Kyo Korean BBQ & Sushi House 月見

Kyo Korean BBQ & Sushi House is located at the former location of Shabusen, which was also a Korean and Japanese all you can eat joint. A friend of mine has been wanting to try Kyo for quite some time, which is shocking since she never has any interest in AYCE joints. As for myself, I am a fan (of good ones) because they provide the opportunity to try a bit of everything on the menu. Plus, if the food tastes good, you get to order more. Although in general, I never think AYCE is ever worth it because I tend to eat and order less than when having a la carte. Not sure why... 

The interior of Kyo is actually really nice. The restaurant has window wrapped walls, plenty of seats, and can accommodate larger parties in a few sectioned off areas as well as rooms. Furthermore, the seating arrangements are comfortable and the restaurant has a large open space. In addition, there is an electric fireplace by the waiting area.

ADULT $23.99 || CHILD (4-10) $13.99 || AYCD POP $2.50

EBI SUNOMONO AND GOMAE.

The ebi sunomo is very generic and has a light tartness along with perfectly cooked bean thread noodles. Next, the spinach is not properly rinsed and has a bit of sand. But, the peanut sauce tastes alright, not bland or salty.

SWEET N' SOUR RADISH AND KIMCHI.

The sweet n' sour radish tastes dry and there is not much of a pickled taste. As for the kimchi, it does spicy but at the same time, also watery.

AVOCADO ROLL AND MISO SOUP.

The sushi roll has fresh slices of avocado which taste ripe as well as creamy. And the miso soup is served luke warm while tasting bland.

EGGPLANT, CORN, WHITE MUSHROOM AND ZUCCHINI.

These are definitely the highlight of dinner, especially the slices of eggplant!

CHICKEN, SPICY LAMB, BLACK PEPPER BEEF SHORT RIBS AND LAMB.

Starting with the chicken, the marinade does not taste very appealing and is very salty. Usually chicken is a favourite for myself when barbecuing at a restaurant because it is always a deboned thigh which tastes juicy. But, the marinade was just not good and plain grilled chicken would have tasted better. Moving along, the black pepper beef short ribs taste chewy and extremely salty. Furthermore, an option of having a typical Korean sweeter marinade would have been a nice. Next, the spicy lamb does taste spicy but again, the meat just does not taste flavourful or very good. In addition, there is not much of a gamey taste. As for the regular order of lamb, the meat tastes chewy along with the rest.

MUSSELS, PRAWN, SQUID AND HONEY N' GARLIC PORK.

The seafood is pretty generic, no complaints. As for the honey n' garlic pork, it is probably the best meat out of the bunch. The pork does not taste chewy and the marinade tastes slightly sweet compared to a weird taste like the rest.

TUNA TATAKI.

The tuna tataki has a hint of sesame oil and could have been seared more. Nevertheless, the tuna tastes average.

BEEF SASHIMI.

The slices taste bland as well as chewy, and despite not liking the sesame seeds with the sashimi, the presentation looks a bit nice.

SMELT.

The smelt tastes crisp and although the batter is not the thinnest, it is AYCE quality and expected. If anything, the smelt could have been served warm if not hot, rather than cold.

YAM TEMPURA AND CHICKEN KARAAGE.

The yam tempura tastes moist and is surprisingly not heavily battered. Next, the chicken wing does not taste bad and is fairly moist, with a crisp exterior.

KIMCHI STIR-FRY RICE.

The kimchi rice is pretty much how it looks, plain rice mixed with kimchi. The rice is served at a room temperature and is really nothing special. However, for those who want fillers... Which was the case for us.

MANGO PUDDING

The pudding tastes slightly sweet with a hint of mango, and is surprisingly not one of the worst I ever had at an AYCE. Although the mango pudding was not good enough for me to order another one.

SALMON, TUNA, SABA AND SPICY TUNA SASHIMI.

The sashimi is pretty generic and there are no complaints. Actually, the sashimi is properly prepared and better than some Japanese restaurants.

(ABURI)  TUNA, SABA, HAMACHI, AND SALMON. SPICY SALMON, INARI, TAMAGO, HAMACHI, EBI, TUNA AND SALMON NIGIRI.

As for the aburi, there is not much to write about. The slices of nigiri fillet are very thin which is expected at an AYCE and are nothing special. Seared sashimi. If anything, there is a large portion of rice which again, can be expected at an AYCE.

PORK AND SPICY PORK.

Being bored of the food and struggling to finish because none of the meats tasted good, I was not going to be satisfied without finding one tasty barbecue meat. So starting with the pork, the meat tastes slightly salty and not too chewy. However, the marinade again, does not taste very good. Lastly, the spicy pork tastes actually spicy and the taste of the marinade is covered by the spiciness, which worked for us in our case. The honey n' garlic pork seems to be the best, followed by the spicy pork, but the rest? ...

TOTAL: $55.60 + TIP $9.40 = $65.00.

Overall, I would not come back. The ordered dishes were sitting on the table and we were stuck in a situation -  food on the table and not wanting any of it. Yes, I am a fussy eater but when it comes to meat, as long as it does not taste chewy, it is fine. But the meat? Okay, I can get past a slight chewiness or toughness, but the marinade? It sucked. All of them. I rather have plain grilled meat which would have made the dinner go a lot faster and easier. As for the highlight, it is definitely the vegetables. Coming from a carnivore? As for the service, one of the waitress' was extremely friendly but asides from that, we struggled to find someone just to change the grill plate throughout the whole dinner.

POSITIVES

- Nice interior

- One of the few AYCE Japanese and Korean joints

- All you can drink pop option (although we could not find anyone for refills)

NEGATIVES

- Marinade tastes more salty than tasty

- No one was available to change the grill plate

- Expensive for what it is

LITTLE THINGS

- For the same price, any Korean barbecue joint would have been better

- Kyung Bok Palace in Richmond is better (and they are not even that good!)

Food: 1/5 (Japanese food 2.5/5)

Service: 2.5/5