Ssambap Korean BBQ

A surprise find in Stony Brook way out in Suffolk County of Long Island where I rarely travel to. Dropped by there after playing golf and had some Kalbi and Japanese beers. Kalbi was excellent as with all the condiments that came with it. This authentic Korean BBQ place is a gem. I am definitely going there the next time I am in that part of Long Island.

tasty, quick service

This is the best Korean food I’ve ever had! It may be the only Korean food I’ve ever had in my life so far, but I am sure this place is one of the best in New York/​Long Island. This place has broadened my palate, and placed Korean food as my favorite cuisine. I love EVERYTHING I’ve ever eaten here, even when I wasn’t sure what to expect. I’ve only known of this place for 2 years now, but have visited a dozen times, and always take our friends visiting from out of town. I love the grill tables where you get to make your own ssam.
Maybe it’s just easier to list all the delicious food I’ve had and would suggest to everyone:
Kimchi or Seafood Pajeon
Dak Gui
Spicy Chicken (Gochujang)
Kimchi Sundubu
Kimchi Dolsot (Bibimbap)
Jajangmyeon — My favorite!
All the banchan!
I’ve not tried any of the beef or pork dishes, but all my friends that have tried them, have raved about them.
The only downside to this place is that it is so far away from where I live. It takes me an hour to drive in each direction and the amount of time we spend eating is on average 30 – 60 minutes or so, (depending on how many people we’re with.) BUT it’s totally worth it, in my opinion. I usually take home some food so I get some future sustenance out of our long trip.

This is at least good to average for Korean restaurant in Suffolk county especially near Stony Brook University.
Foods are always going to be better in Queens, but this is at least reasonable to get when you live in Suffolk and you want Korean food right away.

An excellent Korean BBQ place. The food is comparable to Korean BBQ in Seoul, and the staff is friendly and works quickly. The restaurant itself is very open and, when I’ve been there, busy, so the ambiance is lively and enjoyable. Prices are pretty high, but justified by the number of excellent menu options and great service.

I am obsessed with Koran BBQ and this place is the best around! I’ve never had anything bad. Their Bulgolgi is amazing! The stone bowls are also great.
The BBQ tables are fun but can be difficult if some in your party have food allergies or preferences. I went with a party of 4 consisting of one vegetarian and one person who could not have soy. The server spread marinated meat all over the grill which was difficult for them so be wary of the BBQ table if you are aware of those kinds of issues in your dinning party. If not, then it is a really good time.
PS– do not order the house tea made from barley. It tastes like drinking a burlap sack. Green tea all the way!

Randomly found this place for lunch. This food, service and vibe was awesome. The taste is pretty close to traditional. If you had Korean in NYC, this place can beat quite a few. Too bad its in LI. If you are allergic to MSG, no worries.

Great authentic Korean BBQ! A little pricey but we only go occasionally. Love it!

This restaurant is closed on Monday! Why don’t u post the time list on here! I went there on Monday, and it was closed! R U KIDDING ME!!!

It’s more of a gimmick than a good meal. That’s not to say the food wasn’t great, but when i left, I wasn’t thinking «I NEED TO GO BACK!»
They bring raw meat over to your table, and turn on a little grill in the center of the table. It’s on you to cook it yourself.
When it’s done, you may end up thinking the same thing we did ‘So… umm… do we tip? I mean, we cooked the food ourselves, right?’ (we tipped)
It more or less a pretty different take on a Hibachi, where you’re going out more for the experience than the food.
But the food was tasty, but there wasn’t as much as I would have hoped for.

Service was not so great for a quiet Tuesday night.
For apps we had the seafood pancake. It was tender and not over cooked like many I’ve had in other places.
We ordered the duck, bulgogi and veggie mix. Marinated were very mild. Nothing to write about really. For side we had the buckwheat noodles (sorry, the Korean spelling escapes me at the moment). That was delicious.
The waiter was friendly but didn’t attend to us much. It was 7pm when we arrived. It took more than 20 min before we were ask about drinks then another 20 min plus to order. There were maybe 4 tables at the time. The food came fairly quickly. Waiter started the BBQ the left and came back once. The meats were almost over cooked then I decided to take over. He walked passed a couple of times, saw me doing all the work and never stopped by again until it was time to clear.
Bad…very very bad!

Their food is pretty tasty, but for the price they charge they don’t put nearly as much meat and offer as much banchan as they should! If you’re coming on the weekend, don’t worry about manning the grill and overcooking your meat, because they’ll grill for you. My group of 5 ordered kalbi for $ 30 and each got 2 – 3 small pieces. The seafood pancake is pretty worth it for $ 8 because city prices are usually $ 12. However, we got 6 pieces here and in the city you get 8 that are slightly thicker. The sauce for the pancake was on point though. I would definitely recommend this and japchae for delicious appetizers that help fill you up if you’re not looking to spend too much.
If you order anything with meat and you’re sharing, expect there to be some competition for those scraps. I really liked the kimchi and they’re nice about refilling banchan for you. I would definitely come back for their lunch specials because they’re extremely affordable for ~$ 10 – 12 each. Otherwise, would not be coming back unless it’s for something special!

