Yakiniku LuLuRaRa

Visited during off hours and were treated like family! We enjoyed lunch on a Sunday afternoon and were treated very well! The owner explained everything and cooked for us as well! The Kalbi and ahn Chang were amazing; well seasoned and so tender. The house made Kim chi was great! Highly recommend for lunch or dinner! Will visit again soon!

We walked in here on off hours (literally, they had the a/​c off) but were welcomed in. We sat down, got menus and put in a request for Korean BBQ while aware it may only be offered at dinner. Our server (also owner I believe) complied. We ordered a ton! I told her I only eat seafood and no meat and the chef sent some special dishes out. Whole fried fish which you eat whole and an egg dish cooked in a pot. I also enjoyed the various sides including the salad, kimchi and miso. I ate so much. Really delicious and they really went out of their way to ensure we had a great meal. Since we were the only customers the server stayed and cooked for us.
I really loved the Korean channel which played a lot of amusing programs while we were there.
Definitely recommend this gem of Honolulu — I’ll be back.

Lulurara is right on Keeaumoku across the street from the Mcdonalds. There’s a parking lot right behind it. It’s a fairly small restaurant with a homey feeling to it. Food quality is pretty good here. If i had to compare it to somewhere I would say the food is similar to Sorabol and so are the prices (A bit on the pricey side). I had the Ahnchang and the Kalbi and they were both good. We got there early and were the only ones eating there for a good portion of our meal so we had great service.

Chanel No. 5? Creed Aventus? Nope. Want someone running their fingers hungerally through your hair, their cheek pressed against your chest inhaling deeply as the pull on your shirt threatening to tear it open? A tip, nothing attracts a possible mate like the smell of grilled beef and pork.
Primal? Perhaps, but come on, nothing satisfies quite like grilled animal. Yakinaku LuLuRaRa delivers.
Before raising expectations too high, realize this is not Japanese yakiniku. No A5 branded wagyu beef, no kurabuta pork cooked over blazing hot embers. Neither does it come close to the supreme greatness of LA K-Town’s best (Genwa, Soowon, or Eight KBBQ) with their 20 types of banchan, long list of specialty cuts or USDA prime beef.
LuLuRaRa’s forte, providing a solid, authentic and fun KBBQ experience in an intimate setting. No intimidation factor for the KBBQ noob.
The proteins (in English): Kalbi and boneless short rib, gently marinated with a hint of sweetened soy lets the natural flavor of the tender beef shine, tongue, sliced thicker than most, firm but yielding salted and finished with lemon showcasing clean beefy flavor, skirt, also lightly marinated beefy goodness, brisket, firmer as it should be with tasty fat, finally the pork belly, very fatty but if cooker right, crisp and oh so good.
Requisite KBBQ sides. Greens are always fresh. No complaints.
Service with a smile but sometimes sporadic. Understand that this is a small, about 25 seats, seemingly two person operation. You may have to cook your own food at times. All good, especially if you prefer your beef on the rare side.
Not a AYCE but portions and prices are reasonable.
Solid. Enhanced aromatic attractiveness an added bonus.

This is a mom and pop yakiniku bar/​restaurant. Every time I’ve come the same ajima has been working. Super friendly and really kind, when time permits she likes to chit chat with everyone. Being a small mom and pop, they really take pride in serving the best quality and amazingly seasoned food. You really can’t go wrong with any of the grilled meats. The best part is their miso paste which they make themselves… I highly recommend this place for your yakiniku fix.

Great quality meats! Good portions! Cool K-​mama host! Great service! Functional yakiniku setup! Best price! I’m in!
This is my favorite yakiniku spot! No tiny plates with five pieces here! K-​mama even cooks and cuts for you if can.
I know my meat. This is good meat. Cut at just the right thickness to be appetizing to the eye but also cook fairly fast. What’s great is you don’t get smoke blowing towards you, cooking you too. Each grill has an overhead suction.
With your meat comes banchan, rice (ask), seasoned lettuce, grilled fish, and steamed egg as freebies! Everything was tasty and fresh. We all left satisfied and full.
LOCATION — located on Keeaumoku next to Ireh and the new Seafood Market.
PARKING — there’s street parking along Keeaumoku and limited parking in the back.
I look forward to returning!

