Taegukgi Korean BBQ

Shocked I didn’t review it after past visits, but now that it’s closing at the end of this month, and we had to make a visit just in case it doesn’t reopen at the new Zion location, we had to give it one more dinner. And it’s exactly as we remembered it, generous portions of delicious meats with decent but not great bonchon. For the meat lovers, hard to beat the quality for the price. And you get music that makes you feel like you are partying in Vegas between 2005-2015 with the popular edm and dubstep hits during those day

Taegukgi BBQ in Kearny Mesa, San Diego, stands out as a KBBQ king in the Convoy district. Nestled off the main strip with ample parking shared with Zion Market, its inviting outdoor area sets the tone with nostalgic toys and games. Inside, the atmosphere is lively yet comfortable, complete with individual vents at each table for a smoke-free dining experience. The menu boasts a vast selection of tender and flavorful meats, complemented by delectable banchan and a standout house salad with a perfectly balanced dressing. What truly elevates Taegukgi is its exceptional service. Despite the demanding nature of Korean BBQ dining, the staff here remain friendly, attentive, and enthusiastic. From the welcoming host to the efficient waitstaff, every interaction is marked by warmth and efficiency. Even the food delivery is a delightful experience, with staff members adding to the ambiance with jokes and tunes. Moreover, Taegukgi offers added value with a 20% discount on drinks at The Korean Rose next door with the dinner receipt. While Korean BBQ can be pricey, Taegukgi ensures that every dollar spent is worth it, making it the perfect choice for a special occasion or a night out with friends. For an immersive culinary journey that exceeds expectations, Taegukgi BBQ is the ultimate destination for AYCE Korean BBQ enthusiasts.

Our server Katie was super cool and communicative, the food was great left super full like I mean SUPER full. You have an hour with change to finish all you can eat. They are moving location June so do t be sad if you can’t find the OG spot.

This outlet next to Zion Korean Supermarket offers decent cuts for their AYCE bbq. They have a lot of tables but usually not enough servers so you may have to wait a few minutes. Parking is plentiful in the strip mall. One thing that can be negative is that they play K-pop songs a bit high and thus quite loud since everyone needs to speak up to be heard. A good deal is their 2 liter or bigger beer kegs on your table.

Let's start saying... bring your greatest and biggest appetite to this place. I ate like there was no tomorrow, and they kept bringing more and more food to my table. 🤭 I could not believe my eyes and stomach. The service was outstanding, and customer service was just right, not too much, not too little. The food had good quality. There was plenty of parking. The place is great to bring your family and/or friends. You get to cook your own meat, sea food, and pork. It was delicious. The transaction is pretty straightforward: you come in seat down, select your proteins, they'll bring you rice and other condiments and sides. you can keep eating and cooking and eating and cooking. You get the idea.

Been wanting to try Taegukgi for awhile and finally visited on a weeknight with almost no wait. The open seating makes the restaurant feel really spacious, and they're really attentive to checking if you want more or need your grill changed. The side dishes and banchan are quite good - I definitely recommend the steamed egg. The spicy shrimp is also a standout. Not as inexpensive as some other nearby places but very worth the few extra dollars.

The service here was terrible. I've been here a few times but never had such bad service. My waitress was so slow and hard to try and order with. Over priced for the menu. Better options within a 5 mile radius

Please fix your store hours we show up 2 hours before posted closing time and is refuse service while we sit and figuring out where to go in the parking lot more than 8 party’s was also turn away. It is extremely upsetting when we have to plan out to spent our time at your establishment but more than once recently I’ve been extremely out of patience with this place. !!!PLEASE FIX YOUR HOURS!!!!!! You’re losing business and your consumers patience

I've been going here for about 10 years now. They were once the best in San Diego and I would've given them 5 stars, but I feel like they dropped in quality, mainly in service. The servers take forever to come back and address anything you may need, whether it be more meat, water, etc. They ALWAYS run out of rice paper, especially if you're there past 7PM. Beef belly is probably the best to get here. The ambience is loud and you always leave this place smelling like grilled meats. I understand they'll be closing soon, which is sad because they're still one of the better KBBQ spots in San Diego.

