork belly, all at the same time. Outdoor seating is available.

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Since its opening in 1999, this beloved restaurant has been a staple for NYC’s Korean community for many years. The restaurant’s name implies large, generous portions intended to be shared with others — and that philosophy certainly applies to their barbecue options. With 20 different options to choose from, there’s a variety of marinated and non-marinated cuts of meat to enjoy, including bulgogi marinated in the restaurant’s special, sweet-and-salty sauce, LA-style galbi, and even spare ribs in a spicy, gochujang-forward sauce. The restaurant offers an extended menu with different sections that range from seasonal dishes like naengmyeon with buckwheat noodles in cold, tangy broth, to restaurant specials, like galbi jjim baekban with braised short ribs and various banchan.

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Steps away from the Murray Hill LIRR stop, this Korean barbecue place has no English name, but Koreans will immediately recognize big signs that say live eel. It’s one of the few places that serve eel, which sit in tanks inside the restaurant, and as such, 역전구이 has become a local favorite. The eel gets caught right after the order, and a server then heats up the boneless eel over charcoal, allowing it to absorb all the smoky flavors. 

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There are only two things that matter at Mapo — galbi and charcoal. This humble place can be overwhelming at first with loads of banchan hitting the table all at once, but as soon as the meat arrives, the only thing that’s pleasantly overwhelming is the amount of sweet and savory flavors the galbi has. Don’t forget to order naengmyeon, which perfectly pairs with galbi, and house-made mandoo, or Korean dumplings, to make this meal an ultimate Korean barbecue feast.

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KangTong BBQ feels and looks like a casual Korean barbecue restaurant in Korea rather than New York, from the colorful plastic chairs that are ubiquitous in Korean street stalls to a doodle-filled wall. The menu includes typical barbecue cuts of meat, including pork belly, but the restaurant also offers less ubiquitous items, like marinated pork belly with small octopus, pork entrails, and shellfish.

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This Flushing spot specializes in thick-cut pork belly cooked over a cast iron lid. There are seven options for pork, including a natural black pork called heuk-dwaeji, which is a rare find in New York, and six options for beef, including beef entrails and tongue. This barbecue experience stands out with its usage of bean sprouts. Once the platter of meat arrives, it gets cooked over a big cast iron lid with an abundance of bean sprouts and kimchi. If you are craving noodles to go with the meat feast, go for kimchi naengmyun, cold noodles in beef broth served in an icy bowl. And, don’t forget to order fried rice, which gets mixed right on the cast iron lid with more kimchi, bean sprouts, and housemade tangy, spicy sauce.

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This barbecue restaurant is a one-of-a-kind experience in Flushing that features one of the most stunning meat presentations on this list. The Meat Lover’s Stair Combo arrives with 12 different cuts of meat, including wagyu, pork jowls, pork belly, beef ribs, chicken wings, garlic mussels, and more, all presented on one impressive, staircase-like wooden platter. They also have lesser-seen meat combinations, including a rare beef tongue combination, and a dry-aged combination that includes a 35-day dry-aged rib-eye steak.

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As the name suggests, Yoon Haeundae Galbi is known for galbi. The restaurant prepares the beef short ribs in a technique that’s supposed to tenderize the meat more, a process developed by the original location in Busan, South Korea, that opened in 1964. Because of the restaurant’s connection with Busan, it also offers several dishes inspired from the region, including a seafood pancake with whole scallions on top, and yook-kal, a spicy beef noodle soup. Also check out the restaurant’s potato noodles, which are cooked with the marinade from the meat on the tabletop grill.

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Rib No.7 is one of the latest arrivals to the Korean barbecue scene in NYC. Even though the restaurant offers two options for pork — pork belly and pork ribs — the main focus is their beef offerings: oodae galbi, a particular cut of beef short ribs getting more popular in South Korea. Unlike a typical LA galbi that refers to thin, flanken short ribs, oodae galbi is from the meat surrounding the seventh rib of the rack, known for producing tender meat with maximum marbling. The meat arrives with the whole bone attached, similar to a tomahawk steak, as the chef cuts the beef in front of the diners, and finishes cooking it tableside. Besides the meat, there are notable dishes to complement the barbecue experience, such as naengmyeon (cold green tea noodles served in beef broth), doenjang jjigae (soybean paste stew), yukhoe (beef tartare), and more.