Daughters were craving Korean BBQ, we’ve been to several places around town, most of them good to excellent but we wanted to try somewhere new so of to LuLuRaRa for a Friday night dinner. Funny thing. the night before the girls tried making their own version of jjajangmyun. they tried very hard, spent hours on it following a recipe. not actually having it before it was hard for me to judge how successful they were. As soon as we sat down, we saw it on the menu so had to order it for comparison purposes.
Food: Being hungry, we ordered the jjajangmyun, beef tongue, pork belly, and kalbi. The jjajangmyun must be good here, the table next to us had an order of it as well. The noodle dish was excellent (or at least I thought so never having had it before), we polished it off quickly as our meats were sizzling on the grill. Banchan consisted of fried fish, kim chee, daikon, seasoned lettuce, this egg dish, and more lettuce to wrap the meat in. Dipping sauces, fresh garlic on the grill, there was so much going on on our table with empty plates being taken away, new dishes arriving, that the meal went by quickly. Everything was delicious, I mean who doesn’t like a little tongue wrapped in lettuce and dipped in a tasty sauce!
Service: No frills, korean mamasan service which is the best. I got scolded a couple times for not paying attention to the food on the grill which the girls loved. The mamasan was great, there was one other person that was bringing food out from the back and clearing dishes so a very small operation but we didn’t have to wait long for anything.
Atmosphere: Small hole in the wall place with room for maybe 25 people? Not a large space but large enough for two people to run efficiently. They aren’t all high end fancy like some of the other bbq places we’ve been to recently nor are they trying to be. Good folks serving good food is what this place is about.
Value: Good value though the prices for the Yakiniku may be a few dollars more than some other places, the amount of extra dishes you get with it more than make up for it.
Overall: Loved and would (and will) come back in the future. One warning, you will smell like your meal when you leave. but hey. smelling like yummy bbq isn’t the worst smell you could carry on you right!

Ever since leaving Korea, I’ve been craving the foreal jjajangmyun. and I found it here! Its SOOOO good. They give a lot so for me its easily 2 meals.
The bbq here is excellent too. The meat isn’t over marinated and the sides are very fresh and tasty. They give gyeranjjim (steamed egg) too!
I highly recommend this place. closest thing to being in Korea!

Sooo consistent! You must try the ahn chang which is filet mignon sliced and grilled to perfection. This place has great service by the owner and she is very nice. The grilled fish is a bonus which is a banchan (side dish).
This place gets the Double TSong approval!

I was craving some Korean BBQ and this place definitely satisfied my craving! It’s a yummy hole in the wall. We were going to go to 678, but it was too crowded, so I called LuLuRaRa to see if they could take a reservation for a large party and they could! The lady on the phone (pretty sure the owner) was so nice and accommodating! We had a few more people then what I thought, but she let us spread out on three tables. All of the panchan was ONO, but my favorite was the Kalbi. OMG, that came out last too, so we were full, but I tried to eat as many pieces as possible. I even took the leftovers home and it was bomb the next day.
I know that the next time I feel like Korean BBQ, this will be one of the places to go to. I actually want to go back as I’m writing this.

Really wish this place got more recognition.
This place literally has THE best kalbi on the island. I don’t know what they season it with but you don’t even need a dipping sauce for it.
The lady who owns the restaurant is also super nice and always helps us cook our meat. This place also has awesome side dishes but be careful because they’re quite spicy.

This place was awesome.
The owner cooked for us and gave us free fish. Definitely coming back!

OMG why did I not hear about this place sooner? Thank you Anthony N. for the awesome recommendation!
In case you don’t already know, Yakiniku LuluRara is located on Keeaumoku St right next to Fat Boys. The venue is kind of small, fits less than 10 tables.
The Grub.
We ordered the Jumulleok ($ 23.99) and the Kalbi ($ 24.99). With your meat order you also get the traditional korean sides, plus salad, deep fried fish, sliced onion, garlic, steamed egg in a hot pot and of course miso paste with side lettuce to make wraps.
Overall, this is definitely one of my top yakiniku places now! The prices are reasonable for the amount of food you get. The kalbi meat was the bomb! So was the Jumulleok. I love love loved that steamed egg~!!

