Mongol King — Restaurant in Torrance

My experience with Mongolian BBQ is moderately diverse. I first had it when I was going to UCLA at Mongol's in Westwood. To me, that set the bar and was the standard for Mongolian BBQ because it was always delish and a good value. Since then, the prices have gone up and they started getting stingy with the noodles, but they were still the taste I compared all other BBQ places to.

In my experience, there are two types of places: places where you do your own sauce selection places where you tell them how hot and garlicy you want it and they do the mixing for you (like Mongols).

Personally, I prefer the type #2 if they can do it well enough. However, I have been to Big Wok and now this Mongol King and kind of enjoy the control I have over my sauces since I can be very liberal with them.

So getting to this restaurant, it's all you can eat, reasonably prices for that feature, has a good selection of meats, a great selection of fresh veggies, lots of sauce options with clear directions, two cooks working in parallel during busy times, and a variety of other accompanying items to enjoy (salads, soup, rice, soft serve, etc). If you put some extra sauce on (I usually double what the directions are just to make sure there is sufficient flavor and moisture) then the end products are great tasting and you will definitely be full (how could you not be)?

The one complaint I have about this place is that once you are seated, the service blows. Refills of drinks, getting extra napkins, silverware, etc. either requires flagging down someone or just waiting a while. They have a "let's get you set up and then you're on your own" approach that I don't particularly like, but it might be the offset to the price and quality benefits you get.

Summary: I'd recommend it because it's good and pretty cheap and filling. Just don't expect much attention...

This will be my last time patronizing this overpriced & uderwhelming location. I gave it another chance based on my first few times going, but these last two visits left me annoyed & disgusted for a few reasons. Both times the food areas were glaringly nasty & the grill looked as if it had not been scraped all day. The noodles were hanging out of the tray & spread out all over the area in front of it. The various oils & sauces were not properly labeled to know one from the other, the glass covering the serving area was dingy & greasy looking. There also was very little meat in the serving trays, and what was there was clearly not being chilled as it was limp and lumped together, not in separate frozen spirals. The surly lil man came out and poured a few scoops in the bins when he noticed us just looking askance at the offerings. The bowls are so small, you can barely get everything you may want, & they expect you to pile noodles atop the veggies. Suffice it to say the service was nil, the food was terrible & rank tasting coming off that burnt grill & it was definitely not worth the $15 . Add to all that, the place has a very "meh" vibe, like nobody cares. We literally had to ask them to clean up the serving area & that's just unacceptable. Never supporting this establishment again,...

Overall, happy to have found this place. Loved the traditional pockets that aren’t offered at the shopping mall version Mongolian BBQs like Genghis Khan. The reason I’m only giving 3-stars…hostess gave me a table but just assumed I knew that “weekend dinner” was a mandatory all-you-can-eat purchase. No menu provided. Apparently it is only lunch time when you are able to order a “one-time-serving,” but Nowhere is this printed or posted in the restaurant or at the tables. Had I known I was paying for all-u-can-eat, I would’ve asked for more pockets (they only give two). But hostess never returned to my table. She did, however, happily check in with the table next to mine, and asked if they needed anything. She and another male host (mgr?) also took checks to diners’ tables in cute little black “check trays.” I never got one. Upon finishing my meal I had to go up to the counter & ask her for my check, in which she responded “Oh yes, I hv it right here.” Yet she never took it to my table…because…why? So, upon paying $26.26 for one single serving, I mentioned that I would’ve asked for more pockets but she never came to my table. Her reply: “Well YOU could’ve flagged us down.” Hm. Really? Is that the answer you want to go with? Ok. I’m pretty sure she wasn’t surprised that the tip was a...