Kang Nam Restaurant

I’ve been here about 5 – 7 times, and I’ve never had a bad experience. They have lunch specials that price at about $ 8 for meat, rice, tea or water, and side dished including kimchi, spinach, mung beans, and sweet potatoes.
I ALWAYS get the kalbi or bulgogki. They’re by far my fav dished, and so super tender here.
Service is hit or miss. I’ve never felt uncomfortable here, and on one occasion, the gentleman server was unbelievably accomodating, bringing us things to try from the kitchen, fresh fruit, soups, pickled lotus. YUM!
By and by, it’s a little pricey for «cook it yourself» fare– ranging at about $ 25 pp, but if you just get the $ 8 lunch specail, it’s reasonable.

The service was pleasant and quick, but I found the food to be overpriced for what we got.
My boyfriend and I stopped in for a quick bite and the food though delicious, was not the same caliber of other korean bbqs I’ve hit up. Their side dishes were not as plentiful as other places either…
But there is no denying they know how to cook up their meat!
It’s okay for a once in a while meal, but I’d rather go to san soo gab san, they give you more for your money.

Kang Nam has spicy pork bulgogi! Have not seen this on the menu since I came to Chitown.
Kang Nam was alright, they gave us a free vege pajun and a good number of banchan. The lack of English speaking was a little bit of a stumbling block, but at 8p on a Sunday night, service was adequate, not terrible as some have said.
My gf really liked her tofu jeegae, and my beef bone soup was tasty, though I haven’t had it for well over a year, so my taste buds might be off. The bbq aroma was very heavy here, even though only one other table was cooking last night, so I can imagine at a busier time you will smell mmm mmm good when you leave.

I ate lunch here today and loved it!
My friend and I had the short ribs and the pork dinner. Sorry, I can never remember the proper names in Korean. The ribs and the pork were both perfectly marinated and tender. The side dishes were plentiful and delicious. I was stuffed before I started eating the meat! Our waitress was a great. I didn’t know what the black soy beans were. She couldn’t remember the work in English but when she brought our soup, she pointed to the tofu and then at the beans and said it was the same. I love when people improvise. She came back to our table frequently to check the meat and changed the grill when she started the pork. I’ve heard horror stories about the service in Korean restaurants but I have never had a bad experience. The place was clean but not fancy. I found it amusing that they played bad 80’s music too. I will definitely return.

It’s so easy to find good food on Kedzie in Albany Park. My wife and I went to Kang Nam this afternoon and walked out happy. I had the Bi Bim Bop in the clay pot. It was a great mix that included some small chopped beef short ribs, typical items like carrots, sprouts and spinach and the egg appeared to have been dropped to cook directly in the pot. Being a Korean food novice this surprised me at first the the pot cooked it just fine it worked out easy. The sides were all pretty good too, a mix of sweet/​sour and chili flavored stuff like potatoes, peppers, tofu and a custard. My wife got the beef rib «lunch box» which included a tasty salad and some of the sides that came with my order.
Décor is perfectly adequate, nothing to write home about but fine. For someone knowing very little about Korean food I thought it was a good experience. Good descriptive menu and helpful staff.
I also thought this would be a good place to go with 4 or more people. I had fun with two but you can easily imagine a larger party having a good time here as well.

With Kang Nam Kalbi, it’s all about who you know. I’ve gone with my friends, and I’ve gone with my parents who are friends with the owner, and the differences in service AND quality of food are HUGE!!!
The kalbi meat is decent (not as juicy and tender as Solga), but the marinade is great. I love that you get pajeon (Korean pancake) with your meal, and a side of deng jang chigae (soup) with your barbecue, and the array of banchan.
But if you go without the right connections, you will stare, and stare, and stare in hunger until they finally decide to feed you. It once took me 4 attempts to get a refill on water, and the restaurant was practically empty then.
When I went with my parents, we had 3 servers feeding the heck out of us like we were royalty.
But I go because it’s a decent Korean place and you usually don’t have to wait to get seated, although it’s almost guaranteed that you’ll wait once you are.

