SOT BBQ

Came to try out this new Korean BBQ, it was quite different than the norm as its NOT AYCE. Its a premium kind of place because the cooking is very unique and the only place I can think of that features this traditional cooking surface. Sot is a traditional cast iron cauldron, The lid for the sot cauldron has has been used to grill meats and veggies, so the cooking surface has a handle in the middle like a traditional sot lid.We ordered the Sot sampler plate ($89) which came with Prime short rib, prime ribeye, pork belly and beef belly. It seamed like a better deal than just ordering a few meats individually though I don't know the quantity of the individual servings.They came to the table with a bunch of banchan which was of very high quality. They put the beansprouts and the uncut kimchee on the grill and as the meats came they cooked them for you too. They started by seasoning the cast iron sot lid with a piece of beef fat this makes the surface more nonstick as it provides some oil but also adds beef flavor to all the meats. All of the meats were top quality, I think my favorite was the Prime short rib. This was probably the highest quality meat I've had at a Korean BBQ.All the barchan were delicious, I especially like the bean sprouts and the daikon radish. They gladly brought out more if you eat them all.We also ordered fried rice at the end, which was awesome! They bring out rice with kochugang, sesame oil and nori and add your left over barchan to it. I really liked this its pretty unique and a nice way to use up all the barchan and meat. I suggest you leave room in your stomach for this and any left over meat you want put into your fried rice.I liked the Sot cast iron lid, it was hot and there was no need to change out the cooking surface. Surface was excellent, they brought out more barchan as you finished them, cooked the meats for the most part. There is an option for a wagyu sample platter, which has both A5 Japanese wagyu, US wagyu short rib, beef tongue, beef belly and prime rib eye cap. That sounds awesome! I might have to come back and try that next time.Theres a large parking lot but they share it with Menya Ultra, the Bull pen, and Daiso, so it can get crowded. It's pricy but you get what you pay for. Easily the highest quality Korean BBQ in San Diego.

Been looking forward to this place opening as we watched it build out. Excellent interior, bright and airy, and thankfully not as night-club loud as Gem.The side dishes are great, and the kimchi was excellent, both kinds.I confess I didn't quite understand the ordering. We weren't charged for the steamed egg, but I thought we would be. The premium plate is expensive, and if you're a hungry group of 4, you will need to add more. The good AYCE places aren't cheap either, but you'll probably tilt the scale to about the same tab here.Best value here was the Beer Pitcher! It's huge, and for $14, you don't have to be a math major to give it a go. They really topped it up, nice and cold. I know it's not a beer place, but hey, it hit the spot.I just want to start off and say I'm not a convert to the sot/slanted-top skillet style BBQ. I still prefer charcoal or flame. some meats did okay, but some just seemed to stay wet and uncooked for too long. Maybe heat was irregular. It also got pretty crusty/carbon burnt and they never did a change-out. The thinner beef cooked fine, and the thicker meats also got a nice medium-rare, but the pork belly took forever and the marinated meats seemed to get burnt before being done. It could be operator error, as we were mostly on our own to figure this out.On the upside, the gas fired skillet sends you home less smoky, so there's that. But because everything sits in its own juice and charred bits, it tends to feel a little heavier and more greasy.Service was super friendly and kind, but I feel like we must have been there during a shift change. They were attentive and helpful getting it started, but then we were completely abandoned. We took over the meat maintenance, all the courses, but I was bummed the banchan plates sat empty. We did eventually get someone at the end who made a delightful fried rice.All in all, pretty good, but I still crave the flame.

