We have been enjoying YakiniQ regularly since about a year after they opened. It's definitely our…read morego-to for Korean BBQ. We usually just get the regular menu and are well satisfied with our many available meat choices. The staff members are always so courteous, friendly and attentive (shout out to Ethan! He's the best!), and they provide frequent grill changes as needed. They provide a table full of various banchan dishes (sides) to enjoy - the japchae is consistently delicious and our daughter enjoys their kimchi - and they will replenish those as often as you like. They also offer a generous serving of free ice cream for dessert (always scrumptious), although since my husband and I started eating carnivore at the beginning of this year, we give the banchan and ice cream a polite pass now. This is the perfect restaurant for carnivores because you can get all the meat you care to eat! The sliced brisket is great, and the miso pork belly is a big favorite of ours! We did try the premium menu one time and the wagyu was definitely delicious!
There's very little we would change at all! Foodwise, we would love it if they offered pre-shelled garlic marinated shrimp - we like seafood, but we tend to avoid this because the one time we tried the shrimp it stuck to the grill and just involved too much messy peeling to deal with for what we ended up getting to eat. There are always plenty more items to choose from so this was a very minor thing. There's admittedly not much parking onsite to accommodate their volume of customers, as their lot is small, but that dates back to the original business (Kawa Sushi, which was our all-time favorite sushi restaurant before it sadly closed after COVID!) and can't be helped. There's plenty of on-street parking, and after eating an indulgent meal, a little walk is not a bad idea to level out our blood sugar!
One change we would definitely appreciate is if the music volume was set slightly lower (it is always high decibel and tends to impede conversation if you're eating in the main front area) and we would love some variety in the music selection. We understand the custom in this type of restaurant is to play high energy music rather than anything more relaxing to eat by, but how about some great 70s, 80s, and 90s music? My guess is that a lot of the patrons that eat here regularly might enjoy that ambience much more (we definitely would)!
One more thing I'd like to add - we have tried out several different AYCE Korean BBQs, both locally and in other places, and nothing has ever lived up to YakiniQ in food quality and in dining experience - we are always somewhat disappointed whenever we go somewhere else. For one thing, most places force you to choose from a limited menu framework that also includes many specific side dishes or non-BBQ items that we cannot eat, and they will only serve a limited amount at one time, so sometimes there is inconvenient waiting involved as we try to get the attention of the wait staff. This is not the case at YakiniQ - all ordering is done conveniently through scanning a QR code that opens their online menu app. You can get everything from food to drinks to additional tableware (and even request your bill), all by a quick tap of your screen. There are very few limited-consumption items, and the allowed amounts are generous enough to satisfy a healthy appetite.
Also, some of these other restaurants have developed some rather elevated upcharges (or even a "membership") and/or complicated pricing structures which are both unreasonable and unnecessary. At YakiniQ, they keep the focus where it belongs, on good food and good service for a reasonable price per person. If you do decide to splash out on the premium menu, you will definitely get your money's worth, and if you stick to the regular menu, you will not be disappointed - either way, you will not leave hungry! (And for us getting the regular menu just means we can come back more often!)
If you love Korean BBQ, YakiniQ is the place to be! If you've never tried it - start here. You'll never want to go anywhere else.