I would have given it better stars if my group didn’t feel completely rushed the entire time we were eating.
I’ve worked in food and retail — and I know how it’s like when you have last minute people come in the door. My party and I came around 9:15 pm, which would have given us plenty of time IMO (they close at 10:30). My friend and I had the standard Bulgogi while my cousin had the beef tongue (a bit chewy for any first time eaters). The entire meal is fit for native Koreans, as I noticed the soup was incredibly spicy and the banchan lacked a general variety. I’ve been to other places where I’ve had 15 – 18 banchan dishes, but this place served only 8 – 10. But as much as I’m a wimp for spicy dishes, it’s not about the food, which was authentic and very good.
The service was poor. The waitress kept shoveling food at us ASAP, and then starting cooking for us with the beef tongue — which killed our desire to cook the food ourselves. Halfway through, I tried to explain that we could cook it. No more than 5 minutes later, she comes back again to cook the rest of the bulgogi. She then said «we close at 10:30»…as that was the excuse that right on the dot, we had to leave. Like I said earlier, I know how it feels to be on the other side, but this was kind of ridiculous. We decided to take our time — but it became a little uneasy with her always coming around to check on us. So we left, but honestly, we wouldn’t have stayed more than 10 minutes past the closing time max.
Just a note and this doesn’t factor in the ratings, but our waitress had a poor knowledge of English. One of my friends was on the fence about Korean BBQ, so I offered to share dishes which is enough if both people aren’t terribly hungry. I asked her about the portion size, and she looked at me blankly. We also asked her about other dishes, but it was just usually agreement on what dishes were good or not. The manager however spoke English very well — we tried finding her, but we didn’t see her until we were about to leave.

I give it 3 stars because the first time I came here was for my birthday with a large group. It was the coldest day of the year (in the negative teens) and their heat wasn’t working. However, instead of speeding up the service, they took their time, mixed up orders and overcharged my friends for the mixed up orders. We waited almost an hour for them to bring raw meat out for us to eat. How hard is it to prepare that? It was so cold you could literally see your breath in the room. We were stuck though too because we couldn’t easily move 20 people to a different restaurant in a moment on a Saturday night.
Recently, I went with a few friends (party of 4) again, and finally got the service everyone mentioned. This time, I had soup and was really impressed with their soup base. It was spicy, tasty and a good portion. I also had nice, friendly service.
My conclusion at this place would probably be it’s a hit or miss – just make sure you go when it’s not freezing cold or insanely hot in case their heat/​ac is broken (or they’re too cheap to turn it on)

Just got back from lunch here and the Korean BBQ was great. We had Kalbi (ribs) and Bulgolki (or Bulgolgi) as well as the strip steak. They were all good but I did prefer the marinade used on the Kalbi and Bulgolki.
They have a lunch box for $ 7.95 but for $ 17.95, you get twice as much meat, a ton of different kimchi sides, rice, and soup *PLUS* you get to play with FIRE which is alway fun !!!
They had a really spicy soup with jalepenos in it that was great as well although I had to use all my rice to cool my mouth down after eating it.
There are heavy duty exhaust hoods above every table so you won’t leave the place smelling like smoke or your food as well.

The best Korean food in the city. I lived in Seoul and this place reminds me of the galbi I had while there. The service is great, just like it was in Seoul. Our old Korean host made fun of me the whole time because I like to grill my kimchi when I am at a BBQ.
I have been here a lot since moving to Chicago and it is always very, very good.
Also they do have Jinro (soju) and Hite. So stop in and enjoy.
If you want to go, let me know and I will meet you there.

I came here again yesterday, I have been here twice in the last couple months to force friend to try the dolsot bibimbap («hot pot mixed rice» on the menu).
We had the same waitress as last time, the very cool and funny older Korean lady who kept insisting that my (non Korean) friends add MORE gochujang (red pepper paste) to their dishes. I just could not stop laughing, and my friends loved the food and service!
Two bibimbaps and one kimchee jjigae came to just over $ 30 total. Not bad at all.

