What counts as tabletop Korean BBQ?

Tabletop Korean BBQ means the meat is cooked at the table, on a grill set into the table or standing on it, and eaten as it comes off. The grill burns charcoal or gas, and the diner or the server does the cooking. A Korean restaurant whose kitchen grills the meat and carries it out is a different format, and so is a soondubu tofu house, a Korean fried chicken counter and a hot pot room, none of which put a grill at the table. Japanese yakiniku rooms use the same mechanism under a different cuisine. Every restaurant below has a grill at the table, and in each case the operator, the menu or an established Chicago publication says so.

Which Chicago rooms burn charcoal rather than gas?

Two of the eleven. Woo Chon Korean BBQ, at 5744 North California Avenue in West Ridge, states on its own site that it uses oak charcoal instead of gas, with a personal charcoal grill installed at every table. San Soo Gab San, at 5247 North Western Avenue in Lincoln Square, has charcoal grills built into its tables, and The Infatuation's Chicago Korean barbecue guide files it among the charcoal rooms. The rest run on gas, including the smokeless gas units built into the tables at both Jiang Niu rooms.

Is the Wicker Park Iron Age the same operator as the Glenview one?

The chain's locations page names two Illinois rooms: 1265 North Milwaukee Avenue in Wicker Park, inside the city, and 4513 West Lake Avenue in Glenview, an incorporated village north of it. The same operator runs a room at 61-35 Junction Boulevard in Rego Park, Queens. The Wicker Park room opens Sunday to Thursday 11am to midnight and Friday to Saturday 11am to 1am, and the format at each is full DIY Korean barbecue, with the meat cooked at the table on a tabletop grill.

Korean BBQ in Chicago: eleven rooms with grills at the table, from Lincoln Square to Chinatown

Chicago, Illinois

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Chicago's tabletop Korean barbecue is spread across four parts of the city rather than gathered on one street. Three rooms are on the north side: North Western Avenue in Lincoln Square, North Lincoln Avenue in North Center and North California Avenue in West Ridge. Three more are on the near south side, on South Wells Street, South Wentworth Avenue and South Archer Avenue in Chinatown and Armour Square. Three are in the Loop and the blocks around it, on North Milwaukee Avenue, North Wabash Avenue and East Illinois Street. The last two are at 1265 North Milwaukee Avenue in Wicker Park and 1523 North Kingsbury Street in the Clybourn Corridor. Two of the eleven burn charcoal, oak charcoal at Woo Chon and a charcoal grill at San Soo Gab San, and the rest run on gas. Jiang Niu runs two of the eleven, and Iron Age runs one here and one at 4513 West Lake Avenue in Glenview.

San Soo Gab San

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5247 North Western Avenue, Lincoln Square: charcoal grills built into the tables, with diners cooking their own meat and side dishes on the side.
Cho Sun Ok

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4200 North Lincoln Avenue, North Center: the meat is cooked at the table on a gas grill, with a hot stone bowl set over the burners.
Woo Chon Korean BBQ

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5744 North California Avenue, West Ridge: a personal charcoal grill at every table, burning oak charcoal instead of gas.
Perilla Korean American Fare

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401 North Milwaukee Avenue, West Loop: custom grill tables, with the grill set into the table and customers cooking their own meat.
Perilla Steakhouse

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225 North Wabash Avenue: a grill set into each table and servers cooking the meat; dinner Monday to Thursday 5pm to 9:30pm.
Daebak Korean BBQ

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Second floor, 2017 South Wells Street, Chinatown: a gas grill at the table, with beef, pork, chicken and seafood grilled on it.
Iron Age Korean Steakhouse

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1265 North Milwaukee Avenue, Wicker Park: full DIY Korean barbecue, guests cooking at the table on the tabletop grill until midnight.
Shinhwa Korean Steakhouse

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2407 South Wentworth Avenue, Chinatown: an interactive tabletop grill and a personal hot pot at every table, with tablet ordering.
Wu's Korean BBQ

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403 East Illinois Street, Streeterville: tabletop grilling, with the cooking done at the guest's table; open from 11:30am Monday to Saturday.
Jiang Niu BBQ House

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2300 South Archer Avenue, Suite 107: smokeless grills built into the tables, on a Korean-Chinese fusion menu the operator calls Dongbei-style.
Jiang Niu BBQ

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1523 North Kingsbury Street, Clybourn Corridor: smokeless grills built into the tables, opening at noon daily.