This restaurant needs a major health inspection. The meat tasted extremely chemically and reeked of gas- as if the meat had absorbed gaseous fumes from whatever ignition they had used. The meat did not seem to be fresh. Refer to the image below- this inspection indicates a major violation with food temperature storage which is a major concern especially with the type of foods they serve. The vegetables (specifically the green onion salad) tasted like dish soap, as if they were not throughly rinsed of the soap. I have gone through the reviews and noticed that this had occurred before with other customers as well. However, regardless of whether it was just our table with this gas problem, it remains a major health concern. This should never happen. They should be checking their equipment more regularly and thoroughly. We had eaten but 2 pieces of meat total due to its pungent flavor and smell, and yet they charged us $119. My family and I have been enjoying KBBQ our entire life, however this was by far our worst experience and only experience with this foul taste. We will never be returning here.

While in San Diego, We were craving kbbq and decided to have our dinner here. put our name down and waited for about 5 minutes but didn't mind since we were in no rush. The server provided excellent service by ensuring everything went smoothly with our dining experience which included trying their delicious brisket, beef belly, pork belly, along side some amazing banchan. Last night 4/1/2024

Our favorite Korean bbq spot in San Diego hands down. I spent a year living in Korea and it was so hard to find authentic Korean food after coming back. The ambiance is wonderful and I love the seating. The service is so good as well and they come out with the meats and sides quickly. We went yesterday with a group of 6 and they brought out everything we asked for. My hubs has been coming here for 8 years and we are so sad it's closing this month!!! They have another location in Tucson that we'll have to visit.

Tried this spot for the first time. There is plenty of parking. The servers were friendly and accommodating. The food was good. I like the vibes. I would go back!

Located next to Zion. Private parking lot- no parking issues. Came here spontaneously for a weekday lunch cos my hubby wanted kbbq. They do have a lunch special with limited options but it did the job. Friendly customer service, Anthony greeted us as soon as we came in and Aaren did a great job being our server. Everyone was tentative to our needs even without being asked such as a grill change. Thankfully there was no wait to be seated as we arrived when it opened and we told them we were kinda in a rush due to lunch time. We ordered: Beef brisket Beef belly Pork belly Sausage Steamed egg White rice (no fried rice) Scallion salad and of course they had all the typical banchan: kimchi, japchae, fish cake, cucumbers, potato salad, etc. I always like to ask for sesame oil to mix with my seasoning. Would def come here again!

Solid all you can eat Korean BBQ place! There was a bit of a line when we got there, and you have to wait outside, so if it's chilly, then be sure to dress warmly! Food/Drinks: You cook for yourself at this Korean BBQ spot instead of some of the restaurants where they cook it for you. - Premium Menu + Original Menu ($43.99 per person): We decided to treat ourselves with the more expensive option. They limited us to ordering 3 things at a time probably to make sure we did not over order, but they did let us order immediately as we received the first 3 items. My favorites are always the pork belly, marinated short ribs, and bulgogi. The banchan or complimentary side dishes had a great mix of different items, which pairs well with the BBQ meats. I definitely recommend getting the steamed egg on the side too. The onions and garlic slices are great on the grill to have as a flavor booster for the meat. I would recommend putting the mushroom on first since it takes awhile to cook through. I also like dipping my meat in the sesame oil and salt/pepper mixture. Service/Ambiance: You share the grill with the people in your party, but the tables are more like cafeteria style. There is a hood directly above the grill to capture most of the smoke, but you will leave smelling like Korean BBQ, so I would recommend wearing something that can be easily washed. Since they are not booth styles and more open air, the restaurant can be a bit chilly. Service is above average for an Asian restaurant, so they did check on us more frequently. We received everything quickly when we ordered the items. Overall: If you're looking for an AYCE Korean BBQ place, then check this one out!

This place was so so good!! Was brought here by a friend who recommended it and was not disappointed, I can see how many others agree since it was very busy when we arrived, the wait was about an hour which is less than they predicted and reasonable considering how busy it was, Friday night so what else could we have expected haha The servers were all so kind and helpful when ordering as well as explaining everything to us, food started to come out quick as well as the sides and everything was delicious! Can not wait to come back

