Confession time: the idea of paying to cook my own dinner has never exactly screamed "great night out." Then I went to N to Tail, and now I'm considering a career in table-side grilling. The meal started with spicy cucumbers, fried eggplant, and Korean fried chicken. The cucumbers were refreshing, sweet, spicy, and dangerously addictive. The eggplant was crispy, sticky, and packed with flavor. And the fried chicken? My partner could have just eaten that alone and been happy! The four of us went all in on the largest combo platter. Short rib, ribeye, pork belly, shrimp, chicken, veggies--the grill was working overtime. The short rib ipractically melted, the ribeye was buttery perfection, and the pork belly reminded us why pork belly has such a devoted fan club. There was a brief period where my partner and I had no idea what we were doing at the grill, luckily we were with seasoned veterans of it! By the end of the meal my confidence was soaring that I could do this again! The banchan, which the server hinted at has a few sides that change time to time, kept every bite interesting The service was fantastic and so informative, and the entire experience was far more fun than I expected. N to Tail is a hidden gem. Come hungry, bring friends, and don't be surprised if you leave wondering why you haven't stopped by sooner. read more

N To Tail quickly became one of my favorite spots in town since moving to Portland! The bartender, Brooke, is attentive, kind, and knowledgeable. The food is delicious and has an authentic warmth to it. The outdoor seating area is fun. I can't wait to check out the Korean BBQ next time! read more

See all

It wasn't busy at all (weird time 4pm on a Thursday) but the service was still great, our host Jacob checked in a lot. Food was PHENOMENAL, especially with all the complimentary add ons that came with (banchan, kimchi, lettuce and cabbage wraps, soy sauce and rice) The vegetable melody is mushroom, onion, zucchini, and eggplant, which was a little disappointing but the la cart for the veggies is cheap so you can always double up! They induce a variety of sides including maple soy sauce and miso bean paste for dipping. Drinks were great, energy was great, it's a must go spot if you like Korean BBQ and are in the area. A little on the pricey side but for the area it was amazing. A must go! read more

See all

Legit food and solid service even though it seemed like they were understaffed. Would recommend

I was caught off guard yesterday. We decided to go into Portland since we had guest in town. They're a big fan of KBBQ and so am I. We were really excited to try this spot out and chow down on a bunch of meat. We came in at 5pm and waited to be seated. The host said table for 4? I said yes. He said okay and was about to guide us but then I said oh and 2 babies. His reaction, ohhhh I don't we can accommodate your party here, sorry. I was caught off guard since I've never been to a restaurant that turned people away. I'm assuming kids/babies aren't welcomed here? There were plenty of large tables available in the front where the host stand was. I could count 4 tables on my way in, 1 or 2 of them larger tables. We were open to the grill tops or regular tables but he didn't ask us. I guess if you have kids, save the hassle and dine elsewhere. We ended up at Highrollers for the evening. read more

We had an early dinner in the downstairs bbq section of the restaurant. At first, I was concerned it would get very smoky as I didn't see the usual ventilation hoods above each grill in typical kbbq restaurants. However, we didn't experience any smoke issues as they must have some other contraption for ventilation and they swap out the grills as soon as they get dark to prevent smoking. The service was attentive and well paced for our meal. Since we went early, there wasn't a lot of people so we had the servers undivided attention, which was nice. I could see if they got busy that you might need to call out to them to get their attention. We ordered the beef trio package for two of us, which was the perfect amount of meat. They provide three Banchan choices with kimchi that rotate seasonally. I really enjoyed the picked celery more than the bean sprouts and the other Banchan which were slightly underseasoned. They also served lettuce, cabbage, rice, and ssamjang paste. All of this was refillable minus the rice. The only thing I would ask is for larger pieces of lettuce to wrap the meat and to have slightly warmer pieces of cabbage. The juxtaposition of cold cabbage with hot meat and rice is not ideal. Other than that, I really enjoyed the cuts of beef and enjoyed the kimchi pancake we ordered. We tried three cocktails but my favorite was the one with Jalapeño infused tequila. We will definitely come again! read more

