Servers are literally touching the meat as they hand it to you.
Atmosphere: 3
Food: 4
Service: 3
Judy Margaret Chen
It’s a great AYCE Korean BBQ in the bay. We have had a terrific experience with our friends. Amazing food, wonderful BBQ atmosphere where you can be as loud as tourists can and nobody cares and great service from the staff. My personal favorite of the meat selection would be their marinated beef bulgogi. Very well seasoned!At the end the meal, we got complimentary ice cream cup free for everyone. I didn’t expect that. Just a small ice cream cup but it sure blissed my night.Parking: It’s quite difficult to find the parking lot in front of the restaurant because they’re limited. Better to go around the back.Kid-friendliness: There’s dishes that kids can enjoy
Good quality food，very fresh beef meat in all my tried all you can eat restaurants ranking top. Only the waiter is too busy and have to wait a little bit long for grill change.
AYCE good quality, fresh meat especially the wagyu selection. Love the miso pork belly. Good bulgogi and very yummy short ribs.Vegetarian options: Japche, kimchee, macaroni salad, mashed potatoes
Food was okay - dont think the premium menu was worth it for $10 extra. Service is quick with the meat however, once it’s past 5pm. It is super busy. Dont try to come here after 5pm without a reservation. Not worth the wait.The place is always full and the line is long. Unsure why it is so popular. Another so so kbbq spot with limited seating.
Atmosphere: 3
Food: 3
Service: 4
Recommended dishes: Beef Brisket
Katie H.
My favorite AYCE Korean BBQ spot in SJ! The quality of the meat is great and they are not shy with the side dishes. They have good selection of meat and soup, so I'm sure there's something for everyone. Although it's almost always packed, they are fast to bring food out, change grills, and get refills. Don't forget to ask for your scoop of ice cream that sometimes include crackers or fried banana :) Tips: (1) I didn't know about this until my 4th or 5th here but lift the cushion of your seat to put any jackets, bags, or misc items. (2) If you're not coming as soon as they open, joining the waitlist on Yelp is highly recommended as it can be a 2-3 hrs wait time for dinner.
Cloud L.
My favorite ayce kbbq in San Jose. Good quality meat for an ayce place, kudos to their fresh short ribs and boneless short ribs (limit 1 order per person). Good selection of meat and soup too. Ice cream dessert is a nice touch. I highly recommend to sign up for waiting list online on their yelp page. I came here a few times and it was always 2 hours of waiting in the list. Fast service. Good size and clean restaurant, good smoke fans.
Mark
They dump used cooking oil in the back employee parking lot. It smells bad, then there are bugs and rats everywhere. This is a health hazard.Yakini Q is dumping oil into a neighboring fence and damaging their fence posts.I’m surprised The City of San Jose hasn’t flagged them yet.
Atmosphere: 1
Food: 1
Service: 1
Jo P.
With so many Korean BBQ options, I'd say this is a take a gamble and you may or may not have a good experience. I think it really just depends on how large the lunch/dinner crowd is.As many reviewers recommended, we joined the waitlist (about 20 min before we arrived). Parking was packed but there were some spaces on the side. We were 12th in line with a good number of people in front of us. We checked in with the front desk and was told should be about 30 min as it was getting towards the end of the previous rush. It was more like 40 minutes.We finally get a text our table was ready. We go inside and they said oh table still needs to be cleared should take a moment. We waited an additional 15 min with an inquiry of when will our table be ready. 3 tables were cleared during that time but the place settings were not brought out, which signals table is ready. Front person had to follow with that.They were super busy but it also seemed unorganized as same people doubled up to be servers, clearing tables, etc. I think only a total of 3-4 people were working the tables which seemed a little short staffed for a weekend crowd.Ordering process was pretty straight forward. We did have to follow up for additional items like spoons, water, and our drinks.It feels the table sizes are more for intimate dinner of 2 and not ordering a lot of sides as we did run out of table space.The pluses1. They were very great about changing the grill. 2. Food was brought out consistently3. Meat was good quality (some cuts were thick so we had to cut those up for faster cooking)4. Sides were delicious Overall, it's a nice Korean bbq joint - it's the waiting to be seated that was a challenge and if there are things wrong with what ordered - finding staff to help (and understand the request).I'm giving it an extra star for the price point.