Take it with a grain of salt, but I’m a native of Korea and I eat and breathe kimchi. That being said, this is definitely not the place to take your friends to introduce or experience nostalgia of your trip in asia whenever you went.
The side dishes that always come before the main meals are plentiful, but the wait time is absolutely ridiculous.
The staff frankly don’t give a damn about your complaints. They’re used to regulars (nationals) who usually get hammered before the main meal even arrives on the grill.
The servings of their grill menu items are pretty fair, if not slightly overcharged. Their pricing structure based on how many in your party is also pretty ridiculous. It’s almost unheard of in Korea.
It goes without saying for this particular establishment, that unless they know you personally or through some acquaintance, the service you receive here will be dismal unless by the hand of God they happen to actually remember that they actually have customers waiting for their order to be taken.
Keep in mind that they’re not trying to amaze you with Korean culture surrounding the delicious meals that Korean natives eat so frequently and without any afterthought. Comparable to Americans and… bacon? Psh. Can’t think of one right now.
They’re here to run a business, albeit they don’t care about you waiting if they’re not done watching a recorded vhs of a korean soap drama.
I’m not surprised by the reviews accumulated thus far. My experience here has been tolerable, for myself, and when I’ve brought friends with me. All I can say is good luck and bring with you some antacid tablets for your friends or yourself if you don’t know what you’re in for.

PLEASE AVOID THIS PLACE — THERE ARE OTHER OPTIONS!!!
After browsing back through these reviews, I see that others have been:
1. Made violently ill from eating here
2. Overcharged
3. Received poor service
If you want to eat Korean food, this is not the place.

I haven’t had food poisoning in a long time. I find myself to be a lucky little traveler in all of my culinary adventures. But that all ended last night when I ate at Kang Nam.
Instead of a relaxing Sunday filled with lazy lounging, dreams and love, my day started by waking up with a strange, nauseated feeling. Now I can’t stay off of the toilet. Thankfully I haven’t had any vomiting, but my body is definitely trying to detoxify and at a very rapid pace.
I had bulgogi (beef) prepared in the kitchen. And I enjoyed it. There didn’t seem to be anything wrong with it. But now upon noticing that someone else had this experience (Mayor D. ¹²⁄₂₄), there is definitely something unpleasant and foul in their kitchen that needs to be checked out.
EDIT: Day 2 is WORSE. I woke up feeling even more horrible. The worst stomach cramps of my life. I have never felt such a thing. Today I did throw up, and I may just do it again right now. I am so angry at this place. The other person who got sick didn’t seem angry — and I have no idea why!

Really good.
We had kalbi ($ 17.95), bulgogi ($ 17.95), tofu chigae ($ 7.95), and kimchi chigae ($ 7.95).
Yum. Aside from BCD Tofuhouses in the LA area, this is next to being my favorite place. The meat was awesome, but I was a little disappointed with the tofu.

I’m not a Korean food expert but one thing I know is that I love Korean BBQ and Kang Nam didn’t disappoint! I’ve only had 3 Korean entrees in my life — Bi Bim Bop, Kalbi and Bulgogi. Kalbi and Bulgogi, I’ve had maybe 100 times or so. Sorry, make that 102 times because that’s what we ordered at Kang Nam and it was pretty tasty.
A buddy and I sat at a table for 4 and with the Bulgogi, Kalbi, the side dishes that come with the meal and our sizzling soup, I’m not joking when I say there was no more room on this table. It’s seriously a lot of side dishes. Except for the fresh lettuce leaves, I tried all of them and they were great. There were even a few that I’ve never seen before.
There’s nothing fancy to the place, just great Korean food. Our meal, along with 3 beers, came to $ 50. Not bad.

