Gyu-Kaku Japanese BBQ Dining

Excellent quality meat but price is a little high. Service is great and you do have to cook your own meat. Love the marinated meat and garlic noodle more

my favorite place but it's getting wayyyyy too crowded! They can't even fill a reservation without seating us late! more

I had all you can eat menu. Loved it. Very tasty!! The meat was fresh the service was great. The drinks were ummmmm!! Pros: Tasty food Cons: expensive more

I dine at Gui-Kaku about 6 times a year and have had good experiences until recent. Ever since visiting the Pasadena location, I've decided to give my business to other japanese/korean bbq restaurants. We waited 1.5 hours for a table (originally told 30-45 min), 10 minutes to be greeted by our waiter, our grill heat was left on high so meat ended up burning, and never once received any refills on our drinks or a courtesy ""how's everything?"" The food quality was average but in combination with poor customer service, this place is not worth the price. I'm pretty ashamed about but this was the first time I never left a tip. \r \r Goes to show Gyu-Kaku should be concerned with who they hire. The worst customer experience by far! Pros: Meat quality and food Cons: poor customer service; high price and small portions more

i came here with a friend out of curiosity. the place was pretty packed so we had to wait a little. when we were seated we looked through the menu and kind of laughed. i'm so used to eating grill-your-own meat with my korean friends in korea town for a fraction of the price. we were on a budget so kind of snuck out and left. the place looks really nice though but for me its a better deal just going to one of the numerous outdoor korean bbq places in la. more

We've eaten here several times and always enjoyed it. The service was fast and friendly. The menu was varied and everything we had was great. You cook it yourself so you can cook any meat just as you like it - and only have yourself to blame if you burn it! Always fun and highly recommended. Pros: Food, service Cons: Parking more

A little bit on the pricey side but the money is definitely worth it. Go for a special occassion to try their melt-in-your-mouth meats! Cook the perfectly marinated and tender meats to your liking on the table-top barbecues. The grills give the meat and vegetables that delicious smoky flavor. We tried chicken, two kinds of beef and the vegetable sampler on our last visit and everything was delicious. Also give the s'mores a try for dessert... although not a Japanese tradition, it will take you back to days spend around the campfire. Pros: Quick service, good for groups, fresh food more

I was recently at this restaurant for a dinner party with my friends and the first thing I thought when I walked in was this: the hostesses really impressed me with their politeness and smile!\r Then the food was phenomenal and best of all, the server was hilarious! We had the best time with our server. I was a bit hesitant at first because we had to cook our own meats but it turns out its not that hard!\r Dessert was ok. Next time im going back for the cute servers and the delicious meat dishes.\r KOBE was melt in your mouth good.\r \r TIP: make reservations. IT WAS PACKED Pros: Servers Cons: NOT 1 THING more

My best friends just had a birthday party at Gyu-Kaku Pasadena!! We had about 30 people with set-menu which their manager created for us couple days ago. The food was just right amount for everyone, service was soooo excellent! I though they might miss up the ordering, but NO! Everything came out right to each tables! A lot of my friends were first time in Gyu-Kaku, they love it! It's a great place for party, since the restaurant is big enough and they have this nice VIP section which can fit 12 people, also 2 big tables which can fit 10 people on each. My friends and I love their food soooo much, service is always been great! We really had fun tonight!!! Thanks to Gyu-Kaku Pasadena! =) Pros: Thumbs up Cons: Thumbs up more

I just visited Pasadena Gyu-Kaku for the first time over the holidays. I live in the area but never got a chance to try it since it's pretty new. We had a birthday party for one of my friends, who said this was his favorite restaurant in Pasadena. After trying the food, I can see why! The food there is really unique and something different to Pasadena. In old town, you always have those typical restaurants with always the same things. Gyu-Kaku had a great menu variety with really delicious and new flavors of food that I've never tasted before. I'm a real ""meat"" person, and I really enjoyed the BBQ style of food that they offered. I was a little unsure at first about BBQing at the table, but it really turned out to be fun!! Since the food is grilled over charcoal, it's really healthy and you don't get that heavy feeling in your stomach after you eat. The service and ambience was wonderful as well. The staff there were very informative and always smiling. Much better than most typical Asian restaurants. The restaurant was decorated with nice decor which made our dining experience even more enjoyable. I really recommend this place!. Even though I was with a big party, I think next time I will take my girlfriend. The restaurant seems really great for both parties and dates. I've become a regular there for life! Pros: Food, Service, Ambience more

Also regarding Laura's comment and the restaurant's response: I lived/worked in Japan for almost 2 years and YES this is authentic Japanese BBQ, its not ""wannabe"" anything. The food is great, and very similar to places I ate in both Tokyo and Osaka. Made me feel like I was back in Japan again! more