Steve G.
Quite possibly a new favorite Kbbq. Came right after they opened at 2pm on a Sat. Line but moved quickly. The tables are small. You have to be creative using a tray table on the side to hold all the dishes.The banchan was OK. Some dishes (jap chae) were very good, some not (macaroni salad). It's AYCE with a couple of restrictions (only 2 kal bi per person). All the meats (brisket, short ribs, beef ribs, pork ribs) were excellent - more tender and flavorful than other Kbbqs. They also have dishes not found at many Kbbqs like intestines.The price was very reasonable for AYCE and the service was great. They changed our grill twice without us asking. Definitely would return.
Fun place to go with a group of friends. Keep an eye on the waitlist. Divide and conquer is the secret. Also parking is a hit or miss so wishing you all luck. Your whole party must be present to sit at a table. The service is also hit or miss, sometimes you get your food fast and sometimes not. Food overall is pretty good! We typically order brisket, galbi, pork belly, beef tongue, and steak. I'd recommend for group a of 4-6 people.
Debbie P.
2 of my friends wanted to take me here because they've heard good things and we decided to skip lunch and wait until 2pm (when they opened) since it was ayce kbbq. For the price we paid, we were all surprised the quality of the meat was so good! Biggest con was that the table space was very small, so we could barely fit anything with all the banchans we were given. The system is pretty efficient since you can order via your phone so that was a huge plus. The waiter came by pretty often to change our grill so that was nice :)
Jonathan Jann
The food was great and the service once seated was amazing. However I had a major issue trying to get seated. Just due to that experience I have to rate this the way I rated it and never coming back.I put my name for a reservation for 2 and given a 1.5 hour quote. I was fine with that. 3 hours later I was stuck on queue 3 and saw multiple parties enter. I checked in with the guy at the front and he said he'll put me on the next available table which he pointed at. 5 minutes later he sat two parties of two and A party on the seat he just pointed to me at. I checked my place in queue and I'm still position number 3??? That's when I started to get upset. I asked him what happened and he told me that he got confused on which party I was. This boggled my mind since he knew what I looked like and didn't question it when he sat a different party instead of ours. Besides that I don't quite understand why the heck he'd be skipping people in the queue which is probably why I didn't get my table until hours after.A few moments later the people he sat in the seat by the entrance door requested to move inside closer to the middle of the restaurant. He allowed them to move and said that we're able to sit there. I didn't like the idea that the party sat there for about 5 minutes before moving. I asked them to set us up with new side dishes and water since the ice was nearly all melted and gave me a remark saying that they didn't touch or eat anything.... I told him I'd rather just get a new set since they were there talking for quite a while near the food and I'd just feel comfortable if they replaced it which I don't think I'm being difficult. He looked visibly upset and walked away and never replaced it. I'm a very patient person, and never write low reviews completely based off of their service but my god this had to have been the worst experience dining in a long time.Recommend to check in multiple times to try to cut to queue otherwise you'd never get seated here. They need to just honor the queue system. Give the party 5 minutes to check in and move them down or out of the queue if they're late. Seems simple enough. But there's just no order at this restaurant
Atmosphere: 1
Food: 4
Service: 1
Monica Z.
Take a long time to wait for a table lolBut the foods here are good enough for the price!
George Chang
Best value per cost Korean BBQ in Bay Area.We never stepped in Gen Korean BBQ after our first visit here. They serve you way faster than Gen.We usually go for 31.99 / person for 90 minutes. The meat quality is petty good. Side dishes are also delicious.
Servers are literally touching the meat as they hand it to you.