Brand new KBBQ spot that recently opened. Decor inside is modern and clean. They have TVs on each side so you can watch Olympics or whatever games they have on that day. Really chill vibe for a Saturday morning. Only a handful of tables at opening time. Although clean, bathroom smells like sewage. Banchan was fresh and delicious. I love their kimchi. The onion salad to put on the meat was good also. Got the sampler plate with beef belly, ribeye, short rib, and pork belly. Each meat was tender and delicious with a good fat ratio. I like the salts you can eat with the meat to amp up the flavor. Oil does collect and pop at you a little, just scoot your chair back or move the oil toward the drain hole. The oil is good to cook your garlic in perfectly! I think the cast iron grill makes a difference in the heat distribution and flavor. They cook for you since the meat is premium, but I don't mind cooking ourselves. I ordered lettuce wrap that didn't come out but that's ok, it was a lot of food for two people. I want to try their fried rice, but maybe next time with a bigger group of people.

This is a new kbbq spot in Clairemont. Same plaza as Daiso. It's not AYCE. You're paying for the quality of the meat. It's nice that they have someone grilling the meat for you. My friends and I got the prime rib set and an al a carte of pork belly. You get a salad, steamed egg and different ban chans. It was a Thursday evening but the restaurant was pretty filled. However we did get seated right away. This is a great spot if you want premium meat.

New owners have spent well over seven figures to update this space in the Kearny Plaza on Clairemont Mesa Blvd and create an upscale Korean BBQ restaurant featuring traditional cast-iron cauldron grilling. The cauldrons (sots) were each shaped like a short hut and imported from Korea. The concept was not all-you-can-eat but rather premium meats that were cooked for you by a staff member. The business is currently in a soft opening phase until the middle of August. I counted at least 30 tables which were only about 1/4 occupied when we arrived for dinner.One page of the menu listed the proteins which were beef, pork, and seafood. All of the beef was either prime, choice, or wagyu. The cheapest cuts were priced at $29 each. Three sampler plates were available with Pork, Sot, and Wagyu as the labels. We chose the Sot ($89) which consisted of Prime Short Rib, Prime Ribeye, Pork Belly, and Beef Belly. The other menu page featured the appetizers, sides, small entrees, and beverages. From these choices, we picked the Korean Assorted Pancakes and Fried Rice. As part of the soft opening, a Steamed Egg was provided as a complimentary item.The workers brought out the banchan rapidly as there were at least eight different types including two styles of kimchi with a fermented version that became sweet when grilled. Sesame oil, a red salt, and a green salt were provided for dipping the cooked meat. Although we didn't receive one, a basket of lettuce for making wraps was available. Our server did all of the preparation of the sot by greasing up the surface, adding a sprig of rosemary for scenting, and then cutting up the vegetables (mushrooms, onions) and meat before cooking them.The Beef Belly was a brisket and cooked first followed by the Prime Ribeye, Prime Short Rib, and Pork Belly. The sequence may have been from the leanest to the fattiest portions. The short rib was probably my favorite, however the quality was very good for each cut. Do note that oil does collect along the rim of the sot, and some of it may splatter if the heat is too high. If you have kids in your party, then you may want to be careful with the oil or touching the very hot cast iron.Not only was the banchan variety terrific, but you could get refills on any of the items. The focus was on fermented vegetables versus offerings like fish cakes or potato salad. As for the assorted pancakes, there was zucchini, jalapeno, and a potato mix that were each pan-fried. The fried rice at the end of the meal was probably unnecessary because we were quite full. The base consisted of rice, seaweed, and gochujang sauce. Our server took some of the banchan and leftover grilled meat and mixed it together with the rice. She told us to let it cook until a crust had formed on the rice.The cost will be reflective of the high quality proteins and top notch service. If you want a Korean BBQ experience that differs from the typical AYCE model, then try SOT BBQ as we graded our dinner at a five star level.

Came here on a Friday afternoon after work. Parking was difficult. This place is in the same strip mall as Turners, Daiso, and Cheetahs. We didnt have reservations but we were seated right away as they just opened. Before we left, the restaurant was packed. We ordered the SOT sampler with an order of mixed veggies. Food was delicious. Meats were very good quality. They were all very tender. Our sampler included an egg soufflé. Their bonchons were very good. Servers cook for you, which was hard to not take over and cook myself. I would definitely come back here.

