Irvine’s Kalbi Social Club Makes Korean Barbecue Really Easy for First-Timers | Eater LA
Opened in late November 2024 by the operators behind Robata Wasa, this striking new Korean barbecue in Irvine’s Spectrum centers on galbi — Korean marinated short ribs — and aims to make the format approachable to first-timers. At traditional Korean barbecue spots, runners bring sliced meats, banchan, and sides with diners expected to finish the cooking at the grill, but here servers go the extra mile, “shaking plastic bags with kimchi seasoning and chopped napa cabbage for a non-fermented take on kimchi” and even brushing sliced beef short ribs in a sweet, savory sauce before grilling them tableside, creating a more guided, welcoming tableside experience. The dining room is theatrical: a large LED screen displays vertical videos of chefs preparing food, a traditional cocktail bar sits to one side while a semi-circular bar “plucked out of a splashy West Hollywood hot spot” signals a modern, nontraditional approach, and the main room mixes Korean shelving and pottery with dramatically lit walnut-colored tabletops that show sizzling circular grills against a dimly lit textured wall that gives the sensation of a cave. Order the Art of Kalbi set and choose between short ribs only seasoned with salt or basted on the grill with marinade ("over 50 times, according to the menu"); a 48-hour-long marinade is a third option that imbues the meat with a deeper, sweeter flavor, while a 72-hour traditional cut L.A.-galbi will look like the lateral-axis-cut pieces (which is where the “L.A.” comes from, not Los Angeles) typical in Korean restaurants. Meats can be ordered à la carte, but most diners opt for small, medium, or large combos with three or four different cuts plus banchan, perilla seed salad, soybean paste stew (doenjang jjigae), shaken fresh kimchi, steamed egg, and an ice cream dessert. The menu also features modern Korean dishes such as corn cheese buldak (spicy chicken) ramyun, kalbi mandu (dumplings), bulgogi japchae, brisket ramyun, and cold dongchimi noodles. Already plotting a second location in Brea to be closer to larger Korean American and Asian American communities, the restaurant is positioned as a polished, visually dramatic, and service-forward introduction to Korean barbecue that balances familiar branding and helpful service with high-quality, technique-driven preparations. It is open daily from 11:30 a.m. to 10 p.m. - Matthew Kang
