Cuisine
Koreatown is the gravitational center — late-night BBQ joints with sizzling tabletop grills, fried chicken spots that snap when you bite, and a few quiet places doing something more refined. Korean food in LA has been building for over fifty years.
Institutions
Open since 1983 with the original wooden chairs. The bossam here helped define what Korean comfort food means in Los Angeles.
Bossam · Gamjatang · Kimchi jjigae
On every best-of list, every year. The prime-grade beef benchmark that raised the standard for Korean BBQ across the city.
Prime galbi · Woo samgyup · Naengmyeon
Forty-one years and still cooking over real charcoal. One of the last places in Koreatown that hasn't changed the method.
Charcoal-grilled bulgogi · Chadol baegi
The original late-night sool jib. Makgeolli, anju, and a room that feels like Seoul in 1978.
Makgeolli · Pajeon · Corn cheese
Guide Picks
“Part of a chain from Seoul owned by a comedian/wrestler, this place has everything you want in a Korean BBQ joint: a super fun and bustling atmosphere, fantastic service and incredible food.”
Open7:00 AM – 12:00 AM
“Koo's Grill hotteok has to rank as one of the best snacks/desserts in Los Angeles.”
“With giant booths and gleaming golden chandeliers, AB Steak has all the glamor of a ballroom on the Vegas Strip.”
“The texture of both varieties was spot-on, with the requisite KFC snap wholly present.”
Beverly Hills
6 places
“If there were a business class option for KBBQ, we'd imagine it'd look something like Gabin.”
“In any other town, the phrase 'massive grocery store on the ground floor of a shopping mall' might have been a turn-off, but that's just a testament to Galleria Market's success.”
Open12:30 – 10:00 PM
“The big draw here is the banchan, the little side dishes of kimchi and other fermented vegetables, sliced pancakes, potato salad, boiled peanuts, braised beef and other Korean delicacies.”
Closed5:00 – 10:00 PM
“The big draw here is the banchan, the little side dishes of kimchi and other fermented vegetables, sliced pancakes, potato salad, boiled peanuts, braised beef and other Korean delicacies.”
Open12:30 – 10:00 PM
“The big draw here is the banchan, the little side dishes of kimchi and other fermented vegetables, sliced pancakes, potato salad, boiled peanuts, braised beef and other Korean delicacies.”
“Someone just passing through and hearing his emphatic voice booming through the small restaurant might see him as one of the most amiable fried chicken purveyors they've ever met.”
Open9:00 AM – 9:00 PM
Open11:00 AM – 2:00 AM
“For the nominal price of $17.99 per person, Hae Jang Chon provided my cousins, The Astronomer, and me with an all-you-can-eat Korean barbecue feast that was so stupendous that it left our clothes and pores imbued with smoke and meat for days.”
Open11:30 AM – 11:00 PM
“The spicy pork burrito at Kogi BBQ's food trucks is filling, delicious, and only $10 — no small feat in a city like Los Angeles.”
“Could KyoChon really be serving a dynamic new preparation of fried poultry? Turns out they are.”
“King Steam Dumpling with Pork and Kimchi ($7.50 for 4) amounted to fluffy baseball-sized bao.”
Open11:00 AM – 2:00 AM
“Located in historic Chapman Plaza in the center of K-town, this is where I usually wind up when the line is too long at neighbor restaurant Kang Ho Dong Baekjeong.”
Closed6:30 – 9:00 PM
“chef Ki Kim's Michelin-starred modern Korean tasting menu at Ki ($300)”
Open11:00 AM – 10:30 PM
“One of the great things about Soowon Galbi was how accessible the owners made Korean cuisine for diners, complete with printed 'Cooking Instructions,' plus guides to 'Dipping Sauces and Condiments' and 'Banchan (Side Dishes).'”
Places outside the primary cluster.
“The texture of both varieties was spot-on, with the requisite KFC snap wholly present.”
Open12:30 – 10:00 PM
“The big draw here is the banchan, the little side dishes of kimchi and other fermented vegetables, sliced pancakes, potato salad, boiled peanuts, braised beef and other Korean delicacies.”
Closed5:00 – 10:00 PM
“The big draw here is the banchan, the little side dishes of kimchi and other fermented vegetables, sliced pancakes, potato salad, boiled peanuts, braised beef and other Korean delicacies.”
Open12:30 – 10:00 PM
“The big draw here is the banchan, the little side dishes of kimchi and other fermented vegetables, sliced pancakes, potato salad, boiled peanuts, braised beef and other Korean delicacies.”
“The spicy pork burrito at Kogi BBQ's food trucks is filling, delicious, and only $10 — no small feat in a city like Los Angeles.”
Closed6:30 – 9:00 PM
“chef Ki Kim's Michelin-starred modern Korean tasting menu at Ki ($300)”