You Sit Down at a Korean BBQ Restaurant—Who's Supposed to Grill the Meat?

Korean BBQ table with meat cooking on a grill beneath a metal ventilation hood, with tongs and scissors beside the grill.

When you sit down at a Korean BBQ restaurant for the first time, the table may catch your eye before the menu does.

There is a grill in the middle of the table, with a metal ventilation hood hanging above it. There are tongs on the table too.

And scissors.

When I went to Korean BBQ restaurants with friends from other countries, they looked at the grill, the tongs, and the scissors before opening the menu, then glanced at the tables around them.

One friend kept looking over at the table next to us before even opening the menu. When I asked why, he said:

"I'm trying to see how other people do it first."

Before the Meat Arrives: The Grill and Your First Order

At Korean BBQ restaurants, the meat you order doesn't arrive fully cooked. It is cooked on the grill in the middle of the table.

When you open the menu, you may see unfamiliar names such as samgyeopsal and dwaeji-galbi.

Another friend from another country looked at the menu for a long time, then pointed to the meat people were eating at the next table. He called a staff member over and said:

저거 주세요.
That one, please.

The staff member asked, "Dwaeji-galbi?" to confirm.

Before the meat arrives, small dishes of banchan may be set on the table. If you're not sure what they are, see our guide to banchan.

A little later, the same dish my friend had pointed to arrived.

When the Meat Arrives: Who's Supposed to Grill It?

When the meat arrives, you have raw meat and a hot grill right in front of you.

When should I flip it? Does this color look right?

At nearby tables, you may see customers picking up the tongs and grilling the meat themselves.

At this point, you can ask a staff member:

고기 좀 구워주실 수 있어요?
Could you help us grill the meat?

A staff member may check the meat or flip it for you.

While the Meat Is Cooking: Tongs and Scissors

This is when the tongs and scissors you saw on the table earlier come into use.

If the meat comes in long pieces, hold it with the tongs and cut it into bite-sized pieces with the scissors.

If the cut pieces still need more cooking, put them back on the grill to finish.

When It's Time to Eat: Making Your First Ssam

Your first ssam can easily get too big if you add too many things at once.

You can start with one leaf, one piece of meat, and a little ssamjang.

Fold the leaf and eat it in one bite.

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