We came here on a Sunday afternoon, around 4:30 and there was a 10 minute wait, not bad. The inside of the restaurant is also not super smokey which we liked. Each station has its own vent to help with the grill smoke. We also liked that staff would walk around and offer to change the grill when it started to produce too much smoke. Like typical Korean BBQ restaurants, the music is blasting, this place was playing lots of Drake songs and Post Malone which we didn't mind. Like many others reviews mention you do have to flag down the waiters for more meat and banchan refills. There is also a 2 hour limit from the time you sit down. Now for the food. Banchan: They bring an assortment of sides. Our favorites were the kimchi and cucumbers. Both were fresh and spicy, we kept asking for refills. Meats: We ate off the original menu. We tried bulgogi (4/5), spicy pork belly (5/5), bbq pork belly (4/5), beef rib fingers (5/5), brisket (3/5). Their pork belly in our opinion was much better than their beef options with the exception of the beef rib fingers which were very tender. Also they only offer the original and premium menus on the weekends. Rice: Their steam rice is served pre-portioned in a paper container which is lukewarm warm, not our favorite. Worth a try if you're looking for a decent Korean AYCE experience.

Meat was very fresh and had a good texture/flavor compared to other places. The servers were always checking on me if i needed refills and I liked that. Theres also some really big tvs there where I was able to watch the celtics vs mavericks game

My sister-in-law was celebrating another trip around the sun, so she chose Taegukgi Korean BBQ House (TGG) as the restaurant she wanted to enjoy her bday meal with family. According to my sister, she chose TGG because she enjoyed her first visit to this KBBQ establishment. This was my first time eating here and I thought it was worthy of the 4-star rating found on Yelp. I enjoyed the food and had a blast listening to loud birthday celebrations from other diners (CHEEEEEEEE-HOOOOOO!!!), but there was an opportunity with their customer service. TGG is located on Clairemont Mesa Blvd in what is arguably considered the Lion's Den of Asian restaurants and businesses competing against each other. TGG is next to Zion Market, which soon will be vacating its present location and moving down the road, so TGG will be the only occupant in this large, spacious center. There is plenty of parking for TGG diners. The restaurant has a large dining area with both indoor dining and covered outdoor dining for those that don't want to wait for an inside seat. From what my brother-in-law told me, they only allow ten group reservations per day, so you might have to wait to be seated. As you step inside, you'll see a dining hall of tables with the BBQ grills. There is a large wall with an armada of televisions combined to display a big screen of whatever they're showing. The Korean flag is displayed as you check in to be seated, there is a large mural of a bull on one of the walls, and draped banners hanging above this bull of our local professional and college sports teams. The waitstaff can get overwhelmed if the restaurant is packed evidenced by the staff telling us multiple times that they had issues. We asked for rice to go with our meal and it took them a long time to meet that request. I had asked an extra bowl for me, but it never came out. I've eaten at many of the competing KBBQ restaurants and there are plenty throughout San Diego. They've got to standout if they want to garner your hard earned money. This was me and my wife's first time visiting Taegukgi. If anyone in your party is celebrating a birthday party, make sure to let your waiter know that you'd like their staff to sing Happy Birthday to them. You won't be disappointed and they get a dessert, but not sure if it's complimentary because my sister-in-law didn't want the attention. My brother decided to select the original menu, which is a pricey $37.99 per person for All-You-Can-Eat. You have two hours to eat to your heart's content and we made sure to take advantage of the entire two hours. We were stuffed. The staff was a little late in bringing out the complimentary banchan (Korean side dishes), which I always enjoy eating with my meat, but you might want to temper how much you eat if you want to get your money's worth of the meats. On the original menu, the star meats for our family were the following: beef belly, beef bulgogi, beef brisket, the spicy pork belly, the sausage, and the salt and pepper pork belly. For sides, we ordered the corn cheese dip, which was okay, and the garlic butter. The garlic butter is a must order to intensify the flavor of the meats. My favorite meat out of the ones we enjoyed was the beef belly. It was tender after being cooked and fatty, which just made eating it with rice so divine. Taegukgi is a fun place to celebrate a birthday, but it is pricey and when the place is busy, you might need to remind your waiter that they missed a request. I would definitely visit again, but I'd probably eat at a less costly KBBQ restaurant the next time I crave Korean BBQ.

