Kristalbelli
“Wagyu Beef Rib Eye- I love that we were able to watch our server prepare the steak and vegetables on the crystal belly!”
“The dry-aged ribeye cooked perfectly medium rare in a slug of its own fat and paired with the 5 year aged salt was mouth-watering.”
“Our Rib Eyes and Wagyu were brought out prior to grilling, so you see and admire the marbling.”
Kristalbelli
Takes Reservations: Yes
Delivery: Yes
Accepts Credit Cards: Yes
Wheelchair Accessible: Yes
Good for Groups: Yes
Waiter Service: Yes
Caters: Yes
Price range.
$$$ Price range $31-60
8 reviews
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I am sorry in advance for the long review. I'm just really excited to write about kristabelli.*
This is hands down my favorite Korean restaurant. I wouldn't mind taking MTA to come here again.
Like what other yelpers say- kristabelli is off from Ktown but a 5 minute walk from it.
I wouldn't have been able to know it was kristabelli from the outside because there wasn't any name on the store front. But I remember seeing the door on Yelp and was able to walk right in.
When I first walked in, I told the host I came with a party of 6 who was already inside. She knew who I was with and led me to the table.
I haven't been to the upstairs/downstairs but only the main floor. It has a nice vibe and it's casual yet fancy.
Although attire is casual, many were dressed in professional clothes- shirt and pants. I didn't see anyone in a tank top, tshirt, shorts etc, you get the deal.
For starters, we had champagne. I'm not sure what champagne it was but it was bubbly and sweet. I'm not a huge fan of champagne but it was pretty damn good.
Then the appetizers came. We had the shrimp salad, pork full moon dumplings and the duck confit gujulpan.
1. The shrimp salad was on point!! It is deep fried shrimp on salad in chili sauce and sweet mayo sauce. It had a spicy taste but it was really good. Thinking about how to word it got me salivating. If you're conflicted on what app to order, order this; you won't regret it!
2. The pork full moon dumplings. These dumplings looked like pancakes at first (look at the picture). But you pretty much separate it from the top and it's individual dumpling. These dumplings were perfectly cooked. It was not burnt at all in any way, anywhere and to me, only the outside seemed fried and the rest was steamed. It was clean tasting and didn't leave a fatty feeling at the end.
3. The duck confit gujulpan. Honestly I didn't know it was even duck. I'm not a fan of eating animals outside of cow, pig and chicken and even then, I'm not a big fan of them. You wrap a flour like wrap with all sorts of pickled vegetables and the duck and eat it. It tastes healthy and light. The duck was well cooked and well I'm not sure how a duck is supposed to taste since it was my first time having it but it didn't taste too different from chicken.
Now for the entree..
To start of the entree, we had a bottle of red wine. The wine wasn't too strong and not too light either. It was a perfect balance of how I like my wine. It was perfect, tart yet sweet. From what I remember, it was one of their wine? Hrm not too sure. but at this point, with the apps and this delicious glass of wine, I'm sure everything they have here is good.
Anyways, for the entree, we had the wagyu rib eye, dry-aged rib eye, duck, and the grilled black cod.
1. The wagyu rib eye was AMAZING!! It was cooked medium-rare. The special thing about the wagyu is that supposedly they massage the cow and feed it the best things so the meat is more tender. And it really is. It's soft and tender and delicious. The crystal grill they use is a crystal stone so everything that they cook on it and wash beforehand is clean. Unlike the charcoal grill which leaves chemicals behind even after you wash it. It also prevents you from smelling like kbbq (and i really did not smell like kbbq afterwards!)
2. The dry aged rib eye was my favorite. It was really tasty and the meat you can tell is of good quality. It was aged 4 years before we ate it and I do not regret enjoying it. It was worth every penny.
3. Duck. I personally didn't eat the duck because I'm not a fan of duck. So I'll skip.
4. The grilled black cod. The fish was so tender and soft. It was well seasoned and the fish melts in your mouth. If you're a fan of seafood, definitely get this!