The north side: Lincoln Square, North Center and West Ridge

Three rooms are strung along three north-side avenues, and no two of them are on the same one. Korean businesses on Lawrence Avenue fell from 158 in 1997 to 50 in 2017.

San Soo Gab San is at 5247 North Western Avenue in Lincoln Square, where charcoal grills are built into the tables and diners cook their own meat over them. The operator's own site opens with an invitation to tabletop Korean BBQ and generous side dishes, and The Infatuation's Chicago Korean barbecue guide files the room among those with charcoal.

Cho Sun Ok is at 4200 North Lincoln Avenue, on the Lincoln Avenue corridor in North Center, and the meat is cooked at the table on a gas grill rather than in the kitchen. The Infatuation describes meat cooked in a hot stone bowl set over gas burners; sources disagree over whether every unit is fixed into the table or some stand on it.

Woo Chon Korean BBQ is at 5744 North California Avenue in West Ridge, where a personal charcoal grill is installed at every table. The operator's site states that the room burns oak charcoal instead of gas, and describes the meat coming off it with bonfire smoke. No source states the opening hours of Cho Sun Ok or Woo Chon, so none are given here.

Chinatown and Armour Square

South Wells Street, South Wentworth Avenue and South Archer Avenue carry a room each, and all three publish a grill at every table.

Daebak Korean BBQ occupies the second floor at 2017 South Wells Street, where a gas grill sits at the table and the servers turn the meat as it cooks. Its listing copy offers beef, pork, chicken and seafood grilled at the table. It opens Monday 12pm to 10pm, Tuesday to Thursday 5pm to 10pm, Friday 12pm to 11pm, Saturday 11:30am to 11pm and Sunday 11:30am to 10pm.

Shinhwa Korean Steakhouse is at 2407 South Wentworth Avenue, and every table carries an interactive tabletop grill together with a personal hot pot. The operator also runs tablet-based ordering and robotic service. It opens Monday to Thursday 11:30am to 10pm, Friday and Saturday 11:30am to 11pm, and Sunday 11:30am to 10pm.

Jiang Niu BBQ House is at 2300 South Archer Avenue, Suite 107, on the Bridgeport edge of Chinatown, where smokeless grills are built into the tables and customers cook their own food. The operator describes the cooking as Korean-Chinese fusion barbecue, Dongbei-style, and lists three rooms in all. No source states its opening hours, so none are given here.

Downtown, the West Loop and Streeterville

Three rooms sit in the Loop and the blocks around it, on North Milwaukee Avenue, North Wabash Avenue and East Illinois Street.

Perilla Korean American Fare is at 401 North Milwaukee Avenue in the West Loop, in a room fitted with custom grill tables: the grill is set into the table and customers cook their own meat on it. The Infatuation describes the room as focused on grill-in-table service. No source states its opening hours, so none are given here.

Perilla Steakhouse is at 225 North Wabash Avenue, where each table has a grill set into it and the servers cook the meat to order. perillachicago.com bills the room as a Korean BBQ steakhouse with table-side grilling, and OpenTable records the tabletop grills, the steakhouse sets and the Korean barbecue tasting menu running at dinner. Lunch is Monday to Friday 11am to 2:30pm; dinner Monday to Thursday 5pm to 9:30pm, Friday 5pm to 10:30pm, Saturday 4pm to 10:30pm and Sunday 4pm to 9pm; brunch Saturday and Sunday 11am to 2:30pm.

Wu's Korean BBQ is at 403 East Illinois Street in Streeterville, and the operator's own site describes a tabletop grilling experience with the cooking done at the guest's table. It opens Monday to Thursday 11:30am to 10pm, Friday and Saturday 11:30am to 11pm, and Sunday 12pm to 10pm.

Milwaukee Avenue and the Clybourn Corridor

Milwaukee Avenue runs north-west out of downtown, and the last two rooms stand on it and on North Kingsbury Street.

