Daniel B.
Yelp
ATL Gom BBQ (or Atlanta Gom BBQ) is yet another solid Korean barbecue restaurant in metro Atlanta. This one teeters on the four and five star line for me. Our dinner here was excellent and I recommend this place to anyone looking for a delicious Korean barbecue experience.
ATL Gom BBQ opened in summer 2016 at the Galleria at Sugarloaf, a.k.a. the Assi Plaza shopping center in Suwanee, not far from I-85 exit 109 (Old Peachtree Road). For in-town folks, this restaurant is far -- anywhere from a 30-to-40-minute drive from Atlanta without traffic. It's worth the drive if you, like me, love Korean barbecue and exploring new/different restaurants. Is it significantly better than several of the already very good Korean barbecue options in the area? Admittedly, no; there are just so many great options for Korean barbecue, especially in Gwinnett. That said, I think ATL Gom BBQ is worth checking out if you've never been. Who knows? It might become your next favorite Korean barbecue spot.
This restaurant doesn't look as trendy as some of the newer Korean barbecue restaurants that have opened around town in the last five years. However, it's still nice and clean with some modern touches. The interior is cut in the more simple, low-key, and traditional Korean mold, which I appreciate (the newer Korean barbecue restaurants have strayed from this). The restaurant is spacious with a comfortable and casual atmosphere. There are partitioned sections of seating with lots of wood. I love the music playlist which includes K-pop hits from the late 90s (e.g. S.E.S.) through the early 2010s (e.g. Busker Busker).
As far as the smoke level and smell is concerned, it's not bad. We left this restaurant hardly smelling like barbecue. Then again, during our visit for dinner on a Saturday night, the place wasn't very busy so that played a role as well.
When we visited, the menu contained nine beef options ($21.99-64.99 each), six pork options ($19.99-22.99), and four unique seafood options ($14.99-31.99). No chicken. Like the competition, ATL Gom BBQ offers set course menus and unlimited all-you-can-eat (AYCE) options. There were beef courses ($99.99-149.99), pork courses ($69.99-99.99), and mixed courses ($59.99-169.99).
AYCE options included unlimited 90-minute oak-smoked pork belly for $22.99 per person and unlimited brisket, oak-smoked pork belly, thin-sliced pork belly, and pork shoulder for $29.99 per person. While it's a bit more expensive per person, I recommend going with one of the course menus because you get higher-quality and better-tasting meats.
Outside of Korean barbecue, the restaurant offers an abbreviated menu of Korean appetizers like kimchi and seafood pancakes ($18.99 each), lunch boxes ($12.99-15.99), and lunch and dinner entrees like noodles and soups and stews ($9.99-23.99). Beverage-wise, they sell soju, Korean rice wine and other Korean alcoholic beverages, as well as beer and wine.
We had a group of four and were recommended (by staff) and ordered the "AA" course ($119.99 or about $30 per person). Our AA course included:
First grill:
* Beef brisket
* Thin-sliced pork belly
* Pork shoulder
* Oak-smoked pork belly
Second grill:
* Pork bulgogi
* Rib fingers
* Charcoal-grilled beef
I listed the meats above in the order they were cooked. The "first" and "second" grills refer to two different types of grills that were used to cook the meat. ATL Gom BBQ uses a combination of charcoal and gas grills to cook their food. All of the meats were cooked atop charcoal. The first grill was more of a solid-surface grill with slits cut into it while the second grill was a wire grill, exposing the meats to more charcoal. Generally, the first grill is used for pork while the second grill is used for beef.
Overall, I thought all of the meats were quite tasty except for the pork shoulder. The pork shoulder seemed a bit dry and tough to me, but it wasn't anything a little sauce couldn't fix. ATL Gom BBQ provides a housemade sauce which you can add chili paste and chili oil to. It's wonderful. The rib fingers were my favorite. They were incredibly flavorful and melt-in-your-mouth good. The oak-smoked pork belly, which is one of this restaurant's specialties, was fantastic too. All of the meats were good quality.
Banchan included kimchi (the more fermented kind), broccoli with gochujang, pickled daikon, jalapeno and radish, macaroni salad, spicy bean sprouts, salad, steamed eggs, and soybean paste soup. Fresh bean sprouts were also thrown on the grill. No dduk bo ssam (rice rolls) here. We also tried orders of their cold noodles (not included with the combo, $11.99 each) and they were A-OK. Condiments included customary fresh garlic and jalapeno, soybean paste, and sesame oil with salt and pepper.
Phillip was our server. He was very attentive and lightning quick at cooking. He was so fast that we actually felt rushed while eating. The manager was really friendly and checked on us multiple times.
In Korean, "gom" = bear.