We made a reservation for 6 around 3pm. The restaurant wasn't very busy at the time, I think we could have gotten away without a reservation but wanted to play it safe! There was an automatic 20% gratuity charge for a group of 6. Original AYCE is priced at $34.99 a person, in total with the gratuity we ended up paying $44 per person, which I thought was a good deal given the quality of meats and how kind our server was! Lan was our server and was so helpful. He was very attentive and made sure our grills were often changed, water was refilled, and always checked if we needed anything else. Our orders mostly consisted of the beef brisket, beef bulgogi, and the beef rib fingers. I've never had beef rib fingers before but it was the best meat selection we had here! I also really enjoyed the large variety of banchan offered (kimchi, japchae, fish cakes, potato salad and more!) Overall, a very enjoyable experience with really good quality food!

This is a pretty cool place. Food cuts are great. Ambiance is busy, noisy, party style. This a great place for young people to visit for a night out on the town with friends. I recommend families come early during the day. The night is for the youth. Meat cuts are not filled with overwhelming fat. They are great cuts of meat. The Bulgogi is seasoned great. If you order the shrimp, expect to peel it. I don't like that myself. You will also have a large amount of pre side dishes. Dishes from kimchi, to fish cake. Here you are able to make multiple options for seasoning mixes, due to the multiple side dishes. Do not expect to have the same server. It looks like the employees cover each other. I myself had at least 4 people change my cooking dish to taking orders. I do plan to revisit this establishment.

Waiting was too long even though I signed in before groups. I am sure the food is good, service portion was NOT. Eventually I went to Zion market and got everything I need to cook my own Korean BBQ.

Came back with a smaller party and had a great experience. The service was good and they kept the food coming. Came on a Saturday with my mom and kids (party of 5) and only had to wait 10 mins to be seated. They checked in on us and offered to change the grill very often. The meat was of good quality and the banchan was good as well. My only gripe was that the rice paper was super stale.

This might be the best Korean BBQ spot I have ever gone to. While down in SD I was craving this meal and saw that this place was not too far from where I was and based off the ratings I chose to give it a chance, and I am so glad I did. We put our name down and had to wait around, I can't remember the exact time but we were in no rush so we did not mind and did notice it was really packed, which was to be expected since it was a Saturday. The server we got was very sweet and made sure to keep checking up on how we were doing which I really appreciated. They have a great selection of meats and sides which I loved. We got brisket, bulgogi, and beef belly and had it keep coming throughout the entire time we were there. The meet was so delicous and made it very much worth the wait. The cold noodles, steamed egg, and house salad were all very yummy and perfectly complimented the entire meal. If you are ever in the area you must visit !

This was our third time visiting and all other times were great but this time kind of fell short. Service was kind of bad. Waitress was a little rude and was rushing us to order. I kept asking for banchan and finally it came out with only a few items and she said they were out of everything else. We had to ask for salt/seasoning when usually everything is ready to go when you sit down. It wasn't close to closing time at all. The meat was great though and can't complain about that. Ambiance is great. Love the huge tv on the back wall.

Love the energy and atmosphere, great place to lay back and hang out with friends over some delicious food highly recommended, service is great very attentive and friendly,must go

I like that they take reservations if you call in and they were kind enough to give me a table near the television as I requested. However, I should note that nearly every table has a decent view since the tv screen is ginormous. As it were, I had an up close and personal view of the Lakers melting down in the 4th quarter against the Nuggets... Despite the Lakers' woes, I still enjoyed my meal of endless meats. The steamed egg is savory and tasty and the beef belly and fingers were my favorite. I just wish the beef selection on the regular menu was larger. Additionally, I would have preferred the brisket to be sliced thinner. The service was quite good; they often volunteered to change out the grill (unlike some other places where constantly trying to flag down someone's attention). This place is worth it due to having the steamed egg on the menu and great service, but I may give Gen the advantage when it comes to the meats.

Finally enjoyed KBBQ here the other night. Decide to take a sunset motorcycle ride- night of the Full Blue Moon. Always having a huge parking lot is a PLUS (with Zion Market). Checked in with the hostess and didn't have to wait 10 minutes. While waiting- you can hang out in the covered patio area, that has sticker machines, novelty toy/ gumball vending machines, the CLAW! And even with that- there's glass windows that separate the covered patio to the main dining room- and you can view the gigantic flat screen tv from there. We opted for the Original Menu ( $37 ). And although we were allowed to have 4 proteins- we stuck with 3 to enjoy during our 2 hour stay. Thin slivers of beef brisket- dipped in sesame oil prior to me setting on grill; thick delicious slices of spicy pork belly; and hubby only indulged in spicy chicken. Love how garlic butter is available here! More yum yums for flavor! Our table host cranked up our burners, a tad more than we expected. And awhile later when our pork belly was sizzling- man! Was it sizzling! Some employees reacted with lightning speed to diffuse smoke. Corn starch in hand, pitcher of water, and a new fresh grill to continue our cooking. I like the fact how the over head music isn't super loud and annoying like some places. I definitely would come back here again!

