Gyenari

With all of the new restaurants popping up in Culver City, it's a little hard to keep track, but Gyenari is definitely one to look for. This Korean BBQ spot opened its doors last month next to other newcomer, Rush Street. After eating both, go for the BBQ! Though no one, not even the Koreans I work with, know how to correctly pronounce the name of this restaurant, the food and the service is still top notch. The interiors are modern and beautiful with a small fountain and a wine bar to greet you. Once you stop for a drink at the bar (I highly the raspberry acai cocktail - so good!), move on to the dining area. The tables are quite large with a little pit to grill your dinner on right in front of you. The backdrop is a gorgeous lit panel showcasing natural elements and surrounded by dark wood walls. Since we were a big group we sat in the semi-private dining area which was essentially a long, skinny room with a couple of tables big enough to seat 10. The wallpaper in the room was beautiful, but it was really distracting to have flat screen TVs at either end playing ESPN. In my personal opinion, they should have left the TV's at the bar. The website says there is a partition to separate the tables if separate parties are occupying the room at once, but there was definitely another big group in the room and no partition to speak of. Having never had Korean BBQ, I left the ordering (and grilling) up to the experts. I certainly didn't mind ordering my own drinks though! Since we were there the Monday after they opened the bar was out of almost every beer, so I gave Hite, a Korean beer, a try and was pleasantly surprised. The table got a round of sparkling sake too, which was far better than normal sake to me. The term champagne of sake would truly apply here. As for the food, I can remember having bulgogi, wagyu beef, pork belly, and filet mignon. Everything was absolutely delicious! If you aren't into grilling your own meal, I think there are alternative options (black cod, salmon, or short ribs) though you'd really be missing out on the appeal of the place to just order one of these. Since I wasn't paying and I wasn't ordering, I've really no clue what the prices are like here, though I'm pretty sure it's worth it for the great food and all-around great experience I had here.

http://gyenari.com/