Yakiniku Gen — Restaurant in New York

Unbelievably terrible. Service, cleanliness, food. Where to start? A mystery how this place has so many reviews and stars, it shouldn't have survived after one week of service.

Service: No one cares or wants to talk to you. We made a reservation, but no one was at the front and it took 10-15 minutes for someone to appear and greet us. At our table, no one ever came and checked up on us. We saw plenty of tables with used napkins and plates sitting around for ages without being cleaned. No one ever smiled or looked glad to be alive. The servers all looked like zombies.

Cleanliness: Our booth table's seats were ripped; the menus were sticky with what felt like years of sweat and soda stains; tables were not clean. Worst of all, we saw old rice stuck to our grill because it hadn't been cleaned properly.

Food: Who combines multiple side dishes onto a single plate? They were clearly not freshly made (days old) and definitely all store bought. All the juices combined together and you couldn't taste one thing from another. The meat wasn't fresh, the cuts weren't good, and no one ever explained what ANY of the meats or dishes were. We ordered a meat combo, and the meat arrived on a big plate, but the cuts were indistinguishable. It's hard to mess up stone pot bibimbap, but theirs was one of the worst I've ever had.

STAY FAR AWAY—this place is posing as...

My go-to yakiniku spot for over 5 years — and still undefeated!

I’ve been coming here since I first discovered it five years ago, and it’s hands down my favorite yakiniku restaurant. The quality of the meat is consistently amazing — perfectly marbled, flavorful, and fresh. They offer an incredible selection: flat iron, outside skirt, wagyu, kalbi, premium cuts, offal (the first tripe is one of my favorites!), plus seafood and pork options for variety.

My usual order includes the beef tongue shio, premium kalbi, pork, cabbage salad, and scallion egg yolk rice 🍚 — but I always make sure to try something new each time. Honestly, everything on the menu hits.

Reservations are generally easy to get in advance, but it can get packed on Friday evenings with after-work crowds. It’s the perfect place to unwind with some beer or sake and enjoy the lively atmosphere.

And don’t skip dessert — the taiyaki with matcha ice cream 🍵🍦 is next-level. I almost didn’t want to share this hidden gem, but it’s too good to...

I came here with my wife since she was craving Japanese yakiniku, which is rare to find in NJ. This was maybe my first time really trying Japanese-style BBQ, and it definitely felt very different from Korean BBQ.

The portions were much smaller than what I’m used to — for example, the beef tartare was $16 for a pretty tiny serving. They do have a happy hour from 5pm and it lasts until almost 11pm, which was a nice bonus. We got there around 5:30 and, for about an hour, we were the only customers, which gave the place kind of an odd vibe.

The interior looks Japanese, but honestly I wish they had at least one Asian staff member. Without it, the atmosphere didn’t really feel like eating at a true yakiniku spot.

Overall, I personally think KBBQ is better value and taste. But my wife said the flavors reminded her of home, so that part made...