We were a party of 3 and came here on a Friday night. The wait was pretty short although it was pretty busy. Service was fast, servers were attentive and friendly. They allowed 4 dishes every round and a total of 2 hours to eat. We got the short ribs, sirloin, oyster mushrooms, marinated beef, pork jowl, squid, baby octopus and beef tongue. The meat was pretty good quality for an ayce, especially the beef tongue, which was really tender and had good marbling. Definitely get the beef items here. Side dishes were also pretty decent. Price was 40.99 per person for the premium set. Total ended up being $52 per person including tax and tip.

This a nice place for KBBQ. It's loud, noisy, and busy. Although the grill space and the table space is quite small. It's great for young teens and adults to share food with each other and dine together. The variety of meat is good. I recommend getting the Beef Bulgogi, Beef Brisket, Beef Rib Finger, Beef Belly, and the Pork Belly. The waiter that served my party of 5 was Adam. He gave good service and was friendly. The interior is spacious with TVs as entertainment with a bar in front. The grill itself is oiled so meat doesn't stick as much. The side dishes are very generous and there are different varieties to choose from. The pricing for one person is on the more expensive side where there is two options. Overall, good experience and generous portions.

I had a go to Korean BBQ place before trying this one but now I have 2 go to's because this place was great! The servers were attentive and the meat options were good. I had the cheese corn, rice, garlic, and garlic butter for sides. Everything was delicious! I left feeling full and pleased. I went in right after they opened and it wasn't busy. But I have heard this place can get really packed.

It's very packed in this place and we had to put our name down for the waitlist around dinner time but got in pretty fast. The service was very quick and helpful. There are lots of side dishes and I loved the sauce. The meat was good as well. They also have a boba discount for the Korean Rose next door if you bring your Taeguki receipt to them!

Our server Tee Pain is so accommodating and jolly. Very considerate in pricing my granddaughter's age (who happened to have a great appetite that night) The protein meat they served us is super fresh, tender, and the yummy beef bulgogi really satisfied us. Their side dish were delicious the steam egg is my favorite. This is the only Korean barbecue that I wanted to eat. This is our 5th time to eat here, every time we craved KBbcue. 100% recommendation.

Great food and location! A little on the pricey side but worth it in my opinion! A little loud on the ambiance but not too bad. This is my go to for a quick kbbq.

Pros: - Service was 12/10, our server was so thorough, quick, and friendly. - No wait on a Sunday evening - Big space - Good Music - Huge TV - If you print your receipt, you get 20% at the boba shop next door Cons: - Meat didn't taste super fresh or tasty - Stew was incredibly salty - Japchae was dry - Salad was just low quality

I've been coming here for years and the quality of service has never changed. The staff is attentive and fast. The Meats are fresh and well-marinated. The banchan's always hit the spot I honestly have no complaints about this Korean BBQ hot spot, Now they are constantly busy because of their popularity but that comes with the territory of being one of the top KBBQ spots in san Diego. They are always playing sports events on their giant screen, be it games fights you name it and they play all kinds of music from top 40 to 90/2000s rap this place is always a vibe.

First time to eat here, recommended by my colleague, food is fine, not much of veggies, steam egg is salty to my taste but servers are nice, approachable and attentive. Their place is spacious.

There was some confusion in signing in for a table. We were told 45 - 60 minutes, then got a text 5 minutes later. Went to check in and had to wait a little bit. The food was delicious and fresh, service wasn't great, though.