See all

Went here for dinner the other night and it wasn't our first time coming so we already knew the food was pretty good. It was a really busy night so service was fast but rushed. Seemed overwhelmed with the reservations and walk ins. They brought out the wrong dish I ordered and also left it on the bill at the end. Other than those mistakes the people were still nice, the food still came and it all got fixed. The food is all great and we highly recommend the black bean noodles (jajangmyeon) and the Korean fried chicken. Everything tastes very good and you won't be disappointed with anything you order off their menu. We love getting a bottle of the Soju with our dinner as well. Recommend giving this place a try if you're in the area. read more

See all

This was a really great spot! The outdoor patio was especially cute and we really enjoyed eating on the street. The indoor area seemed fairly nice too. I wasn't expecting to find a solid Korean spot in Portland, but I was proven wrong. That being said, it was fusion, so don't expect anything overly authentic. I ordered the Spicy Pork Bulgogi and it hit the spot. My only complaint is they initially brought out the wrong meal for me and it took quite a while for them to bring out the right one. I've had this happen at other places where they've comped the meal, especially because my friends were just about done eating by the time my food arrived, but they didn't really acknowledge that. Otherwise, no complaints! read more

See all

Feeling under the weather aNd ordered chicken soup to go. I have never had better chicken soup. It was spicy but in the best way. Full of flavor and veggies. The fried chicken was also exceptionally good. read more

Food is great, a little skimpy on the banchan and meats at the Korean bbq but everything we had was delicious. Service is fast, efficient and friendly. Great for groups. Would definitely recommend. read more

See all

I moved to Portland over a year ago and finally made it to this gem of a restaurant and now I'll be a definite regular. The food is amazing and consistently good. The wait staff are attentive, the bartender is great and the ambiance is cozy! It's also a perfect location for shopping or grabbing pre/post dinner cocktails. Highly recommend. Go see for yourself! read more

N To Tail - Jumokbap - Korean Near Me - Portland, Maine

Delicious but insanely expensive for what you get. Portions are tiny, veggie medley was like 4 chunks of veggies...but very high end meat cuts. Cocktails were weak but yummy. Would come again, but only on a special occasion read more

Great spot in old town Portland. Beautiful inside with distinct areas all great spots for meal and to people watch out the windows. Food was also incredible as was the service read more

Can't reccomend this spot enough!!! Literally incredible food and drinks, friendly, attentive and accommodating service, and a fantastic atmosphere!! Our server Aviyonna ensured my partner with several food allergies was well taken care of, explained the way things were prepared in detail, and checked in often to make sure everything was good. We ordered Aviyonna's lychee cocktail, lobster jumokbap, the chicken bibimbap, and the Korean fried chicken. The fried chicken was tender and sweet, the bibimbap had a good kick from the sauce and the egg was a perfect touch. Lobster was perfection. Thank you again!!!!! read more

N To Tail - Chicken bibimbap, lobster jumokbap, Korean fried chicken - Korean Near Me - Portland, Maine

See all

We always love eating at N To Tail. Living in Los Angeles for a long time cannot fool me if this is a great Korean restaurant or not. But I was surprised how delicious and authentic their Korean dishes were. They were all delicious and very tasty. We love everything on their menu. This is our go to Korean Restaurant. The ambience and staff were amazing and knowledgeable. We love this restaurant. We hope that they start serving Korean BBQ Galbi Beef on a bed of sizzling plate with onion like the famous BCD Korean Restaurant in Los Angeles. Yummy! read more

We came here as part of a foodie tour in Portland. The KFC was amazing and so was the fried eggplant. Both dishes are huge so if you're ordering as a shareable dish, it can easily feed 3 people! Definitely a great spot overall. Not much ambiance and the service was alright. Some drink orders didn't come through but all in all was good. read more

N To Tail - KFC - Korean Near Me - Portland, Maine

See all

This is 1 of 2 restaurants that I have ever said deserves more than 5 stars. This restaurant is amazing! From the service to the food to the atmosphere, we couldn't ask for a better date night. We had reservations and were quickly seated on arrival. Our drink order was taken and came out rather quickly and we also placed an order for appetizers. Our server waited to bring out the main meats as we had ordered appetizers off the dining menu (not Korean bbq menu). After that we ordered Date night combo which came with ribeye, pork belly, and vegetable medley. The meat was such high quality and the flavors were amazing. We decided to also order wagyu beef and this meat was just melt in your mouth. The quality was beyond anything we have had before and hands down was the star dish of the night. Highly recommend the Korean bbq menu. read more

