Oriental Flame — Restaurant in San Angelo

I'm so glad to see this location open and thriving again! I was so sad to see the previous business shut down - and through no fault of their own! The months of road construction on that stretch of College Hills was needed but timed so badly for the old restaurant.

But when I saw Oriental Flame opened up and ready to go, of course my family and I dived in! First impression was lovely: nice dark colors for the decor but well-lit, so it felt comfortable but not dim or dour. The wonderful, cushy booths and grills remained, nicely maintained from their previous life, and the air conditioning kept up with both the grills and the sweltering Texas temps outside.

Service: A++++++. Our waiter was serving multiple tables, putting in the work while being very friendly, very informative, and very welcoming. If you've never been to this style of self-cook restaurant, don't fear! You'll have all the guidance you need.

And of course, there's the food. This is an All-You-Can-Eat style kbbq, with a little buffet bar of extra vegetables, fruit, Korean sides, and small desserts. The appetizers include new experiences for some Texans, such as the takoyaki and the dim sum options, but because appetizers come included with the flat meal price, live a little and try something new! All the appetizers we tried, and some of the buffet options like the seaweed and the radish slices, were very tasty.

The meat menu contains all the greats: bulgogi, brisket, pork and beef belly, steak, pork chop, and a few cuts that Texas natives might not have tried before, like beef tongue and pork cheek. Give it a shot, you may surprise yourself! There is a sauces table that you can go to in order to grab some dips for your meat, or you can order the marinade options they have for some of their cuts. There are a ton of ways you can customize your meal, and all the meats, veggies, sauces, fruits, and more at your disposal were, at least for our party, fresh and delicious.

I also can't forget the seafood options: as a lifelong Texan, I can be wary of seafood because of how far it has to travel to reach us here in San Angelo. If you're trying something for the first time, especially something you don't know how to eat or judge the freshness of (this is me with mussels!), one of the very friendly waitstaff can help you out. The seafood that we tried was just as fresh as the meat and because I was doing the cooking myself, I could do some testing to see how I liked it best.

One thing you should keep in mind, though, is food waste: there is a surcharge for large amounts of uneaten food, which I like to call the "good manners" fee. Any adult (and parent with kids) is capable of recognizing when they're beginning to get full; my recommendation is to start with less than you think you'll want to eat, and then add new single orders one by one until you are finished. It's just good manners not to waste food.

To conclude: this is my new favorite restaurant in San Angelo. I love the atmosphere, I love the food, I love the dining style, and I love the boba drinks, teas, and shakes they have, too! I...

I want to start by saying our waitress was absolutely phenomenal — attentive, kind, and on top of everything. Every staff member we interacted with was equally warm and welcoming, and I truly appreciate their hospitality. Unfortunately, the food itself just didn’t live up to the service.

We’ve eaten at several Korean BBQ spots across Texas, and sadly, Oriental Flame ranks at the bottom of our list. The majority of the meats were either overly tough or just had strange textures, making many of them hard to enjoy — in some cases, completely inedible. Here’s how we rated everything we tried:

Meats: Filet – Decent (7/10) Brisket – Inedible due to toughness (1/10) Beef Belly – Chewy and underwhelming (3/10) Tongue – Rubbery (2/10) Sirloin – Strange texture (3/10) Short Ribs – Disappointing (3/10) Bulgogi – Way off flavor-wise (2/10)

Sides & Banchan: Soybean Paste Soup – Solid (8/10) Corn – Tasty (8/10) Chicken Sticky Rice – Highlight of the meal (10/10) Bean Sprouts – Average (5/10) Kimchi, Radish, Cucumber, Kimchi Radish – All extremely bitter, thick-cut, and unbalanced (1/10 each) House Sauce – One of the better elements (7/10)

Desserts: Watermelon – Somehow underwhelming tasted like it had been out awhile(2/10) Coconut Dessert – Mildly pleasant (5/10) Mocha Cake – OK (6/10) Chocolate Ball – Didn’t work for us (1/10)

Despite this not being our first visit, we had hoped the food would have improved — unfortunately, it hasn’t. While the service was outstanding, the overall quality of the food makes it hard to justify a return visit or recommend to others at this point.

That said, I genuinely want this place to succeed. The concept has potential, and the staff deserves to work in a place that matches their effort. I hope the kitchen finds its rhythm and that future guests have a...

Tried the place for the first time today (8/31, 6pm) and shortly after being seated we were greeted by a server who was excellent, kind enough to explain how they do things, was patient and thoughtful when answering any of our questions, and was quick to check on us and bring us anything we needed. I wish i could remember their name. The server mentioned being new, and I can't express enough how fantastic they were regardless.

The food is lovely. There are dozens of options including a very tasty selection of appetizers and extras (i recommend the takoyaki) and meats/self-cook items, especially during the dinner menu. I highly recommend the sirloin, bulgogis, garlic shrimp... pretty much anything really. They also have plenty of options for sauce and condiments.

The atmosphere is nice. Our table stayed relatively comfortable in temperature, especially considering we're cooking food at the table. The ventilation worked great. Our table did have some issues with gas/flame at the end of our meal but it was quickly addressed and im sure we wouldve been moved if needed had we been mid-meal.

The only weird thing ill mention is that the meat is served on lettuce. And youd think you can wrap the meat in lettuce to eat it. But the meat is served raw of course. So you cant really eat lettuce thats been sitting with raw meat. Perhaps its entirely decorative but just seemed a little weird 😅

Overall i recommend this place to everyone in angelo that wants to experience something different than the usual restaurants here. The food is great, the atmosphere is great, and the service...