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Formerly known as Sam Won Garden, Antoya recently rebranded itself with a new menu featuring more diverse cuts of meat, including a luxurious slab of Miyazaki A5 wagyu for $189. The restaurant’s Korean barbecue experience includes a rare lamb chop option, along with more classic cuts like pork belly, thinly sliced beef brisket, prime short ribs, and more. Pair the meaty feast with mul naengmyeon, or chilled noodle soup in beef broth, as a palate cleanser. Complete the meal with savory bubbling stews like doenjang jjigae, or kimchi fried rice.

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The Kunjip welcomes diners with a large selection of homestyle, Korean comfort dishes as well as a traditional Korean barbecue experience. The condensed, straightforward barbecue menu offers four different types of combinations that mix both beef and pork cuts, including beef brisket, marinated rib-eye, pork belly, and more. The platters are ideal for a group of two or three people. For non-red meat options, diners can choose chicken or saewoo gui, a marinated shrimp that is cooked on the grill. Order one of their excellent entrees, like a simmering doenjang jjigae or soul-warming yuk-gae-jang to make the barbecue experience even more delicious.

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Gaonnuri offers a rooftop Korean barbecue experience with a Manhattan skyline city view. Located on the 39th floor of a nondescript building, Gaonnuri feels like walking into a unique penthouse that serves an excellent Korean menu. On top of their eight different meat options (available a la carte), ranging from marinated galbi to duck breast, diners can choose set menus that include a few different cuts of meat, a variety of banchan, salad, soybean paste stew, kimchi stew, and egg casserole. The restaurant also offers a vegetable barbecue platter and a small stone pot bibimbap for sides to supplement the barbecue experience.

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Located in the same building as Jongro BBQ, this sibling restaurant is an extension of Jongro BBQ where gopchang, or intestines (typically beef), are the star of the show. Different parts of intestines are prepared in three ways: modeum (an assortment of different gopchang parts), yangnyum (an assortment of gopchang parts, but marinated), and bokkum (stir-fried assortment of gopchang parts). The assortment includes gopchang, (beef small intestine) dae-chang, (beef large intestine) and mak-chang (beef entrails). Diners can enjoy the sizzling sound of gopchang on the cast iron grill in the center of the table as they fish out the fatty goodness. Order the restaurant’s take on okonomiyaki, called dae-chang yaki (pan-fried seasoned beef large intestines with sprinkles of katsuobushi), to accompany any intestine feast.

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Jongro is arguably the most popular and mobbed Korean barbecue joint in Manhattan’s Koreatown. Perfect for pre- and post-night out fortification with friends, this place is crowded all the time with hungry people. Fresh meat delivered daily and cut to order at the in-house butchery — plus an atmosphere that’s an homage to Korea in the ’80s with posters and snacks from the era — all add up to attracting homesick Koreans. Expect a wait of at least an hour at prime dinner times.

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This once 24/7, three-floor Korean restaurant in the center of Manhattan’s Koreatown offers three barbecue sets: Longevity, Happiness, and Love. Each one comes with four different types of meat plus a choice of traditional Korean stew, and the rest of the menu features a variety of classic cuts and barbecue options like beef, chicken, seafood, pork, and vegetables. It even offers dak galbi (stir-fried chicken), which is a regional favorite in Korea. The hours have been adjusted during the pandemic, so check for latest details.

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This upscale Korean barbecue place specializes in only wagyu, showing off exceptional marbling meat. There’s no pork, but diners have an all-you-can-eat Japanese wagyu for 90 minutes, or an omakase, a meal consisting of various Japanese A5 wagyu cuts selected by the chef. Hyun’s sot bap, pre-cooked rice with different toppings, is another luxurious offering on the menu for $120. The rice gets cooked in a cast iron, infused with luxe ingredients like sea urchin and truffles.

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This restaurant offers Korean barbecue with a side of night club vibes. At Love Korean BBQ there’s an eye-catching menu with names like succulent cow (soy-marinated short ribs) and noodz forever (japchae) — all set to the tunes of popular DJs. When it comes to meat offerings, its menu is standard but it leans heavier on beef than pork, including pork belly, galbi, bulgogi, hanger steak, and rib-eye. But, Love Korean BBQ offers a few meat skewers as well as shrimp ones for those who are looking for extra meat.