Hands down the best AYCE Korean bbq in SD. Great meats, great sauces and great service. Cool vibe and has great ventilation inside. Large TVs with sports. They dont pressure you like most others or even cut you off with last call. They keep the meets rollin out! This is my go to for Korean bbq

Came in on a Friday evening about 6pm and was seated fairly quickly. The tables are fairly close to each other and there is outdoor seating. Our waiter came to take our order. There are three options for the menu, AYCE, original, and premium. He never asked for my choice of menu and assumed that we all wanted the original so I was like ok, whatever. We had some sides already on the table which was nice. My friends ordered alcoholic drinks but we were told they were all out of the ones they wanted. The noodles were very good and we tried to ask for some more but they told us that they were all out. At 6pm on a Friday? So we had to share a small bowl of noodles between the four of us. One of my friends asked for dumplings, no dumplings. They finally take our meat orders and bring them at a reasonable amount of time. Asked for more rice. They forgot and brought it shortly after. They were quick to clear our plates though after we finished eating. I paid 37 for my portion which I did eat quite a bit with the meats and rice. Some of the meat had large amounts of fat so I had to cut that part a lot. I didn't leave a tip because I didn't feel that they deserved it. Won't be coming back. Olleh is probably my go to option for KBBQ. The only reason this gets a two and not a one star was because of their only saving grace, the sauces which were very good!

Yo Yo Yo. TGG what happened!? I left a 5 star review 5 years ago, but I came here a week ago, and boy have things changed! The menu is now very divided by price, to the point where everything seemed super knit picky? & even some items have a max of 1 or 2 per person... The flavor and quality of the meat also seems to have gone down. I'm also not sure who told you this was corn cheese? Not only did this item have a limitation per person but it also was tiny with no cheese in sight. The star of the show was honestly the soy bean stew and the GREAT service. But i'm sad this place has changed so much. waaaa.

Yum! This was my first time at this Korean BBQ restaurant. I've passed by it so many times over the years and had always wondered how the food was. I went with my friend and when we walked in, I was amazed! The place was huge! They had indoor and outdoor but shaded seating. The music was great and had throwback 2010's hip hop playing. It was packed inside and the service was great. The meat selections were cool, but I focused on the beef belly, pepper pork, and steak. I highly recommend the samjang paste for dipping. I really enjoyed the place and plan to come back with coworkers soon!

My first time experiencing an all you can eat cook it yourself Korean BBQ, it was a cool experience with friends and you have to go hungry and want to eat a lot because there's so many choices. I personally can not eat too much at once so maybe getting the Premium was not a good idea for me but the food is good nonetheless. I like that they have so many side choices and meat choices, I only tried about 5 of the meat choices and was happy with what I picked. The flavors are very good and it's nice that you get to cook it yourself to your liking. Their side salad with ginger dressing was so simple yet so tasty. The corn and cheese reminded me of the Mexican elote in a cup, very good! Love the condiments and sauces they bring to the table. I would go again.

I've tried a bunch of Korean food and this place makes my top 3! Good choices though I wish they had more option on the meat(beef). The meats that they did have were delicious, and tasty. The seafood..ok first of all this is the first place that I know that has peeled shrimps!! Do you know how hard it is to peel shrimp.(lol) ok so they have the spicy shrimp peeled but not the regular but I will take what I can! Just so happy they are peeled. Service was good, we were seated fast, mind you we went on a Friday night around 6pm, it wasn't busy yet, though it did get busy after we got seated. Service on bringing out the food was fast and they are very consistent, very friendly server, he was very very patient for my entire family(party of 6). Ambiance was good. My dad and I ordered some mangos soju, it was pretty good, nothing fancy it was a good balance, wasn't too strong but wasn't too sweet. I will definitely be coming back for those peeled shrimps.

I had Korean BBQ in NYC with my kids back in 2015 but it was a set down restaurant with cook to order food. So after one year of Taegukgi opening my husband told me oh I found this Korean BBQ in San Diego that is close to us. I was let's go as I am still missing that steak I had in NYC. So we made a reservation and we went. It was completely different experience from the whole set down full menu restaurant or service. It's still set down but you cook your own food. I have never ever had this before in my life. Since I am celiac I have to be super careful. Our waiter at the time was a person who didn't want to go back to the kitchen to know what I can eat and what is gluten free and what is not. His answer was I don't no for everything and no he isn't going back to the kitchen to ask. So at this point I can't eat anything but my family can. So I didn't want to ruin their dinner and refused to leave. So I went to the manager and asked her for the manager lol she told me I am the manager how can I help you? So I told her what happened and she was shocked with what she heard. She apologised and came to our table and took the order. She got my salad, told me all the meat that doesn't have sauce is gluten free, told me which sauces I can use to add to the meat. She literally made our nights way better. Let me say this cuz of Jude I fell in love with the restaurant and the food. The rest of the staff were and are amazing as well. I was going there almost every day lol or at least 3 times a week, had my 45th birthday there, my son had three birthdays there, I still go there to celebrate my birthdays or my kids birthdays. Every time someone come to visit from outside the state we take them there. Everyone there become like our second family. I got to meet to owners, two sisters Anna & Grace who opened the restaurant in San Diego and in the pandemic they opened another location in Arizona. The restaurant is huge and beautiful and clean. Now I have moved to Bellevue but I still go there every time i go for a visit to San Diego. I am actually going this week so I can't wait to go and eat at least twice in my three days trip lol. Go try it and enjoy everything you will never be sorry at all..

