22 Best Restaurants in USA

Nestled into a dingy strip mall, this Korean powerhouse is given away by the lines of locals waiting outside. Once inside, scents of grilled meats and kimchi immediately fill your nostrils, and soon enough, your table will be littered with sides, kalbi beef, dolsot bibimbap, wang bosam (cabbage wraps with boiled pork), and tall bottles of Hite beer. A buzzer at the table allows you to alert the waiter for when you’re done, and you’ll be pleasantly surprised by the bill.

Tradition and creativity strike a smart balance at this polished Korean restaurant. The menu leans bold, with a dozen inventive small plates—most famously the fried rice tinted with squid ink and topped with bacon, kimchi, and a quail egg—and larger entrees of steak and seafood kissed by a wood-fired grill. Even the more adventurous dishes land on the right side of delicious, and the warm, attentive service keeps the experience relaxed rather than fussy. The dining room’s mix of marble and dark wood feels both modern and grounded, fitting for its sleek South Lake Union address at the base of an Amazon office tower.

With an irreverent name and somewhat remote suburban location in the District retail-dining center in South Jordan, this contemporary post-industrial space pulls in ardent fans of Korean food from points far and near. Once you've tucked into a plate of kalbi flame-grilled short ribs, beef bulgogi, fusion-style garlic-ginger tacos with Asian slaw, or a Korean fried shrimp po'boy slathered in house sweet-and-sour sauce, you'll understand what all the fuss is about. There's a second location in Cottonwood Heights.

Anju, the reinvention of chef Danny Lee's Mandu, serves unique takes on Korean classics with mainstays such as succulent seared galbi (short rib) with Bibb lettuce and perilla leaves, as well as—in an homage to its old name—mandu (dumplings). Many of Anju's recipes come from Lee's mom, chef Yesoon Lee, who you can sometimes spot on-site, and, since opening in 2019, it has dominated the best restaurant lists of local publications and bloggers.

The minimalist concrete space and Ikea-ish tables and chairs might lack gravitas, but the beautifully plated, delicious food shows where Atoboy is focusing its energy. The four-course ($75), small-dish tasting-menu concept lets you sample a range of the kitchen's creative Korean flavors.

Famed Los Angeles chef Roy Choi debuted in Las Vegas with this lively concept inside Park MGM serving Korean BBQ as well as a panoply of favorites from Choi's Koreatown experience. While a DJ spins tunes at a turntable in the corner, the meal starts with a sampling of banchan: tiny dishes that include kimchi, broccoli, cucumbers, spinach, and more. From there, try the slippery shrimp, the kimchi fried rice, the kogi short rib tacos, and the pork belly hot pot. Service is family style, meant for sharing. Decor brings to mind a colorful stop at a food truck. Before you leave, be sure to peruse the shelves at the working convenience store out front.

Korean and Japanese dishes here are deeply rooted in Asia and Maine: the chef's Korean mother founded the restaurant in 2002, and spices for the kimchi are grown at the family's local homestead. On summer nights, dining on the wide front porch—lit by torches, candles, and strung lights—is delightful, but the lively storm-blue dining rooms are also inviting, and perfect for a post-ski meal. Sometimes there’s a bit of a wait for food, but as Cho Sun’s website notes, “We take pride in all of our entrees being made to order.” Diners can imbibe cold or hot sake as well as Asian-theme craft cocktails like the "saketini" (yes, with sake) and Maine craft brews.

This ever-popular specialist in kalbijjim, a Korean braised beef short rib soup, is set in an industrial-feeling space, with serene images of mountains on the walls. Each soup is large enough to feed a small family and comes with a choice of toppings, like rice cakes or oozing cheese (melted tableside, it's an Instagram sensation). Be prepared to wait at peak times.

Amid a contemporary rustic space with exposed brick walls, an assortment of wooden tables, and framed pictures and housewares on shelves, this popular Korean restaurant specializes home-style Korean cooking, with a pictorial menu reflecting the look and feel of a magazine. It is broken down into small plates, meat dishes, hot pots, rice and noodles, and dessert. In coining the term "Korean soul food," this homey atmosphere encourages a lingering meal with loved ones, perhaps starting with crispy pancakes with shrimp or hot peppers, followed by a thinly-sliced grilled bulgogi. The pot selections, including a vegetable option, are flavorful. The full-bar offers cocktails including a honey crisp bekseju (Korean rice wine) and sojus infused with such flavors as lavender or mint.

Many restaurants have come and gone from this corner location, but it seems this lauded Korean spot, with its tall windows, wood tables, and modern lighting, will be boiling noodles and simmering broths for a while. Specializing in Korean ramen, called ramyun, Jeju concocts spicy deliciousness in a bowl, producing cauldrons filled with smooth, rich veal broth bobbing with tender brisket and Wagyu, among other specialties. The chef worked in the kitchens of Bouley, Nobu, and Per Se; you can tell with the first slurp he has the skill to thrill.

