Texans can’t get enough of K-BBQ at Paik Jong-won’s U.S. Saemaeul restaurant

Korean barbecue is finding a growing audience in Texas, where a restaurant run by celebrity restaurateur Paik Jong-won’s TheBorn Korea says its average monthly sales have risen about 70 percent since its first year.

The restaurant, a Carrollton location of the company’s Saemaeul chain, opened in September 2023. Its sales also rose about 38 percent last year compared to the year before, TheBorn Korea said Wednesday.

 The company attributed the growth to local interest in Korean-style dining, where customers grill meat at the table and eat it with Korean stew menus and side dishes.

The restaurant drew attention online last month after a video showing long lines and reactions from local customers was posted on travel YouTube channel Youngalnam, which has 1.21 million subscribers. The video has drawn more than 519,000 views as of Thursday. 

The restaurant’s interior resembles a typical barbecue spot in Korea. In the video, diners fill the tables, grilling meat and drinking. Each table displays a placard introducing the chain’s founder, Paik.

“It’s amazing to see a K-barbecue restaurant doing this well,” the YouTuber said. “It feels like I’m eating in Hongdae [a neighborhood in Mapo District, western Seoul known for its vibrant dining scene and nightlife].”

After ordering samgyeopsal (pork belly) and kimchi jjigae (kimchi stew) with an acquaintance, the YouTuber praised the food.

“The side dishes are good, and the vegetables are fresh,” he said. “The food tastes great.”

The restaurant’s distinctly Korean concept also stood out to him.

“I’m curious how foreigners will respond to this kind of K-culture,” he said.

The YouTuber asked a staff member in the restaurant about the wait and was told that the queue had reached over 100 people.

“It’s [late at] night and there’s still a line,” the YouTuber said after seeing the crowd outside.

Known as Saemaeul Sikdang in Korea, the chain also operates overseas. Its 14 restaurants in Thailand averaged about 100 million won ($76,000) in monthly sales per location last year. It opened two locations in Mongolia in the first half of this year.

BY JANG GU-SEUL [[email protected]]