Came here on a Friday night a couple weeks ago and I'm amazed by the service here. The service here alone deserves 5 stars. We had Ron as our server and honestly this guys deserves a raise for his customer service, it's top tier. As for the food itself, I gotta be honest I like Manna better looool. I just feel like manna has more beef options and that all the meats here are bland unless you use the garlic butter and put your meat in a ton of the sauce and salt they give you. Their green salad is so sad and it's just pieces of unevenly chopped lettuce. The radish was good tho. Overall the service is wayyy better than the food. Like I'd only come back here for the service tbh. Otherwise I like the meats at manna better

Quick service. Very polite staff. Third time we have been at this place. This place can get busy. We had an early dinner. And got a seat right away.

I hadn't been to Taegukgi since pre-pandemic. It was at 6 pm during the week and they were pretty busy, quick 10 minute wait and my party of two got our table. I've been to quite a few kbbq spots and this was by far the best service I had, staff consistently checking in on us, taking orders and changing our grills. Thin pork belly, salt and pepper pork belly, and brisket were our faves. Great assortment of sides. It's a few bucks more than some other spots in the area for AYCE but I would highly recommend!

Came for lunch and was seated a few minutes after checking in with hostess. The restaurant is pretty huge with plenty of indoor tables and patio seating. Each table has a hood to reduce the smoke from grilling. Tables are close to one another though, so it's easy to hear everyone's conversations and such. Anyways, not sure why my phone couldn't scan the overly excessive taped barcode for the menu but good thing they were able to provide us with a physical copy. It's an AYCE restaurant with three different menu packages and a few a la carte options. The meals ranged from $25-32. They allow four meats to be ordered per round, and honestly, the portions were so plentiful that we didn't even make it pass the first round. The only meat that were flavorful were the short ribs. Everything else seemed bland. Service was ok too but I didn't like the fact that once we said we're not ordering more meats, the check was delivered while we were still eating. There were still meats to be cooked too. The place was less than half full, so what was the rush? So, onto the restrooms. It was pretty dark and dirty. Floors were dirty, sticky and slippery too. That actually goes for the whole place. Overall, not too bad but not too great either.

BULGOGI! The best thing SERVICE! Really nice and super on it, changing grills and checking on us constantly In my opinion, best KBBQ I've had.

Not the best Korean BBQ I've had. Definitely could enjoy better options in SoCal. The banchans were prepped before we sat, which was the best part probably. The thin-sliced pork belly was pretty much flavorless and the brisket was just ok. It took a very long time for the grills to heat up as well, which delayed us in ordering more food in the beginning when we were more hungry. The thicker sliced pork belly was actually good and so was the Salt + Pepper Pork Belly. Ultimately, it wasn't above a certain grade though. The AYCE probably wasn't worth the price tag. The side dishes were all average. They definitely need call buttons at tables, because our server was disapper every once in awhile, but to be honest the overall service was quality wasn't too bad. Do I think Taeguki is bad? Not really. There's just far better options in San Diego and LA that going here just isn't justified.