We had originally come to Koreamoku to eat at Ireh, but after seeing all the great Yakiniku LuLuRaRa reviews we changed our minds and decided to try something new. I’m not Korean but I adore all the veggies that come with a true Korean meal and my husband loves anything that’s centered around meat.
Yakiniku LuLuRaRa is not fancy, nor is it neat, so just be prepared for bits of chaos everywhere. There were empty dirty glasses all over the bar when we entered and dirty dishes on most of the tables, but I’m pretty sure this is a two person operation. The owner (or I assume she’s the owner) took our order and we tried to order yakiniku but she insisted we order two meat dishes in order to do so because it comes with extras. We weren’t hungry enough during lunch to do this and decided instead to get the sweet and sour pork (upon her suggestion) and the black bean noodles. The owner showed up «how to eat Korean style,» mixed up a few sauces for us and told us which veggie to dip in each one. Super sweet and very helpful!
Our food was completely awesome as well! The sweet and sour pork was a deep fried pork swimming in a clear sweet and sour sauce. It sounds weird, and I imagine that this is what it would feel like to eat aliens, but It had lots of cucumbers and carrots in it which made me really happy. The black bean noodles were really rich and I still don’t understand how the men before us ate an entire bowl. That’s a TON of noodles!
Lunch was definitely an experience and really good for the price. We’ll surely be back for yakiniku simply because I’m curious to see just how good it is after reading all the rave reviews.

More like 2.5, but will be generous and round to 3.
Review for korean chinese food only
You are probably wondering why I would go to a korean bbq place for korean chinese food. Answer: someone said it is the best so I had to check it out
Jja jang myun (black bean noodle) is suppose to be what is translated «nostalgic/​old school» version of the dish. It is not as oily and has a different taste to the usual version. If you’re expecting the usual, you will be disappointed. In that case you may need to stick to the usual spots for korean chinese food.
Sweet and sour pork seemed too small portion wise. It was also like watery corn syrup instead of the usual sauce. I wouldn’t order that next time.

Disclaimer: I suck at spelling Korean words. I’m sorry.
After a long Sunday full of running around doing errands, followed by a quick retail therapy. My boyfriend suggested Korean bbq.
OKAY SO WHEN IT COMES TO KOREAN BBQ, I prefer all you can eat as opposed to the sets of limited meats. Yes I’m a pig & unlimited brisket and tongue is a win in my book, so I called lulurara to see if they have all you can eat. Boy was I disappointed when the ahjuma said no.
On the car ride there, I was hoping to change my boyfriend’s mind by throwing a hissy fit… But it didn’t work and he managed to zone me out.
In my eyes, I’m always right, and my boyfriend is always wrong but boy… Was I wrong. I didn’t want him to say «I told you so». So I ate in silence while clearly my tummy was such a happy camper. Ugh. I hate being wrong. The ahjuma was wonderful, she took care of us like we were here own kids.
The MEAT that they serve there was delicious. It was so tender it melted in my mouth. Everything about the whole meal just screamed authentic Korean it was so amazing. She even gave us free soybean soup which was to die for and the banchan that was provided was also great. We also got jajangmyun which my boyfriend swears is the best he’s had on the island. Exact words were «it tastes like home.»
If you like tongue like I do, this is the place to get huge slices. Not the dingy ones that everywhere else serves. If you love great service and great food, this is the place to go.
Lesson learned: I will listen to my Korean boyfriend when it comes to finding the best Korean food.
DEFINITELY will be back.

Best yakiniku so far that I have been to in my opinion. This totally beats Sikdorak! Coming in, there were two big groups, but finding a seat was really easy with no wait.
Mama-​san is nice and brings out lots of banchan and also two bonuses that come with your meal — steamed tasty egg in a hot pot and two pieces of deep fried Yellow Corvina. The fish and egg were seasoned perfectly to me and were so tasty. Besides the kim chi and other banchan, there were lettuce for sanchusan or lettuce wraps, a sliced onion to grill, a tasty salad, delicious Korean miso paste and garlic to grill as well.
We ordered kali bi which was the bone in kind. It was already pre sliced thin for grilling and not your typical soy sauce drenched Americanized kal bi. It reminded me of the authentic kal bi in Seoul. We also ordered the shrimp which was seasoned perfectly. You have to order one order a person, so no sharing one dish. Having both though with all this banchan and rice totally satisfied us and was under $ 50.00.
Parking is in the rear off of Liona St. behind Fatboy’s. Great food and good prices in my opinion.