Married chef-owners Rachel Yang and Seif Chirchi have wowed Seattle diners with their French-fusion spins on Asian cuisine. Joule's nouvelle take on a Korean steak house serves meat options like Wagyu bavette steak with truffled pine nuts and short rib with Kalbi and grilled kimchi. Nonmeat menu items include Chinese broccoli with walnut pesto and mackerel with green curry cilantro crust and black currant.

For the UW version of a classic student-friendly, no-frills restaurant, it’s hard to beat Korean Tofu House. In an unadorned basement dining room, the hardworking crew serves up hearty, delicious, reasonably priced Korean specialties, including kimchee tofu soup, bibimbap, and bulgogi. Though "tofu" is in the name and features prominently, most dishes have some meat in them; vegetarians should read the fine print.

The once gritty area in central Baltimore called Midtown has buoyed in recent years by development efforts led by the University of Baltimore as well as several restaurants and stores catering to the city's burgeoning Korean community. Nam Kang is the oldest and best of the eateries in this area, increasingly called Little Korea (Nak Won, around the corner on 20th Street, is also excellent). Ornate, clean decor greets you, along with a series of complimentary, shared appetizers, including pickled veggies, edamame (soy beans), and kimchi. From there, all of the traditional Korean specialties are on offer, bibimbap, bulgogi, and barbecue—and all are excellent. The noodle soups, like the very spicy seafood-filled samsung jampong, are a sinus-clearing delight. Open late.

Worthy Korean barbecue will draw you in to this longtime favorite, but be sure to explore the full menu to find the other authentic Korean dishes that also draw crowds from morning through midnight, and then early into the next morning. This casual spot has tile floors and wooden chairs and tables, and the tables have charcoal-fueled grills for extra sizzle on meats and garnishes. Jjigae (Korean stews), bibimbap, scallion and kimchi pancakes, and other Korean fare round out this hit K-town menu.

Korean for "please come in," this Korean restaurant has a chic, organic atmosphere complete with an inviting garden courtyard. Dinner menus include traditional and nontraditional dishes "inspired by mom's recipes," from bibimbap to the comforting kimchi bokkeumbap, alongside wood-grilled bulgogi and japchae. An expanded lunch, weekend brunch, and kids' menu is very accommodating for families.

If you need to take a break from a museum without straying too far, check out Rice Bar, a fast-casual Korean restaurant located a block away from the Air and Space museum. The restaurant specializes in bibimbap, a Korean rice bowl dish usually topped with savory marinated beef, gochujang (chili pepper paste), and sautéed vegetables. The eatery allows customization of the bowls and offers vegetarian and vegan options like tofu and egg protein choices. Aside from the rice bowls, they offer a wide selection of soups with classic Korean flavors like kimchi, spicy kalbi, and tofu. 

A lychee-wood charcoal grill in the open kitchen is the star of this excellent contemporary Korean dining destination. Most of the menu is similar to its Korean barbecue peers but given a little twist—homemade soondae (blood sausage) adorns green-onion pancakes and unique banchan (side dishes) like jellyfish and hot mustard. The modern wood-and-concrete-accented room is always bustling and split between counter seats overlooking the grill and generously sized tables.

Chef Chris Cho grew up around his family's Korean restaurant of the same name, still a staple restaurant in the North Philly neighborhood of Olney. In 2018, he opened his own spot on Spruce Street, where the menu is a mix of classic Korean foods like bibimbap, budae jigae (a rich spicy stew), and japchae (springy, stir-fried sweet potato noodles), and more new-school items inspired by his childhood in Philadelphia's Korean community like General CHO chicken, a play on that Chinese-American staple, General Tso's chicken. Seorabol uses Korean gochujang (a spicy red chili paste) to add a spicy kick to the dish. There's also a full bar serving beer, wine, and cocktails.

If you're looking for a more relaxed scene, head a couple of blocks south of Rittenhouse Square to find local beers and approachable cocktails paired with Korean-inspired bar food like a Seoul hot chicken sandwich, dolsot bibimbap, and crispy Brussels sprouts. Friday and Saturday nights are busy, so it's best to call ahead or make a reservation and, if possible, take advantage of the outdoor seating in nice weather.

This straightforward local restaurant not only has one of the best restaurant names in the borough, but they're serving up some of the tastiest fried chicken in New York. UFC serves organic, humanely raised birds, fried crisp, spicy, and addictive with soy, garlic, or hot sauce. Other items on the menu include spicy pork bulgogi empanadas, beef bulgogi burgers, and good ol' cheese fries, but crispy chicken paired with one of the many craft beers on tap is a foolproof move here.