Koryo Charcoal BBQ

I don’t write many five star reviews, but after eating here again I have to say that for the price, quality, service and authenticity of this place, it deserves it. Korean BBQ shouldn’t be complicated, yet there are a lot of places that feel the need to leave this standard and try fusion or over complicated dishes. There are actually a decent amount of places in the Oakland area, however there typically is a long line for these places for equal or lesser quality food. The AYCE menu is reasonable, for $ 24/​person, I have a hard time believing that you can go to any restaurant and leave full and satisfied with quality food. Service has been both consistent and quick and friendly. I don’t know what else there is to say other than I haven’t been disappointed in any.

Went back recently to see how this place survived what seems like renovations, strategy and ownership changes. This was the first Korean BBQ spot I ever tried about 23 years ago. Good news…
–Great experience.
–Friendly service
–Spicy pork belly — you don’t see that everywhere
–The «banchan» or side dishes were unique and delicious — some korean preparations of vegetables I am not used to seeing in this type of setting — really good and fresh.

This place suck I am eating all you can eat bbq now, service and food so bad I found plastic bag on a meat plate, and I ordered side dish after I finished one, one guy with the glasses brought side dish on the same plate. THIS IS RIDICULOUS!!! I cant understand how server can think like this OMG Now I realize why this koyro bbq kept close and reopen I am giving one star because I have to

If I am going to go out for Korean BBQ, I will not come here. There are several better choices in the area. My siblings like this place, so I will go to eat with them. Otherwise, I would pass.

Delicious! Recently added all you can eat bbq. They give you so many appetizers… great value :)

Very decent korean bbq at an acceptable price with great. Make sure to order gal bi, spicy pork & soft tofu stew.

Stopped in just before 5p and the restaurant wasn’t to busy. The interior is very vibrant compared to the neighboring restaurants in the area. The food is pricey, but the portions and customer service were top notch. Planning to come here more often.

LOVED IT! A bit pricey but worth it, meat quality is great, customer service is great, food awesome. got the bulgogi (must) marinade was perfect, and just awesome. ill be going back for another date night here!!!

This place is okay, but it can be kinda sketchy. They kind of insist that you drink. Their Korean bbq is really tough to chew, and has this rubbery texture. The lady that works there kind of dresses inappropriately, and not like a restaurant worker. not a place you take your kids for dinner. A lot of drunk men. Their service is nice if you are looking to drink.

The servers are polite and the place looks fancy for a kbbq place. But meat menu is way too expensive. Pork belly that serves one male adult is about $ 27 and marinated kalbi is about $ 32.
They claim that the cost is a little expensive because their quality of meat is good. I do admit that their quality is best in Berkeley/​Oakland area. But as a person from SoCal where there’s insanely good kbbq places all over the place, I still don’t think their «good» quality matches their expensive price. If you’re looking to eat a lot of bbq, you should go to AYCE places.
But they do have affordable «combination» menu (~$ 20) that allows you to pick one meat and one soup-​based dish, though the quantity of meat decreases by half from regular prices I mentioned above.
I would probably go there again just because the waiters were really nice, but definitely not a casual place to go with your friends on weekends.

I had not been here since the new management has taken over, a few things:
1. The décor is definitely brighter/​more inviting.
2. There is NO LONGER an all you can eat bbq option (although our server let us know it might be returning this summer).
3. There is no longer charcoal, only electric grills.
With all of that being said, the food is still tasty and the service is amazing.

I ordered the ramen, but the Korean ramen you buy at the grocery store is better than this. The ramen tasted like watered down store-​bought ramen. I should’ve ordered the tofu soup or BBQ. It might’ve been better.
Service was good, but the servers were eating behind the counter, which seemed kind of unprofessional.
The place is really nice. From the outside, you wouldn’t expect it to be so nice. But unfortunately, the food didn’t match the nice environment.

The new owners truly know the meaning of great customer service. The staff here is very attentive, always asking me my com padre if we needed more bahn chan (side dishes), and filling our water cups to the brim too.
Not only is the service superb, the Kal BI is delicious and fresh. Coming from a Korean household it was like how momma would have made it! So if you are ever in the mood for some Korean food definitely check out this spot.

We’ve eaten here 3 or more times, so I am pleasantly compelled to write a review for this establishment.
As we enter, we were greeted cheerfully by the staff. Our server (found out his name is Andrew), was high energy and extremely pleasant. I miss him writing this review…. My other half and I both ordered the Galbi Tang and we both agreed that it was delicious and flavorful (he’s Korean, if it matters). Andrew came by to check if we need more side dishes, to see if we needed more water or tea, and always making sure we were okay. Great food, good vibes, and clean surroundings. I’ll be back and I’ll let my friends and family know too!