This was my first time here and the reviews did not lie.
The location is very easy to find. Parking is behind Fat Boys on Keeaumoku. There is a sign over the kitchen area in the parking lot so you can see where you need to walk to. It’s a simple & small yakiniku place which was perfect for taking our time eating and talking story.
From the time we entered til the time we left, service was great! The owner was a Korean lady who was very friendly, helped us cook our food & took time to explain the dishes to us. She kept our dishes coming and our drinks full. Even though I only had water and hot tea, she was always refilling our cups. Since we went for a friend’s bday she even took our cake and put it in the refrigerator for us.
The complementary side dishes of kimchee, cabbage & seasoned salad, lettuce leaves for wraps, homemade bean paste, little fried mackerels and a steamed egg dish. There was also garlic pieces, onions and jalapeños that were put on the grill to eat with our meal. In my opinion, the egg dish is my favorite… delicious! She even offered us additional sides if we wanted.
For the meal itself, we ordered the brisket, garlic shrimp, Kalbi & beef tongue. All the meats were tasty & filling. The beef tongue was slightly thicker in slice than I like but after cooking it and using her lemon sauce, not an issue at all. My mouth is drooling as Im writing hahaha In fact, three of our friends who never ate beef tongue before are now beef tongue lovers.
Overall, the prices were reasonable, the food was very tasty and the service was great. Plus when we left, we didn’t smell like smoke or the food we cooked. I will definitely return.

Yakiniku LuLuRaRa is located on Keeaumoku next to Fat Boys. Free parking is located in the rear.
It’s a small restaurant and looks much more open compared to when it was a bar some years ago. The owner is the same and she’s super cute and sweet as ever. My husband said she reminds him of Aunty Su Sen from Sweet Home Café. She cooks the meat for you too!
The food is really tasty. I always order ahn chang when I go to Korean yakiniku restaurants so we ordered that and the kalbi. The portions are not as large as other establishments but we were still completely full and satisfied after eating and the taste more than made up for it.
Besides the usual sides, cabbage salad, seasoned salad and lettuce for the wraps, she brought out two grilled mackerals (or was it yellow corvinas) and a pot of steamed egg! No wonder we were full! Steamed egg is my absolute favorite and I make it at home all the time!
Everything was so delicious and the prices are reasonable. She even brought out her jajangmyeon sauce to taste and boy was it good! They’re open for lunch so you can grab some jajangmyeon to go! She said they make their noodles in house too so it looks like On Dong got some competition now. I’ll have to go back to taste her jajangmyeon with the noodles to decide whose is better. ;)

After just one experience, Yakiniku LuLuRaRa has shot up to my number one Korean yakiniku restaurant. #bargoneyakiniku #heyitcouldhappen
What we ordered:
AHNCHANG ($ 23.99) — Seasoned inner part of rib /​jumool-​luk /​jumulleok.
It was friggin’ fantastic — perfectly tender, not overly seasoned, and still really flavorful! I will probably order this every time.
KALBI /​GALBI ($ 23.99) — Not the «local-​style» drenched-​in-​oversweetened-​marinade kind of kalbi. This is more like a Korean-​style kalbi made with a light marinade, and seasoned with salt and pepper. I don’t think I can do the «local-​style» kalbi anymore bc this was kinda great!
USEOL /​BEEF TONGUE ($ 19.99) — Tongue is always good, especially with lemon juice. And what was great about this tongue was the cut! I liked that it was on the thicker side. :)
#meatlover
«Sarah» is the owner and she was our server /​cook. She grilled our meat and provided great conversation and entertainment. She is really playful and I loved that about her. I promised I’d return, so that’s what I will do! I already have plans for this coming week.
My recommendations:
. If you like jumool-​luk, order the Ahnchang.
. Try the Kalbi bc it’s different from most others.
. Make a reservation if going at prime dinner time (just in case). They’re closed on Tuesdays, but open 11A-​10P every other day.
. Have some chumchurum and dine with awesome friends.
VERDICT
I’m really glad that this place decided to hang up its after-​hours-​drinking-​spot hat and decided to go yakiniku. If this place had transformed years ago, I probably would have been an already established regular.
It’s really no secret — I absolutely LOVE this place! I am now a devout fan and will become a regular Yakiniku LuLuRaRa patron.