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Known as a famous chain restaurant in Korea, Baekjeong brought its popular barbecue experience to NYC in 2014 and has been a staple spot in Koreatown for many people ever since. High-quality meats, with a wide variety of beef and pork cuts including pork skin, are on the menu alongside seasonally curated banchans, condiments, and a basket of lettuce. The grill is uniquely designed to cook eggs, vegetables, kimchi, and cheesy corn in the trenches encircling it beside the meat. Wait times can exceed an hour at prime dinner time.

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Grilling gopchang, the small intestines of cattle (or pig), has long been an essential part of Korean barbecue culture, but it often gets underrepresented outside of Korea. One of the first international outposts of a popular Korean chain, Gopchang Story brings the beauty of Korean offal meat to the center of Koreatown. It specializes in a variety of beef intestines, tripe, and even beef heart that gets sprinkled with “fairy dust,” a unique spice blend, as it gets charred and crispy on the induction grill. Besides grilled intestine, the beef intestine casserole — a spicy mix of ox intestines, tripe, beef, and vegetables — is an absolute standout.

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Dons Bogam is not only a Korean barbecue restaurant but also a stellar wine bar. The restaurant features an extensive list of drinks, including over 50 kinds of wine, 15 varieties of sake, and of course, soju and other Korean liquors. The food side is fairly traditional — including kimchi stew and silken tofu soup, and lots of types of meat, from short ribs to pork belly — but a more modern option is pork belly marinated in cabernet sauvignon. It’s a must-try item, combining elements of the restaurant’s wine and barbecue sides.

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Let’s Meat is the first all-you-can-eat Korean barbecue restaurant in Manhattan, offering 16 different meat options for under $50. It’s a considerably more affordable deal, compared to other Korean barbecue spots in the same neighborhood that can easily go well over $100. With a few extra dollars, diners get more expansive options, including gopchang, beef small intestines, spicy squid, strip steak, marinated shrimp, and more. The restaurant also grills on a cast iron lid, called a gamasot, which creates a deeply-charred and crispy crust on meat that can’t be replicated on any other grills.

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Nangman BBQ provides a romantic, camping-inspired Korean barbecue with a beautiful flower arrangement that fills the space. The names on different parts of the menu, like “dorandoran” — a Korean phrase that means murmuring together endearingly — fit with the intimate vibe of Nangman, which translates to romance in Korean. The restaurant’s signature set barbecue menu has four options with varying amounts of meat depending on the size of the group. The set menu for two people, “Neorangnarang,” which means you and I in Korean, comes with three different types of meat, including pork belly, rib-eye, and marinated beef rib, with an appetizer and assorted vegetables for the grill. Outside of its barbecue menu, another showstopper is the spicy Korean army stew with grilled pork belly assembled at the table. Staffers start by grilling pork belly, and then pour the spicy, savory broth directly into the pan with the sizzling pork belly and a variety of toppings like noodles, ham, and cheese.

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One of the few Korean barbecue restaurants in Sunnyside, Wonder Pig K-BBQ doesn’t have a long menu of Korean dishes. Instead, they offer an affordable, all-you-can-eat menu for $23 per person for lunch and $34 per person for dinner, with a 100-minute seating time. There is a wide range of meat options, from thinly sliced beef brisket and chicken teriyaki to pork jowl and pork skin. The restaurant even has marinated kalbi pork sausage, a unique barbecue meat option that is made on-site. For the sides, diners can go either the savory stew route with bean paste stew and spicy beef soup or head more towards Korean snacks with spicy fried rice cakes and tteokbokki.

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Sik Gaek’s atmosphere is as unique as its menu; it’s a place where people drink lots of watermelon soju and party all night to crazy loud K-pop music fueled on by Korean barbecue. Besides traditional barbecue cuts like pork belly and galbi, diners can enjoy bubbling Korean hot pot, called jeon-gol, loaded with lobster, squid, snow crab, abalone, baby octopus, shrimp, clam, and mussel or spicy braised dishes like agu jjim (braised monkfish).