It looks like this place is under new ownership as there was a new ownership application posted on the window (for their beer and wine license).
Originally we wanted Gogi Time but didn’t want to suffer a two hour wait so we gave this place a try.
Overall the quality of food is not bad, but I will admit you won’t get your money’s worth for most their plates. For their beef short ribs, you get two big chunks but expect to pay $ 32.00 for them. The chicken plate was plentiful for $ 20+ dollars, but their vegetable plate ($ 11+) consist of nicely arranged vegetables, although fresh, my opinion is that it’s not worth it. We had their add-​on Tofu soup, and it was a little bigger than a standard rice bowl. for $ 5.99 (add-​on price, regular price is $ 9.99)
Their small dishes are delicious and plentiful but their tea was real bland. so bland that we thought it was hot water. None of us could make out what kind of tea.

I heard they are new or under new management, according to my college mate. This place really exceeded my expectations! Our server was so pleasant and very attentive! A customers dream server! He made sure we were really comfortable, taken care of, and answered all of our questions thoroughly. The food was fresh and flavorful and came out fast. We came here for lunch and spent about 2.5 hours eating and catching up. We were not rushed out and were actually asked if we wanted refills on our side dishes. Tea and water were refilled constantly. On our way out, employees inside and outside of the restaurant thanked us. Overall, I was happy with my experience.

Pros: friendly service
Good food
Many side dishes
Parking lot

Cons: Kalbi can be quite pricey

I came here for dinner with my siblings. We ordered the seafood pancake, seafood and beef tofu soup with an egg, spicy pork, and pork belly with rice cake. While waiting for our food, they gave us complimentary side dishes like any other Korean restaurant. Also, they gave us a side of complimentary lettuce for lettuce wraps. That’s a plus. One side dish that they didn’t have was the fish cake. Aww my fav. Oh wells. The seafood pancake was okay. It had a lot of squid in it. The seafood and beef tofu soup with the egg was so good. My favorite. Mhmm. It was so tasty and delicious. The spicy pork was really good and flavorful. It was really good with the lettuce. The pork belly with rice cake was okay. Overall, the food was all tasty. The servers are all really nice and attentive.
–msashleyytee

Under new management, it seems. The space is nice and modern, the menu has a wide selection, and the staff is very sweet and attentive. Prices are no longer cheap, but not really expensive either.
The lunch menu is a bunch of their specials from the dinner menu with 2 – 4 bucks knocked off. I got the Galbi Tang ($ 12.99). The portion was big (probably the same as dinner) and broth was very rich, with layers of beef, onion, and daikon flavor. They also brought out ten side dishes, some of which were unusual (salad tomatoes, sautéed mushrooms). They were good (not quite amazing) and all tasted very fresh. When I finished them quickly, they brought out another round!
I’ll be back to try the beef tartare. Glad to see that on their lunch menu. I also want to try their fish egg stew, but that’s only offered for dinner.

Food: Honestly, the food here is great. All the meats are fresh and well marinated, especially for an AYCE kinda place. And the prices are probably the best in the area at $ 20 a person for 15 choices of AYCE which includes all the basics of korean bbq including beef bulgogi, chicken bulgogi, spicy pork, pork belly, beef brisket, and more. And the more you pay by upgrading to options B or C, the more food items you can pick from. But the service is where they lose most of their stars.
Service: The service here is not extremely poor or anything, they are just extremely understaffed. The servers are all korean and don’t really speak English, which is kinda troublesome if you have specific or unique requests, but otherwise it isn’t too much of a problem. But getting served takes a while if the place is pretty full. I say pretty full because this place never gets super packed to the point where you have to wait for a table, but because of how few servers there are, it takes a while before you get anything. When we arrived, we were seated immediately but then had to wait 15 – 20 min before anyone came to set up a grill and let us order. Even after ordering, the food took a while to come and servers would often forget what we asked for. About an hour into our meal, there were fewer tables filled and then our service became exponentially faster so I really think they just need to hire maybe one more server on busy nights.
Environment:
The place looks like a standard korean bbq AYCE restaurant and is very spacious. Parking can be pretty limited though so you may have to drive up into the residential area to find parking. Otherwise no complaints here! Everything is pretty clean and neat.