Gyu-Kaku Japanese BBQ

My family and I really enjoyed the course menu option, as it's convenient and provided a variety of dishes. We got the course meal for six and it was plenty of food! If you are going as a big group, the course menu is a great quick & easy choice.

My family and I really enjoyed the course menu option, as it's convenient and provided a variety of dishes. We got the course meal for six and it was plenty of food! If you are going as a big group, the course menu is a great quick & easy choice.

Gyu-Kaku is a fairly famous and old chain that interestingly I've been to the old Burlingame location, Tokyo location, the Cupertino location and the San Mateo location. It's Japanese BBQ so most stuff are more marinated and sweeter than a typical Korean BBQ. I like that there are a lot of choices to choose from which is very different from what I'd normally order in Korean BBQ. Most orders are small which is both a blessing and a curse. A blessing because you get to order a lot of different dishes. A curse because it's never enough. In any case because the meats are usually very marinated so you are eating not just the meat but also the sauce which an be good and bad same time. Good because they can be flavorful bad because the sauce can overpower the meat. I also like the service because they change the grille often and are attentive. The place can be crowded but all tables are separated from others. I don't have any particular favorite but do like some of the more expensive cuts. Order the combos if you can be you get to try different cuts.

Gyu-Kaku is a fairly famous and old chain that interestingly I've been to the old Burlingame location, Tokyo location, the Cupertino location and the San Mateo location. It's Japanese BBQ so most stuff are more marinated and sweeter than a typical Korean BBQ. I like that there are a lot of choices to choose from which is very different from what I'd normally order in Korean BBQ. Most orders are small which is both a blessing and a curse. A blessing because you get to order a lot of different dishes. A curse because it's never enough. In any case because the meats are usually very marinated so you are eating not just the meat but also the sauce which an be good and bad same time. Good because they can be flavorful bad because the sauce can overpower the meat. I also like the service because they change the grille often and are attentive. The place can be crowded but all tables are separated from others. I don't have any particular favorite but do like some of the more expensive cuts. Order the combos if you can be you get to try different cuts.

Food was great! Meat was very tasty. I would recommend doing the 2-person courses, a good way to try a lot of food. We got the first one since is it the same quantity as the more expensive meat-lovers, with some chicken variety.

Food was great! Meat was very tasty. I would recommend doing the 2-person courses, a good way to try a lot of food. We got the first one since is it the same quantity as the more expensive meat-lovers, with some chicken variety.

If you expect to have a satisfying dinner, this is not the place for you. The pictures on the menu are so purposely deceiving. I understand the idea of quality over quantity, but the portion sizes here are more like a complimentary appetizer at most other establishments in San Mateo (and I know many). When the meat arrives, you might think the outstanding quality would make up for forget the lack of substance...not the case. The meat is quite standard, and the portions are so small that it's nearly impossible to fully appreciate any supposed quality. Very disappointed.

If you expect to have a satisfying dinner, this is not the place for you. The pictures on the menu are so purposely deceiving. I understand the idea of quality over quantity, but the portion sizes here are more like a complimentary appetizer at most other establishments in San Mateo (and I know many). When the meat arrives, you might think the outstanding quality would make up for forget the lack of substance...not the case. The meat is quite standard, and the portions are so small that it's nearly impossible to fully appreciate any supposed quality. Very disappointed.

Solid 3.6 stars, with potential for 4+ stars if they do what I suggest. You have a Japanese name and serve Japanese yakiniku food so you must do as Japanese yakiniku restaraunt do, NOT as you like to do. Prices are often complained about in reviews here. To us they seemed reasonable for california. Complain to your state politicians, not to this business. OK, back to this restaurant: your staff do their job but not HAPPILY (it is OK to fake it) and not PROMPTLY. Nobody was nearby when our grill needed to be turned down: food was burning. We figured it out and turned the flame down ourselves. Nobody showed up to swap out the blackened (CANCER-causing) grill; we had to flag somebody down. We asked in Japanese first, to make her feel remorseful. Happy hour and draft beer pitcher was good. Pitcher itself was real, unlike in Japan. Rice quality was OK. Beef and pork quality was good. Vegetable quality was ok. See pics. There was insufficient garlic. We need actual garlic like in Japan, not your garlic butter. “Napa Kimchi” quality was not good. Please go to Korea and compare.

Solid 3.6 stars, with potential for 4+ stars if they do what I suggest. You have a Japanese name and serve Japanese yakiniku food so you must do as Japanese yakiniku restaraunt do, NOT as you like to do. Prices are often complained about in reviews here. To us they seemed reasonable for california. Complain to your state politicians, not to this business. OK, back to this restaurant: your staff do their job but not HAPPILY (it is OK to fake it) and not PROMPTLY. Nobody was nearby when our grill needed to be turned down: food was burning. We figured it out and turned the flame down ourselves. Nobody showed up to swap out the blackened (CANCER-causing) grill; we had to flag somebody down. We asked in Japanese first, to make her feel remorseful. Happy hour and draft beer pitcher was good. Pitcher itself was real, unlike in Japan. Rice quality was OK. Beef and pork quality was good. Vegetable quality was ok. See pics. There was insufficient garlic. We need actual garlic like in Japan, not your garlic butter. “Napa Kimchi” quality was not good. Please go to Korea and compare.

Better avoid this restaurant! The food is terrible. Here’s the photo of the RAW beef tongue, disgusting! Beef tongue is their top recommendation, but they serve this!? I also ordered the Kalbi (also the top recommendation), but guess what, they hide the unfresh one at the bottom, I didn’t notice when I started barbecuing. Yes you can definitely ask them to replace the not fresh meat, but this is definitely not a Japanese restaurant should do! I am also disappointed about the scallion sauce in my opinion. Their scallion sauce is also not Japanese style. If you’re seeking American Japanese, yes you can try it. But if you’re aiming for the true Japanese taste, this restaurant is not what you want. By the way, no combo for one person. Sad. Overall, this is a very disappointing experience and I think this restaurant is overrated because of the unfresh meat.

Better avoid this restaurant! The food is terrible. Here’s the photo of the RAW beef tongue, disgusting! Beef tongue is their top recommendation, but they serve this!? I also ordered the Kalbi (also the top recommendation), but guess what, they hide the unfresh one at the bottom, I didn’t notice when I started barbecuing. Yes you can definitely ask them to replace the not fresh meat, but this is definitely not a Japanese restaurant should do! I am also disappointed about the scallion sauce in my opinion. Their scallion sauce is also not Japanese style. If you’re seeking American Japanese, yes you can try it. But if you’re aiming for the true Japanese taste, this restaurant is not what you want. By the way, no combo for one person. Sad. Overall, this is a very disappointing experience and I think this restaurant is overrated because of the unfresh meat.

The restaurant was very crowded. We went there for lunch. We ordered the combo for 2 because they have large menu, but the amount of food isn’t worth the price. Staff was attentive but not what you would describe as friendly.

The restaurant was very crowded. We went there for lunch. We ordered the combo for 2 because they have large menu, but the amount of food isn’t worth the price. Staff was attentive but not what you would describe as friendly.