Jump into the Korean cuisine for nourishing, flavorful dishes, soups, and stews that will defeat any soju-induced hangover.
Korean food can be intimidating to newcomers with its fiery-red colors and funky fermented aromas. But don’t be scared. Although many Korean dishes are red from peppers, they’re generally not as hot as they look.
Here’s our list of some of the best Korean restaurants in Tucson.
This family-owned eatery serves comforting Korean classics such as beef bulgogi, dolsot bibimbap in a sizzling stone bowl, and hearty doenjang jigae soup.
They also expanded the space with private room karaoke, available by reservation.
Despite having “Korean BBQ” in it’s name, this restaurant does not have grills at the table. Instead, order prepared dishes such as kalbi dolsot bibim bap, which has sliced beef short ribs and assorted veggies over rice in a hot stone bowl. For hot summer days, order the naeng myun, which has buckwheat noodles in a chilled beef broth with sliced beef and vegetables.
The small space usually one has one server working, so service can be on the slower side.
Self-labeled as Arizona’s oldest Korean restaurant, Korea House opened in 1985.
While standards such as beef bulgogi and fried mandoo are the most popular, come for their extensive soup and stew selection. The sul long tang features a rich beef bone broth with shredded brisket, tripe, and sweet potato noodles with a side of white rice.
Kotu specializes in all-you-can-eat Korean barbecue with their beef dry-aging fridge proudly on display in the dining room. The classic menu is already extensive with options such as marinated boneless short rib and Louisiana Cajun shrimp, but opt in for the premium menu if you’d like the sliced beef tongue or a one of the larger short rib options.
For the sides, make sure to get the pickled radish wrap to wrap your meats. For carbs, go with the kimchi fried rice, tukppoki spicy rice cake, or bulgogi sot bab hot stone rice bowl.
Solo diners be aware — all-you-can-eat dine-in requires a minimum of two people here.
This little chicken shop in the Park Place Mall food court sells Korean chicken wings and tenders that stay crunchy despite the glaze. The chicken comes with a side of hand-cut skin-on fries (rice available instead upon request) and pickled red cabbage.
The menu also features a chicken sandwich, chicken mayo rice bowl, and noodle tteokbokki. For a drink, try the sikhye, a sweet rice beverage with a touch of malt.
Taegukgi originally opened in San Diego, then opened a Tucson location. However, the San Diego location closed, leaving only the Tucson location remaining with The Korean Rose cafe and tea house next door.
The all-you-can-eat menu selection varies depending on the original or premium option; opt in for premium for access to the marinated short ribs and romaine lettuce for wrapping. Also take advantage of the available sides of shredded scallion pamuchim salad and the crispy scorched rice nulungee.
While Takamatsu’s menu includes Japanese sushi and bento boxes, their strength lies in their Korean barbecue and traditional Korean dishes.
Rarer options include the yeom soh bokeum, which is a spicy goat and vegetable stir fry, and bul-nak joungol for two, which is a spicy rib-eye and intentionally chewy octopus stew.
While HeeMee offers an everchanging variety of handmade not-too-sweet pastries and cakes, they also offer a variety of Korean rice bowls and sandwiches. Go for the Ban-Ban Chicken Bowl, which includes a half-portion of sweet garlic fried chicken and a half-portion of spicy Korean fried chicken.
On the drink side, get the Einspanner, which has local Yellow Brick Coffee cold brew topped with sweet cream.