Lastly, you can't have dinner without desserts! We ordered Black Forest baked Alaska, green tea roll, chocolate lava cake and some dessert I don't even know the name to.
1. Black Forest baked Alaska. It's meringue covered devil's food cake layered with raspberry sorbet. The raspberry sorbet was tart and fresh and a good dessert to have after dinner. Eating this was refreshing.
2. The green tea roll had a perfect balance of green tea and citrusy cream filling. It came with a side of icecream and red bean. Eating this green tea roll reminded of the time I had a roll in jejudo 's green tea farm in Korea!
3. The chocolate lava cake. The chocolate cake was oozing with the lava of a chocolate. It was warm and the way to my heart.
4. The last dessert the name I forgot and don't know. The cookie type was veryyyyyy good and chewy. It was sweet and the icecream on the side was my favorite. I'll attach pictures!! But this has got to be my favorite dessert.
On top of all this, all the staff here were great! They kept filling my cup with water and my glass with wine. They were knowledgeable with everything we had to ask in the menu, and they were very friendly.
I can't wait to go again!!
Keep an eye out or you'll miss it. That's what happened when my husband and I tried to find this place. It was basically hidden behind it's huge wooden door. There is no bright lighting so make sure you pay attention.
My first impression of this place was that it was the most upscale, classy Korean restaurant that I've ever been too. Everything was beautifully modern in design, including crystal grills which have special vents that suck up all the smoke so the place and your clothes doesn't smell as bad as it would in a traditional Korean BBQ place. Since you are getting all of this, don't be surprised if the price is more expensive than a mom and pop restaurant.
We went there on a special evening (for Valentines Day's) so there was a set menu. We had like 6-7 courses. We were giving a palette cleanser and an amuse bouche to start. Fancy. Don't expect "traditional" Korean food here. You will see a modernized version of your favorite dishes. I loved the bulgogi rolls with its tasty salad and the filet mignon as well. Basically everything came out delicious. I was even amazed by the fancy chocolate ball dessert. You know the one that they pour hot chocolate sauce over and then it opens up to reveal a surprise. In our case, it was fresh fruit.
My only issue was that since it was a holiday, we felt rushed. They cleaned our plates so quickly after each course. It seemed like they were watching the clock to make sure the next reservation was going to have the table on time.
I would love to come back here the next time I'm in NY. It is in a great location near all the hotels.
Solely based on my restaurant week experience.
A few blocks from K-Town, you'll find a door that leads you to a semi-dark restaurant with a fine dining vibe. Immediately, you're greeted by a host who quickly guides you to your table.
Soon after water is brought to your table and someone is CONSTANTLY keeping it filled to the brim.
I chose Japchae, Wagyu Kalbi and Green Tea Roll Cake.
I was scared it wouldn't be filling as most restaurant week menus leave me feeling extremely hungry. That wasn't the case here BUT there were some kinks to the food served.
Japchae: Personally felt this was a very hearty portion with subtle flavors that were incorporated with a variety of vegetables and meat. I would have to note that I noticed the glass noodles were slightly overcooked as it almost felt a bit mushy.
Wagyu Kalbi: Don't except your typical wagyu meat. It tasted like any other galbi, nothing special here. The meat wasn't as tender as I had imagined or expected it to be. Also noted that there was a bit more sauce than I expected coated over the meat. I would have preferred to have tasted the wagyu quality meat than the over coated sauce.
Green Tea Roll Cake: Cake was completely dry and one bite hits you with a blast of matcha. The cream inside the case was zesty and slightly covered the dry cake. HOWEVER the ice cream flavor was truly unbelievable, minus the ice pieces I found in my scoop. Decadent and left me wanting more. I'd have to note that I thought the red bean was unnecessary and would have preferred to see something less flavorful as all the other flavors stood out and when combined was a bit overwhelming.