Atmosphere: 3
Food: 4
Service: 3
It’s a great AYCE Korean BBQ in the bay. We have had a terrific experience with our friends. Amazing food, wonderful BBQ atmosphere where you can be as loud as tourists can and nobody cares and great service from the staff. My personal favorite of the meat selection would be their marinated beef bulgogi. Very well seasoned!At the end the meal, we got complimentary ice cream cup free for everyone. I didn’t expect that. Just a small ice cream cup but it sure blissed my night.Parking: It’s quite difficult to find the parking lot in front of the restaurant because they’re limited. Better to go around the back.Kid-friendliness: There’s dishes that kids can enjoy
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Boneless Galbi, Beef Brisket, Bibimbap, Marinated Beef Bulgogi, Spicy Pork Belly, Seaweed Soup, Green Tea Ice Cream, Sorbet
Good quality food，very fresh beef meat in all my tried all you can eat restaurants ranking top. Only the waiter is too busy and have to wait a little bit long for grill change.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 4
Recommended dishes: Boneless Galbi, Beef Brisket, Beef Belly
AYCE good quality, fresh meat especially the wagyu selection. Love the miso pork belly. Good bulgogi and very yummy short ribs.Vegetarian options: Japche, kimchee, macaroni salad, mashed potatoes
Atmosphere: 3
Food: 4
Service: 4
Recommended dishes: Beef Brisket, Japchae, Marinated Beef Bulgogi
Food was okay - dont think the premium menu was worth it for $10 extra. Service is quick with the meat however, once it’s past 5pm. It is super busy. Dont try to come here after 5pm without a reservation. Not worth the wait.The place is always full and the line is long. Unsure why it is so popular. Another so so kbbq spot with limited seating.
Atmosphere: 3
Food: 3
Service: 4
Recommended dishes: Beef Brisket
My favorite AYCE Korean BBQ spot in SJ! The quality of the meat is great and they are not shy with the side dishes. They have good selection of meat and soup, so I'm sure there's something for everyone. Although it's almost always packed, they are fast to bring food out, change grills, and get refills. Don't forget to ask for your scoop of ice cream that sometimes include crackers or fried banana :) Tips: (1) I didn't know about this until my 4th or 5th here but lift the cushion of your seat to put any jackets, bags, or misc items. (2) If you're not coming as soon as they open, joining the waitlist on Yelp is highly recommended as it can be a 2-3 hrs wait time for dinner.
My favorite ayce kbbq in San Jose. Good quality meat for an ayce place, kudos to their fresh short ribs and boneless short ribs (limit 1 order per person). Good selection of meat and soup too. Ice cream dessert is a nice touch. I highly recommend to sign up for waiting list online on their yelp page. I came here a few times and it was always 2 hours of waiting in the list. Fast service. Good size and clean restaurant, good smoke fans.
They dump used cooking oil in the back employee parking lot. It smells bad, then there are bugs and rats everywhere. This is a health hazard.Yakini Q is dumping oil into a neighboring fence and damaging their fence posts.I’m surprised The City of San Jose hasn’t flagged them yet.
Atmosphere: 1
Food: 1
Service: 1
With so many Korean BBQ options, I'd say this is a take a gamble and you may or may not have a good experience. I think it really just depends on how large the lunch/dinner crowd is.As many reviewers recommended, we joined the waitlist (about 20 min before we arrived). Parking was packed but there were some spaces on the side. We were 12th in line with a good number of people in front of us. We checked in with the front desk and was told should be about 30 min as it was getting towards the end of the previous rush. It was more like 40 minutes.We finally get a text our table was ready. We go inside and they said oh table still needs to be cleared should take a moment. We waited an additional 15 min with an inquiry of when will our table be ready. 3 tables were cleared during that time but the place settings were not brought out, which signals table is ready. Front person had to follow with that.They were super busy but it also seemed unorganized as same people doubled up to be servers, clearing tables, etc. I think only a total of 3-4 people were working the tables which seemed a little short staffed for a weekend crowd.Ordering process was pretty straight forward. We did have to follow up for additional items like spoons, water, and our drinks.It feels the table sizes are more for intimate dinner of 2 and not ordering a lot of sides as we did run out of table space.The pluses1. They were very great about changing the grill. 2. Food was brought out consistently3. Meat was good quality (some cuts were thick so we had to cut those up for faster cooking)4. Sides were delicious Overall, it's a nice Korean bbq joint - it's the waiting to be seated that was a challenge and if there are things wrong with what ordered - finding staff to help (and understand the request).I'm giving it an extra star for the price point.