See all

I came here for a birthday dinner, and it was underwhelming to say the least. The appetizer was probably the best part. We had the Korean fried chicken. I ordered the spicy pork bulgogi, which was drowning in sauce that it felt more like a curry or stew. My husband had the bebop which he had mentioned was really good, but the chicken was very bland. I suppose we should've just done the Korean barbecue. I also wish we could've sat somewhere just a little more private or out of the way as we were sat at a table next to the bar and had to listen to two girls drunkenly and loudly divulge their relationship drama to the bartender. read more

Awesome family-run Korean spot. The food was fantastic, but what really made the night was the hospitality. Dennis, the nephew, who went to culinary school in NYC and is originally from Hawaii was incredibly nice and made us feel right at home. Had a great conversation with him throughout the night. Also, hands down some of the best drinks around. You can tell a lot of care goes into the whole experience. read more

We've been loyal to this lovely, family run, Korean bistro for many years. The service is phenomenal, food is well prepared and nicely presented, the ambience varies from a lively bar scene (sometimes a bit too joyful!) to quiet (later evening). There are three sections to this restaurant; one can choose what suits their needs and tastes. read more

On my visit to Portland I was extremely excited to see a Korean restaurant in the area after having typical Portland food during the day (lobster rolls and seafood). I went pretty late to get Korean bbq and I had a feeling it would be pretty Americanized given the area and also the customers eating downstairs at the bbq tables. The first thing is that the prices are pretty steep and bit more than expected for Korean bbq unless it's an extremely high end place (from my experience in Boston and NYC). We got the date night combo which comes with pork belly ribeye and vegetables. The combo also comes with banchan and rice which is typical for bbq. I will say the quality of the meat was good and better than I would have expected for the area. I think for the price which was more than listed online (I think 65 or 70 for the two person combo) was not really enough meat for two and expensive. Another thing is the issue I have with Americanized Asian food is that the food can be excessively sweet and I noticed that with the potato banchan and the onions as well. The cucumber was pretty good but I prefer traditional Korean banchan of either pickled cucumber or spicy cucumber because this one was lacking unique flavor. We ordered another ribeye since the combo didn't have enough meat. The server was nice but never told us about last call so told us we might not be able to order, which is something every server should be doing in a restaurant. I also found it interesting as someone who's Korean being told the meat is the only thing I should put on the grill since I feel like it shows how unauthentic it is. I think for a city where you don't have another option for Korean bbq it's a good start, but I prefer traditional Asian food since it tastes better and is often cheaper than Americanized food. The drinks were good so I would maybe skip the bbq unless you really want to try it and try their regular food (which is still overpriced) and drinks. read more

N To Tail - ribeye - Korean Near Me - Portland, Maine

See all

Out on the town with my GF who loves our little city and what it has to offer, but not so much for her man. We started out with drinks on our way from my office to our predetermined destination N to Tail. We came on a Thursday evening at 6p and were the only people there! Where is everyone? The host asked where we wanted to sit as it was all open, we chose two seats in the window looking out on to Exchange. The atmosphere was relaxing and simple Asian, nothing over the top or obnoxious. The bartender was excellent! So friendly and engaging. The menu is Korean BBQ. Our appetizer was the smoked Mackerel oh so good! Then for dinner she had the Bibimbap and I had the Korean Fried Chicken boa. Both were excellent. I thoroughly enjoyed the way the boa was like Nan bread but light and slight sweetness. So so delicious, and a big portion, too k half home. No room for dessert, this time but we will be back! read more

See all

Great spot for a quick bite to eat with plenty of variety. The korean fried chicken and dumplings were some of the best I've tasted.

