This Arizona All-You-Can-Eat Spot Is Famous For One Cut Everyone Comes Back For
Let me tell you about the time I went to Kotu Korean BBQ in Arizona and accidentally ate my weight in short ribs.
Okay, maybe not my weight but seriously, one bite of their legendary galbi (that’s Korean-style marinated short ribs to the uninitiated), and I understood why people drive across state lines just for this.
At Kotu, it’s not just all-you-can-eat—it’s all-you-can-eat magic.
Servers whisk plates of perfectly marbled, caramelized beef to your sizzling grill while you sit there wondering how something so tender could possibly be legal.
I came for dinner.
I left with a food coma, a happy heart, and a deep, unshakable loyalty to a restaurant where “just one more plate” turns into five.
If you’re in Arizona and haven’t tried the galbi at Kotu… are you even living?
The Famous LA Short Rib That Steals The Show
Walking into Kotu for the first time, you might feel overwhelmed by all the menu choices, but trust me when I say the LA short rib is where your journey should begin.
Thinly sliced and marinated to perfection, this cut has earned its reputation as the absolute star of the restaurant.
People mention it in nearly every conversation about Kotu, and for good reason.
The meat arrives at your table looking picture-perfect, with just the right amount of marbling running through each slice.
When it hits the grill, the transformation is pure magic as the edges caramelize and the marinade creates these little pockets of sweet and savory goodness.
The texture is buttery soft, practically melting on your tongue without any of that chewy toughness you sometimes get at lesser barbecue joints.
What makes this cut truly special is how the kitchen prepares it with such care and consistency.
Each slice is cut to the perfect thickness so it cooks evenly and quickly on your tabletop grill.
The marinade balances sweetness with umami depth, letting the natural beef flavor shine through without overpowering it.
Regulars know to order this cut first, often multiple rounds of it, because once you taste it, everything else becomes a supporting character in your dining experience.
Service That Feels Like A Well-Choreographed Dance
Something pretty remarkable happens when you sit down at Kotu, and it takes a minute to figure out exactly what it is.
Then it hits you: the service operates like a perfectly synchronized team rather than individual servers protecting their own tables.
One person takes your order, another delivers your food within minutes, and a third swoops in to clear empty plates before your table gets cluttered.
Andy and Vincent get mentioned by name in review after review, which tells you something about how memorable the staff truly is.
These folks don’t just take orders and disappear into the kitchen.
They check on you constantly without being annoying, offer recommendations when you look puzzled, and genuinely seem to care that you’re having a blast.
My favorite moment during my visit was when two different servers brought out complimentary plum drinks at the end of the meal, each not realizing the other had already done so.
Instead of making it awkward, they just laughed it off and let us keep both.
That kind of generous, easygoing attitude makes you want to come back not just for the food but for the whole experience.
The team mentality means you never sit there desperately trying to flag down one specific person, because everyone considers every table their responsibility.
Premium Cuts Worth Every Single Penny
Sure, the classic menu offers plenty to love, but if you really want to understand what Kotu can do, you need to spring for the premium selection.
The ribeye and long bone short rib from this tier are the kind of cuts that make you close your eyes and just appreciate the moment.
These aren’t your average all-you-can-eat offerings where quantity trumps quality.
The ribeye comes out beautifully marbled with fat distributed throughout like little rivers of flavor waiting to be unlocked by heat.
When you grill it to medium rare, the fat renders down and bastes the meat from within, creating this incredibly juicy, rich experience.
The long bone short rib is equally impressive, with meat so tender it practically falls off the bone after just a few minutes on the grill.
What shocked me most was how these premium cuts maintained their quality even after multiple orders.
Some all-you-can-eat places start strong but then send out progressively worse cuts as you keep ordering.
Not here.
Your fifth order of ribeye looks and tastes just as gorgeous as your first.
The kitchen clearly takes pride in maintaining standards, and it shows in every perfectly trimmed, beautifully presented piece of meat that arrives at your table throughout the meal.
Side Dishes That Deserve Their Own Fan Club
Korean barbecue is never just about the meat, and Kotu understands this assignment better than most.
The side dishes, called banchan in Korean, arrive at your table the moment you sit down, creating this beautiful spread of colors and flavors before you’ve even ordered your main proteins.
Corn cheese, that gloriously gooey combination of sweet corn and melted cheese served on a tiny iron griddle, has become something of a cult favorite.
Popcorn chicken shows up crispy and perfectly seasoned with a sweet and spicy coating that makes it dangerously addictive.
The fried shrimp comes with the shell still on, which takes a little getting used to, but once you figure out the technique, the flavor is absolutely worth it.
Traditional sides like kimchi are fresh and properly fermented, not the sad, limp versions you sometimes encounter.
What really impressed me was the variety available beyond the standard banchan.