To me, this is still the best Korean Barbecue joint in San Diego. The size of the venue alone merits this designation, as this restaurant boasts a large open dining area with several intimate VIP grills tucked in the back and a fully covered overflow dining area just outside with multiple smaller grills available. This joint is always lively with plenty of loud hip hop playing to help drown out the conversations of neighboring parties. There's a huge multiple screen setup behind the bar that's visible from almost any angle inside so you can watch sports while you chug beer or flavored soju with friends and/or family. My kids are always entertained by the multiple claw game machines set up outside in their covered entrance/waiting area and more than happy to drop a dollar per play. Thankfully I usually don't have to wait too long or I'd go broke funding this habit. They also have a multiple capsule vending machines (gashapon) as well. There's a change machine that takes $1s and $5s just inside the restaurant on your immediate right. As for the food, I have been dining here for maybe 20 years now and I've never had any issues other than not having enough room in my stomach to keep eating and drinking. There are two all you can eat (AYCE) dining options here: Original and Premium. A QR code is posted on the tables so you can access the menu on your smart phone. Of course Premium is the way to go to experience all of the options but honestly I usually just stick with their basic options when dining with kids (mine and with other people's children) since they won't stray too far from basic items. The cuts are not too fatty and the marinaded meats are done properly. I never order the chicken (just because it seems to basic) and stick to beef, pork and the limited seafood options usually. I also like all of the banchan (side dishes) here except the potato salad. Seems out of place to me, flavor-wise. Hehe. If I had to find something to complain about it would be that I wish the vents above the grills were stronger. I will note that The men's restroom is tiny in comparison to the rest of the restaurant. It has a single urinal and one stall crammed into a small area. I think that covers everything you need to know to have a good time here with family or with friends! Happy grilling!

I've been wanting to try this place for a while. I brought my friend from out of town here and it was a pretty cool restaurant, half inside half outside. There are two menus, an original and a premium. We got the original because they still had good cuts and the original or "standard menu" is always good. We ordered beef belly, beef brisket and pork belly. All thin slices but to be honest, it all lacked flavor and depth.. I of course seasoned the meat with sat on the grill but it really didn't help much.. I also ordered a steamed egg, that was pretty good, but the sides also seemed to lack.. everything seemed a bit bland to me.. The atmosphere and the staff were pretty great though, and to be honest, this place is a real vibe. I can see people, all ages coming here to hand and be social and have a good time. But for me, I needed more from the meats. I'll be back to try the premium menu, maybe that's where I went wrong.

Probably the most packed kbbq place in Convoy as the wait for me was about half an hour for Friday night. I have only gone to TGG once for someone's birthday but now I can rate my dine in experience. There's lots of staff and they are pretty attentive but also we needed to flag them down at times. We also chose from the original menu. Banchan (3/5): Kimchi was so fresh and the best side dish! Fish cake was too soggy. The other ones I didn't really care much for. Meats (3.5/5): Brisket was thin but tough, sliced pork belly and beef belly were better. Bean Paste Stew (3.5/5): Lots of mushrooms and potatoes. Not the best soup but it is the only option on the original menu. Steam Egg (4/5): Savory and warm! Not very fluffy but it tastes like any other steam egg. Pretty standard kbbq here but I would go someplace else on weekends for a shorter wait time and the sides that I want. Overall, not bad but not as much choices either. I would rate it a 3.5!

I thought for the amount of people dining there the food would be better. In comparison to other Korean BBQ spots their meat was a weird texture. Very off putting. The sides offered were tasty but not as good as other BBQ places we've frequented. On the plus side the servers were awesome but we'll pass on returning.

We LOVED IT!! The service, hands down was amazing!! The food also was fantastic! The vibe is super chill, and the servers were ON IT the entire time. I definitely recommend this place!! We were so busy eating and enjoying everything, I didn't pick up my phone until we finished. So here's a picture of my husband instead. Our servers: Lan and James! Absolutely fantastic!!

Great food and quick service. This was my parents first time having KBBQ and they enjoyed themselves. Though my dad said he'll bring tortillas next time lol

They lose one star because 3 times we were told 20 minutes left for our table, which equated to an hour. I finally had to tell them that they need to either be honest and state 1 hour because all these 20-minute intervals were pissing us off more. Once seated the service was good, I believe they could have been a bit more attentive but I will allow that this place is packed and busy and minute details like empty plates or empty soda cups weren't necessarily a priority. We went on a Saturday evening with 7 people, which is considered a large party so they add gratuity immediately. I appreciate the server when it was time to pay, he made sure we knew we already had paid gratuity and not to do it again (a lot of places would not warn you.) Highly recommend ordering the bulgogi, ask for LOTS of extra salt so that you can season ALL your meat before throwing it on the grill. They are pretty attentive to switching your grill out once it gets grody. I really really LOVED the kim-chi I thought it was fantastic and it was great, I love that they keep the rice coming and I HIGHLY recommend getting the cooked egg to eat with your dishes.