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Cote snagged a Michelin star in its first year by focusing on the source of its ingredients, especially the beef. As the restaurant proudly displays in a dry-aging room downstairs, Cote positions itself as a high-end, self-grill steakhouse rather than the more casual barbecue spots clustered a few blocks uptown. And indeed, high ceilings, dim lighting, and unique smokeless grills on each table separate Cote from Koreatown joints. The butcher’s feast, its signature barbecue menu, is priced at $64 per person with a full meal of four cuts of meat, banchan, salads, egg souffle, two stews, and soft serve. Don’t skip the cocktails or varied wine list.

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Soho isn’t known as a destination for Korean barbecue, so the Woo is a welcoming addition to its dining scene. In its grand three-story venue, the restaurant feels like a slightly upscale version of other Korean barbecue establishments sporting a traditional menu. Diners can enjoy a variety of popular Korean dishes, from a nice selection of soups, such as kalbi tang (beef short ribs soup) and sam gye tang (herbaceous chicken soup with ginseng and jujube), to dol sot bi bim bap, served sizzling in a stone bowl. There are 15 options for barbecue, which comes with a spread of rice, kimchi, pickled shredded daikon, and a sesame broccoli and green salad with sweet red chili vinaigrette. There are non-red meat options like shiitake mushrooms, vegetables, and salmon.

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Well outside the confines of Koreatown, buzzy, casual Gunbae offers a Korean barbecue experience to downtown Manhattan, a neighborhood that is not necessarily known for many Korean restaurants. There are 12 different options for barbecue, which comes with rice, lettuce, macaroni salad, pickled onion, and ssam-jang. If you want to go with a prix-fixe route, diners can have one appetizer, two cuts of meat, and a dessert for $70 during selected hours. Following the feast, private karaoke rooms beckon diners downstairs for the full Korean experience without trekking uptown to Koreatown.

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As the only Korean barbecue spot in Williamsburg open for over 10 years, Dokebi delivers a solid, Korean barbecue experience to the locals. There are 11 different barbecue options, including black tiger shrimp and steak cubes. Each order comes with signature purple multigrain rice and banchan, and diners have an option to cook the meat at the table or have it cooked in the kitchen. There are other options, besides the Korean barbecue, like Korean tacos, shabu-shabu, or Korean fried chicken on the menu.

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Opened by the team behind Red Hook’s the Good Fork, Insa is an all-around Korean barbecue restaurant and karaoke lounge in Brooklyn. There are six different barbecue choices — including galbi, rib-eye, pork belly, and pork jowl — and each order comes with the day’s banchan selection, which includes five different banchan dishes. The ultimate Korean night out can all be had at this venue: Start at Insa’s tiki bar with a retro cocktail, move to the table and grill some galbi and pork belly with side orders of tteokbokki and soondubu, spicy silken tofu stew, and finish the night at its karaoke with more soju.

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Daori BBQ

Daori BBQ is one of the few Korean barbecue restaurants in the city that specializes in duck. Diners can order three different types of duck to barbecue: sang ori gui (grilled duck), ori jumulleok (marinated grilled duck), and spicy ori jumulleok (spicy marinated grilled duck) The restaurant also offers dak galbi, a spicy chicken stir-fry, as a barbecue option with a side of kimchi cheese fried rice (for an additional cost) that is cooked in the same pan with residual marinade. Unlike other items, dak galbi is the only barbecue option that comes with cheesy, kimchi fried rice as an addition because of its spicy, flavorful marinade that coats the grill, ideal for making fried rice at the end. Other notable dishes that highlight duck include ori gopchang jeongol (beef intestine, tripe, and duck hot pot) and hengi beseot baeksuk (boiled duck with rice and nenugi mushrooms). The latter requires a reservation, but it’s worth it.

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The Cast Iron Pot 3

The Cast Iron Pot is all about cooking meat on a sot ttukkeong, the lid of the traditional Korean cast iron gamasot. Because of the large circular surface of a sot ttukkeong, a variety of meat gets cooked all at once along with bean sprouts and onions, creating nice char. Options range from curry-spiced chicken to marinated short ribs, attracting hungry carnivores. Unique barbecue items like butter squid and chorizo are also available to order. The all-you-can-eat menu costs $34.95 at dinner and $22.95 at lunch.

