Bulgogi Queen Korean BBQ Restaurant — Restaurant in Stuttgart

June 19, 2023

Bulgogi Queen had not inspired me to write a story; alas, I fear that not every restaurant I want to write a review on will. After much turmoil, I decided that it's ok to write a review that differs from my usual style, and indeed if a place inspires storytelling then that is an accolade in of itself.

Starting with the appetizers, they were quite excellent. I thoroughly enjoyed the flavors of the kimchi. However, a friend remarked that it tasted store bought, I'm none the wiser. I would've also liked the portions of kimchi to be larger.

The long anticipated Korean fried chicken was a bit of a let down. While it received much praise from other members of our party, I found that a layer of the breading was soggy. It didn't have a nice crispiness that I expected, instead, it was a bit mushy. I'm guessing it's twice fried since it was just the inner layer that was unpleasant. Furthermore, the sauce was lacking, you can see in the picture that the sauce was not properly slathered on the chicken. It was poorly drizzled on and pooled at the bottom of the dish. The chicken itself was fairly decent, and I recall the sauce having good flavor.

The items of the main course were a hit or miss. The smattering of meats had some success when they were marinated. However, half the meats were outright plain, not marinated or seasoned at all. And let's be real, the bit of salt and sauce they provide on the side isn't the proper way to prepare meat for a grill. It was disappointing that this was the premium menu set, and for the price I wouldn't recommend it. If you follow my reviews then you'll know I'm not afraid to pay for good food. Lastly, the morsels that were marinated proved to be quite tasty.

My final rating is, "There's room for easy improvement. I do not plan on returning, except perhaps for specific...

I was so excited to try this place, and then it turned into the worst dining experience I've probably ever had. We were seated quickly because it was half empty, but then the waitresses proceeded to ignore every attempt to get their attention. Finally a guy came to take our order.

We ordered the bulgogi Korean BBQ, so we were a little confused when they brought the hotpot burner to us. Then when they brought our meats and veggies, I asked why we weren't going to grill it. She just said that we ordered the wrong thing and hurriedly turned the burner on (I note this because she could have not turned it on and changed our order, since it was clear this was not what we were expecting and the food was uncooked and untouched). Our food, including the meat, proceeds to boil in a paper-lined steel pan. It was very strange, like a bad version of hotpot.

Ultimately, the flavor of the meat was tasty enough. Only the zucchini got cooked. The mushrooms, carrots, and cabbage were all mostly raw still. Juices sloshed on the table from us trying to move things around to cook them more.

It was the strangest dish to get to cook at your table. I would have much rather had a hotpot or just regular bulgogi that they cook than this strange boiled in a paper lined pan at the table version.

Obviously, I expected BBQ to be cooked on the grill, so I do think they should have a description and picture indicating this (there was no way to know this was just something you boil in paper instead of grill like all the other things labeled BBQ on their menu).

On top of this the waitresses made me feel like they wished we would leave from basically the second we were seated. We will...

Walked in at 17:30 and the place was very busy. Was given a table only until 19:00 hrs... understandable. Ordered the BBQ for 2. Beautiful presentation and food was fresh. Lots of meat and lettuce but side dishes like the kimchee was very little. Rice bowl was about 2 big spoons full. Learned that if you want more rice is extra, never heard of that before. Enough meats for 2 people and tasty meat. The waitresses seemed stressed and rushed. Busy place and packed. Needs better circulation, you definitely leave there smelling like grill. Didn't like that they were grabbing everything out of the table even before we finish eating reaching across us without asking. Now to the end...when we paid the bill was about 82 Euros. Gave her 90 Euros and she started walking out without giving or asking if we want the change. Usually we will tip well but because of her assumption we stopped her and asked for the change. She didn't like it and made a mad face. And she was not the one that even served us through the whole process! Not cool at all. Overall the food was fresh, good but not sure if we...