How to order at a Korean BBQ restaurant

2026-10-21

moso / CC BY 2.0 (Wikimedia Commons)

A Korean barbecue restaurant is loud, smoky and friendly, and it can be confusing the first time. There's a grill in the middle of the table, a small menu on the wall, and staff moving fast. Here's how a typical 삼겹살 (samgyeopsal) – pork belly – dinner works, and what to say at each step.

Step 1: Sit down and count people

When you walk in, staff will often ask 몇 분이세요? (myeot buniseyo?) – "How many people?" Answer with a number and 명 (myeong), the counter for people: 두 명이요 (du myeong-iyo) – "Two people." Hold up fingers too; it helps.

Many places seat you at a table with a built-in grill. Some ask you to put coats in a bag or a bench seat with storage, so your clothes don't smell of smoke.

Step 2: Order by the portion

Meat is ordered in portions called 인분 (inbun), meaning "portion for one person." The usual way to order is meat + number of portions + 주세요 (juseyo), "please give me":

• 삼겹살 2인분 주세요. (samgyeopsal iinbun juseyo.) – Two portions of pork belly, please.

Many barbecue restaurants have a minimum of two portions for the first order, even for one diner. A common pattern is to order one portion per person to start, then add more later.

Other popular cuts:

• 목살 (moksal) – pork neck/shoulder, a bit leaner
• 항정살 (hangjeongsal) – pork jowl, rich and chewy
• 갈비 (galbi) – ribs, often marinated

To call staff, say 저기요! (jeogiyo!) – "Excuse me!" – or press the call button on the table if there is one.

Step 3: Banchan and the lettuce basket

Before the meat arrives, you get 반찬 (banchan), small side dishes, plus lettuce, garlic, green chilli, and dipping sauces such as 쌈장 (ssamjang), a thick soybean-chilli paste. Side dishes are usually refillable at no extra charge. Many restaurants now have a 셀프바 (selpeuba) – self-service bar – where you refill them yourself.

If you'd rather ask: 상추 좀 더 주세요. (sangchu jom deo juseyo.) – "More lettuce, please."

Step 4: Who grills?

It depends on the restaurant. At some places staff grill and cut the meat for you; at many casual places, the diners do it. If no one comes, it's your job. Use the 집게 (jipge), tongs, to turn the meat and the 가위 (gawi), scissors, to cut it into bite-sized pieces once it's browned on both sides.

Not sure if it's done? Ask 이거 다 익었어요? (igeo da igeosseoyo?) – "Is this cooked?" When the grill plate gets black and sticky, ask 불판 좀 갈아 주세요. (bulpan jom gara juseyo.) – "Could you change the grill plate?"

Step 5: Make a ssam

쌈 (ssam) means "wrap." Take a lettuce leaf in your palm, add a piece of meat, a dab of ssamjang, maybe garlic or kimchi, fold it, and eat it in one bite. Biting a wrap in half is messy and not really the done thing.

Drinking manners

Barbecue often comes with 소주 (soju) or 맥주 (maekju), beer. A few customs:

• Don't pour your own glass; pour for others, and they'll pour for you.
• When an older person pours for you, hold your glass with two hands.
• When drinking with someone much older, people often turn their head slightly away as they drink.
• The toast is 건배! (geonbae!) – "Cheers!"

Nobody expects visitors to get all of this right, but trying is always appreciated.

Step 6: Finish like a local

Koreans often finish a barbecue meal with something starchy. Try 된장찌개 (doenjang-jjigae), soybean paste stew, with 공깃밥 (gonggitbap), a bowl of rice, or 볶음밥 (bokkeumbap), fried rice made on the grill with the leftovers. Cold noodles, 냉면 (naengmyeon), are another favourite.

Step 7: Pay at the counter

In most Korean restaurants, you pay at the counter by the door, not at the table. Get up and say 계산할게요. (gyesanhalgeyo.) – "I'd like to pay." Tipping is not expected. On the way out, 잘 먹었습니다 (jal meogeotseumnida) – "I ate well" – is a lovely thank-you. (Before eating, say 잘 먹겠습니다, jal meokgetseumnida.)

Korean you can use

With these lines and a pair of tongs, you're ready for your first samgyeopsal night.