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Sonu BBQ

4.5 (949 reviews)
Closed 4:30 pm - 11:00 PM

Waitlist - Sonu BBQ

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SONU BBQ ATMOSPHERE

What's the vibe?
Loud
Casual
Trendy
Classy

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Recommended Reviews - Sonu BBQ

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Reviews With Photos

Kenneth A.

I dont frequent Oceanside. I found this place via Yelp and let me tell you, it is one of the better ones. Lots.of selections and sides, ramen, tempura, seafood, beef, pork chicken etc. Seriously it had more items than any of the places.i hsve frequented. For the price 35.00 for the premium, well worth the price !! Service was on point, our main server, I wish I knew her name, has been there 6 years and she knows her stuff and the KBB game, she helped with our first selections.

Salad, cucumbers, rice paper and brisket
Kierstyn Y.

Sonu is our favorite KBBQ in North County! We have been coming for years. So many great things about this spot! Great quality meat, lots of options, sides are delicious and awesome staff. Sounds weird but my favorite thing here is their salad! So simple but the dressing is so bomb, truly i want the secret recipe!

Meat and chicken
Mr N.

Every time I come here it's always so good and good quality. The workers have a good attitude and the food is always good. They do get my order wrong a couple of times but then again, they're taking orders like crazy.

Thoa N.

After many months away, I came back and was happy to see that the quality remains just as excellent as ever. The restaurant is always clean and spacious, and it never feels hot or uncomfortable. The staff are especially lovely, quick, and very attentive. They always check on customers in a thoughtful and caring way. I truly appreciate a place that offers both delicious food and outstanding service. Sonu BBQ is always the best!

The restaurant that claims "they a two hour limit"
Georlea P.

The food was good. The environment was good. Music was crazy loud. We had five "premium" choice for each person in our group of five. Also ordered beverages. Our bill was over $300 plus tip. It was my husband's 60th birthday and two of our guests drove in from up north (CA) for this special occasion. We ate, we laughed and were talking about our new journey of moving and some girl on 4/19/26 approximately 5:45pm came over and said they (the restaurant) had a two hour limit. Mind you, we were seated at 4:02pm. There was no signs saying 2-hour limit to dine there. We were going to make reservations for our family of 16+ to dine there for our go away party of moving. But after that comment from that girl we will find a different place. Word of advice, you can have good food but it's your customers who pay the money for your success. PS: when we were ordering the different meats and dishes we were told we could only order one rib eye at a time.

Brisket
Hazel B.

Food, service, price. Everything was top notch. Meat and side choices were abundant and delicious. The wait staff was very attentive and knew when to come around for refills. Our favorites were the pork belly, bulgogi and brisket. Highly recommend.

Amanda J.

My first time here. Hubby and I came for dinner. Parking was easy and we were immediately seated after putting our names down. Our server was great. Restaurant is clean. Food was fresh and pretty good but I felt they had less side options than other Korean BBQ spots. I love green onion salad and was bummed that they don't offer that. I like that it's all you can eat. We enjoyed our dinner here.

Samantha S.

First time coming here on a Friday night. The food was great and the staff was too! Our plates were cleared quickly and food was brought out just as fast. I would def recommend coming here. It did get pretty busy so utilize the online waitlist on yelp.

Angela C.

A great local spot for AYCE Korean BBQ with high-quality, not frozen meats which makes all the difference. We especially loved the pork belly wrapped enoki mushrooms and the cucumber kimchi from the generous spread of sides. Our server was fantastic (she had a flower in her hair wish I remembered her name!) and struck the perfect balance between attentive and chill. Drinks stayed full, grills stayed hot. Bonus: it's right next to 85°C Bakery, so you can grab a sweet treat on your way out. We'll definitely be back.

Kobe
Jeffrey L.