A little more off the radar than some other Korean bbq joints…
The food itself was pretty good.
They give you a lot of sides (banchan/​panchan). And in addition to lettuce, they gave some sort of pancake-​like thing to eat your banchan with too…(anyone know what this is called?)
There was usual OB beer and soju on the menu.
Service was a little rough, probably partially because it’s a little divey to start with, but partially because of the English/​Korean language thing.
They had some lunch specials that seemed like good deals. Entrees were about the same price as other Korean BBQ joints I guess.
The kalbi was pretty great. As was the other meat we ordered, though I don’t even remember what that was (some form of thin steak).
At the end of our meal, they gave each of us some little yogurty sugury shake-​like drink in a little bottle at the end. They probably give it to their toddlers and went back to the kitchen and laughed at us for being amused by it
(4.5!)
All in all a great casual experience.

San Soo Gap San has gotten quite overwhelmed with thrill seekers and as a result I haven’t had a good time there recently. Kang Nam is laid back, and comfortable. In a strip mall like the previous reviewers said, so there’s plenty of parking. Family friendly atmosphere and great service. Oh yeah, the full array of what I guess they call the «half-​meal» (banchan?) of vegetables. Oh, and when you get your check they give you some kind of a sweet yogurt drink. No need to make a special trip from Naperville, there’s not a lot of show here. But for a 15 minute jaunt down Kedzie from Logan Sq., the place just can’t be beat!
UPDATE! After visiting Solga, I am adding a star to Kang Nam. The ladies who run the place are like your grandma. If your grandma is nice and is a great cook, that is. One thing I noticed — I’d originally thought that all the beautiful orchids that adorn the restaurant were plastic. Turns out they are real. I don’t think it’s too much of a stretch to observe that folks that put so much care into raising these delicate flowers probably put the same amount of care into their food.

Went here with a few fellow Unilocalers to get a Korean food fix. We were seated quickly, banchan/​soup came out fast, orders taken promptly. They were very, very generous with the banchan, all of which were incredibly good. The soup was tasty too — everything tastes better when it’s free!
I’m a bi bim bap addict, so I went for that, while others got the bulgoki and the squid. The bulgoki was pretty good, the squid was absolutely amazing, the bi bim bap was just so-​so. Not bad, just really mediocre. I know — it’s a grill, but bi bim bap is so freaking simple it’s usually a safe bet.
Fairly inexpensive and tasty –I’d skip the bap next time, but will definitely go back for the squid and other yummies.

King Nam is one of my favorites in Chicago! Go! You won’t regret it. Totally agree on the lack of décor and sometimes slow service. It’s a family run business, so you’ll see grandma and grandson hanging out eating rice soup and pizza at their table waiting to close the restaurant.
Get Kalbi (marinated short ribs, a thicker meatier cut) and bolgogi (marinated thinly sliced beef). After you order, they bring out the charcoal pit to put in the hole at your table. Get ready to eat because you will be bombarded with the most authentic Korean BBQ meal.
Without warning, they bring out 20 dishes of banchan and condiments that fill the table. Lettuce leaf, green onions, sliced daikon, bean sauce are for wrapping the seared meats. My last visit was 4 days ago on my b’day: 3 kinds of kimchee, cabbage, sprouts, spinach, eggplant, egg custard, sweet potato, spicy daikon. Sometimes, they have small anchovies, cold crab, grilled tofu. Just depends on the day.
If you’re unfamiliar with how to grill the meat, the ladies there are pretty bossy and they will get you going. They give you a pair of tongs to flip the meat around and you can cook them to the desired wellness. The most tender, tasty meat you have ever put on a grill.
Did I forget the complimentary Korean pancake appetizer, small side salad, rice and spicy tofu soup?
At the end of the meal, you’re holding your stomach wondering how you’ll get through the next few hours. Oh, the beer and soju will help you wash down the food. I recently try a pomegranate wine there, 16% alcohol, goes down like juice!
Don’t wear cashmere or wool sweater there, they will absorb the smoke and remind you of the BBQ for days!