Over the many years of dining in Portland I have seen this location change ownership/name/styles a handful of times. It is nostalgic for me to remember Fuji in it's heyday so I I was skeptical to even try it here. While visiting family I got the opportunity to finally try it here and I sure was pleasantly impressed. The new menu has something for everyone and all kinds of new dishes. I couldn't even decide on one thing it was tough, our table ordered a mix of dishes so we could all try each others and not have any overlapping. Great service as well. Excited to sit down here again someday! read more

We came here with 10 people on Saturday for a celebration and we had the best time. We sat upstairs in the dining room area, and didn't do the barbecue piece so this review is for the upstairs but I heard the downstairs is amazing as well. Our service was fantastic I wish I could remember his name but he was as fantastic and was so personal. I would go back just to be in his section. On top do that the food and drinks were amazing. We tried lots of different food and everything was great. Ten out of ten for the experience I will be back to try the downstairs and more food upstairs read more

See all

We ate in the lower level and it was just an overall weak experience at this place. 1) No ambiance, whatsoever. 2) Service was extremely poor. Waiter wasn't helpful at all, which is not to say he didn't try in some ways, he just wasn't very good at it. Whatever we asked for, he didn't understand. He would literally start to answer a question and then just sort of fade away. It's like there was no end to the discussion. He'd stop mid thought and then walk away. Never bothered to refill the water. Hard pass. read more

My partner and I visited here recently for the Korean barbecue experience, he had never experienced it before and I have several times, so I was happy to be his guide! We had a ton of food as part of the package we selected, we tried a couple different flavors of saki, which were very good, and our waiter was extremely nice, Funny, and checked on us appropriately. It's a great place to go for 2-4 people to enjoy an interactive dinner. I think if there were more people than that at a table, it would become difficult to be able to grill your own food. 2 to 4 people is ideal for this experience. There are other tables upstairs that have traditional table service where you can order off the menu, and they can accommodate larger groups up there. Love, love, love this place, five out of five stars every time! My favorite is the spicy cucumber salad, Yum :-) but I could literally eat everything on the menu! Can't wait to come back! read more

N To Tail - Look at the size of that kimchi pancake! - Korean Near Me - Portland, Maine

See all

This is a very unique spot. Love the different vibes of the different floors. The korean fried chicken is excellent. I will be back just for that. read more

After a couple of days of binging on lobster rolls and chowder, I think my family finally had enough. We were craving for some asian food and thankfully this spot was just a couple of blocks from our hotel. Came pretty early, around 4:30 PM so no issues with seating. It started filling up by the time we left. We all tried a bunch of things like the bibimbap, seafood ramen, korean fried chicken, and the poke bowl. But my fave of the night was their sundubu-jjigae.. ughhh it was packed with silky chunks of tofu and the broth itself was bursting with umami. Maybe cause we haven't had rice in a while, but their rice was amazing! They probably use those extra fancy rice? read more

N To Tail - Korean Near Me - Portland, Maine

See all

Came at the recommendation of great KBBQ. The atmosphere is engaging, as the BBQ section of the restaurant is located in their basement. They had plenty of vents and fans there, so it never felt stuffy. If you want additional non-bbq dishes, they bring it down to you. Ordered: Korean fried chicken: crunchy and saucy with a great addition of pickled radish for a sweet fresh crunch Date Night Combo: pork belly, some veggies (onion, mushroom, zucchini, and eggplant), and rib eye every KBBQ order comes with available sides/banchan, in this case, we had kimchi and an unlimited amount of broccoli, bean sprouts, and zucchini that's either been pickled/seasoned/dressed in some way, steamed rice, fermented soybean paste, and fresh/boiled greens to make wraps. Every piece of food they brought out was fresh and the meat was insanely tender. However, it's difficult to compare value to places back in Southern California where a comparable price point gives you more banchan and more variety of meat at an AYCE option. I would recommend this to people who live here and have never had Korean food. Their quality is top-notch. But expect to pay $$$ or keep refilling banchans to get your fill. read more

See all

I planned my dining around your time of closing. I had a prefix dinner at Scales and anticipated dinner at your restaurant . I'm so disappointed my last night here and you guys can't update your closing hours. You suck! You kinda ruined my dining tonight. I had it all planned out.... Only appetizers at Scales what the heck. Please update your hours!!!!!!!!!!! read more