The first time here as I was actually meeting up one of my friends from Boston and we live in San Diego this was the middle grounds of our meat adventure. It was actually pretty busy here but thankfully we got on the waitlist early. There is a lot of parking here as well. Service was fantastic. Everyone was awesome and very friendly. We were always being checked up on and I actually really do like the smaller portions so we can try new things I did hear some of the servers speaking Mandarin so I'm wondering if it's Chinese owned or Korean owned but meat was still pretty good. - Brisket was delicious 5/5 since it gets pretty dry, but this is actually really tender. I was surprised. - Kobe 10/5 I wish I ordered more of this. It was actually really good. - Beef Tongue 1/5 usually beef tongue is my go to for anywhere and it's my standard but this one was a little bit lackluster and wasn't as tender as I thought. A little bit more rubbery. - Corn cheese - 5/5 honestly the best corn cheese I've ever had. Idk what other extra flavorings they added but it was amazing. - Soondoboo was delicious as well. Great flavor - Banchan was pretty solid Overall, we had a great time while watching the game there with an awesome atmosphere. We were able to celebrate our friends birthday and be able to chow down. Maybe it was just that batch of beef tongue but hopefully they can try out some other vendors as well to compare!

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18 days ago

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27 days ago

Amazing, experienced as always, we been here few times already and its always outstanding service, food and well served!

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11 days ago

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7 months ago

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2 months ago

Superb service, food, portions, and value. Went with wife and kids and will definitely remember this spot for the future.

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2 months ago

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5 months ago

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17 days ago

Delicious food great service, great staff. always go here for kbbq. Kimchi rice and the egg is bomb along with tge bbq ofc!

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11 months ago

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3 months ago

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19 days ago

This place is amazing the food so good ! The staffs so friendly. Best bbq place in town.

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Sonu BBQ Reviews in Other Languages

Ask the Community - Sonu BBQ

Can you place a to-go order?

We do not do to go orders , only dine in .

Are there any surprises or discounts for your birthday?

They give you a Macaron ice cream of your choice ( they are all delicious, but my fave is the coffee flavor!) of course with a candle to sing happy birthday! 🥳💕

Are you open for Thanksgiving?

Yes, we open on thanksgiving but close early at 8:30 pm

Can you take leftovers to go?

No you cannot, actually if you over order I think they charge per pound.

Do you have glass noodles (Japchae)?

No they do not .

Can I do the all-you-can-eat alone? Or they start with two or more people

You can, but there will be a $7 surcharge .

What are the hours on Labor Day?

What are the correct hours of operation as of 8/13/20?

Do they have social distanced outdoor seating?

They don't have outdoor seating

Is this kid friendly and do they have other options a for kids? My daughter is super picky.

Yes they are kid friendly. They saw we had 4 kids and let us have the control for one of the Flatscreens in the back.

Can you split one plan with someone? Like 2 people share the premium or deluxe plan?

Unfortunately not. The price is per person, all people at your table need to order the same plan and it is all you can eat.

Are there gluten free (no regular soy sauce- it has gluten) options available?

Yes, the unmarinated meats are gluten free

Does everyone at the table have to eat the price plan? For example what if one person wants the Premium but everyone else wants the Deluxe?

Everyone needs to order the same. Because if they order premium and they share with you then you're now eating premium too.

Do they have different prices for kids?

Kids eat for $9.99

Do they still have cheese corn?

Yes they do!

Do you have sushi?

We do not .

Is that the price per meat platter or is it an all you can eat and that price is per person?

It's AYCE, the price is per person.

Do they have rice paper or corn cheese?

Yes, they have it now. I think they just change their menu for more options.

View All 24 Questions

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Heritage Beer

Heritage Beer

(385 reviews)

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Took my mama bear out here for a little "treat yourself" moment after losing my dad. It used to be…read moretheir spot, so I thought, what better way to honor him than with ribs, mac and cheese, and a hopeful attitude? We ordered the 3 meats plate with a side of mac and cheese, thinking we'd leave in a food coma. Plot twist: for $45, we basically split a light snack. We asked for double ribs, but apparently ribs are weighed like gold here--so we got just a few sad little bones. When I asked the bartender, she hit me with a "it's weighted meat" and shrugged. Oh. Okay. Guess we're on a portion control diet now. The BBQ sauce? Meh. My mom and I both agreed it was giving "needs a little more love." The corn? Tasted like it defrosted just for us. Still decent, but not for the price tag. The mac and cheese though? A win. Warm, cheesy, and the only thing that arrived hotter than my mild frustration. Now let's talk service. Our bartender vanished mid-meal (poof! just like the ribs), didn't say bye, and didn't introduce her replacement. Instead, she sat at the bar with her friends while we played a fun game of "Where's Our Server?" Spoiler: we lost. Had to ask multiple times for refills. Not quite the relaxing "mom night out" I had in mind. My mom summed it up perfectly: "The prices went up, and the service went down." Poetry. Also, shoutout to the guy next to us who tried ordering half the menu only to be told, "Yeah, we're out of that" over and over. Management, a quick stock check might be helpful for you guest Lastly, don't come here if you're starving or in a rush. Our food took forever and was colder than my ex's heart by the time it arrived--minus the mac and cheese, the MVP. Would I come back? Maybe. But only after a snack and a pep talk. Management, if you're reading this, we just want hot food, a heads-up when the server disappears, and ribs that don't need a microscope to be seen. Is that too much to ask?