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Keum Sung

This no-frills, casual Korean barbecue spot is famous for its duck, served either plain or marinated. The big menu features lots of traditional Korean dishes, but the specialty is naeng myun — chewy buckwheat noodles in icy, beefy broth that pairs well with a meal of grilled meats.

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GooGongTan

GooGongTan is a perfect spot to feel transported to the streets of Seoul filled with sounds of hit K-pop songs and delicious sizzles of all kinds. As soon as guests are seated, complimentary steamed eggs and radish soup arrive at the table. An expansive barbecue menu ranges from gopchang (beef intestines) to seafood platters. GooGongTan is a unique barbecue restaurant where diners can enjoy mozzarella-topped clams with dollops of tangy sauce, duck breast over chives, spicy tteokbokki, and of course, pork belly, all at the same time. Outdoor seating is available.

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Hahm Ji Bach

Since its opening in 1999, this beloved restaurant has been a staple for NYC’s Korean community for many years. The restaurant’s name implies large, generous portions intended to be shared with others — and that philosophy certainly applies to their barbecue options. With 20 different options to choose from, there’s a variety of marinated and non-marinated cuts of meat to enjoy, including bulgogi marinated in the restaurant’s special, sweet-and-salty sauce, LA-style galbi, and even spare ribs in a spicy, gochujang-forward sauce. The restaurant offers an extended menu with different sections that range from seasonal dishes like naengmyeon with buckwheat noodles in cold, tangy broth, to restaurant specials, like galbi jjim baekban with braised short ribs and various banchan.

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역전구이

Steps away from the Murray Hill LIRR stop, this Korean barbecue place has no English name, but Koreans will immediately recognize big signs that say live eel. It’s one of the few places that serve eel, which sit in tanks inside the restaurant, and as such, 역전구이 has become a local favorite. The eel gets caught right after the order, and a server then heats up the boneless eel over charcoal, allowing it to absorb all the smoky flavors. 

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Mapo Korean B.B.Q.

There are only two things that matter at Mapo — galbi and charcoal. This humble place can be overwhelming at first with loads of banchan hitting the table all at once, but as soon as the meat arrives, the only thing that’s pleasantly overwhelming is the amount of sweet and savory flavors the galbi has. Don’t forget to order naengmyeon, which perfectly pairs with galbi, and house-made mandoo, or Korean dumplings, to make this meal an ultimate Korean barbecue feast.

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KangTong BBQ

KangTong BBQ feels and looks like a casual Korean barbecue restaurant in Korea rather than New York, from the colorful plastic chairs that are ubiquitous in Korean street stalls to a doodle-filled wall. The menu includes typical barbecue cuts of meat, including pork belly, but the restaurant also offers less ubiquitous items, like marinated pork belly with small octopus, pork entrails, and shellfish.

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Tong Sam Gyup Goo Yi

This Flushing spot specializes in thick-cut pork belly cooked over a cast iron lid. There are seven options for pork, including a natural black pork called heuk-dwaeji, which is a rare find in New York, and six options for beef, including beef entrails and tongue. This barbecue experience stands out with its usage of bean sprouts. Once the platter of meat arrives, it gets cooked over a big cast iron lid with an abundance of bean sprouts and kimchi. If you are craving noodles to go with the meat feast, go for kimchi naengmyun, cold noodles in beef broth served in an icy bowl. And, don’t forget to order fried rice, which gets mixed right on the cast iron lid with more kimchi, bean sprouts, and housemade tangy, spicy sauce.

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Gan-Hoo BBQ

This barbecue restaurant is a one-of-a-kind experience in Flushing that features one of the most stunning meat presentations on this list. The Meat Lover’s Stair Combo arrives with 12 different cuts of meat, including wagyu, pork jowls, pork belly, beef ribs, chicken wings, garlic mussels, and more, all presented on one impressive, staircase-like wooden platter. They also have lesser-seen meat combinations, including a rare beef tongue combination, and a dry-aged combination that includes a 35-day dry-aged rib-eye steak.

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Yoon Haeundae Galbi

As the name suggests, Yoon Haeundae Galbi is known for galbi. The restaurant prepares the beef short ribs in a technique that’s supposed to tenderize the meat more, a process developed by the original location in Busan, South Korea, that opened in 1964. Because of the restaurant’s connection with Busan, it also offers several dishes inspired from the region, including a seafood pancake with whole scallions on top, and yook-kal, a spicy beef noodle soup. Also check out the restaurant’s potato noodles, which are cooked with the marinade from the meat on the tabletop grill.

