Mama's Restaurant

We went to Mama's Restaurant on October 25 for a birthday celebration. We were a large party of ten people so we needed to put an extra table at the end of one of the grill tables to accommodate everyone at one table. It worked out well because three people were vegetarians so they sat at the end without the grill, but if all of us wanted barbecue we would have needed to break up into two separate tables.

Those of us who had barbecue shared the rib eye, short ribs, spicy pork, spicy pork belly, and spicy squid. They were all delicious, but the "spicy" pork, pork belly, and squid were not what I would call "hot." I would have liked for them to have more heat, but they were delicious nonetheless. Everyone was served a bowl of rice and the table had all of the traditional sides; including kimchi, cole slaw, and cucumber salad.. The barbecue was out of this world, so I would love to give five stars, however the service was very slow and the timing of the meal was off. They would bring two or three dishes at a time and not be back for another five to ten minutes with the next two or three. We'd had all of our meat for about twenty minutes before we received our rice. Everyone who ordered entrees from the kitchen received their meals far after we received the meat for the grill, which was unfortunate as well.

Bottom line: The food is incredible, the service is mediocre. Don't go in expecting a quick meal. Expect to spend an hour and a half for dinner, at least. It's a nice experience sitting down with friends enjoying the meal. A quick dinner is not on the menu.

I like this place, but my Korean students told me there is no real korean food in B-town. Given their verdict, I think my taste could be skewed towards "non-koreans". Most of the korean restaurants in the US are very expensive, Mama's is no exception. I would say, if you could make the dishes yourself, don't go; otherwise, this is probably one of the best places to have korean food in B-town.

The BBQ is delicious and fun!  You have your own grill to cook your meats, so it's made the way you want it and brought to you fresh.  :)

All the meat I tried was tasty, but I especially liked the Bar-B-Q Spicy Pork Belly.  It's fattier, but tastier.

The sides are also pretty good - nothing that blew me away, but pretty standard stuff.  I just really enjoyed cooking my own food, and the portions they give are plenty.

The service was very nice as well.  The pricing was just a tad expensive.  It's a great experience, though, so it's definitely a place worth checking out.