You can order tteokbokki, those chewy rice cakes in spicy sauce, or japchae, the sweet potato noodles with vegetables.
The cup noodle fried rice is apparently a Kotu specialty you can’t find anywhere else in Tucson, and honestly, that alone is reason enough to visit.
These sides transform the meal from simple grilled meat into a full Korean feast.
Brisket That Lets You Be The Flavor Boss
Not every cut needs to arrive pre-marinated and pre-seasoned to be delicious, and the basic brisket at Kotu proves this point beautifully.
This cut comes to your table completely unseasoned, giving you total control over how you want it to taste.
Some people might see this as lazy, but it’s actually a gift for those who like to customize their experience.
The brisket itself is fresh and well-trimmed, with a good meat-to-fat ratio that keeps it from drying out on the grill.
You can season it simply with just salt and pepper to appreciate the natural beef flavor, or you can go wild with the various sauces and seasonings provided at the table.
The meat is cut thick enough to develop a nice char on the outside while staying tender inside.
One clever trick regulars use is grilling the cinnamon pineapple first to season the grill grates with sweet, caramelized goodness, then cooking the brisket on that same surface.
The subtle sweetness left behind complements the beef perfectly without overwhelming it.
This versatility makes brisket a sleeper hit for people who appreciate having creative control over their meal.
Plus, when you’re pacing yourself through an all-you-can-eat session, having some simpler flavors helps reset your palate between the more intensely marinated options.
The Grill System That Saves Your Wardrobe
Anyone who has eaten Korean barbecue knows the struggle: you leave smelling like you’ve been working in a smokehouse for the past three hours.
Your hair holds onto that grilled meat scent, your clothes need immediate washing, and you basically become a walking advertisement for where you just ate.
Kotu has solved this age-old problem with a brilliant ventilation system built right into each table.
The grills are equipped with side-exhaust systems that pull smoke away from your face and down through vents before it has a chance to permeate your clothing.
The difference is immediately noticeable compared to other Korean barbecue restaurants where smoke billows up into your eyes and hair.
You can actually see the smoke getting sucked sideways into the vents as your meat sizzles away.
This might seem like a small detail, but it completely changes the dining experience, especially if you’re eating there on a date or before heading somewhere else.
The restaurant stays remarkably clear of smoke despite having dozens of grills going at once.
The air feels fresh and breathable rather than thick and hazy.
Plus, the kitchen uses real beef fat instead of butter to grease the grills, which adds authentic flavor while producing less acrid smoke than other fats might create.
Bulgogi That Brings The Sweet Heat Balance
Bulgogi is one of those dishes that can vary wildly depending on who’s making it, and Kotu’s version leans into the traditional flavor profile with confidence.
The thinly sliced beef comes pre-marinated in a mixture that balances sweetness from pear or sugar with savory soy sauce and aromatic garlic and sesame.
When it hits the hot grill, the sugars caramelize quickly, creating crispy edges while the center stays tender.
Some folks have noted that the spice level can be a bit assertive without as much balancing sweetness as they’d prefer, which is totally fair feedback.
But for those who like their bulgogi with a bit more kick, this preparation delivers exactly that.
The marinade penetrates deep into the meat, so every bite carries that signature flavor rather than just coating the surface.
Pairing the bulgogi with the bulgogi rice takes the experience to another level.
The rice soaks up all those delicious meat juices and caramelized bits that fall through the grill grates, turning plain rice into something spectacular.
The key is not to overthink it; just grill the meat until the edges get a little charred and crispy, then wrap it in lettuce with some rice and whatever banchan strikes your fancy.
That combination of textures and temperatures, hot meat with cool crisp lettuce, is what Korean barbecue is all about.
The Post-Meal Plum Drink Tradition
Just when you think your meal is complete and you’re leaning back in satisfied fullness, your server arrives with a small bottle of carbonated plum drink.
This isn’t something you order or pay extra for; it’s a complimentary gift from the restaurant to help with digestion after you’ve consumed what probably amounts to several pounds of grilled meat.
The gesture is so thoughtful and unexpected that it leaves a lasting impression.
The drink itself is lightly sweet and refreshing, with a delicate plum flavor that isn’t overpowering or artificial tasting.
The carbonation provides a gentle palate cleanser that cuts through the richness of all that beef and pork you just devoured.
It’s the perfect way to transition from feast mode back to normal human being mode before you waddle out to your car.
This small touch exemplifies what makes Kotu special beyond just the food quality.
Someone there thought about the entire dining experience from start to finish, including how guests would feel after eating so much rich food.
The plum drink tradition has become so beloved that regulars look forward to it as much as the meal itself.
It’s these kinds of thoughtful details, the ones that show genuine care for guest comfort, that transform a good restaurant into a place people genuinely love and recommend to everyone they know.