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Rib No. 7

Rib No.7 is one of the latest arrivals to the Korean barbecue scene in NYC. Even though the restaurant offers two options for pork — pork belly and pork ribs — the main focus is their beef offerings: oodae galbi, a particular cut of beef short ribs getting more popular in South Korea. Unlike a typical LA galbi that refers to thin, flanken short ribs, oodae galbi is from the meat surrounding the seventh rib of the rack, known for producing tender meat with maximum marbling. The meat arrives with the whole bone attached, similar to a tomahawk steak, as the chef cuts the beef in front of the diners, and finishes cooking it tableside. Besides the meat, there are notable dishes to complement the barbecue experience, such as naengmyeon (cold green tea noodles served in beef broth), doenjang jjigae (soybean paste stew), yukhoe (beef tartare), and more.

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Antoya

Formerly known as Sam Won Garden, Antoya recently rebranded itself with a new menu featuring more diverse cuts of meat, including a luxurious slab of Miyazaki A5 wagyu for $189. The restaurant’s Korean barbecue experience includes a rare lamb chop option, along with more classic cuts like pork belly, thinly sliced beef brisket, prime short ribs, and more. Pair the meaty feast with mul naengmyeon, or chilled noodle soup in beef broth, as a palate cleanser. Complete the meal with savory bubbling stews like doenjang jjigae, or kimchi fried rice.

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The Kunjip

The Kunjip welcomes diners with a large selection of homestyle, Korean comfort dishes as well as a traditional Korean barbecue experience. The condensed, straightforward barbecue menu offers four different types of combinations that mix both beef and pork cuts, including beef brisket, marinated rib-eye, pork belly, and more. The platters are ideal for a group of two or three people. For non-red meat options, diners can choose chicken or saewoo gui, a marinated shrimp that is cooked on the grill. Order one of their excellent entrees, like a simmering doenjang jjigae or soul-warming yuk-gae-jang to make the barbecue experience even more delicious.

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Gaonnuri

Gaonnuri offers a rooftop Korean barbecue experience with a Manhattan skyline city view. Located on the 39th floor of a nondescript building, Gaonnuri feels like walking into a unique penthouse that serves an excellent Korean menu. On top of their eight different meat options (available a la carte), ranging from marinated galbi to duck breast, diners can choose set menus that include a few different cuts of meat, a variety of banchan, salad, soybean paste stew, kimchi stew, and egg casserole. The restaurant also offers a vegetable barbecue platter and a small stone pot bibimbap for sides to supplement the barbecue experience.

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Jongro Gopchang

Located in the same building as Jongro BBQ, this sibling restaurant is an extension of Jongro BBQ where gopchang, or intestines (typically beef), are the star of the show. Different parts of intestines are prepared in three ways: modeum (an assortment of different gopchang parts), yangnyum (an assortment of gopchang parts, but marinated), and bokkum (stir-fried assortment of gopchang parts). The assortment includes gopchang, (beef small intestine) dae-chang, (beef large intestine) and mak-chang (beef entrails). Diners can enjoy the sizzling sound of gopchang on the cast iron grill in the center of the table as they fish out the fatty goodness. Order the restaurant’s take on okonomiyaki, called dae-chang yaki (pan-fried seasoned beef large intestines with sprinkles of katsuobushi), to accompany any intestine feast.

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Jongro BBQ

Jongro is arguably the most popular and mobbed Korean barbecue joint in Manhattan’s Koreatown. Perfect for pre- and post-night out fortification with friends, this place is crowded all the time with hungry people. Fresh meat delivered daily and cut to order at the in-house butchery — plus an atmosphere that’s an homage to Korea in the ’80s with posters and snacks from the era — all add up to attracting homesick Koreans. Expect a wait of at least an hour at prime dinner times.