Iron Age Korean Steakhouse is at 1265 North Milwaukee Avenue in Wicker Park, and the format is full DIY Korean barbecue: guests cook the meat themselves at the table on the tabletop grill. The operator asks guests to take control of the cooking so that servers spend less time at the table, and its locations page names two Illinois rooms, this one and 4513 West Lake Avenue in Glenview. It opens Sunday to Thursday 11am to midnight and Friday to Saturday 11am to 1am.

Jiang Niu BBQ is at 1523 North Kingsbury Street in the Clybourn Corridor, and the format matches the Archer Avenue room: smokeless grills are built into the tables and customers cook their own food. The operator describes the cooking as Korean-Chinese fusion barbecue. It opens Monday to Thursday 12pm to 10pm, Friday and Saturday 12pm to 11pm, and Sunday 12pm to 9:30pm.

Frequently asked questions

What counts as tabletop Korean BBQ?: Tabletop Korean BBQ means the meat is cooked at the table, on a grill set into the table or standing on it, and eaten as it comes off. The grill burns charcoal or gas, and the diner or the server does the cooking. A Korean restaurant whose kitchen grills the meat and carries it out is a different format, and so is a soondubu tofu house, a Korean fried chicken counter and a hot pot room, none of which put a grill at the table. Japanese yakiniku rooms use the same mechanism under a different cuisine. Every restaurant below has a grill at the table, and in each case the operator, the menu or an established Chicago publication says so.
Which Chicago rooms burn charcoal rather than gas?: Two of the eleven. Woo Chon Korean BBQ, at 5744 North California Avenue in West Ridge, states on its own site that it uses oak charcoal instead of gas, with a personal charcoal grill installed at every table. San Soo Gab San, at 5247 North Western Avenue in Lincoln Square, has charcoal grills built into its tables, and The Infatuation's Chicago Korean barbecue guide files it among the charcoal rooms. The rest run on gas, including the smokeless gas units built into the tables at both Jiang Niu rooms.
Where in the city are the eleven rooms?: Three are on the north side, on North Western Avenue in Lincoln Square, North Lincoln Avenue in North Center and North California Avenue in West Ridge. Three are on the near south side, at 2017 South Wells Street, 2407 South Wentworth Avenue and 2300 South Archer Avenue in Chinatown and Armour Square. Three are in the Loop and the blocks around it, at 401 North Milwaukee Avenue in the West Loop, 225 North Wabash Avenue in the Loop and 403 East Illinois Street in Streeterville. Two are on the Milwaukee Avenue side of the near north side, at 1265 North Milwaukee Avenue in Wicker Park and 1523 North Kingsbury Street in the Clybourn Corridor.
Which rooms publish their opening hours?: Six of them. Perilla Steakhouse runs lunch Monday to Friday 11am to 2:30pm, dinner Monday to Thursday 5pm to 9:30pm, Friday 5pm to 10:30pm, Saturday 4pm to 10:30pm and Sunday 4pm to 9pm, and brunch Saturday and Sunday 11am to 2:30pm. Daebak opens Monday 12pm to 10pm, Tuesday to Thursday 5pm to 10pm, Friday 12pm to 11pm, Saturday 11:30am to 11pm and Sunday 11:30am to 10pm. Shinhwa and Wu's both open at 11:30am, closing at 10pm early in the week and 11pm at the weekend. Iron Age opens 11am to midnight Sunday to Thursday and 11am to 1am on Friday and Saturday, and Jiang Niu on Kingsbury Street opens at noon daily.
Is the Wicker Park Iron Age the same operator as the Glenview one?: The chain's locations page names two Illinois rooms: 1265 North Milwaukee Avenue in Wicker Park, inside the city, and 4513 West Lake Avenue in Glenview, an incorporated village north of it. The same operator runs a room at 61-35 Junction Boulevard in Rego Park, Queens. The Wicker Park room opens Sunday to Thursday 11am to midnight and Friday to Saturday 11am to 1am, and the format at each is full DIY Korean barbecue, with the meat cooked at the table on a tabletop grill.

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Iron Age Korean Steakhouse runs the Milwaukee Avenue room here and one on West Lake Avenue in Glenview.