London’s best Korean restaurants

A regular favourite for cheap, rib-sticking renditions of (you guessed it) bibimbap, this likeable joint is all bright colours, happy snaps and Ikea-style furniture. Eleven varieties of the hot stone-bowl rice classic are on offer (including five for veggies) – all you need to do is stir in the fiery gochujang sauce and soya bean paste.

Brave the line to find this Korean gem in Covent Garden. Once you make it inside, your best bet is to grab the godly combo of grilled meat and soju, with the samgyeopsal (pork belly) and LA Galbi (beef ribs) house favourite. 

As elegant as a Korean BBQ opposite the Coach and Horses on Greek Street can be. The grill, operated by buttons at the side of the table, is the star attraction here, cooking up curled wafers of beef brisket, a marinated blanket of short rib and, best of all, a prime slab of rib eye. Each piece of meat was seared, fussed over, trimmed, flipped and lovingly squished. Everything is served with its own punchy dipping sauce. Nothing disappoints.

It’s still nigh on impossible to get into this Korean/Japanese hybrid, but – it’s worth persisting. Well-prepared and well-priced dishes include buchu jeon (chive pancakes), bokkeumbap (stir-fried rice with toppings), yukgejang (a spicy beef stewpot) and specialities from the Korean barbecue.

Just over the road from fellow Korean restaurant Jihwaja, Daebak is worth a punt if you don’t want a side order of karaoke with your kimchi. Occupying what was once a greasy spoon, it still feels like caff, but prices are low, portions large and flavours are bang-on. ‘Daebak’ is Korean for ‘awesome’. It’s not far off. 

It’s hard to know where the restaurant starts and the karaoke stops at this warren-like Korean joint on Kennington Lane – still, the food’s pretty decent. Massive steaming bowls of sticky lip-smacking fried chicken (a whole bird) vie with delicate dumplings and a killer crossover dish of cheese ramen – utterly filthy.

Given its sandwich-bar set-up, you’ll be surprised by the vats of punchy kimchi flying out to hungry workers who come here for lunch to go. The spicy Korean soups have real depth of flavour, but everything is carefully prepared. Best of all, prices are really affordable – wellbeing for your wallet.

There’s usually always a queue outside this popular Soho joint, which offers casual Korean dining in a lively canteen environment. Hot pots and bibimbab are your go-to options here, which you can find on Assa’s pleasingly epic menu. 

Capacious, low-lit and sleek without being imposing, Kimchee flaunts its poshed-up wood-latticed Korean charms on Pancras Square. Food-wise, we particularly like the ugeoji galbitang (beef rib and cabbage soup), the stir-fried pork with tofu, and the thick udon noodles topped with fried chicken.

Playful neon squiggles dangle from the ceiling, there’s a low-key buzz of Korean hip hop and the fusion menu’s full of dishes calculated to make you smile: matcha-dusted soft-serve cones served on special wire holders, cocktails with Yakult toppings or cubes of jelly lurking in their depths. It’s all the handiwork of chefs Ana Gonçalves and Zijun Meng (the forces behind mould-breaking Haggerston joint Tata Eatery), who’ve turned the top floor of Soho’s Kingly Court into a dimly lit palace of accessible culinary invention. Their loose inspiration is LA’s Koreatown, whose Mexican and Korean residents dream up delicious hybrid fast foods.

Koba remains one of the stronger players on the West End Korean scene. Barbecue meats are well marinated and grilled at the table – choose from beef kalbi, bulgogi and more besides. Stews make a sound choice too, with umami-rich stocks and accompanying bowls of pearly rice.

It might sound like a fitting end to a night on the lash, but ‘on the bab’ has nothing to do with picking up something from a kebab shop. Instead, it refers to the Korean word for rice – bab, or bap – and there’s plenty of it on this menu. The menu here features Korean-style fried chicken in spicy sauce and steamed meat-stuffed buns. 

Don’t be fooled by the dull decor and hotel lounge muzak: this Korean barbecue restaurant is the real deal, with bulgogi and other meaty items grilled on hotplates built into each table. Fancy something raw? Try the classic yuk hwae (Korea’s answer to steak tartare, infused with fresh pear). Go on, make your own fun.