Went here with the bf a few weeks ago for the first time. It was definitely a fun and different experience for us. The food was good, we were just slightly confused at first. I could tell there was definitely a cultural boundary between us and the waitress. She was nice, just didn’t understand much of what we were saying. She may have also been new, not sure.
But that didn’t take away from the experience or the food. I’d definitely go again! We got the duck and the chicken. Both were delicious. And we left full :-)

Quite a solid Korean restaurant out here in Suffolk County. I don’t think its particularly memorable compared to the many many Korean restaurants out in Flushing or in the city but certainly a much shorter trek for those that live farther out on the Island. Quite an authentic Korean food experience.
Decided to try out this place on a cold Saturday night and was promptly seated as it was not overly crowded. They do have separate tables for BBQs as the grilles are built-​in which you often see at Korean BBQ places. I personally wanted some hot soup to warm me up so we didn’t try out their bbq menu. I did like how clean and new the place looked. I should have paid more attention to the fish tanks that I’ve seen other people posted, definitely adds quite a nice ambiance to the dining experience.
Had a chance to try out their Beef broth and Tofu Soup. Out of the two I would definitely recommend the Soon Doo Boo (Tofu Soup). Tofu was quite silky smooth and the spices were just enough to not make it overwhelming. I would have liked the beef broth soup to be bit higher temperature I think it was a bit lukewarm when they brought it out. Also I didn’t see in their menu that they had Samgyetan (Chicken soup) but saw it on their chalkboard menu as I was leaving. A bit disappointing that it wasn’t mentioned on the menus but perhaps they only have it during the cold weathers.
The banchans were pretty decent but nothing too spectacular. I personally like fish tofus that sadly they didn’t have in their line up.
Definitely a place to go if you’re locate close to the area. I would think it gets quite a number of patrons from SBU since its nearby.

Just went here with my boyfriend for Valentine’s Day. It was our first time to a place ever like this and we will definitely be back. Our waiter Bobby did a great job teaching us how it all worked. Extremely reasonable prices as well, for two people to have an appetizer, BBQ duck with all the trimmings for the main course and ice cream to finish was only about $ 50. Such a fun experience! The red bean ice cream was delicious. It wasn’t crazy busy but tables were filled and it felt spacious and had a low noise level. The décor was beautiful and the fish tank on the back wall was stunning. The bathrooms were also very clean and nicely decorated! Will definitely be back!

Ssambap is the best Korean restaurant you’ll find for at least a 15 mile radius. That being said, compared to Korean restaurants in an area like Flushing, the prices are a bit high and the food is a bit sub-​par.
If you come during lunch and have a lunch special, they are slightly more affordable, between ~$ 10 and ~$ 18 for your entrée, rice, and banchan (pickled sides). If you get yakiniku (bbq) at lunch or dinner, it can be quite expensive and the portions are a little on the smaller side.
I usually order Yukgaejang for the lunch special and it satisfies my cravings. However, if time and distance wasn’t a problem, I would definitely head to Flushing.

Normally when we go to this restaurant, it is your normal Korean sit down where the food arrives and you cook it. Tonight, our waitress cooked our food for not only us, but for all of the tables she was working. This was truly a great service! The marinade on the Kalbi was tasty and the side dishes selection were average. Because of the service, I will continue to come here for dinner or lunch!

This place has always been hit or miss for me. They focus on a specific style of KBBQ – ssambap, which are lettuce wraps for you to put meat, rice, and sauce into before eating. The quality of their lettuce tends to be pretty good and fresh, so if you’re a fan of this kind of Korean food, you should definitely check this place out. Their bean paste is okay; sometimes it pairs with the food really well and sometimes you just don’t want to use it.
However, when I go for KBBQ the meat is all I care about, and it tends to be pretty inconsistent here. I’ve been here probably 4 – 5 times in my life, and the only reason why I’d go back would be because my friends want KBBQ, and this is the only place around. Having been to KBBQ restaurants in various Koreatowns, I can safely say that this place is a cut below for me. The meat, while sometimes good, has never been memorable to me. Therefore, the somewhat expensive options here end up being not worth it at all in my opinion.
Service here is also inconsistent. If you don’t know what you’re doing, and it’s obvious, they’ll probably help you out a lot (i.e. do all of the cooking for you. They err on the side of getting involved, which isn’t a bad thing, but for how often they’re at your table, they don’t tend to take stock of things like water and banchan as well. With that said, the banchan they give you is pretty generous, so that’s always a plus when I go.
At the end of the day, nothing here is bad, but the cost of having a great meal here is just too high to leave a great taste in your mouth.

Definitely not you usual dinner but loved it!
I had the bone in rib eye. It tasted a lot like teriyaki chicken which was cool because I like that flavor.
I thought it was cool that we got to cook the food ourselves and liked it even more that the waiter assisted us ALOT so we didn’t burn up the food.
The side dishes that came with the food was odd but had an authentic Korean cuisine feel. There were things like fermented cabbage, cucumbers, lettuce, bean thread, rice, horseradish.
Overall the food was good. Also made me feel like I was eating healthy. I will be back again to try more selections and have the chefs cook for me this time lol

Our server stated that the nearest Korean BBQ was Flushing, so I guess it’s the only game in town. Went for dinner during the weekend of the NEWSS soccer showcase in nearby Stony Brook University.
We asked for a barbecue table, ordered some Obi beer (good, ice cold), fried veggie mandoo (came in a green wrapper, okay) and jap chae, which was not bad.
Soon the accompaniments arrived, not a lot of selection (maybe six plates?) kimchee, pickled radish, bean sprouts, pickled tofu and carrots, the usual lettuce and bean curd paste.
We had 2 orders of the Premium Kalbi ($ 4 more than the regular) and was excellent, very flavorful and marinated to perfection. The server started us off with one serving and never returned and I didn’t know we had to continue cooking ourselves. This wasn’t a big deal — but I think they should’ve said something. We usually go to the Korean place in Fort Lee and NYC, and they cook all of the BBQ for you.
We’s spoiled when it comes to Korean BBQ, so bcause this place had excellent Kalbi, worth going if you’re in the area and craving for Korean food.