Quite possibly a new favorite Kbbq. Came right after they opened at 2pm on a Sat. Line but moved quickly. The tables are small. You have to be creative using a tray table on the side to hold all the dishes.The banchan was OK. Some dishes (jap chae) were very good, some not (macaroni salad). It's AYCE with a couple of restrictions (only 2 kal bi per person). All the meats (brisket, short ribs, beef ribs, pork ribs) were excellent - more tender and flavorful than other Kbbqs. They also have dishes not found at many Kbbqs like intestines.The price was very reasonable for AYCE and the service was great. They changed our grill twice without us asking. Definitely would return.
Restaurantji Recommends
Fun place to go with a group of friends. Keep an eye on the waitlist. Divide and conquer is the secret. Also parking is a hit or miss so wishing you all luck. Your whole party must be present to sit at a table. The service is also hit or miss, sometimes you get your food fast and sometimes not. Food overall is pretty good! We typically order brisket, galbi, pork belly, beef tongue, and steak. I'd recommend for group a of 4-6 people.
2 of my friends wanted to take me here because they've heard good things and we decided to skip lunch and wait until 2pm (when they opened) since it was ayce kbbq. For the price we paid, we were all surprised the quality of the meat was so good! Biggest con was that the table space was very small, so we could barely fit anything with all the banchans we were given. The system is pretty efficient since you can order via your phone so that was a huge plus. The waiter came by pretty often to change our grill so that was nice :)
The food was great and the service once seated was amazing. However I had a major issue trying to get seated. Just due to that experience I have to rate this the way I rated it and never coming back.I put my name for a reservation for 2 and given a 1.5 hour quote. I was fine with that. 3 hours later I was stuck on queue 3 and saw multiple parties enter. I checked in with the guy at the front and he said he'll put me on the next available table which he pointed at. 5 minutes later he sat two parties of two and A party on the seat he just pointed to me at. I checked my place in queue and I'm still position number 3??? That's when I started to get upset. I asked him what happened and he told me that he got confused on which party I was. This boggled my mind since he knew what I looked like and didn't question it when he sat a different party instead of ours. Besides that I don't quite understand why the heck he'd be skipping people in the queue which is probably why I didn't get my table until hours after.A few moments later the people he sat in the seat by the entrance door requested to move inside closer to the middle of the restaurant. He allowed them to move and said that we're able to sit there. I didn't like the idea that the party sat there for about 5 minutes before moving. I asked them to set us up with new side dishes and water since the ice was nearly all melted and gave me a remark saying that they didn't touch or eat anything.... I told him I'd rather just get a new set since they were there talking for quite a while near the food and I'd just feel comfortable if they replaced it which I don't think I'm being difficult. He looked visibly upset and walked away and never replaced it. I'm a very patient person, and never write low reviews completely based off of their service but my god this had to have been the worst experience dining in a long time.Recommend to check in multiple times to try to cut to queue otherwise you'd never get seated here. They need to just honor the queue system. Give the party 5 minutes to check in and move them down or out of the queue if they're late. Seems simple enough. But there's just no order at this restaurant
Atmosphere: 1
Food: 4
Service: 1
Take a long time to wait for a table lolBut the foods here are good enough for the price!
Best value per cost Korean BBQ in Bay Area.We never stepped in Gen Korean BBQ after our first visit here. They serve you way faster than Gen.We usually go for 31.99 / person for 90 minutes. The meat quality is petty good. Side dishes are also delicious.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 5
Service: 5