K-Top Korean BBQ is putting a little ceremony around the grill in Temecula. The all-you-can-eat restaurant at 27464 Jefferson Avenue has announced an October 30 grand-opening celebration, including a spin-to-win giveaway with prizes that the restaurant says include a 70-inch television. It is a celebration of the business, not necessarily its first day serving customers; K-Top’s announcement makes that distinction worth keeping straight.
The other reason to pay attention is the menu. K-Top has laid out an unusually clear set of AYCE choices, starting with a $24.99 lunch special offered Monday through Thursday from 11:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. The three all-day options are Regular at $33.99, Select at $42.99 and Premium at $52.99, according to the restaurant’s published menu. The lunch deal is separate from the three principal tiers.
Regular reaches into beef, pork, chicken and seafood. The menu names beef brisket, beef belly, signature bulgogi, several pork-belly preparations, pork jowl, chicken and spicy squid. Select adds choices such as LA galbi and beef tongue; Premium calls out chuck flap and marinated or unmarinated short ribs. Those are the sorts of differences that make choosing a tier an actual table discussion, not just an exercise in finding the largest price.
The banchan bar has a second act
Then there is the self-service side of the operation. K-Top’s official menu lists corn cheese, steamed eggs, soft tofu soup, pumpkin porridge, kimchi pancake, dumplings, japchae, tteokbokki, vegetable tempura, fish cakes, fried rice and kimchi, along with vegetables and sauces. It is considerably more than a refrigerated row of pickles. The hot dishes mean there is something to revisit while the next batch of meat cooks.
All diners at a table must select the same AYCE tier, the restaurant specifies a two-hour dining limit, and at least two adults are required per table. Children four and younger are free; ages five through eight are charged half of the adult price. K-Top also notes a fee for unfinished food. None of these details is exotic in the AYCE Korean barbecue world, but having them available in advance saves a few surprises at the host stand.
K-Top lists daily hours of 11:30 a.m. to 10 p.m. Its general hours listing mentions weekday lunch through Friday, while the price-specific $24.99 offer says Monday through Thursday; diners looking for that particular deal should follow the narrower published offer or confirm directly. Walk-ins are welcome, and the site points guests to a waitlist option.
For enthusiasts, the story is less about the giveaway wheel than the combination of named meat cuts, clearly stated tiers and a banchan bar with plenty of cooked dishes. The television may go home with one lucky guest. Everyone else still gets to decide how many rounds of pork belly make a proper celebration.
