From grilled beef bulgogi to soft tofu simmered in a Szechuan spicy soup base to chicken fingers and fries, Korill Hut’s menu spans the globe.
Open since March, Korill Hut is a new Korean barbecue and Chinese hot pot restaurant located at 232 East Towne Way inside East Towne Mall. Paul Zheng, vice president at Korill Hut, said there are “over 200 items” on the all-you-can-eat restaurant’s menu.
These range from marinated garlic shrimp and spicy pork belly (cut to cook on a tabletop grill) to thinly sliced Kobe beef and crunchy pieces of lotus root, both meant to be dunked in a simmering pot of broth.
Sliced pork belly is one of the over 200 options to choose from at Korill Hut, a Korean barbecue and hot pot restaurant at East Towne Mall.
“(We) give customers a lot of options to choose from,” Zheng said, clearly an understatement. “Even if they don’t like this, they can get something else.”
Korill Hut is located right by the East Towne Mall food court — along with a main entrance outside the mall, there’s a door into the restaurant right next to the Sarku Japan stall. The restaurant is open Sunday through Thursday from 11:30 a.m. to 10 p.m.; on Fridays and Saturdays, it closes an hour later.
Patrons either pay $20.99 for lunch (12 to 4 p.m.) Monday through Friday or $30.99 for dinner and weekends. Kids cost less, at a rate based on their age. The entire table must either order from the barbecue or hot pot section — to order from both costs an extra $5 per person. Diners have a two-hour window to order and eat.
Zheng said that while many restaurants in Madison offer both cuisines and dining styles individually, he wanted Korill Hut to combine both, a model he’s seen in other restaurants across the U.S.
“Madison doesn’t really have something like this,” he said.
Caleb Yang cuts a grilled steak with a pair of scissors, provided to all the tables at Korill Hut.
Sizzle and simmer
Whether a table chooses barbecue or hot pot, diners are charged with cooking their own meats and vegetables. In front of each diner is an induction burner for the hot pot, and in the center of the table is a place for a grill, to cook the barbecue.
Tables are long and wide to accommodate plates of marinated meats and banchan, small fermented dishes traditionally served alongside Korean barbecue, like kimchi. The dining room seats 150 with room for more on the patio, which Zheng said his team plans to open once their alcohol license is approved.
Korill Hut’s tables are long to accommodate a grill and individual induction burners for hot pot.
Zheng said that servers know how to coach diners if they’ve never eaten hot pot or operated a grill for Korean barbecue. “Our server will tell them how to eat, how to grill, (so) they know what they’re doing,” he said.
Servers explain how to move the retractable hood over the grill and how to adjust the heat on the induction burners. There are also printed guides with instructions, including suggested cooking guides, posted on the wall at each table.
Many of the meats are marinated, but there’s also a sauce bar with over 20 options, from lemon wedges to gochujang (Korean chili paste) to chopped jalapeños, where people can create their own marinades and dips. Above the bar are a few recipes to make sauces, like a recipe for the restaurant’s signature Korill sauce, made with cilantro, peanut sauce, soy sauce, garlic and sesame oil.
Diners can grab banchan, or small sides common in Korean barbecue, at the sauce bar at Korill Hut.
Servers suggest ordering 2-3 dishes at a time to avoid food waste (there’s a surcharge for food that has to be thrown away). But it’s easy to order multiple rounds — food comes out quickly, and Korill Hut encourages people to share and try lots of dishes.
“Everything comes out raw,” said Zheng. The excitement comes from cooking in real time.
Still in ‘soft opening’ mode
Zheng said Korill Hut is still in a soft opening mode as they wait for their alcohol license. Despite that, the restaurant is already popular, especially on weekends. He said wait times on Friday and Saturday can be up to 45 minutes.
That doesn’t mean patrons leave Korill Hut thirsty. Mall hoppers and restaurant patrons can order boba tea options à la carte, such as Thai iced milk tea ($4.99) and a fruit combo boba tea ($4.99) made with strawberry, passionfruit and grapefruit.
Vanessa Leavitt grills meat at Korill Hut in Madison.
In the future, Korill Hut intends to add “more quality meats and seafood,” Zheng said, as the staff learns what customers want. He wants to keep the menu expansive, with vegan and gluten-free options as well as buffet-style chicken nuggets and fries available by the sauce station.
Incredibly, those 200 items aren’t enough. Still, he wants to give customers more options to choose from.
link