I went to Gyu-kaku restaurant with some of my Japanese friends.Since Gyu-kaku is a really popular BBQ restaurant in Japan,we were very excited to try it.We were taken to the table as every worker gave us Japanese grettings.Our server was a Japanese guy and he nicely gave us recommendations of foods&drinks.So we tried many kinds of meats and other side dishes(they also have Japanese noodles,rices,salads,desserts and so on)...every item was really tasty and it was actually very fun to cook my own meats at the table with my friends.We were really satisfied with foods and nice service by friendly workers at the restaurant.I think Gyu-kaku is a nice place to try something new if you are already tired of going to Japanese Sushi place.I really recommend this BBQ restaurant to everybody who wanna have fun time and tasty foods with friends&family!! more

My daughter first heard of this place through her friends. After couples weeks of hearing great reviews about the food and service, we decided it was our time to check it out. We were NOT disappointed at all! When we got there, the place was full. They had a great bar/waiting area which we passed by when we were promptly seated at our table because of our reservations. The food and the service was great! Usually, it's either the food or service that's great...but here, everything was great! The price isn't even that pricey compared to all the restaurants you go to in Pasadena. My daughter and I ordered a few different dishes and shared them...our taste buds weren't dull for a moment. I can't wait to come back with all my friends, family, and co-workers! Pros: Food, Serive, Ambience more

there is something about a restaurant where you have to cook your own food. why must you feast on a appitizer only to be full by the time you cook your meal. here is the scenerio...your really hungry...you go to this restaurant called Gyu Kaku...you order your food...food comes in 15-20 min...now you have to wait another 15-20 min to cook it...dont go on an empty stomach more

This is one of those Asian do it yourself BBQ places, similar to the Korean style. They use some kind of charcoal instead of gas oven which honestly made me reek of smoke by the time I was done eating. The food quality is good but the portions are Japanese style, which means to be really full you need 3 orders per person. Nice decor, and OK service, Good place for a date, although I could have lived without all the smoke. If you like this kind of thing, try Korean BBQs in Korea town. Pros: quality food Cons: very small portions more

I'm on the fence about this place. One one hand, I thought the food was good and it's really fun to cook your own food with a group of people, but on the other hand it is really expensive and it really adds up. You can probably get the same thing at your usual Korean BBQ joint for about half the price, but I think at this place you are also paying for the ambiance. In the end, I did leave feeling satisfied and full and I did have a good time with my friends, but the bill ended up being about $50 per person (including a drink each). I do recommend this place to try at least once. It's fun and they have good service too. Pros: Fun experience to share with friends. You dont smell like BBQ after you leave. Cons: Expensive! more

I do not understand why people go to this restaurant. I have tried two different locations and both times was very disappointed. The food is very bland or on the salty side. This is a Japanese rendition of Korean BBQ. If you want to try good BBQ'd meats...try going to an authentic Korean BBQ restaurant. Also, they charge you for all the side dishes that usually in a korean restaurant is a 'service' to the customers at no charge. The food, service was not tasty at all. The ambience of the other hand was nice. I do not recommend this place to anyone unless you only care about decor and not food taste/quality. Pros: Decor Cons: Food, Service more

Actually this cook at your table bbq is almost smokeless. I could be wrong, but I think Gyu Kaku uses real ""binchotan"" bbq. It burns clean and long and imparts a distinct and great flavor on their HUGE selection of fun to grill foods! Grilling it yourself makes dinner fun! We stayed over two hours just chatting, eating, drinking and more. They also have a nice selection of Japanse beers, shochu, and sake. Even though is was a full house, our server was very prompt. Finally, their desserts topped off a fine meal.\r \r I recommend making reservations in advance if your party is greater than 4. If you happen to just drop in, they have a few couches to lounge on while you wait. Pros: Decor, Food Quality, Selection Cons: Not too pricey...but you're gonna wanna order everything! more

over price and salty! 90% of their menu are korean food. go to soot buull jeep in korean town and taste the real thing! more

I was worried about the portions at first, but it ended up being the perfect portion! They have so many choices of meats and marinades that the ""dim sum/tapas"" sized portions allowed me to try almost half their menu! We ordered it family style and I LOVED their US Kobe Beef. Talk about good quality meat...I also thought all their marinades were wonderful. Not to mention, pretty darn healthy! Everything is grilled on a charcol grill! My friends and I had a wonderful time. Great atmosphere and even GREATER service. Everyone was so kind to us. I have made this my favorite restaurant!!! Pros: EVERYTHING Cons: NON more