Overall, I enjoyed my experience. Service was friendly and quick but the food wasn't anything to DIE for. I wouldn't say this is a MUST TRY.
After eating here, I don't think I can have kBbq anywhere else ever again. Everything was prepped and served perfectly. When you walk in you don't know it's a Korean bbq joint, there's no smell or smoke. That's right, no smoke or smell, I left with my clothes smelling how I walked in.
The manager and hostess were very friendly, everyone was very friendly. I dropped a spoon and someone rushed over to give me a new one before I even picked it up.
The half moon dumplings were amazing, the duck wraps were amazing and the meat, it was beyond amazing. Cooking on a crystal stone sears the meat to perfection. The wagyu and dry aged steaks were so delicious, I think i could've eaten those till bankruptcy. Fun fact: kristebelli is named so because it's a crystal over the belly of Buddha.
Finally we had dessert which were all perfect, from the baked Alaska, the green tea cake to the chocolate lava cake, everything was perfect.
Stumbled upon this joint after a bar crawl around the area. Heard good things about it so worth a shot. I pictured this to be a fancy korean restaurant with a modern twist. No typical bbq grill. Instead you will see a crystal plate on top of a grill of some sort. Looks nice.
I came during restaurant week so I ordered from there. I tried the following-
– Wild Mushroom: did not taste truffle at all (so expect a bunch of diff mushrooms in a small plate)
– Crab Salad: impartial
– Crispy Salmon: like it
– Beef Tartare: love it
– Wagyu Rib Eye: not the best wagyu rib eye I had but this is probably the best thing you can order from the entree section– a lot of fat though
– Wagyu Marinated Galbi: not the best cut of meat compared to the rib eye (a given)
– Chocolate Cake: impartial
– Wild Mushroom Bibimbap: good, healthy version of a typical korean bibimbap
Staff was not friendly or nice. Asked for substitutions due to allergies and they said ok but ended up ignoring the request and giving me the original menu items. Also, asked for water. Waiter forgot about it. Had to remind them. For the name, I expected more. Won't be back. I prefer the regular korean bbq restaurants.
Came for restaurant week with work colleagues for a 'treat yoself' lunch! The ambiance is great and I think that's what you're paying for. It is overpriced and the food is not as good as most places in K-Town. Normally I would give it four stars since it was an okay experience and the quality of food was good. I docked a star because we did feel rushed by the service – they cleared the plates so quickly after each course and it was a weekday lunch.
Nice ambiance early on Saturday evening–upbeat background music and prompt seating.
We decided not to order dishes to grill at our table…I think our service suffered because of that. After our drinks came out, it took a while for our entrees to arrive. Our server was not friendly, and tried to rush us out after we finished our entrees, even though there was only one other occupied table.
We ordered the bibimbap and the bulgogi, as well as the mushrooms as an appetizer. The mushrooms never came out, and since we weren't charged for them, we didn't bother mentioning it to our server. The food was uninspired and the portions were pretty small for the price–I don't understand all the great reviews on Yelp because that was not our experience at all.
The complimentary blob of potato salad and the squished, packaged store bought looking dinner roll were something I've never seen at a Korean restaurant. And the sides of kimchee, tofu and something else was put in one dish instead of the individual small bowls in every other Korean restaurant I've been to. Living in San Diego, we have a variety of Korean bbq's and other restaurants, so I have some experience with this.
The price for 2 glasses of wine(small pours), 2 beers and 2 bottles of Voss water came out to $65–wow!
Definitely will not return.
Off the usual Ktown block, this was an unexpected find.
You walk in and notice the restaurant is really long because of the mirrors in the back and feels narrow, but the tables are actually quite wide. It was awk that they seated us at a table for four, but whatever, more space. The seats are really comfy too! The place is pretty modern and dimly lit, so it's nice for dates.
We got a waygu and the pork belly and also split a kimchi stew. They cooked the waygu perfectly and the porkbelly was delicious. The grills are crystal, so we left we no smoke smell.