Sot Bbq just opened a week ago and we came to try it. The meat quality is very good! We tried the Sot sampler as the waiter recommended for our group of 4. He also recommended the garlic short rib, so we also got that. Lastly we also ordered the fried rice. The service is friendly. We had different waiters that came by to help cook the meat for us. I feel like they are still in training and/or still fine tuning some things. For example, I wish they would tell us when something is done and ready to eat, not everyone knows when to pull it off the grill. They also put kimchi, bean sprouts, oyster mushroom and one asparagus on the grill but we didn't touch it because we didn't know if it was for the fried rice later and when we finally asked, they were like oh yeah you can eat it and finally cut the kimchi into smaller pieces for us- but if we hadn't asked... it would have just sat there all night. For the pork belly, I wish they had cut it into smaller pieces for us. One last thing was that our hot plate was sitting flat so the oil was collecting on the opposite side of the hole where it's supposed to drip down. When the oil got really hot, it started splashing and popping up. They came with napkins to soak up the oil, but this shouldn't happen in the first place. After this happened, then they offered me and my friend aprons- they reminded us to ask for the aprons next time. But, I feel like they should be the ones to initiate first and provide aprons for us especially if there's going to be splashing hot oil. I did like matcha salt and wine salt that they provided for everyone. Eating the meat with wasabi is also super delicious. The space inside was really nicely decorated and there's a lot of space for many parties. It's still early days but I'm hoping that they can handle the ramp up when more people come to enjoy the korean bbq. It was yummy and I plan to come back again and try it again in a month or two when they've got their kinks all worked out and it's a well-oiled machine.

It's a first time to visit here for a soft opening . I feel like I'm gonna be regular here. You don't have to grill it by yourselfHighly recommend !Fancy and modern:)

AYCE Korean BBQ joints are dime a dozen in San Diego; I bet there is one within a reasonable driving distance from your house! While they do the job when my fat ass is priorizing quantity over quality, Sot BBQ offers something different to the San Diego market. It's located in the same area as one of San Diego's shining crown jewel - Cheetah's Gentleman's Club.Let's get one thing out of the way first - this place is not cheap! But you shouldn't come here looking to nickel and dime your dining experience. You should eat here for a unique Korean BBQ dining unlike any other in San Diego. The quality of the meat is top-notch; I've been fortunate enough to dine at some of the best steakhouses in the country, and Sot BBQ is on par with any of them. The claypot-thingy for grilling is awesome for collecting meat juices for your veggies. The service was great, as they do all the cooking for you as well.Parking can get tough at times but nothing too bad compared to other restaurants in the Kearny Mesa Area.Last but not least, don't touch the top of the grill like I did and burn yourself. It's not a handle.

Hey! I just had to share my incredible experience at a new K BBQ spot in San Diego. After dealing with a bunch of mediocre all-you-can-eat places lately, I usually hit up LA or Orange County for better quality. But when I heard about this new place, I didn't expect much, just thought I'd give it a shot. Wow, was I blown away! They had Wagyu and premium-quality meat with perfect marbling and incredible freshness.The atmosphere is modern and clean, and I loved the cast iron pan they use--it holds and distributes heat so well, keeping the meat juicy and crispy! I've been there a few times with friends, but today I took my family to celebrate my mom's birthday. We ordered the Wagyu plate, a Sot plate, and my dad's favorite prime beef "kkotsal." They even offer fresh wasabi, which is a must-have with beef tongue. My kids and niece fell in love with their marinated kalbi.After devouring all that meat, we finished with cold noodles and fried rice, which were seriously amazing. It's not the cheapest place, but honestly, you get what you pay for. My whole family was so happy with this choice for my mom's birthday--it was a perfect celebration for full bellies! You have to check it out; you'll thank me later!