Delicious but I have mixed feelings. The kalbi, pork belly and shrimp were delectable. The banchan, kimchi and ssamjang were excellent. Portions were smaller than other Korean bbq places but I still left full. Their canned makgeoli was super yummy. I guess I struggled with the fusion and that's on me. I was sad there was no chigae. How do people enjoy KBBQ without naengmyun? I guess because they have never had the real deal. Very happy this exists in Portland. Just wish we could lose the fusion and go all in. Folks have diverse palates. Give the real stuff a chance!! read more

My husband, colleague and I had an amazing dinner here. We had been having tons of seafood trying to take advantage of our time in Maine. Then we wanted to try something else. We wanted some delicious meat and this place absolutely delivered. We all love Korean Food and we loved it. We hadn't been able to cook bbq at the table since our honeymoon in Hawaii. It was so much fun to order the meats we like and cook them at our table. We tried the three meat sampler with short rib, ribeye and I think sirloin. The short rib was the best but the others were good too. It was so tender and flavorful. Loved the paste and dipping sauce too! My colleague loved his mai tai. Not only was the food excellent but so was the service. The waitress was very kind and attentive. She also gave great recommendations. We'll be thinking about this meal for a while. read more

See all

F***ing loved it. Welcoming, warm, beautiful spot that has a ton of space- can't wait to visit them in summer. Downstairs is BBQ, upstairs is a more mixed menu-- love it. As a veg, I know my comments are kinda whatever but the fried egg on fried rice here was AMAZING. So flavorful. The spicy cucumber salad was also amazing. Great mixed drinks, great service, great everything. Can't wait to come back. read more

See all

Cute ambiance, if a little loud, and great service, really nice server with good recommendations. Standouts were the pork bulgogi with crispy rice, fried chicken bao for sharing, and bibim bap with chicken. Basic but fine wine list covering the bases, beer list seemed decent but didn't have descriptions beyond the name of the brewer so we needed server to run through whole list which was painful. Would definitely come back for the food though! read more

First, shout out to Matt, our server! We had just arrived in Portland, Maine and he made us feel so good to be there. N to Tail is a hidden little gem off the beaten track that serves Korean. The Old Port area was packed and all the places recommended to us had lines out the door onto the street. Nope...we had been traveling all day and wanted a meal! My husband spoke to one of the hosts at a place we had been told to try - 2.5 hours, ugh, and he asked the host, where would you go if it were you. He didn't hesitate and said N to Tail. I will tell you, in the 5 days in Maine...one of the best meals we had and we want to bring them home to Charleston! We had the scallion pancake, Korean Fried Chicken, Bulgogi, and Dak Galbi. All were delicious!!! This spot also has a Korean BBQ are downstairs, but since it was a beautiful night, we enjoyed the streetside cafe area. Truly, we loved this spot. read more

See all

Whoever decided to combine bourbon and matcha... god bless. Yangyum tofu and salad were also very good. Worth stopping by. read more

N To Tail - Green new deal - Korean Near Me - Portland, Maine

Amazing food! Cant wait to go back!! Loved every second. Some of the best meat cuts for the price! read more

See all

Everything was so yummy. We came for Korean BBQ but there was a wait so recommend making a reservation if you want to do that. Sake was perfect if you like unfiltered and paired perfectly with a draft Kirin. Everything was so yummy!! Bulgogi, KFC boa buns and the spicy cucumbers were our favorites. Not pictured is the dumplings.. highly recommend!! Only thing we weren't a fan of was the jumokbap, wasn't anything exciting compared to the rest. read more

See all

This family style Korean BBQ restaurant is a must if you're in the Old Port area. From puffy pork dumplings to ramen and lobster you will surely get a hearty plate dropped at your table. Portions are great to share and trying a range of options is suggested. This is some of the freshest fusion style cuisine you'll enjoy in the area! Thank me later, follow me now, stay eatin' bruh! read more

N To Tail - @stayeatinbruh approved! Fiyaaaaa - Korean Near Me - Portland, Maine