Picked up some pulled pork and brisket to-go. Always greeted with a friendly smile and warm…read moregreeting. I annihilated the pulled pork before taking any pics and quickly snapped a shot of the brisket. Both were awesome. Pulled pork wasn't dried out like many other places. The brisket though... great crust, juicy, and flavorful. You can add some of their bbq sauce but you definitely don't need to. Solid spot for some great bbq

Flying Pig Pub & Kitchen - Pork Verde Chilaquiles (Pulled Pork, Salsa Verde, Tortilla Chips, Fried Egg, Cotija Cheese, Cilantro).

Flying Pig Pub & Kitchen

(2.6k reviews)

$$

Two weeks later and I'm still thinking about this spot…read more Pulled up to The Flying Pig Pub & Kitchen on a perfect California spring Friday night, and it delivered across the board. The beer and drink selection alone is worth the visit--tons of options whether you're keeping it casual or trying something new. Food-wise... the Bacon Mac N Cheese was next level. Rich, flavorful, and exactly what you want it to be. My buddy (who was literally about to move out of town) went with the burger--and let's just say he picked the right "last meal" in Oceanside. What really stood out though was the service. Top of the line from start to finish. Big shoutout to Mitch--young guy, super personable, clearly takes pride in what he does. He was everywhere in the best way, checking in on tables, making people feel taken care of. Honestly, the way he moves, he should be serving--he's got that natural touch. Great food, great drinks, great people. One of those nights that just hits right. I'll definitely be back.

Everything on the menu sounds amazing, unfortunately what we chose was just ok…read more The service was very slow and the seating was challenging for my 8 year old... low with random cushions the kept slipping. We moved chairs around and grabbed blankets and got it worked out without any help from staff. Porkbelly appetizer was overcooked and lacked anything special that made it memorable. The pork chop was also overcooked and the grits were very thick.. cheesy but not creamy. The short ribs were dry.... Strange for braised meat and not enough sauce. The sauce was really good as were the mashed potatoes and carrots. The burger was excellent. Really juicy with a great bun. The atmosphere is very cool and inviting. I would return for burgers and to try the fried chicken. It looked awesome coming out of the kitchen. The burger was excellent.

The Rib Shack - Sampler plate: hot link, ribs, chicken, tri tip, pulled pork, brisket, mac and cheese, potato salad, beans, and rolls.  FANTASTIC BBQ.

The Rib Shack

(630 reviews)

$$

This small shops serves up some really good barbecue. Hot tip: Come earlier in the day, if you…read morecan. Like at most BBQ places, they may run out of certain foods later in the day. You snooze, you lose. (Funny note: I was told, in no uncertain terms, that they were out of chicken and that I would get extra pulled pork. When I got home, I found a large piece of chicken.) The best option is the Sampler plate. You get six different proteins, three sides, and three Hawaiian rolls. The proteins are chicken, hot link, tri-tip, brisket, ribs, and pulled pork. I thought all of the proteins were very good but I especially loved the hot link. I could have eaten three of these alone. The sides are also very good. The mac and cheese and potato salad--both clearly house made--were excellent. The house made beans were ok but a little hard. I didn't love them. They have three BBQ sauces to choose from (spicy--marked with a giant "X" on the little cup, sweet, and regular. They are all delicious but you really don't need any of them. That is a sign of good BBQ. The sampler plate gives you a ton of food. At $56, it seems expensive but it is not. This plate easily feeds three people and you will probably have some leftovers. I drove 30 minutes one way for this, waited about 15 minutes, and drove another 30 minutes home. It was very much well worth it. Good BBQ is hard to find in SoCal but it exists, if you make the effort. And this is very good BBQ at reasonable prices.

Best Baby Back Ribs west of Memphis To go orders are always…read morecomplete and packed well Quick service Clean kitchen and dining room

Sonu BBQ - korean - Updated May 2026

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