Climb the stairs into Hong Kong Plaza on King Street East and the kitchen at the top makes its own kimchi. The gamjatang broth takes a long simmer before it ever reaches a bowl, and most of what fills the table is built from scratch rather than pulled from a supplier — the unglamorous prep a small Korean kitchen either commits to or skips. Korean BBQ Restaurant, which its own site also calls A Taste of Korea, commits to it. The menu runs on home-style Korean comfort — stews, noodles, pancakes, and grilled plates — rather than the sprawling pan-Asian list a plaza address might lead you to expect.
Pork Bone Soup is the clearest anchor: pork bone, napa cabbage, and perilla seed cooked down into a deep, restorative gamjatang, served with rice and the banchan that frame every order. Hot Stone Bibimbap arrives still sizzling, rice and vegetables and beef bound with red pepper paste under a fried egg. Japchae carries the noodle course — sweet potato glass noodles tossed with beef, vegetables, and sesame into a savoury-sweet finish that bridges a soup and a grill without doubling down on another heavy broth. Together they are the order to start with, the small banchan dishes filling the corners of the table around them.
The strongest dishes are warm, familiar Korean staples: pork bone soup, bibimbap, japchae, stews, dumplings and grilled plates.
Local coverage points to banchan, kimchi prep and dumpling work as part of the restaurant's character, giving the meal more depth than a simple barbecue order.
The small second-floor setting and casual menu make it a practical pick near Kitchener Market for diners who want a full Korean meal without a splurge.
Pork Bone Soup, Kimchi Stew, Budae Jjigae, Hot Stone Bibimbap and Japchae give the restaurant a warm, steady centre. The appeal is bowls, noodles and grilled plates that feel built for repeat comfort rather than a sprawling pan-Asian menu.
The strongest draw is Korean specificity: banchan, kimchi work, bibimbap, gamjatang-style soup, japchae and barbecue plates all appear in one meal. The experience gives diners a clear sense of a focused Korean comfort kitchen in a small Kitchener room.
This is a practical value pick: the better move is to build a meal from stews, rice dishes, dumplings, pancakes and barbecue plates. It suits diners who want a full Korean meal without turning the night into a splurge.
Combination plates and shareable dishes make the restaurant easier to navigate with two or more people. A group can cover barbecue, stew, dumplings and pancakes in one sitting without turning the order into a guessing game.
Diners who want more than the safest order have plenty to work with: Budae Jjigae, Jjajangmyeon, Tteokbokki, Soft Tofu Stew and Seafood Pancake broaden the order beyond barbecue standards.
Share the nuances of your visit to Korean BBQ Restaurant in Kitchener — the standout dishes, the room, the service.
Write a review
