Road to Seoul Korean BBQ (Vermont) — Restaurant in Los Angeles

Originally was going to rate a 3/5, but the seasoned meats were actually worth it. We were in the area, and there were a few other KBBQ restaurants in every corner. We decided to give this one a shot.

Parking: Valet parking for $3. I was honestly baffled that there was valet parking only bc they're located in a small corner with very limited parking. AND I parked my own car lmao. The valet worker was aggressive. He will literally track you down for your keys.

Ambiance/Environment: They have a large space with plenty of indoor seating. No outdoor seating. It's dark inside with moderate music. Perfect spot to bring your friends and family for dinner. It can use a cleaning as there was a mess in the back area with the worker's boba drinks sitting on the tables that weren't being used and boxes on some of the booths.

Service: Once you enter, wait for a server to seat you. It took a while before one of them noticed us. There were many servers that assisted us. They were quick & efficient, but it was very difficult to wave one of them down.

Meats & sides: There were 3 menu options to choose from. We went with Option C. I like how the menu is organized. We tried all their new meat items like the spicy beef brisket, garlic beef sirloin, seasoned giant short rib, lemon herb salt steak. We enjoyed all their seasoned meats! The complimentary banchan was okay. We also ordered other sides from the kitchen: steamed egg, corn cheese, pancake. For whatever reason, it took a while for these to come out, and we could tell they have just been sitting in the back. The steamed egg was hollowed in/flat, and the cheese of the corn was melted but slightly hardened. The only thing that was enjoyable was the pancake. It was crispy on the edges and tasted delicious.

Pricing: This is LA. Of course prices are $$$. The meats are worth it, but the experience can definitely...

Not big on all you can eat spots, but decided to come here with my parents and husband since we were in the area. We decided to go with Option C at $55.99 per person. We were more focused on the green items, but mainly the beef short rib and bottom sirloin. As for seafood, we ordered squid and baby octopus. Not many all you can eat spots have those options, so we definitely had to order those items. We also ordered brisket, since it's easy and fast to cook. The salad was decent, and the steamed egg was okay. There were only 6 choices of banchan: plain potato salad, bean sprouts, kimchi, plain japchae, and kimchi radish. I'm a big potato salad fan, so I was sad to see that it didn't have anything in it, nor the japchae either. They also provide rice paper. Out of all the meats, I think we preferred the short rib, bottom sirloin, squid, and octopus. The service was a little hit or miss. It started off rocky in the beginning, then picked up later on. On the plus side, it's next to a "It's Boba Time" shop, so if you're feeling boba for dessert, you won't have to travel for it. Unless you find parking in the residentail neighborhood, there is valet parking at $3. This trips me out because it's such a small lot. My dad ended up having to drive his own car out the lot. It's pretty spacious inside though, so they can do parties up to 2- 14 people. They also do have a bit of a wait time, since the place seems to be popular. I like that they also had TVs up, so my dad could keep up with all the sports games...

The good: Beef brisket 차돌 was good but standard. Only thing worth getting on the A course although I didn’t get to try the road to Seoul beef, which sounded promising attentive servers at least in the beginning. Begins to fall off the longer you’re there but that’s typical for all you can eat 계란찜 (steaming egg) was decent

The bad: All you can eat style but the additional options you get with B and C courses are hard to justify at their respective price points.

Seems to cater more towards non-Koreans who generally won’t notice the overbearing marinade masking the meat, middling side dishes that looked/tasted store bought, and lack of traditional post meat 식사-type dishes like 냉면 or 된장찌개. Don’t get the soon-tofu soup.

Vibe for dinner is loud and tables are packed together, so it was difficult to have a conversation. Felt more like a 포차 than a sit down place for Korean barbecue. Also soju for $13 is too much, but I guess that’s how it...