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Miss Korea BBQ

This once 24/7, three-floor Korean restaurant in the center of Manhattan’s Koreatown offers three barbecue sets: Longevity, Happiness, and Love. Each one comes with four different types of meat plus a choice of traditional Korean stew, and the rest of the menu features a variety of classic cuts and barbecue options like beef, chicken, seafood, pork, and vegetables. It even offers dak galbi (stir-fried chicken), which is a regional favorite in Korea. The hours have been adjusted during the pandemic, so check for latest details.

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Hyun

This upscale Korean barbecue place specializes in only wagyu, showing off exceptional marbling meat. There’s no pork, but diners have an all-you-can-eat Japanese wagyu for 90 minutes, or an omakase, a meal consisting of various Japanese A5 wagyu cuts selected by the chef. Hyun’s sot bap, pre-cooked rice with different toppings, is another luxurious offering on the menu for $120. The rice gets cooked in a cast iron, infused with luxe ingredients like sea urchin and truffles.

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Love Korean BBQ

This restaurant offers Korean barbecue with a side of night club vibes. At Love Korean BBQ there’s an eye-catching menu with names like succulent cow (soy-marinated short ribs) and noodz forever (japchae) — all set to the tunes of popular DJs. When it comes to meat offerings, its menu is standard but it leans heavier on beef than pork, including pork belly, galbi, bulgogi, hanger steak, and rib-eye. But, Love Korean BBQ offers a few meat skewers as well as shrimp ones for those who are looking for extra meat.

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Kang Ho Dong Baekjeong

Known as a famous chain restaurant in Korea, Baekjeong brought its popular barbecue experience to NYC in 2014 and has been a staple spot in Koreatown for many people ever since. High-quality meats, with a wide variety of beef and pork cuts including pork skin, are on the menu alongside seasonally curated banchans, condiments, and a basket of lettuce. The grill is uniquely designed to cook eggs, vegetables, kimchi, and cheesy corn in the trenches encircling it beside the meat. Wait times can exceed an hour at prime dinner time.

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Gopchang Story BBQ

Grilling gopchang, the small intestines of cattle (or pig), has long been an essential part of Korean barbecue culture, but it often gets underrepresented outside of Korea. One of the first international outposts of a popular Korean chain, Gopchang Story brings the beauty of Korean offal meat to the center of Koreatown. It specializes in a variety of beef intestines, tripe, and even beef heart that gets sprinkled with “fairy dust,” a unique spice blend, as it gets charred and crispy on the induction grill. Besides grilled intestine, the beef intestine casserole — a spicy mix of ox intestines, tripe, beef, and vegetables — is an absolute standout.

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Dons Bogam

Dons Bogam is not only a Korean barbecue restaurant but also a stellar wine bar. The restaurant features an extensive list of drinks, including over 50 kinds of wine, 15 varieties of sake, and of course, soju and other Korean liquors. The food side is fairly traditional — including kimchi stew and silken tofu soup, and lots of types of meat, from short ribs to pork belly — but a more modern option is pork belly marinated in cabernet sauvignon. It’s a must-try item, combining elements of the restaurant’s wine and barbecue sides.

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Let's Meat BBQ

Let’s Meat is the first all-you-can-eat Korean barbecue restaurant in Manhattan, offering 16 different meat options for under $50. It’s a considerably more affordable deal, compared to other Korean barbecue spots in the same neighborhood that can easily go well over $100. With a few extra dollars, diners get more expansive options, including gopchang, beef small intestines, spicy squid, strip steak, marinated shrimp, and more. The restaurant also grills on a cast iron lid, called a gamasot, which creates a deeply-charred and crispy crust on meat that can’t be replicated on any other grills.

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Nangman BBQ

Nangman BBQ provides a romantic, camping-inspired Korean barbecue with a beautiful flower arrangement that fills the space. The names on different parts of the menu, like “dorandoran” — a Korean phrase that means murmuring together endearingly — fit with the intimate vibe of Nangman, which translates to romance in Korean. The restaurant’s signature set barbecue menu has four options with varying amounts of meat depending on the size of the group. The set menu for two people, “Neorangnarang,” which means you and I in Korean, comes with three different types of meat, including pork belly, rib-eye, and marinated beef rib, with an appetizer and assorted vegetables for the grill. Outside of its barbecue menu, another showstopper is the spicy Korean army stew with grilled pork belly assembled at the table. Staffers start by grilling pork belly, and then pour the spicy, savory broth directly into the pan with the sizzling pork belly and a variety of toppings like noodles, ham, and cheese.

