KPOT Korean BBQ & Hot Pot — Restaurant in Maple Grove

I recently went here for Kpot's soft opening on 04/19/2025. When I first arrived at 3pm the host told me that it would be a 45min wait. There was a lot of people waiting. It was nice to see that their app showed you how many parties were in front of you as well as up to date wait time. After 25mins I got the notification on my phone that my table was ready. Note it was me and one other person, so the wait time was shorter for a two top.

After sitting down I was greeted by our server, Fernanda, aka Fay. She was very pleasant and asked if we have been here before. I told her no, but we have gone to many hot pot places before. She skipped the full introduction of the menu as well as instructions of how to hot pot since we understood the concept, which was nice. We chose the hotpot and Korean bbq combo. The one thing that I really loved was the individual burners, so each person can choose their own hot pot broth. We ordered the Japanese Miso and Mushroom broth. I also liked how you order everything (except drinks) on the tablet. The last thing I really enjoyed before I get into the food was the condiment bar. I hardly see places that have recipes of different dipping sauces on the wall to help people who are new/adventurous. The pot stickers and chicken wings at the condiment bar were very good as well.

*My friend ordered the Lychee-Tini. Well balanced flavor of lychee, pear and sake.

Onto the food part. The quality of the food for both hot pot and Korean BBQ were EXCELLENT! I highly recommend ordering any of the pork belly dishes. If you are beef lover, then go for the Kpot Steak. It is a nice cut of steak and it is served with a little butter packet. Otherwise the Kpot Short Rib. Our favorite dish was the smokey garlic pork belly (KBBQ). Perfect balance of smokiness, savory and sweetness. There was a ton of options to choose from on the tablet. The quality of each item was fresh, and flavorful! Side note, I did not choose any of the seafood items, but I normally do not order a lot of seafood at hotpot places in the Midwest.

The food was outstanding, but I also want to give an equal amount of credit to the service. Fay is a great example of excellent hospitality! One thing that Fay did that impressed me was giving me a dish of salt. I know that seems very simple, but for someone that loves to season their food, I had a lot of respect for her doing that. All the meat, that is not marinated, is not seasoned ahead of time. The dipping sauces are there to enhance the flavor, but I like to try the food by itself with a little salt first before combining different flavors. Fay also changed our BBQ griddle three times throughout our meal. She checked on us often, but not to where it was too much. Besides Fay's great service, I also am very appreciative to all the other servers and food runners. Every time there was an empty plate on someone's table, there would be someone grabbing it to help clear up space. Each person was very attentive to each table making sure every diner had the same great experience.

To finish off this review...the wait, and cost was worth it! $45 a person for hot pot, KBBQ, and drinks. I would have to say that this is one of my top places to have hot pot and KBBQ in Minnesota! If you are try this, then I recommend joining the wait list ahead of time. I will be returning again for another great food and guest...

[Updated] We came back a few times for the lunch hot pot and were disappointed. We went on the WEEKDAYS to avoid the crowds, but some items on the menu were sold out (even if you go for the dinner option). I'm not sure if these items are only available on weekends!? The hot pot soup base also got a minus. I feel like they were not consistent at all. I tried the same soup base at different times, but they didn't taste the same. Heard about this restaurant chain for a while ago, so we decided to give it a try. We were there for the Lunch BBQ Only Menu. In my opinion, it's okay with the prices. The food taste good. The meats and seafoods are quality and fresh. Each order will be a small portion, so you can try more options on the menu. The banchan was bland and not good as we expected, but still acceptable. I tried the Classic Milk Tea with Jelly, but not worth it. It was very sweet and tasted like water or milk with sugar syrup. There nothing tasted/smell like tea or milktea. The sauce bar is included the DIY sauces, banchan, desserts, appetizers and the utensils. They marked the numbers with the names of the sauces on above glass, but I'm pretty sure that some of them not put in their right places. It made us confused and took time to choose the right sauce that we wanted. The service should be better. Their staffs and servers are nice and helpful with good training. They figured out and solved the issue quickly. They always try to take away empty or dirty plates to keep the table clean and have more space. The food were served quickly after we placed the orders on the tablet. BUT the issue is they missed our orders twice, and served the wrong items 3 times. So I really don't know what happened in their kitchen with the order system? It seems that the grill is made from non -stick grill placed above the electromagnetic stove. Although the heat generates unevenly, it is at least it does not get meats stick or burnt when grilled. The atmosphere was great. They have more tables than most other BBQ restaurants. But if you have a party more than 4 on a busy day, you may have to wait for a longer time than usual. They also have the wait list and times on GGmap so I think you can join the wait list or reserve ahead to avoid the long wait time. I saw some people have their birthday at this restaurant, so I think they may have something special / promotions for birthdays or special...

It’s a no for me.

My boyfriend called ahead to ask if they served Coke or Pepsi, and we were told they had Coke. When we arrived at the Maple Grove KPOT location, our server informed us they only serve Pepsi and mentioned the people who answered the phone “aren’t servers” and often give incorrect information. That alone was frustrating.

When we were seated, I noticed a few flies in the area and the menu handed to me still had food stuck to it. Not a great first impression. The experience went downhill from there. I wasn’t a fan of the service or the food. I understand this type of restaurant allows you to make your own sauces and cook your food in broth, but I personally prefer seasoned meats — theirs were completely unseasoned and just not enjoyable to me.

We asked for lemon water and were first told to go to the bar to get our own lemons. That struck both of us as odd, but then the server ended up bringing a cup of lemons anyway. It felt very inconsistent and lacking in customer service. On top of that, when she came to take our drink order, she adjusted something on the ordering iPad, which reset our order. We had to re-enter everything, which led to double portions being brought to the table. At the end of the meal, when we couldn’t finish all the food, the server mentioned a “waste charge” and warned us that next time she would charge us. That comment rubbed me the wrong way, especially since the doubling of the food was due to her resetting the iPad and not asking us before doing so.

Overall, the experience was just OK, but the poor customer service and miscommunication really ruined it for us. If we ever try KPOT again, it definitely won’t be at this Maple...