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Wonder Pig K-BBQ

One of the few Korean barbecue restaurants in Sunnyside, Wonder Pig K-BBQ doesn’t have a long menu of Korean dishes. Instead, they offer an affordable, all-you-can-eat menu for $23 per person for lunch and $34 per person for dinner, with a 100-minute seating time. There is a wide range of meat options, from thinly sliced beef brisket and chicken teriyaki to pork jowl and pork skin. The restaurant even has marinated kalbi pork sausage, a unique barbecue meat option that is made on-site. For the sides, diners can go either the savory stew route with bean paste stew and spicy beef soup or head more towards Korean snacks with spicy fried rice cakes and tteokbokki.

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Sik Gaek

Sik Gaek’s atmosphere is as unique as its menu; it’s a place where people drink lots of watermelon soju and party all night to crazy loud K-pop music fueled on by Korean barbecue. Besides traditional barbecue cuts like pork belly and galbi, diners can enjoy bubbling Korean hot pot, called jeon-gol, loaded with lobster, squid, snow crab, abalone, baby octopus, shrimp, clam, and mussel or spicy braised dishes like agu jjim (braised monkfish).

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Cote Korean Steakhouse

Cote snagged a Michelin star in its first year by focusing on the source of its ingredients, especially the beef. As the restaurant proudly displays in a dry-aging room downstairs, Cote positions itself as a high-end, self-grill steakhouse rather than the more casual barbecue spots clustered a few blocks uptown. And indeed, high ceilings, dim lighting, and unique smokeless grills on each table separate Cote from Koreatown joints. The butcher’s feast, its signature barbecue menu, is priced at $64 per person with a full meal of four cuts of meat, banchan, salads, egg souffle, two stews, and soft serve. Don’t skip the cocktails or varied wine list.

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The Woo

Soho isn’t known as a destination for Korean barbecue, so the Woo is a welcoming addition to its dining scene. In its grand three-story venue, the restaurant feels like a slightly upscale version of other Korean barbecue establishments sporting a traditional menu. Diners can enjoy a variety of popular Korean dishes, from a nice selection of soups, such as kalbi tang (beef short ribs soup) and sam gye tang (herbaceous chicken soup with ginseng and jujube), to dol sot bi bim bap, served sizzling in a stone bowl. There are 15 options for barbecue, which comes with a spread of rice, kimchi, pickled shredded daikon, and a sesame broccoli and green salad with sweet red chili vinaigrette. There are non-red meat options like shiitake mushrooms, vegetables, and salmon.

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Gunbae

Well outside the confines of Koreatown, buzzy, casual Gunbae offers a Korean barbecue experience to downtown Manhattan, a neighborhood that is not necessarily known for many Korean restaurants. There are 12 different options for barbecue, which comes with rice, lettuce, macaroni salad, pickled onion, and ssam-jang. If you want to go with a prix-fixe route, diners can have one appetizer, two cuts of meat, and a dessert for $70 during selected hours. Following the feast, private karaoke rooms beckon diners downstairs for the full Korean experience without trekking uptown to Koreatown.

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Dokebi Bar and Grill

As the only Korean barbecue spot in Williamsburg open for over 10 years, Dokebi delivers a solid, Korean barbecue experience to the locals. There are 11 different barbecue options, including black tiger shrimp and steak cubes. Each order comes with signature purple multigrain rice and banchan, and diners have an option to cook the meat at the table or have it cooked in the kitchen. There are other options, besides the Korean barbecue, like Korean tacos, shabu-shabu, or Korean fried chicken on the menu.

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Insa Korean BBQ & Karaoke

Opened by the team behind Red Hook’s the Good Fork, Insa is an all-around Korean barbecue restaurant and karaoke lounge in Brooklyn. There are six different barbecue choices — including galbi, rib-eye, pork belly, and pork jowl — and each order comes with the day’s banchan selection, which includes five different banchan dishes. The ultimate Korean night out can all be had at this venue: Start at Insa’s tiki bar with a retro cocktail, move to the table and grill some galbi and pork belly with side orders of tteokbokki and soondubu, spicy silken tofu stew, and finish the night at its karaoke with more soju.

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